Eyebrow grooming had become a big trend in improving facial aesthetics and people not only expect makeup to create the perfect eyebrows, but now they also look for ways to keep these perfect brows permanently or semi permanently. Given the duration on what people expect their eyebrows should last, there are two means emerging now which people may choose from to improve the eyebrows: FUE on eyebrows and Microblading. What are these two and which is better?
What is Microblading?
Microblading, also called eyebrow embroidery or 3D Microblading, is a natural eyebrow tattooing technique that utilizes very fine, crisp hair strokes that mimic naturally fuller and typically darker eyebrows. It aims to fully reconstruct, define, cover gaps, or fill-in eyebrows.
Everyone can be a candidate for microblading except for some that requires discussion and doctor’s consultation. People who are using retinol products, allergic to Nickel, taking blood thinners, have skin irritations in the area, pregnant women, have a history of keloid scarring may not be a good candidate for this procedure. This goes also for people with permanent makeup and chemotherapy patients.
How is it different from FUE on Eyebrows?
In Microblading, a specialized hand-controlled tool creates microscopic cuts or microstrokes in the skin, planting a pigment that resembles natural eyebrow hair. In an FUE eyebrow transplant, hair follicles from the scalp are individually harvested and transplanted to the eyebrow area to achieve natural and full eyebrows.
While both procedures are fit to enhance the eyebrows, and adds overall harmony to the facial features, there are still major differences with the results. In microblading, the pigment is tattooed mainly in the epidermis of the skin and it will look three dimensional from the front but if the patient has very sparse eyebrows, it will still appear sparse from non-frontal angles. Unlike normal tattooing, the procedure is only done on the epidermis, so the effect is semi-permanent but it will only have a fixed color unless you conduct another procedure for a touch up. Eyebrow transplants, however, are three dimensional just as native eyebrows are and there’s no need to mimic the shape of normal eyebrow hair. And because it is still real hair, the transplant delivers a permanent result and patients can maintain a natural hair color or dye it to match the current style or preference.
Determining the shape of the desired eyebrow is very important for both procedures, however, compared to transplanted eyebrows, microbladed eyebrows can’t easily be reshaped immediately when done wrong. It may also look like a well-shaped eyebrows and 3D looking at first, but if not checked well on other angles, it may look different and unnatural. Transplanted eyebrows still need to be checked if it achieved the desired shape but if not, it will be easier to reshape it thru proper trimming. Maintenance of the brows may be easier for microbladed once as it already followed a certain shape. Unlike for transplanted brows, the hair follicles may tend to grow faster and opposite of the eyebrow direction, but as mentioned, it can be trimmed short to grow in the right direction and patients can maintain it to match the desired or current style or color.
The microblading procedure may be of a lesser cost compared to an FUE eyebrow transplant, since the cost of the transplant will also depend on the number of grafts or hair follicles transplanted and the experience of the hair transplant surgeon while with microblading, you will only refer to the expertise of a licensed technician. What patients have to take note though, is the permanency of both procedures; microblading generally lasts for 1-3 years but eyebrows transplanted by FUE will last for a lifetime, unless patients are subjected to an illness which alters the hair structure. Eventually, patients will still pay more for additional touch ups and more trips to a microblading technician than in a transplant and this doesn’t include the risks of getting a bad microbladed brows.
In general, both procedures will deliver the desired results, but it is important to check which procedure will give the better, long-lasting and natural-looking brows later on. Learn more about eyebrow transplant by FUE to help you in making the right decision for your brows. Book for a consultation with NuHart to help you determine if eyebrow transplant is right for you.