A blog post about what Microshading is and why it’s better than Microblading.
Unless you’re one of the lucky ones, you probably have some sort of Brow upkeep you have to maintain. For some, it’s a trim when the hairs get too long. For others, it’s a brow tint every 2 weeks and lamination once a month. And for most, they’re in-between: plucking or waxing or threading because hair grows outside of your desired shape, but within your shape it’s sparse or uneven or patchy, which then requires you to fill in your brows (pencil/pomade/powder).
So there are alllll these various levels of upkeep. It’s few and far between where there is someone out there who literally has to do nothing but a little trim every now and then.
If you’re looking for a Semi Permanent Solution to your brow woes, a cosmetic tattoo is your answer. In this post i’ll be breaking down the main difference between MicroBlading and MicroShading.
MicroBlading
You’ve probably heard of this one. Microblading is the process of taking a blade and slicing the skin in very thin strokes to mimic the look of actual brow hair. The shape is custom and the goal is to look as natural as possible.
I, personally, LOVE the look of MicroBlading…..at first. Who can deny that fluffy brow strokes aren’t absolutely beautiful? The truth is, for most of the population, the healed results are just not ideal. What happens is with Microblading, a literal blade is used (it’s tiny, but still) to slice the skin. Then pigment is deposited in those slices. The “slices” are the hairstrokes, and while beautiful, they can blur together over time. The strokes can be gone over only so many times, so throughout the years, your artist will need to find more areas to put strokes and inevitably you will need to get MicroShading.
MicroShading
The same, but different. MicroShading is the process of taking a Cosmetic Tattoo Machine and a needle cartridge, and depositing the pigment into the skin in tiny “dots.” The “dots” are built up to achieve a darker, fuller look at the tail of the eyebrow, and fade into a gradient or an “Ombre
” look at the front of the brows. The shape is also custom and the goal is still to look at natural as possible.
Now, while MicroShading can look VERY natural, you won’t get those hair strokes like MicroBlading. There are some specific populations that are ONLY a candidate for MicroShading, like mature clients (anyone over 40 or with skin that is thin, sun damaged, sensitive, etc.).
Some of the similarities:
Both use the same pigment
Both are Cosmetic Tattoos
Both last 1-3+ years
Both can look very natural
Healing time and process is the same
Precare and Aftercare are the same