The Untold Risks Of Microblading

What is microblading?

Microblading is a process of adding semi-permanent tattoos to your eyebrow area that resemble hairs. The intent of microblading is to give you eyebrows that look fuller and more shapely.

The process isn’t new, but it’s been growing in popularity in recent years. It is part of a growing series of trends that includes brow lamination and brow tinting. If your eyebrows look overly plucked, or you just want to give yourself a makeover, microblading may seem tempting. The cost of microblading runs anywhere from $200 to $2,000, at an average of $600 in the U.S.

However, the risks of this process may easily outweigh the benefits for any given person.

How long does microblading last?

In the best-case scenario, microblading lasts for about a year. Past that point, you will need to go in for touch-ups if you want to keep the same look for your eyebrows.

How long microblading lasts can depend on who provides the service and who receives it. For example, many beauty technicians who offer microblading are not very experienced. In their hands, the new look may last for only a few months rather than an entire year.

And even if the technician is skilled, other beauty products and techniques you rely on can shorten the microblading duration. For example, if you use skin peels or treat your acne with tretinoin, it can significantly decrease how long microblading lasts.

How quickly does your skin heal?

The microblading healing process often lasts between 10 and 14 days. For best results, you will need to follow a brow maintenance routine and avoid certain activities for a short time.

In terms of brow maintenance, the first 48 hours after microblading are very important. During this time, you may need to blot your brow every few hours. This helps remove any excess oil or lymph fluid that may have accumulated.

In the first few days after getting microbladed, you’ll need to avoid swimming, sweating, or saunas: you need to keep your brow dry during this time.

As part of the healing process, you may notice your brow getting lighter for about six weeks. If you get too much sun before or after that time, it can fade your brows out more than you like.

And as it turns out, having to avoid sunlight is only one of many annoyances that come from getting microbladed!

You may not get the look you wanted

One of the biggest risks of microblading is the most common. Specifically, the risk that you won’t get the look you are going for.

Most who go in for a microblading procedure bring inspiration images that tell the beautician what kind of look they are going for. You may go in wanting to look like a model and come out looking like a cartoon.

This is one of the reasons many different modeling agencies forbid their models from pursuing microblading. It can change someone’s look for the worst, and that can last a very long time.

The risk of infection

After a microblading procedure, you may experience an infection. Such an infection is likeliest to occur shortly after the procedure.

This is why you need to monitor your skin redness, swelling, oozing, or crusting. All of these are signs you could be suffering from an infection and need to seek medical attention right away!

No FDA regulation

Another reason you should be hesitant about microblading is that the procedure is not approved by the FDA. That means you have no way of knowing the relative safety of what goes into the pigment that is going onto your skin.

Over the years, many who get microbladed go on to suffer allergic reactions. And there is a chance of a more serious contamination of your body. If you’re not careful, you could end up dealing with allergies, infection, and contamination on top of getting stuck with a bad look!

Possible long-term and permanent effects

The final reason we recommend steering clear of microblading is that it may have long-term and permanent effects. Because there is no way of knowing exactly what these effects are, microblading may make you unhappy about your look for a very long time.

For example, it is not common, but some people end up with permanent scars due to microblading. Other people end up making their existing scars look worse after undergoing the procedure.

Speaking of looking worse, you might not like how your brows end up looking. Some people’s brows end up looking an unnatural shade of brown or even blue or gray. When this happens, all you can do is try to cover up the damage with a pencil.

And despite the process being advertised as temporary, many have reported that their brow color and shape have been changed forever. Ultimately, we think microblading is too big a risk to take when you could end up permanently altering your face and looking worse than ever!