Skin Renewal Archives - Pretty Please Charlie

Earlier this year I didn’t think that I would ever say these words again, but I love my hair!

Hair Loss Update: I love my hair again!

I really love my hair. It’s such a great feeling. And I’m getting my confidence back! And I am loving my short hair. Now that is something I never thought I’d ever say in a million years. And I went even shorter after the big chop (that you can read about HERE).

If you’re not familiar with my hair loss story, you are welcome to pop over HERE. The following pics will also make a lot more sense then.

Look at all that hair!! I still can’t believe that my hair is so thick and healthy.

The ‘going-on-bald’ patch I had on my head is gone! (Yes, there are way too many exclamation marks in this post, but I am just so damn happy and excited. Forgive me.)

I also have my curls back. And they are back with a vengeance!

This has been quite a ride. Not a fun one. I know I’m extremely lucky that it all turned out the way it has.

And it’s all thanks to the following…

The Renewal Institute

I told you about how Skin & Body Renewal helped me get to the root of my problem (I know; I love puns) in the hair loss post I mentioned earlier. Their love and care has meant the world to me. Plus they were the ones that taught me the importance of supplementing your diet with vitamins and minerals, especially during times of extreme stress. I am now that annoying person who says ‘do you take supplements’ as soon as anybody mentions any health issue. And I’m not even sorry! I now pop my pills every day and I am better off for it. Skin Renewal shared my story and info on how stress can effect your health on their blog HERE.

Tosca Hair & Beauty

This kind people of Tosca Hair & Beauty has been caring for my hair and they have been so amazing. It’s not easy dealing with an emotional client who bursts into tears the moment they sit down in the chair. Thank you for the treatments, the care, the laughter. And my awesome new short hair do. I love it!! See you again soon.

Trichotin Hair Regenesis

This. Oh my word, I don’t have enough words to express my love for Trichotin Hair Regenesis. This is my ultimate hair hero!! My hair is in the best condition it has ever been. It’s healthy, strong, thick, dense. And curly! IT’S GORGEOUS!! This magical green supplement can be life changing. It has been for me. It really (REALLY!) works. If you haven’t read my previous posts about this phenomenal product and your wondering what the hell I’m on about, please read about it HERE. You won’t regret it. And thank you Fusion Laboratories for Trichotin. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

Microblading has been the buzzword over the last couple of years and when the kind people at Skin and Body Renewal asked me if I wanted to try it out, my answer was HELL YEAH!

Microblading

Microblading is an eyebrow enhancing procedure where tiny scratches are made in the skin using a manual handheld tool that implants permanent makeup pigments into the upper layers of the skin. The aim is to create hair-like strokes that mimic natural hairs to give you fuller-looking brows and/or alter the shape of your brows.

I only learned exactly how microblading is done a day before my procedure. That tells you a lot about the faith I have in Skin and Body Renewal, hey? From my experience, all Skin and Body Renewal staff and therapists are highly trained and skilled, so I wasn’t very stressed.

But I strongly advise that you do not make the decision to have your brows done without doing your research. It is still a tattoo. On your face!! And it’s permanent. You want to make a 100% sure that the person you entrust with your brows, knows what they are doing.

I’ve seen a few Youtube videos where people DIY this procedure at home… rather save your money and have it done by a professional. I beg you!

Today I want to answer a few questions you may have and also show you my before and after pics that were taken on the day of my first procedure. My touch-up is scheduled for 12 August and after that’s healed completely, I will do another post with pics.

I had my eyebrows microbladed!

On the 23rd of June, I had my eyebrows microbladed at Skin and Body Renewal in Stellenbosch.

The first step was a brow tint as my brows are very light. The therapist then applied a numbing cream and whilst that was doing its job, I had a little while to relax.

Then followed the most time-consuming part of the whole process… getting the exact shape that I wanted. Luckily my brows were already in a good shape (roughly) and all I wanted was for the gaps to be filled and for my brows to appear a little fuller above the current hairline. The therapist even used an App to ensure that she got the perfect shape. How awesome is that?

Then it was time to get tattooed. And yes, this is a tattoo and it IS permanent. There is no such thing as a semi-permanent tattoo (the Chinese symbol on my back is proof of that). Permanent makeup does tend to fade much quicker than a ‘normal’ tattoo as a different type of ink is used and there are many different factors that contribute to how fast this happens (think UV exposure, skincare products and treatments, lifestyle, health, etc.). Anyway, back to the procedure…

Microblading is done using a manual tool (and not with a tattoo gun/machine as I initially thought). The tool is made up of individual needles soldered together, and even though the technique is called microblading, the tool is not a blade at all.

Now you’re probably wondering if this technique of opening the skin and impregnating it with colour hurts? Uhm, yes it does. I was actually surprised as I have quite a few tattoos and they didn’t really hurt. And then I realised that I am a complete sissy when it comes to pain on my face. It also hurt when the therapist plucked a few stray eyebrow hairs. So to answer your question again…

Is microblading painful? Only if you can’t handle a little discomfort on your face. Like me.

The process didn’t take too long and I was super happy when the therapist showed me my gorgeous ‘new’ brows. What do you think??

I had the procedure done a little more than 3 weeks ago and the skin seems to be healed. The colour is now lighter than in the pics above as the true reflection of the colour can only be assessed 4 – 6 weeks after treatment.

It is extremely important to take great care of your new brows during the healing process, especially during the first 10 days. Those first 10 days were a bit of a pain as you have to avoid water. And as someone who likes to wash their face, I found the cotton rounds and cleansing wipes a bit irritating. I think my brows started to flake around day 7 and a little itchiness set in. But both were not really noticeable and the aftercare ointment I received sorted that out within a couple of days.

I will give you my final verdict after I have my touch-up, but I can say this…

Is it worth the trouble? YES.

Is it worth the discomfort? YES.

Is it worth the expense? YES.

If you have your procedure done at Skin and Body Renewal (which I highly recommend!), it will cost you R1 250 for your first microblading session and R1 100 for the touch-up.

xoxo

Disclosure ranking: 2