My eyebrows are non-exsitent. I'm one to reply, "Wait, wala pa kong kilay!" for when my friends will come pick me up at home. Eyebrow powder is a must every single day, lest I want to look sick the entire day. I'm really not the type to be swayed by ads and I consider myself a practical person, but the sponsored ads of Pretty Looks on Facebook kept on popping up on my newsfeed, and I keep on looking. LOL. I absolutely loved their before and after shots of the S3 Eyebrow Stranding service, and since they did a lot of celebrity brows, they must be pretty legit. It took me a couple of weeks to decide on trying it out, since tattoos are permanent (and not to mention, expensive). I even messaged two of my Facebook friends who had done this procedure before, and they both said it wasn't painful. (Sold!) Also, I tried to search for detailed reviews but only found a few, so here's mine! Hope this answers some of your questions. :D
Note: This is NOT a sponsored post, and I came here as a paying customer.
Note: This is NOT a sponsored post, and I came here as a paying customer.
Last October 31, I went to Pretty Looks in Il Terrazzo Tomas Morato for S3 Eyebrow Stranding. I chose this date should anyone ask me why I was sporting extra dark eyebrows, I would say "Happy Halloween!" even though I didn't care one bit about this celebration. Haha!
I was booked for an 11AM slot, but it was moved because the one who came before me was late with her appointment. My ever supportive Panda went with me, and we had lunch first at Omakase.
When we came back, it was about my turn so the attendant by the reception area applied topical anesthesia on my brows. I read online (prior to my visit) that a thick layer of anesthesia must be applied to cover all bases. When I saw my brows, I felt that this was a thin layer and that it wasn't enough, so I requested them to add. When the attendant came to me, she said this was already enough, and that more would be added during the procedure.
I was booked for an 11AM slot, but it was moved because the one who came before me was late with her appointment. My ever supportive Panda went with me, and we had lunch first at Omakase.
When we came back, it was about my turn so the attendant by the reception area applied topical anesthesia on my brows. I read online (prior to my visit) that a thick layer of anesthesia must be applied to cover all bases. When I saw my brows, I felt that this was a thin layer and that it wasn't enough, so I requested them to add. When the attendant came to me, she said this was already enough, and that more would be added during the procedure.
Mid-procedure, I found out that the tiny tube they used on me was their last tube, and "tinitipid nila kasi wala pang deliveries", hence the thin layer. I was quite turned off by this, since this procedure doesn't exactly come cheap and they can't skimp on something like anesthesia.
I believe this caused me to feel pain during the procedure, even if the ads said it would be painless. Maybe I expected too much, since it's a tattoo after all, and I expected zero pain. I have high pain tolerance, but this procedure felt as if my skin was undergoing abrasion for one hour. The nurses told me it was normal, and that it is really painful during the first time. Strange though, since I had asked 2 of my contacts who had undergone this same procedure, and they said it wasn't painful at all. So there, on my next visit, I will call first to check if they have (proper) stocks of topical anesthesia.
Price:
P16,000 - Nurse
P18,000 - Nurse (tenured)
P23,000 - Sue or Hannah Ong
P25,000 - Susan Ong
I chose Cha to do my brows, and she's the one with the P16,000 price bracket. She was very friendly and bubbly, and I like her! She was skilled in drawing the desired brow shape for my face. One try lang, and she got it! As for the pain, it's either normal or just the lack of anesthesia, but it was tolerable since you can see I survived. I checked right after the procedure if my brows were swollen, but to my surprise, it was just dark where the tattoo is, and mildly red on some parts. They had me take an anti-allergy medicine, and the redness was gone in a few minutes. I had this done around 12NN, but my skin still felt mild stinging sensation well up to 12AM. It was gone by the time I woke up next morning, which was a relief.
Price:
P16,000 - Nurse
P18,000 - Nurse (tenured)
P23,000 - Sue or Hannah Ong
P25,000 - Susan Ong
I chose Cha to do my brows, and she's the one with the P16,000 price bracket. She was very friendly and bubbly, and I like her! She was skilled in drawing the desired brow shape for my face. One try lang, and she got it! As for the pain, it's either normal or just the lack of anesthesia, but it was tolerable since you can see I survived. I checked right after the procedure if my brows were swollen, but to my surprise, it was just dark where the tattoo is, and mildly red on some parts. They had me take an anti-allergy medicine, and the redness was gone in a few minutes. I had this done around 12NN, but my skin still felt mild stinging sensation well up to 12AM. It was gone by the time I woke up next morning, which was a relief.
Before S3 Eyebrow Stranding:
After S3 Eyebrow Stranding:
It's just dark right after the tattoo, but no swelling at all on the skin surrounding it. I was told to not wet it for 24 hours, then I could wash my face as usual, but avoid oil-based makeup removers. I also had to apply anti-bacterial ointment for 7 days (day and night), which they also sell.
Mupirocin Mupiderm 20mg/g Ointment Antibacterial (P250)
Day 3: My eyebrows still look dark and perfectly arched. Monday means I have to commute to work. When my face got exposed to the sun, my eyebrows felt a bit of a sting. My skin felt sensitive and it was still on its healing phase.
Day 7: My brows actually started to peel after 4 days, so I endured 1 week of ugly (and not to mention, itchy). (Note to self: It's gonna be over soon, it's worth it. Repeat.) Do not pick on these, allow them to fall off naturally.
Day 8: The color pigmentation fell off as I applied the medicine for the last time using cotton buds.
Final result of S3 Eyebrow Stranding (1st session)
I was pleasantly surprised to see that it has a natural effect, but the stranding wasn't very evident. Opinions vary - some say it already looks fine, but I find it lighter than how I usually do my brows, so I'll have them tweak and improve it a bit on my retouch that's due in 6 weeks. It looks light, and this one's said to last for 3-5 years, so I want to be sure. As of now, I like my new eyebrows, but I'm not deeply, madly in love with them yet. My friend told me the first session/outcome won't be perfect, but the retouch will fix any issues you will find (gaps, shade, etc.) So I'm excited, still! Hope my next one won't be as painful as the first. Will update you guys here next month how it goes!
Pretty Looks
IL Terrazzo Mall, Tomas Morato, Quezon City
Tel. no.: (02)9213056/(02)7093488
Mobile no.: 09176895110
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Love,
Helen
