On the night before the first day of high school, I found myself in my mom’s bathroom, carefully scrutinizing my brows in the magnified mirror.

I dug into her pink makeup bag, found her trusty tweezers and went to town on my naturally bushy brows with reckless abandon.

My goal: to emulate the overarched pencil-thin look that was all the rage.

Like many teen girls in the 90s’, I didn’t realize that my brows would never be the same after that decade.

Nowadays, big beautiful brows are all the rage; mine look like two sad little caterpillars resting on top of my tired orbs.

To appear as though I actually have eyebrows, I’ve had to draw them back on Every. Single. Day.

Similar to applying that winged eyeliner look, it’s a huge time-consuming pain to make sure they match.

I know I’m not alone, which is why I’m SO EXCITED to share with you one of the hottest new eyebrow-raising beauty trends that has finally made it’s way to the Fraser Valley.

Ready for my brow transformation at Bee Pampered Spa & Salon in Fort Langley with Adelle Young.

Introducing: Eyebrow Microblading

It’s called Eyebrow Microblading – an innovative new technique designed for drawing thin 3D hair strokes around 1 mm under the skin’s surface using a specially designed tool and all-natural pigment.

My best friend’s cousin had hers done a few weeks ago in Fort Langley by Adelle Young over at her home-based studio called Bee Pampered.

Knowing that I love learning about the latest trends – especially if it’s happening here in ‘the Valley,’ she sent a Facebook message my way urging me to give it a go.

“Did it hurt?” I asked, while scoping out her impressive before and after pics.

“Naw, it feels like getting your eyebrows plucked over and over and over in the same spot for 20 minutes – she uses a topical numbing cream so you’ll barely feel it,” she typed.

Despite the fact that I’ve managed to go 34 years without tattooing my body, I decided to throw caution to the wind and jump on the brow-blading bandwagon.

Microblading, also known as feathering, is temporary, so it’s not as scary as a traditional tattoo. The procedure, which costs $600, lasts up to 18 months.

There are women who have been travelling from all over (some as far as Squamish and the Okanagan) to get a coveted appointment with the talented Adelle.

If you’re able to secure an appointment, consider yourself lucky. She books up, fast, months in advance.

It’s funny; I didn’t even know this was a thing until a few weeks ago.

Being a blogger certainly has its perks – she was able to squeeze me in the next week. I figured I’d better commit right away before chickening out.

During the microblading process Adelle uses a special microblading pen to draw on individual strokes one by one.

The Processs

It was a Tuesday evening when I arrived at her beautiful little studio in Fort Langley, located at 22851 Houston Ave (super close to the Langley Fine Arts school).

Although I was nervous – after all, someone was going to be tattooing my face – Adelle made me feel at ease right away.

I learned that the mother of two attended Blanche MacDonald in 2003 to become an aesthetician and started Bee Pampered 10 years ago in White Rock, BC. Five years ago she relocated to Fort Langley.

Adelle sat me down in a chair in front of a brightly lit mirror and began the task of drawing on the perfect shape for my face.

“This is the longest part of the appointment,” she said of the three-hour time slot that I was slated for.

Adelled always books a 3-hr. appointment, even though the actual tattoo only takes about 30 minutes.

She explained that this allows for plenty of time for the consultation, and to make sure both she and her client are 100% satisfied with the shape and colour before she starts.

“I have many Biotouch pigments that I can mix together to fully customize to each client. I like to freehand the shape as apposed to stenciling on the brow in order to give them a more realistic natural look.”

Within the half hour we decided on the perfect arch. She pulled out a ruler to make sure her measurements were right on par.

These were the two shades blended to create the perfect colour for my brows.

Next, it was time to find the right shade of pigment. I was tempted to go the same colour as my new ginger locks, but she advised I go with my natural colour and add just a tint of auburn in case I decide to change up my hair down the road.

For Adelle, microblading isn’t just the hottest new beauty fad – it’s clearly her passion, and an artform.

“My cousin actually suggested it to me when she had lost most of her brow hair after having children,” she explained.

“I began researching solutions for her and found the amazing Shaughnessy Keely on Instagram. I found out she had attended Biotouch Canada, so I signed up the next day. I started the program at Biotouch in January 2016 and microblading has become my life since then. I was not expecting the overwhelming interest and excitement but I am thrilled to be offering this service and love seeing the huge smiles on people’s faces after the process.”

Being a great microblading artist is a lot like being a talented tattoo artist, she adds.

“It takes an artistic touch and a feel for what you want the finished project to look like. You also have to be able to listen to your client and know the look they are hoping to achieve and respect that when you create their brows.”

For many of Adelle’s clients, that 3-hour appointment has been a real game changer in their beauty routine.

“The fact that it is truly life changing to some people! I have worked on a couple people who suffer from Alopecia and I love the messages I get the next morning when they realize they don’t have to spend 30 minutes drawing on their eyebrows. Being able to help somebody feel confident and beautiful is immensely rewarding and I feel so honored that these women let me transform their brows.”

A close look at the instrument used to create the life-like effect of each individual hair.

The Pain Factor

Okay, so I bet you are curious about the pain factor, right? Well I was too, especially when she gave me a couple of squeeze balls to hold during the process.

“Oh no, is this really going to hurt?” I asked, clutching them tightly to my chest.

Adelle said it depends on your pain threshold, but I honestly didn’t find it all that bad.

The best way I can describe it is as being like the annoying bikini-wax pain, but having it located on your face. The real sting only lasts around 10 minutes and then the numbing cream kicks in and it just feels like a cat’s tongue licking your eyebrows. On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the most painful, I’d give it a 5.

I think the photo speaks for itself.

The Result

Before the procedure, Adelle warned me that my brows would be significantly darker and thicker the first 5-7 days due to swelling.

Despite her warning,  I had a moment of panic when I first got home – especially when I saw my husband’s expression as I walked through the front door.

“Umm, you kind of look like a cartoon character… like an Angry Bird,” teased my husband, carefully inspecting my swollen lubed-up brows.

“They’re just swollen and dark but they’re going to fade and shrink 30%,” I quipped.

While I was a little nervous at first, I calmed down each day as I saw that they did in fact shrink and fade progressively each day.

By Saturday, they had settled to the perfect colour and size. I may look tired and my clothes might be dishevled, but my brows are perfection.

A closer look – as you can see it’s quite the art form.

Buh-Bye Brow Pencils

I absolutely, positively LOVE that I no longer have to fiddle with any eyebrow pencils and that they look perfect Every.Single.Day without any effort on my part.

I’ve received so many compliments on my brows – my mom said they change the whole shape of my round face and make it look as though I have higher cheekbones.

Thank you Adelle for the birth of my brows! I’ll be back in a couple months for my touch up.

This is what my brows looked like on day 5.

And here’s a photo taken today (Day 9).

For more information about Microblading or to book your appointment with Adelle, visit http://www.beepamperedesthetics.com. Make sure to follow her on Instagram @BeePampered to check out all the before and after photos from clients of all ages.

Here at ValleyMom.ca, we’re thrilled to partner with Adelle over at Bee Pampered to give away some beautiful micro-bladed eyebrow tattys to one lucky fan – a prize valued at approx. $600!!! How incredible is that? To enter, you must be 18+ and follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter below. Contest closes at midnight on July 9/16. Good luck (make sure to follow steps carefully to qualify).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: While I received a complimentary session, all opinions are 100% my own. VM has the right to refuse reviews on products we don’t feel are a good fit for the blog or products and services we wouldn’t 100% recommend to our closest friends and family.

Valley Mom