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Learning about and how to use different Microblades will help you achieve the desired results for your clients. However, there are several factors outside of your control that can affect absorption. These include:

  • Medication – including anti-inflammatory medications and steroids
  • General health
  • Topical cosmetic creams including Retin-A and AHAs
  • Various acids found in modern day creams
  • Sun exposure and sun damaged skin
  • Scarred skin
  • Lasering
  • Drugs and Alcohol
  • Age
  • Lifestyle
  • Alopecia
  • Chemotherapy
  • Exfoliating skin conditions (psoriasis or eczema)
  • Natural skin properties

Technician error factors

As with any cosmetic treatment, human error can occur with Microblading. These are the most common errors:

  • Implantation depth too deep or too shallow
  • Needle selection
  • Blade/Needle speed and hand speed don’t match which leads to snagging of skin
  • Pigment type or make
  • Pigment does not have the correct undertones
  • Pigments not shaken for long enough
  • Dry blades- not enough pigment used

Checking your microblade

You should always use high quality Microblades. If you don’t, you may find your strokes aren’t clear or the pigment spreads unevenly, making your work difficult.

Make sure you check your Microblade closely at the start of every treatment. If the needles aren’t fixed correctly, you could easily make two strokes instead of one. If the needles are bent, you may create a double stroke.

How to avoid double lines

  • Keep your needles 90 degrees to the skin and don’t draw sideways.
  • Press gently and slowly by releasing your pressure at both ends.
  • Use thinner (nano/0.18) needles for thinner skin and thinner, natural hair strokes
  • If you are at the start of your career start with flexible needles as they help you get used to gentle pressure.
  • Use good quality stainless steel needles that are well fixed with each other.
  • Check your needles with the loop.
  • You can also check your blade by pressing it on the side with your nail (gloved hand). The needles shouldn’t move much.

The needles in a good quality blade will be stable even though the blade itself is flexible.

Blade depth

During Microblading, the pigment is implanted into the reticular layer of the dermis (approximately 0.05mm to 1.5mm). Traditional tattooing is significantly deeper (over 2mm).

Depth is critical. Go too shallow and you’ll hit the lower epidermis and the colour won’t take. You could also cause scarring.

Figuring out the perfect depth is tricky as every client’s skin is different and the skin will be thinner at certain points of the brow. A good way of knowing if you’ve hit the epidermis is if you see pinpoint bleeding (small spotting). Not all skin will bleed, however. If there is bleeding, you’ll have to lighten the pressure to prevent more bleeding, otherwise you could dilute the colour and have poor retention.

When practising Microblading, the skin should always be held taut and stretched tightly. This allows the pigment to be implanted evenly and makes the treatment more comfortable for your client.

Placement and angle of the blade

When implanting colour, it’s important to hold and angle the microblade tool correctly.

The tool should be held like a pen in a 90-degree angle as seen in the picture below.

The handle should be in an upright position, not leaning to the left or to the right. If the needles lean in either direction, it causes the hair stroke colour to heal blurred.

Each needle placement must make the same full contact on flat, stretched skin

For this Microblading course, you will learn to create beautiful brows with an 18U 0.18mm Flexi blade in a disposable tool.

 

Stretch and depth

Stretching the skin

The 3-point stretch is the best way to get a proper stretch and help you achieve perfect strokes. This technique involves stretching the skin in three opposing directions. Place your stretching hand – that’s the hand without the tool – along the client’s forehead to pin the skin down and spread it apart in small, taut stretches. This forms two of the three points. At the same time, use the pinky finger of the working hand to stretch in an opposing direction to complete the 3-point stretch.

Remember, when the skin is flat, the stroke will be clean since the surface is void of wrinkles and bounce.

 Depth and pressure

There are four thickness varieties of skin: super-thin, thin, regular, and thick. You need to understand the tolerance level of the skin to understand its breaking point. Often the skin will be thinner at the tail of the brow and thicker at the bulb, so you’ll need to adjust your pressure as you work. The thickness of every client’s skin is very different so it’s best to begin with lighter pressure/less needle depth and check if the pigment remains in the skin. If the pigment doesn’t remain in the skin or if the pigment is too light, gradually increase pressure. Once the skin begins taking the pigment, remain at that needle depth. Don’t increase pressure to speed up the process. Older skin is thinner than younger skin, so with older clients you will need to adjust the pressure and be very light to start with. Good overhead lighting helps to really gauge the depths of the strokes you are making.