This one is for you
A straightforward guide to getting permanent makeup right, and on your own terms
There's a version of this post that sugarcoats everything. This isn't that version.
If you're thinking about permanent makeup, brows, lips, any of it, there are a few things that will make the difference between loving your results and wishing you'd done things differently. None of it is complicated. But it does require you to show up for yourself, which, honestly, is the whole point.
Ask your questions. Every single one.
The consultation exists for a reason. Before your session, your desired look gets discussed in detail, and that conversation only works if you're actually in it. If you're wondering whether microblading or nano brows is the right technique for your skin, ask. If you're not sure about colour, ask. If you have a concern you feel a little embarrassed about, ask anyway.
There are no dumb questions here. The ones that don't get asked before might become regrets after.
Understand what you're walking into.
Permanent makeup is a cosmetic tattoo. Whether you're booking microblading, nano brows, 3D brows, or lip blush, pigment is applied into the skin using fine needles, with numbing cream to keep you comfortable. It is still a process your skin has to go through. Plan for a healing window of four to six weeks before your results are fully settled, and know that what you see in the first few days is not the finished result.
Brows will look bold and defined right after your session, then go through a phase where they appear softer, sometimes almost too soft, before the colour blooms back. Lips follow a similar cycle: vivid at first, then a little flakey, then the true tone comes through.
Your touch-up session is built into the process. It's not a sign something went wrong. It's how the work gets completed.
Plan the timing. Do the actual math.
This is where most people trip up, not because they don't care, but because they don't think far enough ahead.
Here's how to work backward from an event:
Brows (microblading, nano brows, 3D brows)
Healing: 2 to 3 weeks to look social-ready, up to 6 weeks to fully settle
Touch-up: typically 6 to 8 weeks after your initial session
Buffer before a big event: at least 8 to 10 weeks from your first session
If your wedding, reunion, or milestone birthday is June 1st, you want to be sitting in Leah's chair no later than mid-March. Ideally earlier.
Lips (lip blush)
Initial healing: 2 to 4 weeks for the surface
Full colour bloom: 4 to 6 weeks
Touch-up: 6 to 8 weeks after your first session
Buffer before an event: 10 to 12 weeks minimum from your first session
The pattern holds across services: you need roughly three months between your first session and looking exactly the way you want for something that matters.
A few other things that affect your timeline: active sun exposure, retinol or exfoliating acids in your skincare routine, Botox, chemical facials and lasering and certain medications that affect how your skin heals. Bring all of it up at your consultation. Nothing is too small to mention.
Do the research before you book.
Know what you're booking and who you're booking with. Look at portfolios, not just the best photos, but a range of work. Read reviews. Understand whether microblading, nano brows, or brows with shading suits your skin type and lifestyle, because they don't all work the same way on every skin type.
Leah has spent years continuing her education across multiple specialized academies, and that investment in training shows in the consistency of her results. No question is off the table. You bring yours; she brings the expertise.
This one's for you.
Here's the part nobody says out loud: permanent makeup is a personal decision. Your brows are on your face, not your partner's. The person who has opinions about whether you should do it has never once picked up a brow pencil, never spent thirty minutes every morning fighting one, second-guessing the arch, starting over because one side decided to do something completely different. They don't know what that costs you, in time, in frustration, in the quiet tax of just trying to look like yourself before the day even starts. They have a preference, and that's fine, but a preference is not expertise. It is not the final word on what you do with your own face, and it is definitely not insight into what's right for you.
Wanting to wake up and just be done, that's not vanity. That's knowing what your time is worth.
You don't need permission for that.
Ready to start? Book a consultation with Leah at Lashious Studio and bring every question you have. That's exactly what it's there for.