Everything to know about brow lamination

Last week, I had my brows laminated with Suzy The Brow Boss, beneath Grafton Barber on Drury Street, and as she did it, she told me everything there is to know about brow lamination. I apply SoapBrows to my eyebrows every day and spend time meticulously and painstakingly brushing up the hairs, and if you’re the same, this is the treatment for you: brow lamination is essentially semi-permanent SoapBrows. I absolutely adore my brows and have been asked what I use to style them several times a day since I had them done. Here, Suzy breaks down exactly what to know about brow lamination… 

How would you describe the look that brow lamination gives you?

Brushed up, feathered, Soap Brows, but also it doesn’t necessarily have to be brushed up. You can have it brushed down if you want. You can manipulate them into position.

Is brow lamination like a lash lift for your brows?

It lifts the hair from the roots, which is why they call it a brushed up brow – brushed up is just exactly what it says on the tin.

How exactly does it work?

Brow lamination lifts the hair from the roots. We use three different serums. The first serum is going to break the bonds down in the hair and it’s going to make it easier to manipulate into position. The second serum is going to literally fix it into position so when you’ve broken the bonds down and you’ve made the hair easy to manipulate, it’s sitting backwards on itself, almost from the root, then you can fix it into that position with number two. Next, you tint, and when you’re tinting the tint goes that little bit deeper into the hair because you have broken down the bonds, which means it lasts longer and then you wax and then you apply number three. Number three is going to infuse the hair with keratin so that’s going to bring it back to its original form. In some cases, the hairs won’t feel the same.

Is it bad for your brows?

No, it’s like getting a perm in your hair. With a perm in your hair, you wouldn’t keep on doing it all of the time, you need to watch your aftercare. Your aftercare is really important and you need to rehydrate your brows constantly, as with anything that’s been chemically enhanced,  you need to mind them more afterwards.

How do I take care of my brows after having them laminated?

After 48 hours, I recommend every night putting some castor oil on and that’s just going to strengthen the hairs. I have a brow cleanser which basically just a microfibre pad that’s reusable. Our brows are so delicate. It’s like a scalp on your eyebrow. We are so conscious of looking after our hair and not our brows. People get eczema in just their brows, people get dermatitis in just their brows but nobody treats it. Nobody exfoliates them, nobody hydrates them. Castor oil is going to help strengthen them.

Can anybody get brow lamination done?

I don’t recommend it for anybody that has dermatitis or eczema. I don’t recommend it for people that have spacing underneath their brows that they might use some other hairs to cover, because the hair is brushed right up so you can see the whole underline. 

How long does the treatment take? Is it an hour?

It takes about an hour but for some people, it can take only 40 minutes. When it’s done, they look a little bit flattened down, then after 24 hours, they are fine. 

How long does brow lamination last?

Six to eight weeks, but it depends on your aftercare. It’s going to be individual to each face, depending on your lifestyle, like if you’re a swimmer or use strong brow products.

How do you take care of your brows to get the longest out of brow lamination?

The first 24 hours are the most important, so you are not going to get your brows wet in the first 24 hours and you should sleep face up. Remember they are fixed into position, so if you lie on your side and a few hairs bend, they could stick like that.  Just leave them alone and let them do their own thing for the first 24 hours and then you’re going to cleanse them and brush them up. Then after 48 hours, you’re going to make sure that you are popping some oil in them to rehydrate them. Take brow product off at night time and just be more gentle with them.

What products can I use when I’ve had my brows done?

I recommend a clear gel that doesn’t necessarily have much holding power. We don’t want them to be brittle because we want to keep the hydration.

This article was originally published in February 2020

Photography by @nikki_makeup.