Microblading

Microblading is a semi-permanent form of cosmetic tattooing. But unlike traditional tattoos, which use a tattoo gun, microblading uses a blade-shaped tool with a row of tiny, barely visible needles to create hair-like strokes along your brows while depositing pigment into your skin. The result? Realistic-looking brow hairs that won’t wash off for a year or more.

Microblading is a type of tattoo, but it’s not permanent like a true tattoo. Not only do the two use different “inks”—traditional tattoos use concentrated tattoo ink, while cosmetic tattoos use smaller pigment particles—but they’re also applied differently. With microblading, the pigment is applied superficially to your skin (so your body eventually metabolizes it until it fades away) rather than placed into your skin’s deeper layers (where it becomes permanent).

Because of the pigment used and how it’s applied to the skin, microblading produces a semi-permanent “tattoo” that looks soft and subtle instead of opaque and bright as with traditional tattoos. Over time, the pigment on your brows will also lighten a shade or two from its original color, whereas a tattoo on your body can have a blue-green tint on the edges when it starts to fade.