I feel like a broken record when I preach, 'a full well-groomed brows will make or break your makeup look', but frankly, it's true. So when I got the chance to have a brow lift, I was there in a flash, says editor Trudi Brewer who was wowed by this beauty service.
Before and after
What is it?
While brow lamination (brow perming) isn't anything new, it's been circulating on Instagram for at least two years and on offer here in NZ for about a year. However, it wasn't a grooming service that jumped out as a must-try - until now. A fancy term for giving the hair on the eyebrows a lift (hence OFF & On, call it a brow lift), boosting the brow hair from the roots and setting it in a straighter, more uniform direction that allows you to have well-groomed looking brows with minimal effort. It's also a speedy, fab treatment you can have in your lunch break.
Once relaxed in a comfy chair, the treatment kicks off with a decent brow clean to remove makeup like powder and brow gel from within the eyebrow hairs. Next, (1) the relax (perm) solution (which has that all too familiar eggy scent) helps soften the eyebrow hair to manipulate the direction it lies on the eyebrow. This perming solution stays on for six minutes, covered by a strip of plastic wrap that lies across my forehead to hold in the heat. Once the relax solution is wiped away (2), the brows are set in place (3)(laminated or lifted) by combing them upward and outward with a reform solution that stays on for seven minutes; this is when the hair is fixed into place, in my case, fanned up and out.
This part of the treatment (that takes around 15 minutes) certainly tamed those few wiry, coarse hairs I tend to pluck out, or cut off. Once wiped off (4) the appointment includes a shaping, a meticulous wax (5)(strawberry scented to boot) to remove those fine, fluffy hairs that are almost invisible to the naked eye, followed by a brow tint. Apparently, my brow hair would benefit from a slightly warmer shade of brown. I went with that, no resistance from me if it would compliment my hair and skin colouring. However, the most significant benefit from the tint is that it adds to the fullness of the lift, and helped fill the gaps that my brows needed.
Once the tint is cleaned off and the skin around the brows soothed with tea tree oil (6), my brows are groomed into place with a touch of brow gel. I am handed a mirror, and my first reaction is wow. My brows are sitting up to attention, proud and looking glorious.
The take-home
You can't get your new lifted sleek-looking brows wet for 24 hours or apply active skincare or self-tan around the brow area. According to the team at OFF & On, maintenance is key to the success of your brow lift. You leave armed with a small bottle of almond oil and a spoolie brush, for the daily groom. Post lift, my brows have that celebrity edge. The look I have been after, but without the 10 minutes of meticulous grooming. I bloody love the results. It lasts between six and eight weeks, and to the day, I will book in for a Brow Lift again. I would happily part with $115 for the OFF & ON Brow Lift and Brow Wow (includes waxing and shape). Or $85 for the Brow Lift and Colour. This beauty service reminds me how much I love a well-groomed, polished youthful-looking brow. The kind of brow that I am constantly recommending to anyone who will listen.
Book a Brow Lift here