How Are Eyebrow Transplant and Microblading Different?

Located right above the eyes, eyebrows are a prominent facial feature in shaping your appearance. Eyebrows catch a lot of attention as they accentuate the eyes and play an important role in communicating your feelings and giving a personality to your face. Eyebrows appear in different forms, colors, and thicknesses, yet many people prefer full bushy eyebrows. The popularity of heavy eyebrows has especially increased in recent years when Middle Eastern Instagrammers unveiled a brand new beauty with their perfect eyebrows.

Sure not everyone is blessed with such bushy eyebrows. Many people genetically grow light thin brows and some others may shed eyebrows due to overplucking, diseases, and chemotherapy which is why eyebrow makeup has gained huge popularity.

Traditionally, people used to draw over their brows to make them look thicker as their daily makeup. But today many aesthetic techniques have been developed to provide longer-lasting solutions, namely eyebrow transplantation and microblading. These methods are two common options that can help you get rid of the daily makeup for creating fuller and more beautiful eyebrows. But how do they work? What are their pros and cons? And how are they different?

What Is Microblading?

Microblading is a semi-permanent cosmetic procedure to improve the appearance of the eyebrows and has almost replaced traditional tattooing. Also known as micro-stroking or feather touch, microblading is done through a hand-held tool that looks like a blade with tiny needles creating hair-like lines in the eyebrows and superficially depositing the pigments into the skin where strokes are shaped.

The compatibility between the pigment color and the eyebrow hair color brings about a very natural result. However, Microblading is a sensitive procedure that must be performed by trained specialists for the perfect result. 

Microblading Advantages

Microblading is a popular method for designing fuller eyebrows which has several advantages:

• The eyebrows’ shape and size could be selected.
• The strokes created on the eyebrow are not exactly the same in shape and some irregularities make them look more natural.
• Comparatively, microblading is a cheap procedure.
• Microblading has a short recovery which could take from 7 to 14 days.
• The results are almost immediate.

Microblading Disadvantages

Here are some of the downsides of microblading, particularly compared to eyebrow transplantation:

• Microblading results are not permanent and tend to fade away over time. Depending on your skin type and the type of pigments used in the procedure, you may need touch-ups every 8 to 30 months if you wish to maintain the results for long. 
• Although microblading is done using topical anesthetics which reduce the pain, it’s not completely painless and you can still feel the discomfort.
• The tiny cuts on the eyebrows could be exposed to infections. To avoid complications, you need to take good care of these small open wounds until they completely heal.
• The artistic skill of the technician greatly contributes to the beauty and symmetry of the design. So if done by non-professionals, undesired shapes are possible.

Also Read: Exploring the Beauty of Different Types of Eyes Across Ethnicities, Colors, and Shapes

What Is Eyebrow Transplantation?

Eyebrow transplant is considered a surgical procedure that must be done by a trained surgeon under local anesthesia. The procedure includes harvesting hair grafts from a donor area which is often the back of the ear and transplanting them to the eyebrows. The donor site is usually very resistant to hair loss and is rarely affected by hormones causing hair loss. Transplanted hairs start to fall out a while after the procedure is done. However, new hair will start to grow weeks after the procedure.

The method usually takes about 2-4 hours but could bring about natural results even if the eyebrows are completely bald in some areas. However, beautiful results greatly depend on the surgeon’s mastery. The surgeon must meticulously plant the hair follicles in a pattern and direction that matches eyebrow hairs to create a harmonious texture rather than an untidy misaligned pattern.

Eyebrow Transplantation Advantages

• Just like microblading, you can define the desired shape and size of your new eyebrows
• An eyebrow transplant is a permanent procedure. Once the hair follicles are successfully implanted in the eyebrow area, they have the ability to grow for the rest of your life, just like normal hair.
• The new hairs growing on your eyebrows are natural since they're your hair.
• The procedure has a short recovery period which lasts about 3 to 6 days.
• The whole procedure is done in one session only and there is no need for repeating it.

Also Read: Hair Loss in Women: Causes and Treatment

Eyebrow Transplantation Disadvantages

• Eyebrow transplant is a more expensive procedure.
• There’s a chance that some follicles won’t result in hair growth or that some hairs grow in different directions and create a misaligned texture.
• The results are not immediate and they take months and even a year to properly show up. 
• As the transplanted hair can grow just like your natural hair on the scalp, it won’t stay in a fixed shape and size and you need to trim your eyebrows every now and then to maintain the desired hair length.

Microblading vs. Eyebrow Transplant

While totally different methods, both procedures help provide more beautiful eyebrows and it’s up to you to decide which method suits you best based on your conditions and expectations. However, a comparison of the two methods and having the pros and cons of each one in mind can help make a well-informed decision.

Remember that

• Microblading is a semi-permanent procedure so if you seek a permanent solution and hate to make appointments for yearly touch-ups you can go for an eyebrow transplant to secure a lifetime result.
• On the other hand, if you’re impatient or for some reason, you need your new eyebrows to show up soon, an eyebrow transplant is probably not for you as it can even take up to a year for the final result to appear.
• If you’re low on budget and the price is an issue, microblading may be a better option.
• While microblading provides natural-looking results, hair transplantation offers literally natural results simply because it uses natural hair.
• If undergoing a surgical procedure brings you too much anxiety and fear, you can resort to microblading as a simpler procedure with faster results.

Now you can simply weigh up the pros and cons based on your interests and needs to see which method is best for you. Regardless of the method you finally select, make sure that your procedure is done by a professional in the field to achieve the perfect outcome with no risks and complications.

Want other options for your thin or sparse eyebrows? See a full list of sparse eyebrows treatments and thin eyebrows procedures to find the one that best fits you.