EDITOR TEST DRIVE
AS A BEAUTY EDITOR AT THE KNOT, I'll try anything once. Sometimes this is a super perk (hello, fancy facials). Sometimes it’s risky, like the time I went in for trendy highlights and came out a peroxide blonde. For better or for worse, I’ve tested (almost) every buzzy beauty option out there. Here’s the scoop on some of the most popular prewedding treatments, so you can decide what to splurge on—and what to skip.
MICROBLADING
WHAT IT IS If you have naturally thin or uneven brows or were an over-plucker like so many of us in the early aughts, this corrective brow treatment could be for you. A more sophisticated take on permanent makeup, microblading is a form of tattooing where hairlike strokes are drawn onto the brow area to resemble the look of your existing brow hairs. The result is a series of natural-looking, fine tattoo “hairs” that will last one to three years.
If there’s one big takeaway here, it’s that timing is especially important. Microblading is a) in New York City, I had to keep my brows totally dry for a full week while scabs formed—no easy feat if you’re into consistent exercise or showers. Once my scabs fell off, it took another couple of weeks before I could go in for touch ups to perfect the look. While it was a time commitment, it was also a game changer. I've shaved minutes off my morning makeup routine and I never worry about smudging or sweating off my brows anymore. I also feel comfortable without makeup because my face is more symmetrical now—no more cringing at glaring bald patches whenever I catch myself in the mirror.
