Eyebrows
Eyebrow Permanent Makeup Aftercare
These aftercare instructions apply to eyebrow permanent makeup treatments including microblading, powder brows, shading, nano-brows, and combination brows. Follow these step-by-step guidelines to support comfortable healing and beautiful, natural-looking results. Proper aftercare plays a key role in how your pigment retains.
Your Healing Journey
The healing process below applies to all eyebrow permanent makeup techniques, including microblading, powder brows, nopno-brows, pixel-shading, regular shading, and combination brows. Where instructions differ by technique, specific notes are provided.
First 24–48 Hours
Your brows will appear bold, dark, and defined. Mild redness and tenderness are normal. This applies to all eyebrow PMU techniques.
- Gently blot the area with a clean sterile gauze pad to remove lymphatic fluid.
- You can apply a clean cold compress to reduce any swollen area.
- Keep the treated area clean and dry, and avoid scrubbing, excessive sweating, or unnecessary touching. If you wear bangs, keep your hair away from the treated area. When showering, avoid allowing water to run directly from your hair or scalp onto the treated skin.
Days 3–7
The brows may begin to flake and peel lightly. The color may look lighter underneath, this is the normal "ghosting" phase. Microblading and Nano-Brows may show individual hair-stroke scabs, while powder or shading brows tend to flake more evenly across the shaded area.
- Apply a thin layer of the recommended ointment only if the skin feels tight, dry, or begins to flake. If none of these occur, no ointment is needed.
- Do not pick, scratch, or peel the flaking skin. Let it shed naturally.
- Avoid makeup, skincare actives such as professional facials, and direct sun on the brow area.
Ongoing Healing (Weeks 2–6)
The color will gradually resurface and settle. The brows may look slightly uneven during this phase — this is normal.
- The true healed color becomes visible around 4 to 6 weeks.
- Protect the area with SPF once fully healed to prevent fading.
- Schedule your touch-up 6–8 weeks after your initial treatment. We call this the Perfection Session, an opportunity to make final refinements and refresh or enhance the color as needed. Not every client requires this session
What to Avoid
- Direct sun exposure and tanning beds
- Swimming, bathtubs, jacuzzis, saunas, steam rooms, and any related water-sport activites
- Heavy exercise and sweating
- Picking or scratching the treated area
- Retinol, acids, and exfoliating products on the treated area Picking or scratching the treated area
- Applying makeup over the brows for 10–14 days
What Is Commonly Normal
- Darker, bolder appearance in the first few days
- Light flaking and peeling
- Color appearing to fade or disappear during the "ghosting phase"
- Slight unevenness that resolves as healing completes
Contact Your Technician
Contact your technician if you have questions about your normal healing progress, pigment or color changes, flaking or peeling, aftercare instructions, whether the appearance of your brows is typical for the stage of healing, or your scheduled touch-up. If you are unsure about something you are seeing during the healing process, contact your technician for guidance.
Healing Timeline
- Days 1–2: Bold, dark, tender
- Days 3–7: Flaking, peeling, lighter color
- Ghosting phase (color may seem to disappear)
- Weeks 4-5: Color re-appears. Final results from the first session visible
- Weeks 4-6: Touch-up appointment
When to Seek Medical Care
Permanent makeup aftercare questions and medical concerns are not the same thing. Your technician can help with normal healing and cosmetic questions, but possible medical complications should be evaluated by an appropriate healthcare professional.
Seek prompt medical advice if you experience:
- Severe or worsening pain
- Significant or increasing swelling
- Redness that is spreading or becoming progressively worse
- Unusual warmth around the treated area
- Pus-like or unusual drainage
- Fever or feeling significantly unwell
- Symptoms of an allergic reaction
- Any symptom that feels severe, rapidly worsens, or causes significant concern
For severe symptoms, difficulty breathing, or signs of a serious allergic reaction, seek urgent medical care or emergency assistance.