Everyone knows that the facial feature of the moment is the brow. Ever since Arizona Muse stepped on to the runway (and in to numerous campaigns), the brow has been the facial focal point and it shows no sign of giving up its place under the spotlight.
Most women between the age of around 27 and 36 will remember the 90s trend for wire-thin eyebrows. Most of us succumbed to this trend at the time, and we're paying for it now. I had one bad experience when having my brows waxed when I was 17; the therapist made them so thin that you could barely tell I had eyebrows. Luckily, that one experience made me leave my brows alone for the next few years that followed. In my twenties, I simply plucked stray hairs away from my natural brow shape and left them be.
Others weren't so lucky; over plucking and shaping left a lot of young women with such terrible eye brows that they spend every evening applying serums, and every morning using eyebrow pencils just to give the impression of a defined brow. Others have had to resort to permanent make up tricks (such as tattooing) in order to have eyebrows at all times.
Thanks to Arizona et al, the modern brow needs serious attention. Your brows should look full, but not bushy. They should frame your face without dominating your features. Think Jennifer Connelly and Keira Knightley, not Desperate Scousewives. I knew that I wanted my brows to be more of a focal point, but after my previous Brow Scare, you can imagine how wary I was of booking myself in for an eyebrow treatment. However, earlier this year, the brow had become so now, that I simply couldn't resist it any longer and made an appointment for HD Brows. In order to avoid a repeat of the last brow appointment I made, I booked in at the award winning Zen Lifestyle in Edinburgh's Hanover Street. This was a job for serious professionals.
Zen Lifestyle is a beautifully decorated salon in Edinburgh's city centre (although, they have other salons on the outskirts of Edinburgh) with lots of clean, white surfaces and metallic accents. The staff are friendly and welcoming, but absolute professionals. They don't assume to talk to you like they are your best friend, but instead, make polite small talk while they focus on the job in hand - which was reassuring, considering it was my first experience of HD Brows.
My therapist talked me through the HD process, explaining every technique. The treatment started with a consultation and it became evident that the Zen therapists have a special talent: they listen. Which means that they find out exactly what you like and then they figure out the right shape, colour, arch, and depth to best suit your face while taking into consideration your requests. HD Brows involves tinting the brow hairs, waxing, threading and plucking. There is also a lot of grooming - combing and brushing to control unruly browns, and pencilling for any gaps you might have. Of course, depending on the state of your brows, getting the perfect end result can take a few appointments - this is investment beauty.
You'll be relieved to hear that my brows turned out very nicely and I left Zen Lifestyle a very happy lady. My brows were thicker, expertly shaped, tinted to give just that bit more definition and, with a bit of (careful) DIY plucking at stray regrowth, they lasted for almost three months.
I wanted to share my experience with you because I know how daunting a new treatment can be. To avoid any disasters without avoiding new treatments altogether, I would sincerely recommend researching your salon, talking to your therapist and making your expectations clear. I believe that paying a little extra for a good service is key to getting good results and think that Zen Lifestyle should be a first stop for any ladies looking for a new, happy beauty experience. If that means you have to make a quarterly trip to Edinburgh, then so be it.