About a year ago, I decided I wanted to get my eyebrows mirco-bladed. Since then, I've been doing…read moremy research on brow salons in WI and MN. I was particular when choosing my artist, as this is a face tattoo. Sabiha came recommended by a friend and after looking through her portfolio, I decided to book my appointment. This recommendation came with the warning that her prices had recently increased from $500 to $700 and that scheduling any follow-up appointments would be irritating. The price didn't concern me as I was willing to pay for perfection.
On the day of my appointment, 4/4/22, Sabiha asked to push me back 40 minutes. I agreed and showed up at 2:40 pm. When I arrived, she was chatting with a cousin who had a studio across the hall. Her cousin left, and I got settled. I was nervous but excited as Sabiha talked me through the details. I explained that I don't usually wear make-up, and expressed how important it was that my brows looked meticulously natural. She threaded them and mapped out where they should be based on my facial structure. Sabiha stressed the importance of where I did and didn't want brow strokes as it was difficult to remove any once they had set. She explained how she measured everything twice, and that the right and left sides were perfectly positioned. I trusted her and agreed for her to proceed.
The tattooing process was uncomfortable but hurt less than threading. While Sabiha tattooed my face, her cousin returned. To my surprise, she stayed for the remainder of my appointment, which bothered me only slightly until I realized the consequences of the distraction. When I was handed a mirror for the big reveal, my stomach dropped. Both brows were longer than what I thought was natural, my left brow was two hair strokes too far in, and when I raised them in shock... heaven forbid I should ever be surprised. Sabiha offered to add strokes to the right brow to try to mirror the inconsistencies which I forbade. I decided to let my eyebrows heal in hopes that the middle and tail portions would flake off in the process. We made a follow-up appointment, and I left feeling discouraged.
Upon arriving home, I asked friends for their opinions and my fears were confirmed. I immediately grabbed a make-up remover wipe and proceeded to scratch out the first two hair strokes on my left brow. I'm thankful I did because I was successful in remedying this major mistake. After the two-week healing process, the tail of the left brow had successfully fallen off, but the right brow is still two strokes too long.
Sabiha texted me about a week and a half before I was supposed to come in for my touch-up appointment asking to reschedule as she was going out of town. Frustrated by the inconvenience and nervous about more mistakes, I reluctantly rescheduled for the following week. She said she wanted me to be happy with my brows, and to let her know of any alterations. I explained how the only alteration I wanted was for her to remove the two tail strokes on the right brow. She said she would look into a product that would fade these strokes. I asked if this product was included in the $700, which she rejected stating, "I've never had anyone want to remove or not be happy with a certain stroke."
My response: "Just because you haven't made a mistake before doesn't mean you shouldn't take full responsibility when you do. As you suggested, I will remedy the right brow on my own. I would like to cancel my appointment, as I do not wish to provide you with another opportunity to make a mistake you will not take responsibility for." The only response I received was an email confirming cancelation. There was no partial refund for services not performed. I sincerely wish I had gone elsewhere and not paid $700 towards her Range Rover payment for a stick-poke tattoo. In comparison, it only costs ~$500 to have a licensed nurse inject half a syringe of lip filler. I was looking for an artist but didn't realize it was a scam until it was too late.
