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I am pretty much excited to share all of you pretty ladies, my whole experience at Strokes (Yey! Exciting, right?). Well, before I start sharing those shenanigans of mine. Allow me first to impart some knowledge on you, girls. A little bit of a background history with this so called "beauty studio". Strokes by Momoi Supe is a beauty studio that specializes in 3D eyebrow embroidery, permanent makeup, scalp micropigmentation, laser tattoo removal and yumi lashes. Before setting foot into the world of makeup artistry, Momoi Supe was actually one of the adored freelance interior designer. He is known for his outstanding design and diverse creative ability. According to his biography, "he continues to practice his profession, but has now taken his passion and gift to makeup artistry and is keen on being among the industry’s bests". Momoi is an expert at high classification airbrush makeup. He is knowledgeable in any skin type, tone, or texture but what he specializes is the "soft finished" kind of airbrush technique, always wanting to give the client a satisfied, fresh-faced and most importantly is a natural appearance. His impressive work ethics plus a natural flare for beauty provide him with an increasing clientele and loyal customer base. He believes in quality. It's very pertinent to what his motto says, that "quality is what he delivers".
I do believe that, eyebrow tattoo's are not anymore new to some of you. Especially the older generations. You might actually already heard it from your "lola's or mom's", that yeap... once in their life they also had their eyebrows tatted up (cool, right?). So, it's not just you who wants their eyebrows to be on fleek the moment they wake up, after all. Today, our focus will be on a very important facial feature, but one that is mostly overlooked— "THE EYEBROWS". I have a slight obsession with eyebrows. If you are one of my closest friends, you'll know (HAHAHA). They frame your entire face so I don’t see why people don’t put enough time into getting them right and keeping them that way (they can make or break your face, seriously). Changing an incorrect eyebrow shape can make you look thinner, more awake… sultry or even younger! If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then the eyebrows are the curtains that frame these windows. Beautiful BROWS can accentuate your eyes, as well and also polish your look. Celebrities, nowadays are seeking full eyebrows that are beautiful and exotic-looking. In the 90’s however, thin, high arched eyebrows were very popular which led to over-tweezing and problematic eyebrows for today (think of the one liner brows- like Marilyn Monroe). Those who are now not blessed with a lot of eyebrow thickness like me (kudos to my parents), can create luxurious, groomed arches with this kind of service from Strokes. In Samoan, the word tatau means “appropriate, balanced and fitting”. This is a perfect explanation of what we aim to achieve with the semi-permanent eyebrow tattooing today. Tattooing was also done as long as 7000 years ago in the north-west of South America and more than 5000 years ago in Europe. The frozen body of the ‘ice-man’, found in Northern Italy in 1991, was heavily tattooed; he had died about 5000 years ago.
All of the ‘ancient’ tattooing practices (and many modern ones) produce permanent tattoos. Modern eyebrow tattooing, also known as Microblading or eyebrow feathering, produces a semi-permanent result that can be renewed every few years or allowed to gradually fade.
Unlike the placing of pigments deep into the lower layers of the skin as in ‘normal’ tattooing, eyebrow tattooing uses a microblade – a fine blade consisting of a line of tiny needles – which is dipped in pigment and then gently stroked across the skin to ‘create’ fine hairs that resemble the person’s own eyebrows. It can be used to fill in thin eyebrows, extend or thicken existing eyebrows or ‘create’ eyebrows lost through disease or over-plucking. The pigments used can be natural plant-based, or synthetic.
It's a Wednesday afternoon, that I had my scheduled appointment for my 3D Eyebrow Embroidery/ Yumi lashes and lip shading. I thank God, for giving us an expert in this kind of field. Thanks to Mr. Momoi Supe for making this happen and possible. Now, I can officially say the famous line "I woke up like this" with confidence. Down below, i'll be sharing with all of you my whole experience at Strokes.
YUMI LASHES
Let me start by sharing to you the first service they did to me: which is the YUMI LASHES. What is this "YUMI Lashes"? Yumi Lashes is an advanced technique designed to boost and lift the lash without having to resort to false lashes. Say bye-bye to those heavy and itchy falsies of yours. In other words, it is a powerful alternative to false lashes that enhances your own natural beauty and colouring. A range of tints are also available for colouring the lash which will compliment your complexion perfectly. Did you know, that my eyelashes have never looked better (ohh.. yaas)? All their clients, I believe who tried the YUMI LASHES treatment by Mr. Momoi are delighted, and renew it on a regular basis. All the beauty professionals who have applied the product are absolutely satisfied. Instead of doing a traditional perm that simply curves your lashes, YUMI LASHES turns the eyelashes upwards, gives them Length, Height and Volume, and an appearance of having longer and thicker lashes. Everyone would love to have a stunning gaze and longer lashes (right, ladies?). YUMI LASHES is a new technique that lengthens your own lashes without using lash extensions, like what i've mentioned above. It may complement the application of lash extensions, in order to facilitate their applications when your lashes are too straight or too curved: Beauty in the wink of an eye! According to Mr. Momoi, he's the first one ever to bring this kind of advanced eyelash lifting in the Philippines and in the whole Asia Pacific. He actually acquired a certificate abroad to be a professional yumi lashes lifter . Some of his staff was actually trained by him personally.
Therefore, Janel was assigned to do the treatment to me. And I was not disappointed at all. I tell you, girls! During the whole process, I felt relaxed and comfortable. Because as you can see down below. They have a state of the art "lazy boy" chair. That can guarantee your comfort, while having that 1 hour of the whole treatment/process. Janel, was very accommodating and she really knows what she's doing. She's knowledgeable and equipped with the answers to some of questions with regard to the treatment. After everything, I saw right away the difference and the beauty of my new lashes. It made my real lashes look as good as falsies (Wonderful, isn't?). I know! It seemed too good to be true: the look of falsies but with your natural lashes (why, not?). My old lash envy was instantly reignited and I just had to tell everyone to try this treatment out. For the duration of the process, I was laying down while Janel worked on lifting my lashes. She put pads on my eyelids and under my eyes and applied the Yumi Lashes formula (secreeet... formula). Though what’s exactly in that formula is strictly confidential, she assured me the lash lift doesn’t have any parabens or formaldehyde, and that the nontoxic formula is created in Europe where they have stricter standards for what ingredients are permitted in beauty treatments.
The entire process felt basically like a lot of lash combing. Since your eyelids are pulled back a bit, it was slightly uncomfortable at certain points and took a little getting used to. Overall though, it was relatively relaxing and pain-free. As a final step, Janel applies a lash tint to darken my lashes and make them more dramatic. Like any lash dyeing, I felt a slight burning sensation, but nothing scary unusual.
After removing the residue from the lash dyeing, she handed me a mirror, and the results were immediate. Every single lash was perfectly separated with a beautiful curve and lift, and this was without mascara! You'll see my gorgeous lashes in a few, don't you worry! Just hang in there.
3D EYEBROW TATTOO
Over the past few years, my obsession with eyebrows has grown in tandem with the increased prevalence of eyebrows on fleek kind of thing for us, girls. Everyone from influencers like, Eula Valdez, Raymond Gutierrez, Sarah Lahbati, Dionne Monsanto, and even Ms. International Kylie Versoza and a lot more have gone and tried the 3D Eyebrow Tattoo of Mr. Momoi Supe. So I feel also, like a celebrity here (HAHA!). We've all heard of the phrase "Eyebrows on Fleek" but do you really know how to make your eyebrows look on fleek? Do you? Come on, look at your mirror right now. Are you satisfied with the shape and style of your brows? Starting off as a running joke on Vine, "Eyebrows on Fleek" has grown to become a makeup phenomenon. Filling in your eyebrows and shaping them can be quite difficult if you are a beginner, but with the next treatment (3D Eyebrow Tattoo). I'm finally going to wake up every morning, with a perfectly shaped eyebrows. I myself had a flourishing set of eyebrows, so thick that most of the time I had trouble plucking away the hairs than ever. Not a thing to worry about filling them myself. Eyebrow tattoo’s have existed for a while now, even my mom got her eyebrow tatted as an answer to her ever thinning eyebrow hair, way back. I never thought I’d be doing the same thing many years later as I was quite young when she got hers done and it never occurred to me as to why? Now I know why since I just got my eyebrows done. The beauty of seeing your eyebrows in good condition, whether you are swimming or simply just running your errands. You don't have to worry anymore, that your eyebrows might be a total chaos. Well, the old style of eyebrow tattoo’s involve a block of colour to mimic how brows are filled in with makeup. Often the colours that were used were black to match black hair which faded to a green or bluish tinted colour. Then brown was used to look more natural. Now they’ve got it right, by drawing in each eyebrow hair eyebrow tattoo’s look incredibly natural, not like the blocks of eyebrows you might see on aunties. The great thing about these tattoo’s brows is that you no longer need to fill in your brows every morning, and if you’re like me this is great because I end up with different brows every day! Also if you live in a humid climate and sweat a lot you no longer have to worry about your brows sweating away.
The whole process was incredibly easy, and not that painful. Depending on your pain threshold and the numbing cream applied it should just feel like a gentle scratching. At Strokes, each staff have their specific/separate tasks and responsibilities. Which is good! It simply means that Mr. Momoi really values each and everyone's strengths. The first step for this procedure, is the eyebrow shaper. Together with Mr. Sean. Who I can say, is one of the best eyebrow shaper here in MNL. He will first, shape your brows. But do take note, that it’s important to remove your makeup before the process, however if you have an eyebrow shape in mind you normally wear, it may be a good idea to wear it to your appointment to show Mr. Sean, how you would like them to be done. I arrived wearing one, cause I thought that the shape of my eyebrows before are pretty much "bagay" to my face, already (BUT, NO!). However, with Mr. Sean's artistic opinion he prefers to follow what's going to be perfect with my face shape. Well, it’s completely up to you my dear! They won't force you, with anything that you don't like or agreed on. The second thing they'll do before being tatted up is to find your shape and define that (YUP!). Shaping your brows can be quite easy (or not). If you have some tweezers and a magnified mirror. In line with this, Mr. Sean, being an expert. What he'll do is to look at your brows closely and observe where your arch and tail is, and pluck/blade away the excess/unnecessary hairs. You need precision and an eye for this "eyebrows on fleek" to happen. Believe me, it happened to me. Then, afterwards Mr. Sean applied a numbing cream at my whole brow area. Waited for it to settle down! Thank God or whoever invented those numbing cream that it has made this process bearable, according to them you will need to leave this miracle cream on for about 30-45 minutes and my tattooist (Mr. Moi) has provided me with a relaxing thing for me to do while waiting.
So, here we go. The next process, the moment of truth. After applying the numbing cream, it's going to be Mr. Momoi's turn. Mr. Moi, is the master tattoo artist aside from him being the owner of Strokes. He is well trained and a certified one. Therefore, you're definitely in good hands. This is usually where the longest process happen and that would involve the following o the design of your brows from the master shaper. Mr. Momoi, uses a micropigmentation process to deposit ink on the top layer of dermis, resulting in a semipermanent tattoo that last for about a year. Wait..... remember that if it starts to get too uncomfortable for you, just speak up and more numbing cream will be applied. This is probably better then you flinching and squirming around and having the artist make a mistake because you’re moving too much. Don’t be a hero! Speak up if it’s painful. Prepare to be emotionally wrecked (Kidding!). Maybe it's just the drama queen in me (or maybe it's because I've never gotten a real tattoo), but my nerves were out of control when I was on my way to Strokes for my appoinment. I knew the brow tattoos wouldn't last forever, but they would last for a whole year. So it was still a pretty big commitment. I couldn't decide whether to be more terrified of the potential pain of the tattoo process or of what the final results would look like. What if I hated them? How much concealer would it take to cover them up if I did? The thought of having botched brows for an entire year made my stomach churn. However, I was a little bit shocked. Because of the fact that it's not that painful after all. They can put the numbing cream again, for you. For me it just felt like a scratching sensation. It's painless and super fast, trust me on this. It just took him less than an hour I think, in doing the whole procedure.
LIP TATTOO
For the LIP TATTOO, Ever since Kylie Jenner did for her lips and what Cara Delevingne did for her brows (they started the whole the-fuller-the-better trend). Right now, people have been searching for the single product or procedure that will help them achieve that same plumped-up look. We know that Jenner's lips are the result of injections—and one of the latest trends is nearly as extreme as that of lip tattoos. Although, Lip tattoos are meant to enhance lips, not create actual fullness. This procedure is designed to define lips, not to create volume or puffiness. It will just give you the appearance of a full lip. And it's all about the illusion, ladies.
Wouldn’t it be great then if you can have perpetually sexy lips? It’s now possible with Permanent Lip Tint by Strokes. The whole session lasts for 1 hour and 30 minutes. There’s temporary swelling for a day (you'll get to feel like Kylie Jenner, even just for a day), and/or healing and peeling of lips takes atleast 7 days. But after that, the color you choose for your lips is guaranteed to lasts for a year.
You will need a few days afterward without social plans or strenuous activity. You will not look your best (swelling, oozing, & looks like wet paint) so plan activities around the house. Plan a shopping trip ahead of time for items you will need: ointments, straws, napkins for blotting, Q-tips, pain reliever (just in case you can't take the pain), prescriptions, a good book or movies. Get ahead on your dirty work done before this procedure.
Mr. Sean did the treatment to me. He mentioned that, it will appear extremely intense and thick immediately right after the procedure. The color will not even look right the first few days. But don't you worry, girls! Excess pigment sheds off over the next 2-3 days, and then the skin starts healing over. A layer of healed skin on top of the pigment masks and tones it down considerably. As swelling goes down the lines will be thinner. On about the fourth day you are close to looking normal and no one notices anything. Colors will continue to soften over the next few weeks and months.
That was my lips looked like right after the procedure, with Mr. Sean:
Post-Procedure Instructions For Permanent Makeups
Do take note that, a permanent makeup procedure is the equivalent of a skin-deep wound - like a scratch you might get around the house. Expect it to ooze a little, scab a little, and heal in a similar time frame.
1. Always keep your eyebrows and lips moist with healing ointment at all times while outer healing occurs.
2. No Scrubbing. Do not rub, wipe, or scratch area. Use patting motions only.
3. Do not peel or pick at crust, this could cause pigment loss, scarring, and delayed healing.
4. Do not swim in fresh, salt, or chlorinated water for 7 days.
5. Avoid environments that would cause dirt or germs to contact area while healing.
6. Do not apply topical cosmetics over area while healing.
7. No KISSING for the lips. I REPEAT. No KISSING!! Those motions push and pull against the lip edges, applying tension and friction between the strong normal skin surrounding the mouth and the broken inflamed lip edges. Lip skin is a continuation of the delicate mucous membrane in the mouth. It is not strong like normal skin.
8. Lips will be tender at first. Drink through a straw (for the first 24 hours). Choose foods you can place in your mouth with a fork without touching lips.
After the healing process, you can never stop looking at yourself in the mirror (trust me!).
Services and Price List For your Next Visit:
As you enter the procedure area, these minimalism wall quotes is what you'll get see:
Viola! Would you look at that gorgeous results. Took that after a two-week healing period.
P.S- Didn't put any eyebrow make-up on. Lashes without mascara. Lips with a little bit of lip gloss, that is same as my lip tint.
Visit their beauty studio at Unit 114 G/F Greenbelt 1, Paseo de Roxas, Ayala Center, Makati.
Do check out their social media pages, as well by clicking the links down below:
IG PAGE- Strokes By Momoi Supe
FB PAGE- Strokes By Momoi Supe