For a long stretch of my adolescence, I religiously got my eyebrows waxed by the same amazing aesthetician in my home town. I trusted her, she took her time and the results were amazing -- and affordable. But as I got older, started earning my own money and...ahem...needed to start sticking to a budget, eyebrow waxes were one of the little things that I decided I could live without.
I invested in the creme-de-la-creme of tweezers (i.e. Tweezerman) and with their lifetime free sharpening guarantee, figured I was set. Amazingly, the tool stayed sharp enough to effectively tweeze my brows for no less than 2 1/2 years. But then overnight the blades became so dull that they wouldn't grip a single hair, and I realized it was a sign that professional sharpening was overdue. So, I sent off my tweezers and read that they'd be returned to me within 4-6 weeks....wait, 4-6 weeks? That's fine and all, but seeing as these were my only pair of tweezers and that I would start to resemble a Neanderthal after not plucking a single hair for 6 weeks, I realized a return to waxing would be in order.
Since I was getting my hair done at ULTA, I decided to make an appointment at the Benefit Brow Bar to see what the fuss was all about. Sure I stared longingly over at the Benefit counter each time I came into ULTA, but I never really understood what would make this any better or different than any other wax.
My experience began right on time and I perched myself into the chair, which was a little different than the laying-on-a-table wax that I'm used to. Dianna -- the aesthetician -- so kindly took the before picture of my brows shown below (Hi Dianna, if you're reading this!) and then began penciling in a shape. This was differentiator number one, because previously I've just had the aesthetician dive in with the wax and start stripping away the hair. But Dianna took her time, carefully adding color and removing it as necessary until arriving at a shape she liked. It made it feel like a more personal, custom experience, as she took into account the rest of my features and the shape that would work best for me. I professed to not loving my straight across brows and wanting more of an arch, so Dianna promised she'd make that happen.
From there we moved into the waxing and tweezing, which seemed to hurt less than usual, although I'm not sure why, the two of us chatting all the while about beauty products, making friends in a new city and the benefits of tweezing vs. waxing. When my brows were in good shape, Dianna proceeded with differentiator number two and something I've NEVER had done during an eyebrow wax -- she pulled out some concealer and worked to lightly cover up all of the spots that otherwise would have been bright red and made me look like an alien for several hours. This small touch was so delightful!
She then proceeded to ask if she could touch up my foundation a bit (I guess I was looking a little chalky) and after talking casually about a few Benefit products that might work for me, I was on my way. No high-pressure sales pitch for Benefit products, no attempt at forcing me into making another appointment -- let's call this differentiator number three (as this is something you're usually subjected to at salons and spas, and it 'aint pleasant!). The whole appointment took 30 minutes and I never once felt as though she was rushing, even though there was clearly an impatient woman waiting to have her appointment begin after mine.
Since I had been growing my brows out for several weeks in anticipation of this appointment, I think I forgot for a minute just how much well-groomed brows can change your face. When I looked in the mirror with my freshly waxed eyebrows, my eyes looked larger and my whole demeanor seemed to shift. Somehow I felt just a little bit more confident!
So have I been converted back to a waxer with this experience? We'll see. Although the appointment was not outrageously expensive at $20, I would likely need a wax every 2-3 weeks to maintain my pristine look, and that can get expensive quickly. But I will say it was most certainly a pleasant experience and something I'd recommend to others AND consider doing as a treat for myself every once in a while.
So have I been converted back to a waxer with this experience? We'll see. Although the appointment was not outrageously expensive at $20, I would likely need a wax every 2-3 weeks to maintain my pristine look, and that can get expensive quickly. But I will say it was most certainly a pleasant experience and something I'd recommend to others AND consider doing as a treat for myself every once in a while.
Have you ever tried the Benefit Brow Bar at your local ULTA? Share your story in the comments section below!
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