Brow lamination 101: how to get the look that lasts

Embrace your bushy brows

Rachel Sharp

3 min read

August 2, 2024 - 12:11PM

Eyebrow lamination is here to stay. Image: iStock

Lifestyle

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Selena Gomez is a fan. So are a multitude of A-listers, models, and perfectly arched-influencers. Here’s the lowdown on the eyebrow trend that’s not going anywhere.

Don’t you love it when celebrities poke fun at themselves, even if it does spiral into a social media catfight? Early last year, actor-slash-singer-slash-beauty-boss, Selena Gomez, posted a tongue-in-cheek clip to TikTok lamenting her “over-laminated” eyebrows.

While the gossip world went crazy debating whether Kylie Jenner and Hailey Beiber then threw shade in response, the rest of us normal folk were left with a more pressing question: what is brow lamination and why is Gomez obsessed?

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Australian brow guru and national lamination trainer, Tugba Polatkesen, founder of Feathered Brow Studios and brow-care line, Iilaahaa, is the ideal person to ask. She remembers how nervous clients were to try the treatment after the Gomez incident, though their minds quickly changed after they took the plunge.

“Lamination is like a lash lift [or perm], but for your brows,” she explains. “It’s a process that softens the hairs, allowing you to place them in an upright position, meaning more volume, better shape and improved symmetry.” Sure, but why go to the hassle?

“Any treatment focused on your lashes or brows gives the illusion of a lift, which makes you look more refreshed, more youthful,” adds Polatkesen. “Lamination also gives you versatility with your brows and can frame your face a lot better. If you’ve never had it done, I highly recommend you try it at least once.”

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Worried yours are too sparse to be saved? Au contraire, she says. In fact, you’re the perfect candidate for the treatment, which typically costs around $100 and lasts four to eight weeks, depending on your skin and hair type.

“Technically, as long as you have brow hair, you qualify, but lamination is best suited to people with uneven, sparse, or very flat brows.”

After the treatment, your eyebrows will need to stay dry for up to 24 hours. Polatkesen also suggests using a daily brow serum afterwards to extend the life of the treatment – just make sure it’s natural, as chemicals can undo the process. For best results, most experts advise getting a tint at the same time.

No matter the brow, eyebrow lamination can create dimension and style. Image: iStock

There are a number of DIY kits now on the market, but Polatkesen advises to steer clear. In the same way, an experienced stylist will mix bleaching or perming mixtures bespoke, based on your hair condition, texture, and history, a brow technician will vary the product and processing time for each person.

“If you want to achieve a laminated look at home, I’d instead recommend trying a [wash-out gel] product like Luxe Lash Dolls’ Brow Effect,” she says. “You brush it through your brows and it holds them up to give you that lamination look.”

So where does this leave old mate Gomez and her overcooked arches? Well, she might just be laughing all the way to the bank given she launched a brow-lifting gel via her billion-dollar beauty brand, Rare Beauty, prompted by the brouhaha.

“You know how much I love a laminated brow,” she teased fans, before announcing that her new brush-in product “holds all day without being stiff, sticky or crunchy”. Sounds ideal, and when it comes to those perfect frames, who are we to argue? In fact, come to think of it, we’ll have what she’s having.