Eyebrow embroidery, microshading, powder brows: what the names mean

Clients arrive with a dozen names for the same wish: eyebrow embroidery, microshading, shaded brows, ombre powder brows, semi-permanent brows, eyebrow tattoo. Salons in Manila use them loosely, and some names cover two different techniques. Here is what each one usually means, what it does on the skin, and which questions get you a straight answer.

Two families: strokes and dots

Every brow technique places pigment in the upper layer of the skin. They differ in the shape of the mark.

Strokes are fine cuts or lines drawn to copy individual hairs. Microblading and most “hair stroke” work belong here.

Dots are tiny points of pigment placed close together, by hand or with a machine. Powder brows, ombre brows and most microshading belong here.

The family matters more than the name, because it decides how the brow ages.

The names, one by one

Eyebrow embroidery

An older umbrella term, common in Asia. Some salons mean hand-drawn strokes, others mean any brow tattoo. Ask whether it is strokes or dots before anything else.

Microshading

Dots placed with a hand tool or a machine to create a soft shaded look. The result sits close to powder brows. Ask whether the dots are placed by hand or machine and whether the front of the brow is kept lighter.

Powder brows

Dots placed with a machine at an even, light density from front to tail, with a soft edge. Healed, they look like brows filled in lightly with powder.

Ombre brows and ombre powder brows

The same dots arranged as a gradient: light at the front, building to a defined tail. The two names usually mean the same service. The difference from powder brows is covered in ombre brows vs powder brows.

Microblading and nano brows

Stroke techniques. Microblading uses a hand blade to cut fine lines, nano brows use a machine needle to draw them. Both aim to look like hair up close. I do not offer either, and the reason is the climate, explained below and on the page about microblading in Makati.

Semi-permanent brows, eyebrow tattoo

General names for any of the above. Pigment in permanent makeup sits shallower than in a body tattoo and fades over time, which is where “semi-permanent” comes from.

Why the family matters in Manila

Oil and humidity push pigment out of a shallow line. A crisp stroke widens, two strokes merge, and within months the brow can read as a smudge with a hard edge. Dots have no edge to lose. When some pigment lifts, the brow gets lighter, not fuzzier, and it fades evenly. That is why I work only with dots: powder and ombre brows.

What I do, in one paragraph

I build the brow from thousands of fine pigment dots placed with a machine, no cutting. I draw the shape on you first and change it until you approve it in the mirror, mix the colour against your skin and hair in daylight, numb before and during, and do the retouch at six to eight weeks myself. The finish is either an even soft fill (powder) or a gradient (ombre), chosen with you at the consultation.

Questions that cut through the names

• Is it strokes or dots?
• Hand tool or machine?
• Will the front of the brow be kept lighter than the tail?
• Can I see healed photos on skin like mine?
• Is the retouch included, and who does it?

The answers tell you the technique, whatever the menu calls it.

Healed powder and ombre brows are on the eyebrow tattoo page, and the full healing timeline is in powder brows healing stages. To see the shape on your own face, book the free consultation.

Questions about brow tattoo names