Eyebrow artist Suman Jalaf encourages fluffy brows over pencil-thin ones

While fuller brows are gaining popularity over ultra-fine ones, the power of the brow ultimately lies in expert hands

Your eyebrows are an underrated weapon to boost your self-esteem. No, really. There are so many products now available for brows that an entire beauty empire was built on them–looking at you, Anastasia Beverly Hills. We’ve shaved them, plucked them, threaded them into non-existence, and now we’re hopefully letting them grow wild and free. 

One of the forerunners of this transition is Suman Jalaf, who is being flown by private jet to do the brows of Middle Eastern royalty, and at times has months-long waitlists for Bollywood biggies (unless they’re willing to fly to wherever she is).

Jalaf, the founder of Brows by Suman, has been the brow artist behind Deepika Padukoke, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Kate Moss’ brows, among other celebrities. The UK-based brow artist has been dubbed the best for ‘microblade brows’ in London, and was also nicknamed the “bladerunner eyebrow artist” by Harper’s Bazaar Arabia.

Fine strokes

So what exactly does Jalaf do? Eyebrows frame your face, and are an extension of how you express yourself. If your eyes are the window to your soul, your eyebrows are filling in the blanks. Forensic psychology lays considerable weight on micro expressions created by twitches and subtle changes in the eyebrows. Through our eyebrows, we inadvertently say a lot, even when we don’t.

When it comes to grooming, each set of eyebrows needs to be ‘mapped’ differently, depending on the face and its proportions. “It’s a bit like doodling on your face,” laughs Jalaf, “and clients are always a little shocked when they see it first.”  Stencils that promise perfect brows are useless—one size does not fit all. The colours used to fill in sparse brows need to be customised. Meanwhile, microblading, a semi-permanent procedure that requires not just a fine hand but also an understanding of how hair grows to mimic that as a stroke, is almost a form of art. 

Understanding microblading 

Microblading is just one technique of achieving this. Jalaf maps the brows and using a blade and dye, etches minute strokes to mimic fine hair. This is done using a numbing cream. Although you can hear the noise the blade creates, you won’t feel anything. It’s a semi-permanent procedure that can last up to 1.5 years with a touch up. It’s safe, low maintenance and transformative. Jalaf also does powder brows, a slightly ‘gentler’ procedure, depending on her client’s skin type, with similar results.

Microblading services are offered at almost every salon now, but the chances of it becoming disastrous are high. Reversing it means employing a process similar to that of tattoo removal—painful. “But microblading isn't a tattoo,” corrects Jalaf. 

“Semi-permanent isn't tied to anything; you make an incision on the skin and place the pigment. It eventually fades away, depending on one’s skin. And I know skin, I’ve studied it. For example, I find that south Indian girls have very porous skin, more oily. You want the fine hair strokes, but they won’t show on your skin because it’s oily. The strokes will bleed and migrate. But there are options like powder brows, a different technique. It's a machine that gives you a nice powder mist.” Sometimes, the colours might change. “I have seen brown tattoos go purple and green. It depends on the pigment and on one’s hormones. I can’t predict how the ink will react on your skin. But these can be fixed–there  is always colour correction.” 

More than just grooming

The best way to judge someone’s brow work is by looking at client testimonials—but not the celebrity ones. There are incredulous gasps, tears of joy, messages sent weeks after the procedure about how much they love themselves because of an unexpected boost of self-esteem. The process of doing the brows is so intimate. Like a lot of beauty treatments, there is a measure of empathy, of being vulnerable. You end up sharing parts of your life you wouldn’t otherwise. Identity and appearance have always had a fraught relationship and being in a salon is, sometimes, akin to being on a therapist’s couch–unburdening yourself to a stranger, while being cosseted. “I’ve had clients fall asleep too [in spite of having a blade making cuts on your face],” says Jalaf. 

A boost of self-esteem is underrated. Jalaf’s clients also include those who have medical conditions or circumstances that compromise their sense of self or physical appearance. It was, in fact, her own mother’s cancer diagnosis and treatment when Jalaf was 15 years old that catalysed her interest in brows. “It was in my DNA,” she says, talking about how her lunchtime activity of eyebrow threading in school became a sort of social currency. “When mum was undergoing chemotherapy and lost her hair, as a teenager, I didn’t quite know what was happening. Until I realised okay, she's had this disease that's making her lose eyebrow hair, and I wanted to do something about it. She fought through and has been an inspiration. And I wanted to help a lot of women and men who have suffered in similar situations of losing eyebrow hair. I know what that does in bringing back your confidence, especially for those who have been through a traumatic event, or leukaemia, thyroid issues, alopecia.” 

The cost of fame

Jalaf trained in fine art and graphic design, and eventually, beauty therapy. She rented a space in Mayfair, in celebrity hairstylist Nicky Clarke’s salon, to create a bespoke luxurious brow service in 2006. Word of mouth and eventually, Instagram, helped create her brand, and while on vacation in Dubai, she was suddenly flooded with requests for appointments. Today, Jalaf is in demand in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, besides London and multiple cities in India. As soon as she posts appointment slots on social media, they get booked in minutes, so  much so that she found herself recognised and stopped one night in London by someone desperate for an appointment. “I was impressed by her sheer tenacity,” laughs Jalaf. Of course, there have been multiple offers to fund and expand, and she’s playing the long game, keen to maintain the luxe, customised essence of her brand. There are talks of launching a product line, too. 

While the glamorous aspect of Jalaf’s life looks thrilling, travelling across the world, and on DMs with the jet set, it’s easy to forget just how exhausting the work is, particularly when it requires a certain level of personal interaction that can often be emotionally overwhelming. Even with a team of 14, she’s often burnt out, because clients want her as a priority, and Jalaf herself is particular. “After all, it’s my name on your face,” she simply says. Which also means, she often turns down powerful clients if, for practical reasons, the appointments don’t work out. She also does brows at midnight if she feels like it. “Someone brought in their teenage daughter and I sent them back. I love the untamed look, so stick with it,” she says. 

Eyebrows can be distilled down to a trend—fluffy one day, skinny another. Jalaf believes the latter to be an editorial look, saying her clients all prefer the fuller brow. And why not? An additional tool for expression, a quiet boost of confidence, a bit of vanity to soothe frazzled nerves—don’t underestimate the power of the brow. In the hands of the right artist, they can change a person’s life.

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