PM Championships: Ways to Develop a Microblading Master

Alina Aleksandrova, certified master expert of the national level Brow Artist, make-up artist (experience ⎼ more than 10 years), linergist, technologist-methodologist of the SHleyf training center, teacher of the author's course on manual tattoo techniques fast and easy, point tip, "Eyebrow correction 6D, work on mistakes”, judge of the 3rd and 5th open international competition Luxury Lashes & brows (2015⎼2016), judge of the first open championship of Ukraine Brow Pro (2016), judge of the 2nd open international championship beauty WEST (2016), speaker of the forum "Eyebrow from A to Z" (2016), judge of the championship Brow Expert (2017), judge of the international championship Microbleding and brow design (Moldova, Chisinau, 2017), speaker of the Scientific and Practical Conference on Permanent Makeup (Kiev, 2017)

Sooner or later, any master feels the need to demonstrate his abilities to as many knowledgeable people as possible and receive a well-deserved reward and recognition. And where to do it, if at the competition? We propose to talk about the championship movement in the field of PM and, perhaps, to convince those who have not yet decided to compete for a prize, to take the first step

Competition is the way to success. A person who is doing his favorite thing is often interested in the question, does he succeed in this kind of skill? A competition can help him, one of the tasks of which is to get the guidelines that are so necessary for each participant. The participant is already evaluated not by beloved clients, relatives and friends, who value everything that their relatives do, but by a team of professionals and experienced craftsmen. The competition allows you to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the master, to increase the speed of work. For example, a contestant performs a task not in his usual place in peace and quiet, but one can say almost in “Spartan conditions”, and in a rather short time. After such tests, for those who could not do this or that procedure quickly and efficiently, even after the first participation, already at their usual workplace, a positive result is noticeable, a small victory.

A few recommendations from me as a judge

Before applying for participation, be sure to read the terms of the competition. Often, the masters in the technical types of the competition begin to show creativity, forgetting about the main criteria. Of course, creativity is indispensable in the beauty industry, but you don’t need to waste your energy on something that the judges will evaluate only with words, and not on an evaluation sheet. The winner is the one who gets the highest marks by all criteria. What does it mean? Only one thing: in order to take first place, you need to do the work for the highest scores in absolutely all criteria.

So, what are the criteria for marks in the microblading competition? At this stage of development, there are popular nominations for “powder technique” and “hair technique”. For those who do not understand what these evaluation criteria mean, there are preparatory stages of the competition, installation workshops, where ups and downs are explained and analyzed in detail. Especially if you are new to participating in any competitions, you will learn about the right choice of model, which is half of your victory.

Model selection: requirements

Model participant brings his own ⎼ responsible and adequate, ready to be indefinitely at the championship. With the ability to present yourself. Not younger than 18 years old. The model must be clean and well-groomed skin. Medium or thin build. Dressed in white or black. Hair ⎼ clean and gathered in a bun or braid. The model's face should not have decorative cosmetics and/or permanent make-up done before. And there should not be permanent makeup removal with a laser or a remover. After working with a model at the championship, it is not necessary to tint her, do makeup.

Now high-level niche competitions, such as the IBF World Championships or the Beautydesire All-Ukrainian Selection Round, offer a very detailed “before” model score sheet, which allows you to determine the complexity of the work. But this is not a key score that gives you the opportunity to win. The most important thing is the technical skill that you are ready to show at the competition in the allotted time. That is, you can take a simple model, make it perfect ⎼ and win. If you are one hundred percent confident in your abilities, you can complicate the task, thereby adding an advantage and showing the peak of skill by coping with a complex model. But there are no guarantees - there is a choice and confidence of the participant, this is what helps to keep calm, and most importantly, a correct understanding of the result, whatever it may be.

Set up for victory

A special mood is needed before you are going to go try your hand. It is very important to understand that participation is already a victory, because you are ready to leave your "comfort zone" and are not afraid to compare your work with others. Even a pleasant surprise is possible ⎼ if your work is marked by reputable judges! And if your masterpiece was not noticed among others, there are again two ways: either the participation took place among much stronger contestants and there were many of them (such an outcome of events gives an understanding of a certain result and encourages you to continue working on your skills), or the work did not correspond to the declared criteria.

So, let's talk about the criteria in the nomination "powder eyebrows" in the microblading technique. Among them:

• color matching;
• eyebrow shape;
• symmetry;
• the complexity of the work;
• clarity of form;
• gradient;
• depth of pigment penetration;
• uniformity of pigment penetration.

Deciphering these criteria for a professional is not difficult. Correspondence of the choice of pigment color that is absolutely harmonious with the color type of the model, the shape of the eyebrows corresponds to the shape of the face, the ideal symmetry of the upper and lower horizontal lines is observed, the original eyebrow had errors, but with the help of the technique they were corrected for the better, the shape was clearly visible, the gradient was readable, the depth the introduction was uniform, and, most importantly, the absence of blood.

If everything in your work is done, as in the description, by 10 points, then you can be congratulated on the first place! But even if the participant does not become a winner, he will definitely learn not only to speak in public, but also to behave more collected in extreme circumstances.

He will get acquainted with many participants of the competition, often not only from another city, but also from another country. The competition provides an opportunity to adequately assess their competitiveness, to analyze their mistakes.

Championship rules

I can't help but pay attention to the rules of conduct in the championship zone.

Before the start of the tour, each participant and his model is given a personal number (on two badges), which corresponds to the number of the workplace. Badges with the number are attached to the clothes of the master and model and are not removed until the end of the evaluation of competitive works. Each model must come to the photo shoot before and immediately after the procedure. Photographing is carried out at the competition site by a specialist of the organizing committee. If the model does not come to the photo shoot, then the work of the participant is not counted.

After the command "Start!" participants and models must be within the competition area and not leave it until the “Stop!” command.

Anesthesia can only be applied by application method. The participant must comply with all hygiene rules required for this procedure:

• have clean beautician clothes (with a cap), mask, gloves, shoe covers or change of shoes;

• provide your model with shoe covers or removable shoes, a cap, a cape;

• keep the working area clean and tidy (place items for the procedure on the appropriate shelves of the table, highlighting the antiseptic area; keep reusable items clean; clean the workplace after the procedure; throw used disposable materials into the wastebasket);

• observe the rules of asepsis and antisepsis: have and change disposable gloves (necessarily transparent or light color) and masks in a timely manner; use disposable sterile needles and tubes; use a cosmetic pencil with a fresh cut, a special marker or a treated brush; open the craft package in the presence of the model; treat the skin of the model with a special solution during the procedure and after it; it is correct to use cotton pads, sticks, napkins moistened with an antiseptic solution (before the procedure, they are moistened with a special agent and are in an antiseptic container, and after use they are thrown into the trash in a timely manner).

The participant must observe the safety of the procedure, being responsible for the health of the model and the results of his work. For violation of the time limit, the rules of the championship and the general organizational order, the participant is punished with penalty points, and for repeated or gross violation, ignoring the remarks of the championship manager, the participant may be disqualified

Before the start of the competition, it is allowed to prepare a workplace. During the competition, masters and models are prohibited from talking loudly, leaving their workplaces.

Participants of the competition, models, accredited photographers, a person responsible for hygiene are present in the hall during the competition. Models must remain in their places until the initial evaluation by the jury members. If a model leaves the competition area without waiting for the completion of the judging, the master who worked with this model will be disqualified. Jury decisions are final and not subject to revision.

Down with fear!

For the organizers, holding competitions is of great importance, maybe even more than for the participants themselves. The development of a new industry, which is becoming even more popular thanks to competitions, the identification of promising and talented masters both among professionals and among juniors, makes it possible to proudly call the work of a microblading master a prestigious profession.

For the winner of the contest, this is the title and reward of the organizers, a solid increase in confidence and popularity among colleagues and clients, a rise in a career one step higher, such success and recognition give the right to consult newcomers in participating in the contest, with a clear conscience, training in the won nomination and a lot unique and profitable offers from large companies.

Where your path to victory begins ⎼ it doesn’t matter, the main thing is to find the courage to try your hand without coming up with an excuse about workload, lack of finances, time, etc. Consult a specialist, simple advice from professionals takes a little time. If possible, get training from a qualified professional who has experience in this matter. Pay attention to the selection of models for the contest, treat this choice very carefully and meticulously. Record the time from start to finish, then analyze the mistakes and shortcomings according to the criteria and work out, work out to automatism in order to prevent any situation that can unsettle balance and clarity. Believe me, no one has yet managed to lose with a perfect job or win with a poor-quality tattoo, in a disharmonious way.

It's just that there is a lot of competition ⎼ and many works due to little things, literally with a difference of half a point, go to non-prize places. Very often, such participants are encouraged in various ways. So, if you have at least a modicum of talent, you will not go unnoticed, and if you think that this is what happened, then you need to work more on yourself, add more patience, information, participation of assistants, working off.

Never before has such hard work and effort gone unrewarded, whether it be victory in a competition, financial independence, or universal recognition.

Participate and win!