You’ve probably heard of eyelash extensions and eyebrow embroidery, but did you know — aesthetics salons are now offering eyeliner and lipstick tattoos, and bb cream “infusions” into your skin? For the uninitiated, these are examples of semi-permanent makeup, which is all the rage in Singapore right now.
If you have a habit of dolling up every morning, you would have probably considered some of these procedures. Imagine how much time and money you could save!
Let’s have a look at how much these semi-permanent makeup “treatments” cost. Plus, we weigh in on how “safe” these procedures are.
First of all, what is semi-permanent makeup?
Semi-permanent makeup is exactly as its name suggests — makeup that doesn’t come off when you wash your face or get dunked in a pool. Depending on what you do, it can last for weeks, months or years. They’re not cheap though.
Types of semi-permanent makeup and their prices
| Semi-permanent makeup procedure | Price range | How long it lasts |
| Eyelash extensions | $20 to $190+ | 2 to 4 weeks |
| Eyeliner tattoo | $58 to $1,300+ | 1 year |
| Semi-permanent bb cream | $98 to $680+ | 6 months to 1 year |
| Eyebrow embroidery | $100 to $1,200+ | 1 to 2 years |
| Lip tattoo | $588 to $3,088+ | 1 year |
Eyelash extensions prices in Singapore — from $20+
Eyelash extensions are like the beginner stage — they’re (relatively) cheap, and only lasts a few weeks, so they’re not much of a commitment.
| Eyelash extensions salon | Price range |
| Salons on Fave | $20 to $50 (first trial) |
| Home-based salons | $50 to $80 |
| Milly’s | $68 to $158 |
| Browhaus | $80 to $190 |
| Highbrow | $128 to $198 (but available on Fave too) |
Basically the aesthetician glues on strands of false eyelashes onto your natural ones. The reason why these don’t last is because your natural eyelash cycle lasts only a few weeks too, so the falsies will fall out along with your natural lashes.
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How much you pay depends on how dramatic you want the look to be (hence deciding how many artificial lashes are needed). As a gauge, it’s about 50 to 60 strands per eye for a natural look, but it can go up to 200 strands per eye if you choose those “6D” designs.
Generally, eyelash extensions should cost below $100. At branded salons like Milly’s, Browhaus and Highbrow, they range from $68 to almost $200, but nowadays, most people opt for home-based salons instead.
For those, prices typically range from $50 to $80. Eyelash extensions vouchers are also super popular on Fave, where you can snag deals for as cheap at $20+ to $50.
However, do note that they’re usually for first-time customers only.
Eyeliner tattoo prices in Singapore — from $58
Next up, there’s now a thing called eyeliner tattoos for those who struggle with the perfect cat-eye.
| Eyeliner tattoo salon | Price range |
| Salons on Fave | $58 to $78 |
| Neighbourhood or independent salons | $300 to $400 |
| Prestige eyebrow | $688 |
| Browhaus | $856 |
| Erabelle | $856 to $1,391 |
The idea of eyeliner tattoos is not new, but instead of using crappy pigment that eventually fades into a weird shade of green and blue, the modern eyeliner embroidery technique uses the microblading to put natural brown and/or black pigment on your eyeline.
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The prices for this one is a little strange: It’s ridiculously expensive at the “legit” salons ($688 and up!), but super cheap on Fave (from $58).
Personally, I wouldn’t recommend choosing a salon you don’t have absolute confidence in. (In fact, I don’t recommend this at all — but more on that below.) You’d want a very skilled aesthetician since she’ll be handling a blade that close to your eyes.
This is probably why although using a similar technique, the cost of eyeliner tattoo embroidery is more expensive than eyebrow embroidery (at proper salons, anyway).
Semi-permanent bb cream prices in Singapore — from $98
Okay, so this one is quite new in Singapore — semi-permanent bb cream. Previously, most forms of semi-permanent makeup used the “microblading” technique to “tattoo” colours on your skin, but you obviously can’t cut strokes all over your face, right?
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Right, but you can poke tiny holes in it, which is almost the same.
Semi-permanent bb cream – sometimes called BB Glow — uses a “microneedling” technique instead, which features a roller device with lots of small needles that prick your skin and “inject” the pigment.
Yikes. Sounds worthy of a movie in the Saw franchise already.
Not that many salons offer this in Singapore (for now), and prices are surprisingly affordable. At Face Shower Bar by Iren, there’s a first-timer promo at $88 (UP $216). At Esthetica, the trial is $98 instead (UP $350).
This is also offered at Mirage Aesthetics for $280 (trial) or $680 (usual price).
Eyebrow embroidery prices in Singapore — from $100
Some say your eyebrows are the most important facial feature because they frame your face. After eyelash extensions, eyebrow embroidery is probably the next most popular semi-permanent makeup procedure.
| Eyebrow embroidery salon | Price range |
| Salons on Fave | Under $100 |
| Salons in Johor Bahru (JB) | Under $200 |
| Neighbourhood or independent salons | Under $500 |
| Milly’s | $599 to $888 |
| Highbrow | $988 to $1,388 |
| Browhaus | $1,200 to $2,000 |
Like eyeliner tattoos, eyebrow embroidery uses “microblading”, which stains the upper layers of your skin for 1 to 2 years. That’s a pretty long commitment, but unlike eyeliner styles that go in and out of fashion, most people have a favourite eyebrow shape that flatters their face.
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As with most of the others on this list, prices are dramatically lower on Fave — you can get vouchers under $100, although I’m not sure if you’d dare.
Another popular cheap alternative is to get it done in JB. According to online reviews and forums, it generally costs under $200, which is 1/3 of what you’d pay at a salon in Singapore.
Known salons charge $600 to $1,200 for a semi-permanent set of brows, which is quite crazy. The only justification is that you save time, because even if you bought a new eyebrow pencil every month, I’m not sure you’d save any money.
Lip tattoo prices in Singapore — from $588
Lipstick tattoos are relatively new, and are mostly offered by salons that are already in the eyebrow and eyeliner embroidery business.
| Lip tattoo salon | Price range |
| Beauty Recipe | $588 (UP $980) |
| Bio Beauty | $888 to $1,288 |
| Prestige Eyebrow | $888 to $1,288 |
| Browtisan | $1,488 to $3,088 |
| Browhaus | $1,712 |
| Erabelle | $1,712 |
Interestingly, there are no first-timer voucher deals for this procedure on Fave. If you want to have permanently (well, for 1 year, at least) pink lips, you have to be prepared to shell out around at least $600.
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The salons would say it doesn’t hurt, but come on lah. It hurts when my lips crack in the winter, so they’re not smoking anyone. There’s down time for this procedure (all the microblading ones, actually), and it’s extra inconvenient because it’s hard to eat with a set of ultra-sensitive, swollen lips.
Conclusion — is semi-permanent makeup worth it?
As always, depends on who you ask. There’ll be some who tell you that semi-permanent makeup is life-changing because although they’re $2,000 poorer, they get to sleep an extra 30 minutes every morning. They’d say it’s money well spent.
And then there’s the camp who’d say “microblading” tiny strokes of eyebrow “hair” and “microneedling” pigment all over your face sounds nothing but nightmarish.
We can’t comment on how safe these procedures are — cosmetic “treatments” like these are not regulated in Singapore, so everything is at your own risk. I do know, however, that if you ask a doctor, they will most likely advise against it.
… I also happen to have a bit of experience.
Personally, I’ve done eyebrow and eyeliner embroidery. The skin at your brow bones are not that sensitive and you rarely touch that area, so the eyebrow microblading was fine (at least for me).
The eyeliner tattoo, on the other hand, was one of the most painful ordeals I’ve ever had to endure. I did it at the same indie salon that did my brows, but because the eye area is just that much more delicate, my eyes swelled for days and the recovery was slow.
The numbing cream stung my eyes, and when it wore off, I could feel the searing pain of the wounds on my eyelids. Looking back, it was very dangerous and I would never do it again.
What about you — have you tried any of these procedures? Tell us your experience in the comments below!
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