TGtS Meets...Bridgette Softley

Bridgette Softley is one of the country's leading permanent cosmetics artists and has spent the last thirty years perfecting her craft. Every 7 to 8 weeks Bridgette performs a drop in session at leading Swindon salon Bloomin Beautiful, find out more about Bridgette and the treatments that she offers in our exclusive interview below...

Tell us a little bit more about the treatments that you offer...

Semi-permanent make-up or micropigmentation is a form of implanting pigment into the skin to create brows, eyes or lips. What I basically do is give back what mother nature has taken away. As we get older we have a tendency to lose the pigment in our skin and lips. For example people may lose their lips for want of a better term, so it's my job to give them a more youthful and less harsh look. Brows are another prime example, people may have over plucked them in their youth or unfortunately lose them due to menopause, alopecia or as the result of burns. I can create the illusion of a hair as opposed to just a pencil stroke. 

What's the reasoning behind some of treatments that you've mentioned?

The main purpose of the treatments are trying to recapture your youth again but doing it in a way that's enhancing rather than trying to replace make-up. That to me is vital, never do you want someone to say 'oh my goodness have you had XYZ done' the nicest thing that someone will ever say to you is 'you look really good today'. 

Do the procedures hurt at all?

Generally on a scale of 1 to 10 you would usually think that having an eye treatment would hurt but it's probably only about a 7 or an 8. The reward completely outweighs the discomfort though, as soon as I stop, the sensation stops. I wouldn't go as to far as to say it's painful, but it's certainly aggravating. An eye treatment can last from anything from 12 to 18 months. 

There's a bit of a stigma surrounding 'semi-permanent eyebrows' how do you achieve a natural result?

With the brows I try to emulate hair, so the strokes that I do are very fine to create thin little lines. If someone comes close obviously they'll see the little lines on the face but I would say it's a little bit like dirty dancing, your space and mine, if I allow you into that space i.e. my lover or my partner you'll see those little lines but in normal circumstances they'll just look like beautiful brows. 

Is there a typical type of customer who favours these procedures?

It's hard to profile a typical micropigmentation customer, the people who have this procedure are incredibly varied. I work with people who want to have procedures done for cosmetic reasons to people who require it for medical reasons. By law these treatments can't be carried out on anyone under the age of 16, however personally I don't treat anyone under the age of 18 unless it's for a customer with alopecia or cancer. 

Tell us a little bit more about the medical side of the procedures...

It's something that I feel incredibly strongly about. It's an extremely rewarding job and I consider myself to be very lucky to be able to do it. Nobody can take away that feeling when somebody comes in to you with very little self-esteem and you can send them out with a big smile on their face. That to me is one of the nicest things that I can do. 

How did you first get started in the beauty industry?

It's really strange actually, it was 18 years ago and I was working in sales make-up, they wanted sales people in the South so I went for an interview and I just couldn't believe how much you could do with make-up and how you could help so many different people - I've really never looked back. 

Cosmetically, is this something that lots of celebrities have had done?

Yes they do, but obviously that's between them and I. I'm very proud that I work with the Katie Piper Foundation. Through them I help clients who have been severely burnt. Surgeons can only do so much, so that's where I come in to finish the job off and help people regain their confidence. Essentially I put the icing on the cake. 

Why do you think that treatments like these are becoming more and more popular?

I think it's just a sign of the times, 18 years ago people were shocked by the notion of putting needles in their faces but now most women are aware of its availability and the benefits that it can have. The average woman today wants treatments like these and isn't prepared not to have them, whereas before woman would have heard of these procedures but thought 'very nice but not in my world'. I also think that reality television stars have made treatments like these the norm. 

Are we right in thinking that you travel all around the country to administer treatments?

I travel all around the world actually, not only do I carry out the treatments but I also teach - which I think is really beneficial. It keeps me on my toes, there's no question about it. Over the last couple of years I've trained some amazing technicians but you're forever learning. You learn about yourself, what you can and can't do and you're improving yourself. That to me is why I've been able to keep myself at the top of my game. 

Talk us through the process of booking an appointment...

There are certain people who can't have the treatments done for medical reasons but I'll discuss that with them. I never just rush into procedures so ideally I'd liked to have a consultation with patients first. I like people to think about what they're doing, there are downtimes of about 4 to 5 days and you can't wear make-up over the area, so if you're conscious  that you need to have a full face of make-up for work, you'd have to consider taking time off. 

Visit www.bridgettesoftley.co.uk or follow Bridgette on Twitter www.twitter.com/BSoftley