Bombay Brow Bar "Henna Hotness" Media Event

From left to right: Ravy Mehroke, Raj Thandhi, Ash Kumar, name unknown, Amy Minhas.

Bombay Brow Bar is located on the same block as Fine Finds and my favourite schnitzel sandwich place, but for some reason I'd never set foot inside it until founders Ravy Mehroke and Amy Minhas invited me to their Henna Hotness media event last Friday. With promises of brow-shaping and henna by world-renowned henna artist Ash Kumar, it was a pretty hard invitation to resist.




While waiting for my brow threading session, I had a chance to check out the wares that BBB sold (sparkly bangles, scarves, eye makeup, cannisters of chai tea) and the decor (purple and gold walls, a flat screen playing Bollywood movies on the wall). I also had a chance to do a quick Q&A with Ravy about brows.

What makes good brows: Full, defined, and groomed with a good arch.
Celebrity brows you admire: Kim Kardashian
Brow pet peeves: Overplucked brows and "tadpole brows" (the too-thin ones that look like ovals with long skinny tails).

Demi Couture getting her brows threaded. You can read her recap of the event here.

Truth be told, I've never gone to a professional to get my brows done, let alone tried Indian threading. My mother was an overzealous plucker in her youth and warned me never to mess with my natural brows. Consequently I've only ever tweezed a stray hair here and there and I approached the experience nervously. But my threader Raj was calm and self-assured as she talked me through the entire process. She explained where the arch of my brow should be and penciled in the areas she would thread beforehand. The threading itself only felt like a slight pinch and didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, although my eyes did water a bit when Raj tackled the area underneath my brows. A relaxing head and temple massage followed. The result: groomed brows in minutes with minimal pain and no hassle.

Sunny Shum and I show off our glitter henna. (Photo by Bombay Brow Bar)

Then it was time to get glitter henna done by Ash Kumar. This talented London-based artist has worked with celebrities such as Julia Roberts, Demi Moore, Madonna, and Aishwairya Rai. He has a full range of powders, glitter gels, and other henna products and was recently featured in the New York Times. Oh, and did I mention he holds a world record for being the fastest henna artist in the world? I felt pretty privileged to have him work his artistry on my arm.

Ash Kumar's intricate artwork only takes seconds for him to do. You have to see it to believe it, so I shot a video of him drawing on someone else's arm.

Thanks to Ravy and Amy for the invite! Bombay Brow Bar is located at 1056 Mainland St. in Yaletown and offers a variety of brow services. Gift cards, Ash Kumar henna products, and bridal sessions are also available.