Traditional Indian hair removal technique comes to Bloomington

As Bollywood music fills the air, curious passers-by are lured toward Eyebrows Style -- a new salon specializing in threading, a traditional Indian hair removal technique. The process involves holding a piece of thread in the mouth and twisting it to form coils to pull out a row of unwanted hair. This seemingly exotic Indian aesthetic practice was previously limited to the Little Indias of New York and Chicago but has now found a growing market in Midwestern towns like Bloomington. From the Aveda salon on Tenth and College to Eyebrows Style in College Mall, threading has become the fashionable new way to get that perfect eyebrow arch. \nJoyce Masih threaded eyebrows in Indianapolis and knew the tactic was a popular hair removal technique in large cities, so in January she opened up Eyebrows Style. \nEver since, the trend has quickly gained the support of college-aged women in Bloomington unhappy with the alternatives -- waxing and tweezing. \nMasih said most of her customers are IU students.\n"They love it," she said. \nChelsea Holder, a music business major from California, tried threading because she wasn't satisfied with waxing. Holder said the pain is definitely worth the gain. She said threading gives her eyebrows a more precise shape. In Los Angeles, threading is common and cheap, Holder said. But she didn't think the technique was available in Bloomington until she heard about Manisha Bahri at Les Champs Elysees Day Spa and Salon in Bloomington. Holder, a blonde-haired, tan California freshman, first learned about threading from her best friend, who's Persian. \n"She gets it done ... and her \neyebrows look great," Holder said.\nThreading is a simple aesthetic tactic that doesn't involve much more than a spool of thread and a skillful hand. \nMuch like any salon service, prices differ depending on the environment. Upscale new salons in New York City, such as Shobha Threading in Manhattan, charge $20 to thread eyebrows. The bare room next to LS Ayres in College Mall -- Eyebrows Style -- only charges $7. Les Champs Elysees Day Spa and Salon, the Aveda salon on College Avenue, charges $12. \nBoth Masih and Bahri learned to thread when they were young girls in India. Threading is the typical way to shape eyebrows in the Indian subcontinent. The idea of waxing the face, which is the common eyebrow shaping technique in American salons, was unheard of in India. \n"(Indians) don't have a concept of waxing eyebrows," Bahri said. \nFor years, eyebrow threading appealed solely to the Indian-American and Middle Eastern communities, with women like Bahri, who threads eyebrows at Les Champs-Elysees Aveda salon, working out of their homes. But recently, as the benefits of threading have become more popular through the advice of fashion columnists who experimented with the trend, eyebrow threaders have begun targeting a broader customer base and opening kiosks in suburban shopping malls. The sheer visibility of eyebrow threading has increased its popularity. From the CBS News "Early Show" to The Washington Post, threading has recently received extensive praise for its price and preciseness. \nWhen Bahri worked out of her home, her base of clients was primarily Indian, but as threading became more popular on the national scene, she began catering to a broader range of clients. In February 2006, she joined Les Champs Elysees. Threading gives the salon a unique edge. Its Web site lists the service at the top of its home page, claiming that threading is "more precise" than waxing. And even though Bahri will be leaving Bloomington at the end of this school year, Les Champs Elysees is looking to find a replacement. \nBahri contends that threading is the best technique for eyebrows. The only complaints customers seem to voice is about the pain. But, both Bahri and Masih said it's tolerable and worth the benefits. Waxing irritates the skin, and tweezing often leads to ingrown hairs, Bahri said. With threading, the amount of hair removed is all in the hands of the aesthetician, not a strip of a wax. \n"It's very, very precise," Bahri said. \nMasih said customers who grumbled about the pain went back to waxing but shortly thereafter returned to her because they weren't happy with the shape of their eyebrows. \n"(Threading) is popular because it gives you the good shape," Masih said. "When you have nice eyebrows, your face looks beautiful. Your eyes look more attractive."\nCustomers are recommended to rethread their eyebrows about once every two to three weeks, but because threading can easily capture individual hairs, customers can come in whenever they choose. \nEyebrows Style usually receives about 30 to 35 customers per weekday and an additional 20 per day on the weekend. Masih didn't offer any speculation about the trend's potential to expand but seemed convinced Eyebrows Style was here to stay.\n"My customers, they like it," Masih said.