The Eyes Have It

By
January 2024 View more

Leave your lash and brow grooming to these three local pros

Femme Esthetics

Femme Esthetics

WHEATON

After graduating from Metea Valley High School, Eunice Liptak attended Universal Spa Training Academy, thinking she’d become a makeup artist. Instead, she ended up falling in love with waxing as well as lash and brow services. For her capstone project, she created a business plan for her own beauty studio and decided to put her vision into action. Though opening her Wheaton studio in February 2020—just weeks before pandemic lockdowns—was challenging, she’s built up a steady clientele for lash lifts, lash tints, brow services, and full-body waxing. “I’m really focusing on creating a space for men and women to have access to luxury, but not in the way where there’s a big price tag,” she says. Her signature service is the Femme Browz, which includes a brow wax, tint, and lamination. “Brow lamination is for anyone who is looking for an effortless, low-maintenance wake-up-and-you’re-ready kind of look,” Liptak says. “It technically is a perm for your eyebrows, but not in the way that we would think, like a curly perm. This is like a straight perm…basically, feathering out your brows so that they’re more manageable to keep styled.”
Good to know: Liptak offers a 15 percent discount to Wheaton College students. 208 W. Wesley St.

 

Giana Lauren Lashes, Brows & Beauty

Giana Lauren Lashes, Brows & Beauty

DOWNERS GROVE

“In high school, I was always the last one to get ready for school dances because I was doing all my friends’ makeup and hair,” says Downers Grove native Giana Lauren. She graduated from Universal Spa Training Academy in Downers Grove and later taught there for a number of years, training local students in makeup artistry and other topics. At her studio, clients can book services for brows (lamination, tint, wax) or lashes (extensions, lifts, tints) with either Lauren or fellow aesthetician Samatha Berger. “Lash extensions are a synthetic fiber that we put on every single one of your natural lashes,” Lauren says. “It’s very customizable, so it doesn’t have to be these big fan lashes—they can be very natural or super full, however you want them.” Lauren also does makeup for special occasions and weddings and continues to teach, offering private makeup lessons to clients as well as continuing education courses for professionals in the beauty industry.
Good to know: Lauren hosts seasonal events at her studio throughout the year; follow @gianalaurenlashes on Instagram for announcements. In November, she also added a hair stylist to her studio, offering hair color, cuts, and extensions. 937B Curtiss St.

 

KM Beauty Bar

NAPERVILLE

Keisha McDonell opened this studio with a vision to offer high-end beauty services that help people save time with their daily beauty routine. “Everyone deserves to look and feel fabulous and not spend hours in front of the mirror,” she says. Originally from Florida, McDonell graduated from Paul Mitchell the School Jacksonville. Eyelash extensions are her most popular service. “My clients love their lash appointments because there is no downtime—the lashes are instantly waterproof and oil-proof,” she says. In addition to brow waxing and shaping sessions, she also offers semipermanent makeup for brows, combining a microblading pen and tattoo machine to create a natural, realistic look that lasts for a year or more.
Good to know: McDonell also offers hair extensions. “[They] really elevate anyone’s look [and provide] super-low-maintenance color that looks naturally highlighted from the sun,” she says. 3027 English Rows Ave.

 

Photos: Femme Esthetics; Giana Lauren; KM Beauty Bar