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Meet Tanny Diep of Sway Brows in La Habra

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Tanny Diep.

Tanny, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Before Sway Brows, I was working in the fashion industry as a Sales & Marketing Manager for a women’s brand called Coin 1804. I graduated from FIDM with a degree in Fashion Design in 2008 and started working as an Assistant Designer, but realized early on that I was much better at selling and marketing the clothing than actually making it.

Coin was a small company, so I had the opportunity to work directly with the owners and became fully immersed in the manufacturing process from A-Z. Over the course of nine years, I was involved in all aspects of the business from design, sales, marketing, production, operations through to logistics. What people may not realize about the fashion industry is the amount of intricate details it requires to create a garment, let alone how many people it takes to drive it from conception to consumer goods.

As much as I loved it, the industry itself had evolved tremendously over the last five years with the boom of fast fashion (Forever21, H&M, and Zara) and E-commerce. It demanded long hours in a deadline sensitive and high-pressure environment. At the height of my career, I was working 50-60 hours a week while commuting roughly an hour each way from Cerritos to downtown LA every day. I was yearning for a change that allowed more flexibility with my time.

My sister in law had recently started a new career in Microblading, and I would see her snapping stories at the beach on a Tuesday. That honestly piqued my interest in her work more than anything else! LOL! I knew she had the freedom of creating her own schedule while still earning a lucrative income. For those who don’t know what microblading is, it’s a form of semi-permanent eyebrow tattoo that uses a manual blade to draw realistic hair-like strokes. I spent weeks researching, and she referred me to Phi Brows Academy, based in Serbia.

I looked up Phi Brows Artists on Instagram and was completely blown away by their work. These eyebrows were so realistic and like nothing I’ve ever known about eyebrow tattoos. I was excited to learn that they had master trainers and locations around the world, including USA. Since I was still working full time, I opted for their online program which allowed me to study and practice at my own pace.

Three months later, I passed my course and received my certification. I was fortunate to have the mentorship of my sister in law who also shared her space with me to work on the weekends. She rented a room out of a hair salon in West Covina. My first models were all my close friends. I told them about my career change, which everyone thought was really random, but were all very supportive! I would be so nervous before every client that I’d be almost nauseous and couldn’t eat a thing all day.

Just the thought that I was tattooing someone’s face made my palms sweaty. Knowing that people trusted me with such responsibility motivated me to strengthen my practice. I’d have my clients send me photos of their face so I could practice drawing their brows before their appointment. Even after the session, I would study their finished result and take notes on what I liked as well as what I could’ve done better. At this point, I became deeply obsessed with the artistry but also how happy my clients were with their brow transformations.

The most fulfilling moments were when clients shared that it boosted their confidence and made them feel beautiful. For about three months, I worked full time at Coin while taking brow clients on the weekends. I was steadily building my Instagram portfolio but slowly getting burnt out by working seven days a week. I finally told my boss that I was working a second job and that I had plans of changing careers. They were supportive and offered part-time flexibility in my schedule while we hired and trained my replacements.

Since my sister in law’s space was only meant to be temporary, a month later, the time finally came for me to find my own space. It was so hard for me to quit my job because I had invested so much time into that company, but I knew it was time for me to take the leap. I had been on the waiting list for a few Sola Salons, which is a business complex with mini-suites catered to beauty industry professionals. In October of 2018, they opened a brand new location in La Habra which was closest to me.

I received their email announcement and reached out to set up an appointment. By the end of October, I moved into my own suite and officially launched Sway Brows. I was simultaneously scared, nervous, anxious and excited for my new venture. My first week in the studio, I created a promo deal for $350 including a 4-8 week touch up (my regular rate is $500), and it was a hit!

By my second week in the studio, I was fully booked for the month of November. The deal was so popular I decided to extend it through December for the holidays, and again appointments filled up fast. The majority of my clients were finding me on Instagram, so I tried to find new ways to cultivate my following.

I started posting videos of me practicing on latex skin, and they went viral within the permanent makeup community. When I moved into my studio, I was at 2000 followers and have now grown to 16.5K followers in the last three months and am fully booked through March.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think my biggest challenges have been patience, perseverance, discipline and the learning curve of a new industry. From the moment I decided to make a change in my career versus when it actually happened, was approximately eight months. There were so many days where I wanted to just quit my job and start fresh, but I knew I wouldn’t survive. I had to map out my transition strategy and be diligent about executing it one step at a time. With patience, I was very fortunate that timing was on my side.

In order to complete my certification, I had to submit a photo of my work on a live model. Up until that point, all of my practice had been on latex, and I felt pretty confident in my abilities. Little did I know that latex versus working on actual skin are two completely different worlds. My first model was a struggle! It took me over three hours, and I was so scared to inflict pain on her that I didn’t work deep enough on the skin. I couldn’t even finish the entire brow because I blanked out on everything I learned.

Thank GOD she was a good friend of mine and was so sweet and understanding. I still don’t know how I was able to talk all my friends into letting me tattoo their faces when I barely knew what I was doing. I was so sad after that appointment, I seriously questioned whether or not I could do this for a living. My second model was an even worse experience. This time I completed the brow but made them a little too thick and a little too dark, every girl’s worse eyebrow nightmare.

I was so disappointed and couldn’t sleep for days. Again my friends and family were supportive, and I had to keep trying until I got it right. It took me, four models, to pass my course and luckily microblading fades and shrinks, so I was able to fix their brows at the touch-ups. My biggest challenge has been time management and having the discipline of being my own boss. I owe a lot of my success to my experience at my previous company because that was where I learned how to operate a business.

Entrepreneurship is often glorified because you can make your own schedule and do as you wish, but what people don’t realize is you also have to do everything yourself when starting up. Working with clients is great, but after a full day I still come home and organize my client profile, review and assess my work, manage my accounting, expenses & supplies, plan my marketing content, be active on social media and handle my email & phone correspondence.

I’m still learning the most optimal ways to schedule my time, but if I don’t, I ended up being scattered between tasks and distracted because I’m in the comfort of my own home. I’ve been doing work related things from the moment I wake up, until the moment I go to sleep, but I’m slowly finding my rhythm. By next month, I’ve scheduled more consistent days off, and I’ll finally have that work, life, balance.

Sway Brows – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I have been a dancer all my life, and I love music. When I hear a great song that makes me feel good, I naturally want to move to the beat and sway to the rhythm. Our mission is to make clients look and feel great while giving their brows that natural sway. We specialize in microblading, which is a form of semi-permanent eyebrow tattoo created by etching individual hair-like strokes into the uppermost layer of the dermis. This method creates realistic 3D brows that looks like real hair.

What sets us apart is the level of detail that goes into each brow, and how we cater each design to the client’s facial proportions. I was trained under The Phi Brows method, which uses the golden ratio (1.618) to determine the brow shape. Beyond creating beautiful brows, I aim to create a comfortable and pleasant experience as well as build a lasting connection with the clients. Working one on one can be very personal, so I make an effort to be present and create a genuine rapport.

My proudest moments are working with clients that have little to no hair, and being able to give them a complete transformation. I’ve had clients who have OCD conditions such as trichotillomania, where you habitually pull out your eyebrow hairs, and their eyebrows are completely gone. Seeing tears in their eyes as we reveal their new brows warm my heart. It’s amazing how much eyebrows can transform someone’s face as well as boost their confidence.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
There have been so many amazing moments, and I am grateful for all the small as well as big accomplishments. One that stands out would be the moment I finished furnishing my studio.  I felt so proud that I had finally become a business owner!

More exciting moments of my career were reaching 10K followers on Instagram and being promoted to Royal Artist by Phi Brows Academy. PhiBrows has different levels of artistry that you can attain by your skill level and activity within the social community.

To become a royal artist, you have to have been an artist for six months and have five samples of your work judged by the panel of masters. The work must exemplify the ability to work with different skin types along with level of precision and artistic ability.

With this title, I am now allowed to teach and become a trainer. My ultimate goal is to become a PhiBrows Master Educator, so I can share my knowledge and train new artists.

Pricing:

  • Microblading $550
  • Microblading & Shading Combo $550
  • Ombre Powder $400

Contact Info:

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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