Microneedling among Chandler aesthetician’s services

By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

Sarah McClellan wants all her potential clients and clients to know: Getting facial or other types of skin injections is not a panacea that will cover up for various health or lifestyle deficiencies.

“When you feel better, you tend to look better,” McClellan said. “And you’ll feel better not from cosmetic injections, but from good diet, exercise and general physical health.”

McClellan is an aesthetician, nurse and certified laser technician offering injections and other minor skin treatments as “Injector Gadget,” with a shop inside OMG Nails & Spa on the southeast corner of McQueen and Pecos roads in Chandler.

While all of the injection treatments McClellan provides are strictly cosmetic, she said the confidence clients get from looking better makes a difference in their lives.

“About 80% of my (working-age) clientele are in lines of work where visual appearance is key,” McClellan said. “And even some retired people I know say they just like feeling more confident, in all their relationships, or traveling or being out in public.”

She said it’s important not only to think holistically, but to also make sure more serious treatment isn’t necessary first. McClellan said she medically screens every potential client and frequently asks them to take care of cold sores or see a dermatologist for some conditions, prior to her working with them on aesthetics.

McClellan said she also requires clients to get certain types of bloodwork done first as well.

McClellan is a state-registered aesthetic nurse injector. She’s been licensed aesthetician for 10 years, having first transitioned from a career in sales and marketing to then assisting dermatologists with cryopeels and skin-cancer surgeries.

Her current treatments include Botox injections, fillers, microneedling, dermaplaning, chemical peels, medical-grade skincare and peptides.

She explained dermaplaning is a noninvasive exfoliation treatment that gently scrapes away fine hair — “what some people call ‘peach fuzz,’” McClellan said — and dead skin cells.

Peptide treatments for skin care can help boost the production of collagen and elastin, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Microneedling, McClellan explained, is a system of 12 to 36 tiny needles that inject a serum into skin cells. That serum can contain what McClellan describes as one that includes purified DNA fragments derived from salmon sperm, which stimulate collagen production.

McClellan said all the products she uses are medical-grade and are FDA-approved. Each aesthetician in Arizona also has a medical director who’s a doctor, she said.

Her clientele vary in age, she said, as there are some younger clients who haven’t lost much volume who still want to improve their appearance. She said one of her oldest clients was age 97 and simply wanted to look her best.

Not only are most of her treatments part of a holistic process, McClellan said, but also require what she calls “due diligence;” a single treatment often isn’t as effective as sticking with it for a few months or for a few consistent sessions.

McClellan said while nearly all potential clients who end up in dialogue with her are convinced the treatments will likely be effective, some have aversions to needles or microneedles.

“That’s why the consult process is so important,” McClellan said. “Some people are like, ‘Let’s go. Grab it and stab it.’ Others, you have to take a much more gentle approach.”

Learn more about McClellan’s services at injectorgadgetaz.com.

Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.

Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.