Should I get a brow lift or permanent eyebrows first?

The Irregular Trichophytic Forehead Lift is what would be best. The hair grows they the scar and the scar does not show. Also, your hairline is not raised which it is when the incision is made behind the hairline. See an experienced surgeon familiar with this technique which we developed 35 years ago.

A direct browlift is a great procedure in specific patients. There are often better ways to perform a browlift procedure which almost immediately camouflage the incision. The downside to the direct browlift is that the scars can be objectionable for a year. As Dr. Kabaker suggested you might want to have permanent makeup performed after the procedure at which point the scars can also be tattooed to help with camouflage.
Both endoscopic and open browlifts provide very nice results without the need to coverup the incisions for up to 12 months. I recommend you seek a third opinion and ask specifically about options other than the direct or midforehead approaches. I hope this information is helpful.Stephen Weber MD, FACS

This procedure is ideal for a small subset of people due to the possibility of a permanently visible scar which is often difficult to hide.

A more traditional approach would be an open or endoscopic brow lift. The incisions are in the hair and not visible. These techniques will also address the skin excess of the entire forehead not just the brow position.
Seek out a board certified plastic surgeon to discuss all of your options. I hope this was helpful.

The direct browlift is an older procedure that was popular 20 to 30 years ago.  It is not commonly performed today.  It is usually only preformed today for a unilateral brow ptosis in a unilateral facial nerve paralysis.  When a bilateral brow lift is needed, an endoscopic or coronal approach is used to raise the entire forehead.  The browlift also adjusts muscles of the forehead including the frontalis, corrugator, and procerus muscles when needed at the same time.

A direct excision for a lift is appropriate for certain patients. I would get the tatoo after the surgery is complete