Medical Considerations

The following medical conditions require special consideration before permanent makeup procedures. Clients with any of these conditions should contact their physician to determine if it will be safe to have a permanent cosmetic procedure. In some cases the cosmetic tattoo artist will ask for a physicians release.

• Diabetes. Healing could be compromised, higher risk of infection.

• Glaucoma. Increased intraocular pressure combined with pressure placed on the eye to apply eyeliner could be damaging.

• Bleeding disorders. Blood disorders that affect clotting such as hemophilia, sickle cell anemia, platelet disorders.

• Mitral Valve Prolapse, Artificial Heart Valves, Artificial Joints. Any condition that requires prophylactic antibiotics before dental or other procedures will need to take them before micropigmentation also.

• Herpes Simplex. People who get fever blisters/cold sores may experience an outbreak after lip procedures. (Please refer to this page for Pre & Post-Care information.)

• Antiviral prescription should be taken.

• Pregnancy. Procedure should be postponed. Some medications are not to be used while pregnant. If you were to have a problem, this is not a good time to have it. Skin tones are also a little different while pregnant.

• Keloid or Hypertrophic Scarring. Persons with tendencies for this type of scarring have that risk with tattooing also.

• Use of certain Medications. Accutane/Retin-A, topical steroids can make skin fragile. Physician strength meds/treatments that affect the dermal layer of the skin can affect the permanent make-up. OTC meds/treatments that only affect the epidermis and are not much concern. Anticoagulants (blood thinners), long-term use of aspirin, ibuprofen, and some herbs reduce clotting time resulting in increased bleeding and bruising.

• Heart conditions, Uncontrolled High Blood Pressure, Poor general health.

• Any treatment, medication, or illness that compromises the immune system/healing would make you NOT a good candidate for micropigmentation procedures.

• If you have a thyroid condition your color may fade more rapidly and require more touch ups.

  Prominent wrinkles in the eyebrow area may yield the results of asymmetry in appearance.

• Lips that have been injected with fillers may not hold color well.

Please take risks seriously. Every possible complication does not happen every time. Just because it did not happen to your friend does not mean it will not happen to you. Just because it did not happen to you last time does not mean it will not happen to you this time. On the bright side, just because it happened last time doesn't mean it will happen next time. Hopefully you will choose a well-trained professional for your permanent makeup procedure who is knowledgeable and can identify complications in their early stages to direct you to the appropriate treatment.

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Microblading and Semi-Permanent Makeup pre and post-care information

Fifty percent of the outcome of your microbladed brows is dependent upon proper aftercare. In order for your new brows to heal properly and look their best, the pre & post-care Instructions found below are extremely important.

Microblading and Semi-Permanent Makeup Pre-care

• Do not work out at least 6 hours before procedure.

• No alcohol or caffeine 24 hours before procedure.

• Avoid sun and tanning two weeks prior to procedure.

• Do not take Aspirin, Niacin, Vitamin E or Advil/Ibuprofen 48 hours before procedure.

• Avoid Fish Oil, Prenatal Vitamins, Nutritional Shakes (Shakeology, etc),  and "Hair, Skin, & Nail" supplements 3 days prior to procedure.

• No brow waxing, tinting, henna or threading one week prior to the appointment. The more natural hair growth you have, the better actually!

• No microdermabrasion or laser or chemical peels four weeks prior.

• Discontinue Retin-A, Alpha Hydroxy Acid (AHA), and any chemical exfoliant or “brightening” skincare at least 2 weeks prior.

• Do not use AHA, or any chemical exfoliant or “brightening” skincare products close to the eyebrow area 2 weeks prior to and 2 weeks after your procedure as these can prematurely fade the microbladed brows.

• No Botox around the brow area 2 weeks prior.

• Please Note: You will be more sensitive during your menstrual cycle. These Pre-Care instructions are designed to limit bleeding and skin sensitivities during the service. Excessive bleeding during the procedure will dilute the pigment and can lead to poor results!

Microblading and Semi-Permanent Makeup Post-care

Treat your microbladed brows like an open wound.

• Keep the brow area clean by using a gentle fragrance-free cleanser and water with freshly washed hands morning and night (2x/day). Do not use a washcloth or sponge and clean area by moving in the direction of the hair growth.

• Allow eyebrows to air dry before applying a thin layer of aftercare ointment/gel.

• Apply a very thin layer of aftercare ointment/gel given with a Q-tip 5-7 times/day the first 3 days, 3-5 times for TWO WEEKS.

• DO NOT rub, pick or scratch the treated area. Let any scabbing or dry skin naturally exfoliate off. Picking can cause scarring and pigment loss.

• Avoid sun exposure, tanning beds, pool (chlorine is irritating), sauna, steam rooms, hot showers and/or hot baths for 2 weeks.

• Avoid physical effort, gym and any other activity that may cause excessive sweating for at least 5 and up to 14 days.

• Avoid sleeping on your face for the first 7 days.

• NO makeup or skincare products to be used on the treated area (forehead and brows) for 7-10 days or until healed.

• NO Botox around the brow area for two weeks after.

• NO facials, chemical treatments and microdermabrasion for 4 weeks.

• After 14 days, once the area has healed completely, use sunblock (at least SPF 30, if not 50) on the brows to help prevent the color from fading.

• Eyebrow tinting should not be undertaken for 2 weeks after your procedure.

• Avoid Retin-A close to brow area.

• Please note: Immediately following your procedure, the brows will appear up to 20-40%  darker and bolder in color and up to 15% thicker than they will be once they are healed.  The brow area may feel a bit like sunburn immediately afterwards, but expect minimal discomfort overall.  During the initial healing period, the brows will go through various stages, and some scabbing or flaking of the skin may occur.  If scabbing or flaking is present, do not pick the scabs or dry skin; allow the scab or dry skin to flake off on its own to avoid pulling the pigment off prematurely.

• The complete healing process takes about 4-8 weeks, at which time the true color of the tattoo is evident.  During this process, your tattoo will soften and lighten before your skin naturally exfoliates revealing the pigment that has been deposited. Wait at least 4 weeks to see the true color and shape represented. It can be a bit of a roller coaster, so just trust the process and be patient. A routine touch up, or adjustment if needed, (which is NOT INCLUDED in the initial cost) is recommended after 4-8 weeks when we will assess the healed strokes, and add any detail or make changes to color and shape at this time. I promise it is all worth it!

Lip Blushing pre and post-care information

• Lips will ooze a couple of days. Blot and reapply ointment. After sleeping, crust will have dried on the lips. Rinse with water or put more ointment on to loosen crust, blot and reapply ointment. Do not use tissues, it will leaves lint on the lips. . A wet cloth or baby wipe is also good to blot with.

• Lips will be tender at first. Drink through a straw. Choose foods you can place in your mouth with a fork without touching lips.

• Place an old towel on the pillow you will sleep on until the oozing stops.

• Do not excessively stretch lips while they are healing with big smiles, or smoking and pucker lips with smoking. Those motions push and pull against the lip edges, applying tension and friction between the strong normal skin surrounding the mouth and the broken inflamed lip edges. Lip skin is a continuation of the delicate mucous membrane in the mouth. It is not strong like normal skin.

• On the third day, lips will stop oozing and start peeling. This is when the chapped lip feeling is strongest. You may relieve the chapped lip feeling by lightly massaging the lips after placing a thick layer of ointment on them and making gentle circular motions with one finger. The light, wet massage helps get loose skin off that is ready to come off without yanking out skin that is not ready to come off. The massage relieves the chapped feeling for several hours, then it returns, and you can massage again.

• Lips will peel for 3-7 days , allow it to flake off on its own. Picking and pulling off skin that is not ready to come off will cause pigment loss and can pull out deeper tissue. The edges or lip liner will be the last to fall off. Pulling this off will result in an uneven splotchy line or an indented scar .

• Try to keep toothpaste off lips while healing.

• Do not have teeth bleached while healing.

• During the peeling process it may look like there is not much color there. Color is more apparent by the second week. Final result is not judged for 2 months.

• It is normal to have discomfort or a feeling of pressure the day of the lip procedure. The next day should be minimal. If you begin having pain on the 3rd or 4th day after being pain-free, it is a signal that something is wrong. It is usually one of three things: 1) Infection, 2) Cold sore, or 3) Allergic contact dermatitis from antibiotic ointment. Stop and switch ointments to Vaseline/ Aquaphor , and consider a culture to determine bacterial vs yeast infection. Lip infections after permanent makeup procedures are usually described as burning pain. Bacterial lip infections have a yellow gooey discharge, but begin peeling as expected on day three. Candida lip infections do not begin peeling on time as would be expected with healthy healing lips (possibly due to candida adhesion properties), and may have a velvety appearance.

• To prevent bruises and swelling you can take OTC Arnica supplements prior the apt.

• Those with history of fever blisters/cold sores should take an antiviral prescription, prior to their lip blushing procedure, to prevent the outbreak of Herpes Simplex.

Healing Time

• Permanent makeup will appear extremely intense and thick immediately after the procedure. The color will not even look right the first few days. Other factors are added to the permanent makeup pigment bottles to counteract the undertones of facial skin. Browns can look orangish-brown, blonde brows may look too yellow, lip colors are shocking! Some colors initially look too bright and others look too dark. But don't worry - it changes. Excess pigment sheds off over the next 2-3 days, and then the skin starts healing over. A layer of healed skin on top of the pigment masks and tones it down considerably. As swelling goes down the lines will be thinner. On about day fourth you are close to looking normal. Colors will continue to soften over the next few weeks. It will look very natural in 2-3 months. It looks even softer and lighter in 7-9 month time period. OUTER HEALING completes in about 3-7 days for eyes, 7-10 days for lips. INNER HEALING completes in 1-2 months.

• Swelling and bruising may be affected by age, food and meds consumed, and hormonal cycles. It could be everything from no noticeable swelling to bruising. Brows have minimal swelling. Eyes have moderate swelling, but can be easily hidden with sunglasses. Generally speaking, younger women’s eyes swell less and the swelling goes down faster after eyeliner procedures. Older women have loose skin that provides a greater water holding pocket. Additionally, circulation and cellular turnover slows with aging. Lips can swell four times their normal size, and there is no hiding them. Use surgical masks if you are making a trip to the store. After three or four days when the area is healed enough that you don’t have to worry about infection, you can go back to your daily makeup routine.

• How quickly a client returns to work depends on which permanent makeup procedure she had performed, and what type of occupation she has (greets the public, or works more privately in office). Eyes and brows are a breeze. Clients have eyes and brows done on Friday or Saturday and return to work Monday. Lips are a bigger ordeal. Clients usually have lips done on Thursday or Friday and return to work on Monday or Tuesday.

How long does permanent makeup last?

• Semi - Permanent makeup will fade off over the years. While this may be disappointing to some people, others may be more comfortable with this knowledge. Touchups is recommended between 1 -2 years to keep them in a perfect condition of shape and color. Touchup after two years will be considered as a new service due to the required time of measurement and adding the details to the loss of shape and color.

• Semi-Permanent makeup is faded by UV rays, pigment removal by the body via ducts in eyelash and eyebrow hair follicles, possibly body chemistry, exfoliating skin care products applied to the face, cellular turnover - rejuvenation, etc. Lighter colors fade faster than darker colors. It lasts longer on older women because they aren’t out playing in the sun as much, and their cellular turnover rate is slower. The bright side to "permanent" makeup fading off is that it makes it easier to change color, shape, and placement over the years.

Permanent Makeup Touchups

• Touchups are not done any sooner than a 6-8 weeks for brow, two month for lip and eyeliner after the last procedure because the area has to be completely healed.

• Eyebrows may need a touchup for a variety of reasons. The brows may need additional strokes to fill it in more, or maybe an area didn’t take pigment well. Color may need an adjustment to be lightened or darkened, including things like one tail looks longer, one looks like it is in closer to the nose, one looks thinner, etc. These are all minor imperfections that are easily fixed on a touchup visit.

• Eyeliner almost never needs a touchup. Touchups are limited to reasons like if an area didn't take well, or there is some imperfection for a small products fee. Otherwise, too many clients would request a touchup because they like it and want more of it - thicker and darker than originally asked for. Sometimes it is because a client requested defined, then wanted smudgy, or wants to add a color. A permanent eyeliner touchup within 1 year to add or change from the original request is charged a 50% touchup fee. Years later, when it is time to redo it, it is full price.

• Lips usually do not need a touchup. After two months, you see any faint areas, imperfections, color adjustments needed, or if it looks like a second procedure would be beneficial to increase the pigment concentration for longevity, a touchup should be scheduled. Years later, when it is time to redo it, it is full price.