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 the fourth day you are close to looking normal and no one notices anything. Colors will continue to soften over the next few weeks. It will look very natural in 2-3 months. 

OUTER HEALING completes in about 3-6 days for eyes and eyebrows, 7-10 days for lips.

INNER HEALING completes in 2-3 months.

How easily a person swells and bruises may be affected by age, food and meds consumed, and hormonal cycles. I have seen everything from no noticeable swelling to bruising. Brows have minimal swelling, but the wet paint look is difficult to hide unless you have long bangs or big rim sunglasses. 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. After three or four days when the area is healed enough that you don’t have to worry about infection, you can mask the area with other makeup/ powder/ lipstick while waiting for healing to complete.

General aftercare instructions

*** For MICROBLADING i recommend dry heal only!

*** For eyebrows or other areas use Bepanthen cream.

• Cold packs have not shown to make a noticeable difference in reducing permanent makeup swelling, but they feel good on the skin and are a comfort measure. Cooling a skin wound is beneficial; freezing it is not. Using refrigerator temperature cold packs is safer for damaged dermis than freezer temperature cold packs. The traumatized tissue is already in a delicate condition and can get frost damage. Slight cooling of the skin a few times after a permanent makeup procedure can be done.

• A permanent makeup procedure is the equivalent of a skin-deep wound - like a scratch you might get around the house. Expect it to ooze a little, scab a little, and heal in a similar time frame.

  May cool the skin a few times after permanent makeup procedure with cold pack for 10 min. every couple of hours the first day. Don’t overdo it.

• Notify permanent makeup artist or physician at first sign of allergic reaction or infection. If you suspect a problem is developing, the first thing to do is switch the type of ointment you are using. The ointment is often causing the problem. An occasional slight healing itch is normal.  Constant intense itching, abnormal thick yellow discharge, yellow scabs, hot burning pain, lumps, bumps, and blisters are not normal.

• Do not smash your face in a pillow while sleeping.
• Do not peel or pick scabs, this could cause pigment loss, scarring and delayed healing.
• Do not expose to sun or sun beds while outer healing progresses. Use of sunblock (at least SPF30) after healing is completed will help prevent premature fading.
• Do not swim in fresh, salt or chlorinated water for 2 weeks.
• Avoid environments that would cause dirt or gems to contact area while healing.
• Do not apply topical cosmetics over area while healing.
• Ibubrofen, Nurofen or your favourite pain reliever may be used to reduce swelling and discomfort.
• Many anti-aging products and services containing acids, lighteners, and exfoliates cause premature fading of pigment. Avoid pigmented area. Stay about 1/4 inch away from permanent makeup.

Specifics For EYELINER

• Do not wear contact lenses during the procedure or for 24 hours after.
• Have sunglasses available. Eyes may be light sensitive or even dilated immediately after. The sunglasses are also handy for hiding puffy eyes.
• Do not dye, perm, or use eyelash curler for 2 weeks.
• Do not use mascara until outer healing is complete (3-5 days). Most clients are returning to work in 2 days and are noncompliant about this, so at least begin with a new tube of mascara due to risk of bacterial presence in used tubes. Stay a little farther out on the lashes, not too close to the liner. 
• Eyes will be swollen for a few days. Eyes may feel dry or irritated. Lubricating refresher drops may be used.

Specifics For EYEBROWS

• Do not dye, wax, tweeze, or use electrolysis for 2 weeks in the cosmetic tattoo area. You can tweeze outside / around the permanent makeup.
• It can take a little time for the eyebrow tattoo to soften up, and to see how the color is going to do. After the skin is healed over you can put brow powder on it to mask it while waiting. Many women buy eyeshadow to use as brow powder because there are more tones available. Just make sure it is matte and doesn’t have sparkles in it.

Specifics For LIPS

• 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. Most tissues like the ones you blow your nose with will leave lint on the lips. Use something stronger and lint-free like Bounty hand towels. A soaking wet cloth feels 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.
• Do not excessively stretch lips while they are healing with big smiles, or 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 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 a week. Other than the massage mentioned above, 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 (like messing with a pimple).
  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.