How to Prevent Bluing as Black Eyeliner Fades

Countless times, we have been asked how to prevent bluing as black eyeliner fades.

I’d like to explain that there are many reasons for this blue residual that appears at various times, from weeks to years.

One’s complexion plays a huge role in how black stays black. The best metaphor I can give you is to watch a professional basketball game for just five minutes. You will see many races, nationalities and complexions on the court, and many of these players have tattoos. In their tattoos, you will notice several shades of blacks and blues. This is due to their skin undertones. So, you see, we must place some responsibility on our clients for how black their eyeliner will remain. We can use the same black pigment on half a dozen women with different ethnic backgrounds and achieve six different results. Skin is a live organ and when we are working in it, we are working with someone’s DNA. These characteristics play a huge part in how color will heal in the skin.

On a basketball court, you will see fair men with very blue tattoos that were meant to be black. You will see some black men with blue tattoos and others that are still black. This could be due to the age of the tattoo or the ink used. Now, look at an in-between complexion and you will see various shades of blacks and blues. This is a great metaphor to give to your client that is insisting she wants her eyeliner to remain black forever and not like her friend’s that turned blue. I explain to my client there are no guarantees on what their complexion will do with it and how black it will heal in their skin. I know it’s going to be very black if I use Black Noir with 2 drops of Carbon. But it is a great reality to give your client.  

You may question why we see black tribal tattoos on people that seem to remain black but our eyeliner procedures do not. We cannot – and I repeat we CANNOT – use these black inks on the face, especially around the eyes. This would be dangerous on many levels, with migration being the highest level of danger and allergic reactions coming in a close second. These inks come with the tremendous risk and high probability to river into the surrounding area of the eyes and cheeks. You must also know that they, too, will eventually turn bluish since blue will always be dominant in black, regardless of whether you’re working with ink or pigment, and the base of these tribal inks is blue.

There are many black pigments to choose from in our permanent makeup world. Face Inks has developed five blacks and they each achieve a different result—which basically means more or less blue and more or less intensity.

Almost Black: Almost Black is a favorite among many practitioners and is a soft black that tends to have the eventuality of a gray fade as opposed to blue. It is great for women that are not quite committed to the black liquid eyeliner look but need a dark liner. It also slips into the skin, very nicely.

Onyx: Plain Onyx is quite blue. I tend to use this on my fair women with blue eyes. It is dark but if they are natural blondes or redheads, it will achieve a blue cast much quicker. I like to place the Onyx C (Carbon) between the top lashes and use the plain Onyx on the lid. This provides a deep frame and softer eyeliner. It’s quite beautiful.

Onyx CI (half Carbon and half Iron Oxide): Onyx CI is a great black when you want to achieve dark black eyeliner that generally pulls more grayish tones over the years. However, remember that your client’s complexion plays a tremendous role in how black will fade out.

Black Noir: Black Noir, our most popular black, has a warm base. It is our blackest black on most complexions. The base of the black has a significant effect on how long black pigment will remain black. If there is a bit of warmth added to the black to alter the base, you can achieve a longer lasting black.

Onyx C: Onyx C is Face Inks straight carbon. This can be used straight between top lashes ONLY!  However, I do darken Black Noir by adding 1-2 drops of Onyx C to a half cup of Face Inks Black Noir. I find I can achieve the blackest black with this formula. I never use a needle smaller than a 3-Outliner when I am adding Carbon. Carbon is ink and has no particle size. This can increase your risk of migration, especially with the use of smaller needles.

It’s important to know that any eyeliner color can migrate if placed too deeply. Use caution when performing this procedure.

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