Preserve Your Permanent Makeup

Preparing Your Skin for a Permanent Makeup Procedure

Taking care of your skin is so important.  We encourage all our clients to have a good skin care regiment.

Starting with a gentle cleaner, a product that exfoliates, a form of retinol or Vitamin C, a moisturizer with hyaluronic acid that is suited for your skin type, and the appropriate sunscreen for your lifestyle will all contribute to healthy skin. When your skin is healthy - your permanent makeup will have the best results.

When skin is minimally exfoliated and well moisturized - the pigment will slide into the skin easier, resulting in better color retention.

For those just beginning to exfoliate their skin, we recommend being gentle. Perhaps, a mask of Hyaluronic Acid is enough to start. For those that exfoliate regularly, a scrub with a fine grit can be applied to remove the dead cells from the surface of their skin. Many clients will schedule a facial 2-weeks prior to their permanent makeup procedure.

Protecting Your Permanent Makeup Procedure

A minimum of 30-SPF broad spectrum sunscreen is critical in preserving your permanent makeup and your permanent lip color. If you spend time outdoors or at the beach, choose a product with a 60-SPF or greater.

According to Johns Hopkins, when used regularly, sunscreen helps prevent sunburn, skin cancer and premature aging. Always select a sunscreen that is Broad Spectrum, which protects your skin from UVA and UVB rays.  

Very often, when I question my client’s faded eyebrows that were far too swift, and know my client spends a lot of time in the sun, they tell me they always wear sunglasses when outdoors or at the beach.

Sunglasses will not protect your permanent eyebrows!!! The sun will still beat down on your eyebrows from above your sunglasses, thereby exposing them to UVA and UVB rays that will fade them. 

We, here at Beau, suggest a brimmed hat or wide visor, sunscreen, and sunglasses to protect your permanent eyebrows. Yes, you need all 3 of these!

Even with all this protection, your permanent lip color remains exposed. Fortunately, there are sunscreens for your lips that are non-toxic for consumption. We strongly recommend using one with a minimum of 60-SPF. 

A very wide brim count will help to shade your lips, slightly, but they will still require sunscreen.

The most important thing for maximum protection is to remember to REAPPLY SUNSCREEN! 

Applying it once when you plan on spending even a few hours outdoors or at the beach will not protect your permanent makeup or your skin, in general. Most sunscreens will recommend the maximum time allotted for protection on their label. This explains when it is necessary to reapply. We urge you to read and follow your sunscreen directions!

What amount of sunscreen should you apply to your face and neck? Johns Hopkins recommends about half a teaspoon, but for your face, neck, arms, and legs, about 1-ounce. If squeezed into your hand, 1 ounce should completely cover your entire palm.

Preparing Your Skin for Permanent Makeup for the BEST Results

Here, at Beau Institute, we see improved results when performing permanent makeup, if our clients prepare their skin, prior. 

For Eyebrows, we recommend exfoliation anywhere from a week to a few days, prior to the procedure. If a client has never used an exfoliant, we recommend a gentle treatment. If they exfoliate regularly, a more course exfoliant can be used.

The idea is to remove the dead cells from the surface of the skin. This allows a cleaner entry into the skin and a better deposit of color. 

For Eyeliner, be sure your eyes are super clean, no lash extensions or residual glue from lash extensions, glue from false eyelashes, mascara, and liquid eyeliner. An eyelid scrub pad does a great job cleaning the eyes. OCuSoft makes a great eyelid scrub pad as well as a Lid Scrub Foam.  

We also ask our clients to stop all lash enhancing mascaras and products like Latisse for 2 weeks prior to their eyeliner procedure, since these products will cause excessive bleeding and bruising. 

For Lips, lip scrubs are available wherever makeup is sold and do a great job removing long-wearing lipsticks and loose skin from chaffed lips, preparing a more receptive surface.