What is permanent make up?

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Fed up of getting your makeup on nearly everyday? Or did your partner run screaming when he saw you sans makeup early in the morning?

Honestly, very few women can do without makeup. And that's a fact that makeup companies play on! Looking good is a human fallacy; we all want to look pretty and be appreciated but heck, who wants to spend nearly an hour and half to get the war paint on and then another half hour to remove it!

And sometimes it's also a skin condition or a medical problem that we want to hide with makeup.

That's where permanent makeup comes into the picture. More and more women are choosing to tattoo eye-brows to darken them, get their lips permanently inked a rosy red or tattoo their cheeks with a permanent blush.

Tattoo artist Olly Alva, co-owner Al's Tattoo Studio, Mumbai shares, "A lot of my clients who want to get tattooed eyebrows or eyeliner had undergone chemotherapy which led to hair loss. Then there are clients who want to cover scars or have a skin condition called vitiligo and want permanent make-up to cover these patches."

How does it work?

Permanent makeup is now done at tattoo parlours (with trained staff), medspas as well as hair salons or even your doctor's office, with prior appointment of course.

Permanent makeup is as good as a tattoo on your face. If you do opt for permanent makeup it's something you need to think about very seriously.

Remember, you need a good tattoo artist if you intend to do any of the following: colouring your cheeks/eyebrows, tinting your eyelids and/or colouring your lips permanently!

Alva explains, "Most of my clients who want permanent makeup come through doctors' references. We take their profile picture and make the changes on Photoshop to show how the changes will look. We have a thorough discussion with our clients before getting the permanent makeup done."

What's the procedure?

When you are talking about permanent, it means the tinting will last forever!

Alva reveals, "While tattooing eyebrows or lips, I prefer to do a lighter shade as compared to the picture that was Photoshoped. Because it is difficult to lighten a tattoo after it is complete. However, if my client wants more colour we add it."

To take care of your tattooed makeup, Alva recommends no chemical cosmetics, no ammonia, and no 'hard core' makeup. The colour might fade over a period of time but it varies from person to person.

The pros and cons

Although you can be assured of looking gorgeous 24/7 there are pros and cons.

The pros: If you get permanent makeup tattooed, you can be assured of no makeup menaces in the monsoon, while swimming and of course no more cosmetics.

The cons: If you want to get your permanent makeup removed, you will have to shell out big bucks on laser treatments to soften or neutralise the tints implanted under your skin. If the tattoo starts the fade you have to be prepared to pay the expense for touch-ups. Also, it will be very difficult for you to change your look with changing trend.

Keep in mind

Before tattooing permanent makeup you must do your homework on the tattoo artist and his tattoo parlour.

Find out if the tattoo artist is licensed, is good with permanent makeup and whether he maintains well sanitised products and tools. Make sure you speak to other people who have undergone this procedure.

Also, remember that you can't change it according to your whims and fancies once it is done since it is permanent after all! We think it's a better option for those with medical conditions.

Text courtesy: idiva.com