Choosing to have a permanent makeup treatment can blow your mind especially when there’s so many things to think about like what treatment is best, where to go and who to go to. You will have also heard different words being banded around such as microblading, ombré, feathered, hairstroke etc. It can really be a mine field. I thought about it for 2 years before I made my choice, so let’s start firstly with the method there are mainly two types
1) The use of a hand tool, known as microblading
2) The use of a digital machine
Both give you permanent makeup, oh and by the way there’s no such thing as semi permanent makeup, the ink will always remain in the skin but will just get lighter over time. Secondly is picking the right technique for you, unfortunately you don’t get to decide this, your skin does! Your healed result will depend on your skin type, lifestyle and a number of other factors. A good example of this is oily skin just can’t hold crisp hairstrokes and they will blur and fade quickly meaning this technique is not suitable for that skin type. Lastly and probably the most important of them all is the artist you pick, do you want a freshly trained artist with the newest techniques but with little experience or an experienced artist who’s stuck in their way and doesn’t know the latest techniques?? A hard one but I’ve made this a bit easier for you by giving you, from my experience, 6 things you must checkout first
1. Are they fully qualified?
Sounds like a silly question but you’ll be surprised how many ‘2 day classes’ there are! I had 6 months worth of training with a 2 year mentoring programme initially and then a further 10 days out in Russia and I’ve even got more training booked this year. But also remember, as previously mentioned someone who could have been doing it for 20+ years could be totally out of the loop with the latest techniques and inks
2. Can you meet them before your treatment?
Many places will book you straight in without so much as a patch test!! Hello!!! This person is about to tattoo your face! Would you have cosmetic surgery without meeting your surgeon, well this is no different!! Every person has a FREE consultation with me before any treatments are carried out. This is a great chance for you to set your expectation, meet me in person, discuss how you could benefit and of course to make sure this treatment is right for you. A patch test and medical questionnaire is also completed before treatment.
3. Find out where the treatment would be carried out?
This is so important as the room needs to be clean, sterile with non porous floors and a separate basin in it with hot and cold running water. Why? Because we are going to be implanting ink into your skin and an incorrect environment could cause infection/disease. This must not be carried out from the comfort of your own home or someone’s living room with carpets or animals about. I work in a clinical room, in a salon that is solely used by me. My equipment is all single use and disinfected before and after each client and I follow stringent health and safety rules. I could go on all day about this one but I think if you see carpeted floors, unclean rooms, animals or someone offers to come to your home…run and don’t look back!! Again another reason consultations are a great idea as you can sound the person and the place out before you have your treatment
4. How much of their time are they giving you?
Sounds like another silly question but hear me out. So we’ve already discussed the importance of a consultation a few times now, so first of all do you get a consultation? I book an hour out for each person so we have enough time to cover everything you would want to know to allow you to be able to make a choice there and then, or at a later date. How long do they book for your treatment?? Who would you rather pick someone who has a conveyer belt of people that they book back to back in short spaces of time or someone who sees less people but takes their time? Remember, this is your face and perfection cannot be rushed! You would have to question whose interest they have at heart? I book 3 hours per treatment which gives us lots of time to make sure the template drawing is perfect, we complete all the relevant treatment forms, complete the treatment and run through the aftercare. Although all 3 hours isn’t always needed it means we are never rushed. Also a lot of concentration goes into this treatment I couldn’t imagine completing more than 3 new treatments a day.
5. Can you see their work?
Don’t just think because you have seen photos uploaded to social media and they’ve got lots of 5 star reviews that it’s all genuine. Ask to see their portfolio and don’t forget to ask to see those all important healed pictures too because let’s face it, that’s what you will be left with. Genuine people won’t mind you asking and in fact would love to show off their amazing work to you. Again, I cover this in the consultation, I will always show you an array of work at different stages and you can also access this through my social media channels and website. I’m also a walking advertisement as I have done my own lips and brows and most of the girls in the salon have had at least one of my treatments so I’ll often bring the girls in to the room to show you healed work. I think real life reviews are important so I focus more on getting video reviews straight after my treatment as these are uncensored and in the moment which I think is great for others to see and saves you wondering how genuine it is.
6. Lastly, Listen to your gut feeling!
We’ve all been there before where you get that overwhelming feeling inside that something just isn’t right but you can’t put your finger on it. This feeling is something that I have always gone by with every decision I have made in my life and it hasn’t let me down yet. Permanent makeup products and training are not cheap. I mean again back to my surgery analogy, if someone is working on your body would you go for the cheapest person around? They’re cheap for a reason, whether that’s products, training or cutting corners. I price myself very reasonably, use top of the range products and offer the best service I can possibly give. I believe in value for money but without sacrificing the quality of your treatment.
Have I managed to blow your mind yet? I’m hoping not and that I have given you a helping hand towards thinking whether this treatment is right for you and more importantly how to pick a safe and reputable artist and remember, book a consultation first they are the free, no pressure way of finding out about permanent makeup.
I hope you’ve all enjoyed reading this Nadia xx