Permanent make-up: your experiences?

[Sycorax]

I want to get permanent make-up - lips and eyebrows. I browsed one site where they advocated the manual method, as opposed to using the machine, saying it resulted in a more natural result and was less painful. I'm not worried about pain -- I have tattoo (although I imagine facial skin would be very sensitive). Thought I'd seek the benefit of your experiences with it. When I searched for info on the web, I didn't find any sites that could find someone in my area -- do you have recommendations for a tattoist who does permanent make-up in the D.C. area?

[msmith537]

Originally posted by Sycorax
I want to get permanent make-up - lips and eyebrows. I browsed one site where they advocated the manual method, as opposed to using the machine, saying it resulted in a more natural result and was less painful. I'm not worried about pain -- I have tattoo (although I imagine facial skin would be very sensitive). Thought I'd seek the benefit of your experiences with it. When I searched for info on the web, I didn't find any sites that could find someone in my area -- do you have recommendations for a tattoist who does permanent make-up in the D.C. area? [/b]

No offense, but I think that is the worste idea I've ever heard. Look at pictures of yourself from 10-15 years ago. If your aren't that old, look at the make up of people from the 60's, 70's, and 80's. In 20-30 years, do you think you will want to look the same?

[truthbot]

I give mssmith's post a hearty second! The word permanent is a big tip off.

I don't know where your tatto is on your person, but it's unlikely that you're wearing it on your face. And people, like fashions, do change with the times.

24 years ago, when I was burgeouning with my first child, I thought the stretch marks were kinda cool. Now, at 44, I wish the DAMN permanent things would disappear! At least I can conceal them, to keep passers by on the street from retching.......

[Carina42]

I don't have personal experience, but my best friend has permanent eyeliner and LOVES it. She had it done almost 10 years ago (it's been redone once since then.) I went with her because she had to take a valium for the procedure, so I drove. A woman who works a lot with surgeons working on burn victims & so on did it (manually) not a beautician-type. Karen was about 30 at the time.

She had a very light brown line done, because she is very blonde & had always hated her "disappearing" eyes. It's subtle and looks nice.

That said, I wonder why you want your eyebrows done...don't you have any? And lip-liner will forever look fake, too. If you don't like the results, it's a lot more expensive & chancy getting it undone.

[Sycorax]

I appreciate the input, but I've been considering it since meeting a woman who'd had it done -- she was very fair, as am I, had a pale rosy lip color,and very natural eyebrows -- you couldn't tell it was permanent. I have very sparse, pale eyebrows and thin, not well-defined lips, so after seeing her results, I thought WOW, I'm going to do it. But not unless I can find an excellent tattooist (or whatever they're called) and have examples of their work. I know I have to be careful about who I go to. I've seen some examples of permanent make-up in tattoo magazines and thought it looked awful -- obviously fake and overdone. "Natural" is the key word. As for fashion, well, yes that would be something to keep in mind, but I figure if I want darker brows and lips, I can still use temporary makeup. One of the questions to ask the person I go to. I was hoping a doper out there could recommend someone in my area. I'm not going to rush it. Thanks all.

[Commander Fortune]

I also had a friend recently have her eyebrows done - she's thrilled. She no longer has that blank look if she doesn't draw on her brows every day. They don't smear and they don't sweat off.

I've considered having my lips done. They're fading around the outside edges. I'm gradually becoming thin lipped and I don't like it one bit. The only thing is like any tattoo - there is welting and swelling so I'd have to be prepared to miss several days of work holed up at home with big fat clown lips until they healed up. I haven't reached that point of critical mass where I'm ready to there.