FAQs ABOUT COSMETIC TATTOOING

A cosmetic tattoo treatment takes about 2 hours. The first hour is filling out forms, discussing your treatment, taking photos, pre-drawing the shape and numbing the skin. The tattooing itself takes about an hour (possibly a bit longer for difficult skin).

A cosmetic eyebrow tattoo typically lasts between 1 and 2 years, a lip and eyeliner tattoo between 2 and 5 years. The longevity of your cosmetic tattoo does depend on many different factors, such as:

• How well you follow your aftercare

• Skin type (oily skin tends to fade faster)

• Lifestyle (sun exposure speeds up the fading process)

• Beauty regime (products like Vitamin A and retinol creams will fade your tattoo)

• Exfoliants & resurfacing agents, like glycolic, salcylic and aha will also fade your tattoo

• Metabolism (the faster your metabolism is, the faster it breaks down the pigment molecules)

• Thyroid and hormone imbalances (often prevents your tattoo from sticking in the first place)

This varies from person to person as everyone’s skin regenerates at a different rate. But generally, after 1 week, any swelling, bruising, scabbing or itching that may occur should’ve subsided and your brows or lips will “look” healed.

The skin, however won’t actually be healed until about 4-6 weeks after the treatment. Until then you may experience some colour changes or even colour loss. This is perfectly normal and nothing to worry about.

Pain levels vary from client to client. Some may feel a little scratchiness, others fall asleep.

To ensure maximum comfort during your cosmetic tattoo treatment, A HINT OF INK is registered with Keperra Compounding Pharmacy. They supply premium quality topical anaesthetics. Further details will be sent in your confirmation email when you book your appointment, so please make sure you read your email carefully.

We’re pleased to tell you that we do NOT shave off your eyebrow hairs! We only pluck hairs that are outside the tattooed area.

We always try and work with your natural eyebrow hair/ shape as much as possible. This creates the most natural look and the lowest maintenance for you.

Excessive bleeding during your appointment will greatly affect how your body retains pigment. It will actually push pigment out of the skin while trying to implant it. It is important that you follow pre-care instructions to help minimize bleeding. This includes avoiding blood thinning medications, alcohol and caffeine 24 hours before your procedure.

This depends on the individual. A cosmetic tattoo is an enhancement, not a complete replacement for topical makeup. Healed pigment in the skin will never fully replicate the vibrancy of colour that topical makeup produces on the skin.

Some women prefer a bolder look with makeup that cannot be successfully achieved without risking undesirable results. The more your skin is packed with pigment particles, the less control you have over the colour as your tattoo ages over time. Soft and natural will always win! Ideally, your cosmetic tattoo should be suitable for an everyday look. For special occasions, when a bolder look is desired, you might need to get out your eyebrow pencil or lipstick.

We very rarely pull out a microblade these days. As most of our clients who have seen us would know, we much prefer a powder brow. A powder brow is the only semi-permanent makeup service suitable for all skin types. The ideal candidate for microblading is only about 20% of those wanting a brow tattoo service. It is not recommended for mature skin types or people with oily skin/ large pores/ unevenly textured skin. Over time, those hair-like strokes will fade or bleed together and often look very dark grey/blue. The reason you might prefer the look of microblading over a powder brow is most likely because you have seen many freshly done brows on social media. And they certainly look amazing! However the healed results down the track show a very different picture. And unfortunately one that’s often hard to correct, if at all.

Microblading is more harsh. It take longer to heal and can cause micro-scarring due to the trauma of cutting into the skin. If you happen to have little to no hair, powder brows are great for you as it provides a more shaded effect and will give you a more realistic looking eyebrow. Powder brows are also great for people with hair, especially if you’re looking to add more density and definition to your shape. The powder brow technique lasts approx. 1-2 years based on your lifestyle, skin type and UV exposure.

Cosmetic tattooing is all about layering. To create a soft and natural look you have to be careful to not oversaturate the skin. Our aim is to gradually build up colour, so your first appointment is just laying down the base. Then once we see how your skin reacted to the treatment we will add another layer at the touch-up to perfect and finish your treatment. This is also where you can decide if you want to make any minor colour or shape changes.

Will it look like lipstick? No. It does not replace your lipstick. It will however give your lips a natural, opaque blushing of colour (similar to a tinted gloss) and gently accentuate the shape of your lips. You can still apply lipstick over your lip blush tattoo once it’s fully healed.

As we loose collagen and elasticity in our skin, the natural colour in our lips starts to break down and we loose our shape, making our lips appear smaller and dull in colour. Not only are we able to add colour, but we can also help to camouflage minor asymmetries, scarring or hyperpigmentation. We cannot tattoo outside of the lip tissue, so blushing will not change your lip size, but WILL create the appearance of fuller looking lips.

If you have EVER had a cold sore (even just once in your life), you will need to get an antiviral medication like Valtrex 500mg. This will need to be taken once a day for about 10 days (4 days prior to your appointment, on the day of, and 5 days after). You can get your script from your local GP or online from https://instantscripts.com.au. This is an extremely important step in your lip tattoo journey. There is a very high chance of a cold sore outbreak if not medicated, which would result in an uncomfortable healing period for you as well as a patchy lip tattoo

If you have a tattoo that has been completed previously by another artist, you may need to book in for a new treatment. Time will be spent to re-measure, re-draw and re-shape your tattoo, ultimately reworking another technicians job.

However, if you only require a simple colour top up over faded previous work, without any shape or colour correction, you can book in for a “New Client Colour Boost”.

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