When it comes to How To Choose A Permanent Makeup Artist, you are really dealing with three elements: suitability, skill and safety. For the sake of argument, let this be the only thing you take away from the piece: put down the Instagram and do not book on the strength of a few nice pictures. You have to make sure an artist is right for your skin and features and goals, and that he or she has the proper hygiene, legal standing and consultation manner to back it up. Look at healed work.
Evelyn Marlowe here. I have spent years putting people straight on what is useful as opposed to what is merely flashy, and one learns in time that a well oiled sales pitch will conceal much. In some ways you might compare choosing a cosmetic tattoo artist to following a tourist map to a walking track; the brochure makes it seem idyllic but you are dependent on conditions and whether you are properly prepared for them. Make a hasty decision and you could be left with health risks to match, colour shifts, a shape you do not like and the cost of having it corrected.
The Importance Of The Right Artist
There is no point in good permanent makeup if it becomes a new irritation every time you face the mirror. An able artist will not go after the latest social media fad of the month; they will consider your undertone, how you heal, your skin type and what you want to see in the long run.
Many are taken in by thinking the day of the treatment is the whole story. It is not. Once the work has faded and settled you will see the true outcome. So finding the right artist requires more than opening specials and a filter on the before and afters.
Reality Check
You would think booking an appointment means you can walk out with flawless brows and be done with it. In most cases you are looking at a client consultation, some thought put into the pigment, aftercare and likely a touch up once you have healed. This is not to say the treatment is not worth it, only that you should apply a modicum of common sense as you would with any procedure that breaks the skin. Microblading, eyeliner tattoo and lip blushing are case in point where you need symmetry and depth and hygiene.
Legalities
Not the most glamorous consideration but it will spare you trouble. Do not get to the stage of comparing price and style until you have ascertained the artist is in compliance with the rules of his or her locality. There is no national standard you can count on.
In Australia, for instance, Safe Work Australia puts forward the official line on workplace health and safety and infection control. With permanent makeup there is no room for optional hygiene.
Things To Put To The Practitioner
Make it plain and ask if all the licences or registrations are in order for their council area. Depending on the circumstances you may want to know if they are a licensed tattoo artist by local decree and have the necessary approvals for skin penetration.
Then there are the qualifications. Training ought to be commensurate with the service and not couched in vague beauty course terms. If they do liner, lips and brows they should be forthcoming as to where they were trained in each and what supervised work they have put in.
With microblading licensing in particular, watch the verbiage. “Licensed” is thrown about on the internet. A certificate from a course is not necessarily a legal licence and the artist could be without a skin penetration registration or other local compliance. Get a straight answer.
Credentials
Bloodborne Pathogens certification and first aid training are among the ones of value, as is instruction in infection control. International nomenclature aside, the bottom line is the artist must know how to handle sharps and cross-contamination and what to do when things do not go to plan.
Do not be put off by product names like Permablend or Microbeau being bandied about in respect of devices and pigments. Familiarity with a brand is fine but it does not equate to competence; even the best tools are no use in unsteady hands.
Hygiene
Feel free to be particular about it. A decent artist will not be put out by questions on the subject of studio hygiene, nor will he make you feel as though you have intruded at a black tie affair to ask where the dunny is. Should the place come across as disordered or shabby when it comes to safety, then you would be wise to go. You would be foolish to put your face in the hands of an establishment that cannot put together a tidy workstation when there is no shortage of competent professionals.
Strong infection control will make itself known:
A treatment area kept clean with single-use items sealed as they should be,
gloves put on and changed as required,
a sharps container at hand and dealt with correctly.
There ought to be a straightforward account of how skin is prepped, pigments are managed and put away.
And do not leave without written aftercare and a consent form that lays out the risks.
The mistake most make is to equate a well presented studio with a safe one. A spot of beige on the walls, some soft music and a good coffee machine are of no consequence when it comes to infection control. Pay attention to the process and ignore the rest.
Properly healed work
Bookings are made or broken here. New work can be bold and striking, but it is once healed that you see if the artist has any real grasp of depth, shape retention and colour settling, and how the skin acts when the novelty has passed. In the case of microblading this is all the more important. Feathery strokes may not be so appealing come day two if the technique is substandard for the client’s skin.
A portfolio of substance
Do not be content with fresh work from a permanent makeup portfolio; insist on a gallery of healed results. Before and afters in like lighting, with a cross section of clients in terms of age and skin tone. An artist worth his salt will have examples of healed brows, lip blushing or eyeliner tattoo to put before you and can tell you why he went with one technique and not another. Anything that looks cut and paste is a warning sign.
Healed photos will show the long term reality. Only fresh ones? That is a red flag. Look for consistent shape work and natural colour settling, which speaks to an understanding of pigment. If the healed tones are ashy or patchy, the artist lacks that knowledge. You will want to see what happens on skin like your own; rosacea-prone, oily, mature or darker complexions will not heal the same way. Colour theory and an appreciation of undertones become less of a buzzword and more of a necessity.
Make sure the skill is up to the task
Some are adept at brows and only so so with lips; others do fine with machine shading but cannot produce a crisp hair stroke. This is a face tattooing service with its attendant risks, so specialisation is called for. It is not quite the same as picking a hairdresser or nail salon.
Microblading calls for an honest appraisal of the skin and precision. Oily or reactive skin might be better served by a different brow method. Lip blushing needs deft border work and colour planning. Eyeliner is done with due caution given the area. Find out what proportion of an artist’s week is taken up with the service in question. If an eyeliner tattoo is an occasional thing, move along. Judgement is a matter of repetition.
Put the consultation to good use
It should be a calm affair, detailed and a little nerdy. Expect questions on your health, medications, allergies, sun exposure and any prior tattooing, as well as what you are after in the way of a result. Should they go through the motions as though in a hurry to get to the pub, do not be comforted by it. More is often revealed in a good consultation than in a gallery.
Some questions to put to them:
What is your recommendation for my skin and the reasoning behind it?
I would like to see some healed photos on someone with my skin type and undertone.
What are your credentials for this particular service?
Tell me about your approach to aftercare, patch testing and infection control.
When does the touch up take place and what does the price cover?
Any permanent makeup artist should be able to give you a straight answer to the kind of practical questions put to them. Should an artist become evasive, or put on a sales pitch, or get defensive about it, consider that in itself to be telling.
Questions The Artist Will Put To You
There is no point in a one-sided consultation. They will want to know if you have had cosmetic tattooing done before, are prone to scarring, have any active skin problems or sensitivities, use retinoids and so forth. An important part of it is ascertaining you will see to the aftercare of your permanent makeup as you should. A lack of such inquiries on their part can mean they are not being diligent in their risk assessment.
Be Discerning With Reviews
Testimonials are of some use provided you read them with some maturity and are not taken in by a five star rating and a ring light. Go for the details. The reviews worth noting will speak of pain management, cleanliness, how well the artist communicates and what the work looks like weeks down the line, as opposed to the “obsessed babe!!!” variety which does not tell you anything.
Reading Between The Lines
Patterns will emerge. When more than one client has something to say about a service that was rushed, patchy healing or shape retention issues, or difficulty getting in for a touch up, make a note of it. On the other hand it is a good thing if several have said the artist dissuaded them from a treatment they were not right for.
Then there are friend referrals; where skin type and what you are after in beauty terms are alike, these are valuable. Local word-of-mouth is a time saver when looking for a permanent makeup artist in the area since you will be told what transpired in the wake of the procedure, not just on the day.
On Costs And Timelines
One has to factor in price but do not be fooled into thinking cheap facial work is a bargain; it can prove costly in a hurry. It is much more to put out for rework, colour correction or saline removal than to engage a competent artist in the first place. I will not put forward hard numbers given market rates differ according to the service, the location and the artist’s experience. A better way to compare is to see what you are getting for your money: the initial session and touch-up, a review period, aftercare kit and the consultation, rather than fixate on the headline figure.
A More Realistic Guide
Newcomers tend to underestimate the length of an initial appointment. There is mapping to be done, consent, photography, numbing, choosing pigments and a discussion on aftercare. Do not think to book one during your lunch hour and swan back to the office afterwards.
Some forethought is required for the healing period as well. The artist will advise you to steer clear of the gym or a day at the beach and some skincare products to avoid sun exposure and heavy sweating, so plan your holidays accordingly.
| Stage | What Usually Happens | What Catches People Out |
| Consultation | Contraindications and design | Finding out the result they want is not on offer |
| Initial Session | The treatment and briefing | It runs longer |
| Healing | Surface settles, colour goes soft | Some flaking and fading |
| Touch-Up | Post-healing adjustments | Not optional |
| Long-Term | Refresh as needed | Longevity is at the mercy of the sun and your skin |
Who Needs To Tread Carefully
While permanent makeup is for most, timing is everything. Those with health issues that are not well in hand, recent procedures on the face, skin irritation or who are unlikely to adhere to the aftercare would be wise to hold off. Those in the market for a dramatic change of trend one month and an entirely new look the following are not going to find this appropriate. While cosmetic tattooing will fade, it is not as easy to make it disappear with a wave of the hand as you might pin back a bad fringe.
If Your Research Is Limited To A Day
Make a point of checking these things first: legal standing, hygiene, a good consultation, what the reviews say for your kind of skin, and a portfolio of healed work. Should any of them not measure up, put it behind you and be done with it. There is no shortage of artists about, so there is no call to turn a maybe into a yes.
A Word From Evelyn
Put me down for a coffee on the Sunshine Coast with a friend who needs some advice and I would tell them to go with an artist that is safe and has the experience and honesty to tell you no when need be. You would be surprised how important that is. The top practitioners have no interest in flattering you into a booking; they are after a result that stands up to scrutiny and heals properly months down the line.
Done right, permanent makeup is a real help to one’s confidence. But making the right choice is not exactly sexy business: you have to verify and inspect, put some awkward questions to them and take your time. Let pretty marketing be the passenger.
FAQ
For the most part people come to these questions after an hour or so of poring over before-and-after grids and getting in a tangle.
The Most Popular Form Of Permanent Makeup?
Brows tend to be what everyone wants, microblading and machine-shaded techniques in particular. They are the usual place to start since they put a frame on the face and cut down on the morning routine. Trends will be trends but brows are the most common.
Is Tipping A Microblading Artist De Rigueur?
Not in Australia, at least not like you may be used to in other places. An excellent service may well be worth a tip if you are so inclined but it is not required. A referral or a review of merit is every bit as good.
Will It Age Well?
Provided the artist has the skill to apply the right depth, shape and pigment for your skin it can. Then again, poor workmanship will show its age by blurring or changing colour. Longevity is also down to your skincare, the sun and the type of skin you have.
Do They Put Good Money Away?
Some do, but it is not easy money. What you see in their income is dependent on where they are, their reputation, the demand for bookings and the cost of running a business. Maintaining high standards means outlay on supplies, compliance and education, not to mention the admin that goes uncompensated.
Finding A Permanent Makeup Artist In The Area
Convenience is fine but don’t let it be the end of your search. Look at the qualifications, safety, the quality of the consultation and what clients with comparable skin have to say. If the closest one is unremarkable, make the trip to someone more fitting.
On Choosing For Microblading
See what the healed brows look like, check the hygiene and listen to the artist on whether microblading is really what you should be having. A practitioner you can trust will be forthright and tell you if another technique would see your skin heal better.