Do you hate the way your permanent makeup turned out? Do you wish you hadn’t microbladed your brows? Do you regret the tattoo you did in your teens? There is a chance that you can have it put right.

 Permanent makeup

When it works, permanent makeup can turn out to be the greatest decision you ever make. But when it goes wrong, you can be left with a constant reminder of your poor choice.

If you’re considering getting permanent makeup, it’s crucial to do your research. Unfortunately, this area is not well regulated and because formal training can be very expensive, many ‘technicians’ decide to teach themselves. But, it’s not as simple as drawing on makeup with a pencil. Getting the color right is no easy task – pigmentation reacts differently on different skin tones and over time, after the procedure has healed, badly matched colors can turn orangey pink, purply blue or bluey green.

A professional will know how pigment will look once healed and will understand how to balance and neutralize the color used. To avoid being the victim of inferior work and devastating results that can leave you forking out even more money to correct the damage, look for a reputable, fully-licensed, trained and insured professional.

The fixes

So, what can you do if you already went ahead and had the procedure done by an iffy makeup artist and you’re not happy with the outcome? You could have a reputable professional improve on the job — be it permanent eyebrows, lip liner, or eyeliner. Or you could have it permanently removed, but this is a costly and painful procedure. The same applies to tattoos. If you’re sick of the Betty Boop tattoo on your shoulder, or that once lovely rose has faded into a splodge, you could have it covered with a larger tattoo. Or you can undergo a procedure to have it permanent removed.

As far as color correction of permanent makeup goes, there’s no ‘quick fix’ and not all color (especially black) can even be corrected. Correction may require many costly sessions, especially if the color is very dark. Since you may actually never achieve the exact color you originally wanted when you had the procedure done, your best option may be permanent pigment removal.

If it’s the shape or placement of the permanent makeup that needs changing, this can be a more complicated matter. Depending on the shape, it may be possible to redraw it so as to essentially cover up the original makeup job with a new and improved shape. But, if the placement is seriously botched, removal may be your only option. A trained specialist should be able to tell you honestly what the best route of correction should be.