While getting an embroidery treatment is a wonderful experience, in order to have the embroidery settled down nicely into your skin requires some time for the skin to heal for the colors to show up well and be defined accordingly. Whether you’re getting eyeliner embroidery, eyebrow embroidery, or lip embroidery. The aftercare is basically the same and that includes the skincare ingredients that you need to skip for the time being. Here’s why.

As with this beauty treatment, embroidery is considered to be invasive – albeit minimally – and since it involves a procedure of inserting fine needles with pigments into the skin and having the pigments settled down nicely for it to show up, usually within a few weeks. 

And it’s within these first few weeks that your skin is undergoing a healing process as the body considers the insertion of these needles as trauma to the body, causing the skin to develop swelling that can occur even during the procedure. And rest assured, it’s normal.

Hence, while the treated area is healing, it’s a must for you to swap skincare products with certain ingredients for something more gentle for the skin. The ingredients that are needed to be avoided (for the time being) are to ensure that they won’t affect the pigments within your skin, causing it to fade away prematurely and lose the longevity of the semi-permanent makeup, reducing the need for frequent, unnecessary touch-ups. 

List Of Skincare Ingredients To Avoid For Embroidery

Exfoliative ingredients such as physical (scrub) and chemicals (the ones with AHAs, BHAs) – both from products or beauty treatments – are to be avoided as these acids to penetrate into the skin for the exfoliation that can draw out pigments within, causing them to fade out and giving a patchy, uneven appearance. 

Not only that, the exfoliative nature of these acids can certainly cause inflammation that can aggravate the swelling of the treated area, what’s more, it’s still in its fragile state. 

The same also goes for any products containing retinoids for their exfoliating benefits as well; simply avoid the ingredients from coming in contact with the treated area. 

And yes, since the ingredients listed here are to be avoided, that includes cleansers, toners, serums, and moisturizers. Instead, skip these products and use gentle formulations such as Cetaphil to gently cleanse the skin without affecting the pigments of the embroidery, and dry out the skin immediately as we need to keep the skin dry at all times. Keep using the product until the treated area is completely healed with the pigments settled in nicely to resume your usual skincare and makeup routine. 

While the ingredients listed above are applicable for all types of embroidery, for lip embroidery another ingredient to watch out for is whitening toothpaste, as the ingredients in the formula can bleach out the pigments from your embroidered lips, causing it to fade out as well.

After eyebrow embroidery started the trend of semi-permanent makeup, we see eyeliner embroidery following suit and now lip embroidery is trending as people are looking for ways to save more time and convenience while still enjoying their makeup routine. Apart from researching a good esthetician that can get the job done for you, choosing the right lip shade for your lip embroidery is equally important as well, and here’s how.

That said, there are a few things that you need to remember while giving lip embroidery a go. For one thing, this treatment is about enhancing the natural lips that you have instead of altering them altogether. Done correctly, the treatment adds color to the lips, making them healthier and appear fuller. 

A good tip to know about lip embroidery is you can get a few shades lighter or darker than your natural lips as it won’t look ‘fading out’ more quickly than needed. With the right lip pigments, you can expect it to last even for a couple of years. Ask your esthetician if this is possible for your natural lip color. 

One thing that most people don’t know about lip embroidery is you can choose more than one color to give it a more natural finish while still enhancing the look of your lips. Take a look at your lipstick and lip liners and the color of your lips (especially where it differs) so your esthetician can customize different color pigments fit for your lip embroidery treatment. 

And rest assured even with having lip embroidery done you can still wear lip makeup products if you want to and it won’t affect the pigments within the lips.

Tips To Choose The Right Lip Color For Lip Embroidery – Skin Tone And Undertones

As with any semi-permanent makeup, it’s important to note that the color may appear darker than what you initially choose but it will only last for a week or so before fading into the true shade of the pigment chosen for your lips. What’s more important is choosing the right shade for the lips as it’s what you’ll be ‘wearing’ for up to a year.

Start by looking at the skin tone of your face. Fair skin will have nudes or candy pinks; medium skin tone with dark beige or rose pink while darker skin tone will go well as mauves and plum shades. Not only your skin tone but undertones will play into factor and there are two for this factor: warm undertones will go well with orange or red-based tints such as corals while cool undertones fare better with blue-based hues such as plums. 

For guidance, take a look at your lipsticks and see which shades you have the most and the one that flatters well with your lips. Wear it and take a look under natural light for accuracy. Take a picture of it so you can show it to your esthetician if that’s possible for your lips and the look you’re going for. And yes even if wearing chili red lipstick is your signature look, that is certainly possible with lip embroidery. Indeed, lip embroidery can be a worthy investment for your makeup routine (just imagine how much time you can save!); the key is finding the right shade for your lips so they’ll look fuller, and healthier, every single day. 

If you’re reading this, I’m sure you did a bit of research on eyebrow embroidery and by the looks of it, it seems like it’s a treatment that you can do. And yes, virtually everyone can get their eyebrows done with this treatment, to a degree as there are still a number of conditions that you need to know if you’re eligible for it. In fact, it’s one of the things that a good esthetician will check to ensure you’re the right candidate. Here’s why.

At the essence, eyebrow embroidery is a semi-permanent makeup developed to cater to anyone looking for ways to uplift and improve the look of their eyebrows. Whether it’s thin, sparse, not even on both sides, or just a tiny touch-up to make it fuller; virtually anyone can do it and I’d say it’s the better alternative than traditional tattoos for the eyebrows. 

Conditions That You Can’t Get An Eyebrow Embroidery

If you have extremely oily skin then it’s likely that you’re not a good candidate for eyebrow embroidery. While a little bit of sebum is normal, too much of it can cause the skin to exfoliate faster, making the pigments embedded within fade at a higher rate than just normal oily skin would, creating the need for more frequent touch-ups. If you’re not sure if your oily skin can be an issue, it’s best to have your esthetician take a look and decide if eyebrow embroidery is still possible for you. 

As eyebrow embroidery involves inserting pigments into the skin, there’s a risk of infection and we intend to keep it at bay. However, your condition can contribute to a higher chance of it occurring, and for safety reasons that makes you ineligible for the treatment. Notable causes include if you’re pregnant or nursing; having lupus, skin issues such as eczema and dermatitis, as well as other health issues that can cause you a compromised immune system. 

Keep in mind, if you’re taking isotretinoin-based medications or blood-thinning medications are highly discouraged from undergoing this treatment at least a year before to ensure your health is back to its state. The medication is particularly notable as it alters the skin’s condition to become thinner and drier, as well as weakening the immune system. As for blood thinning medications, refrain from taking them for as long as 5 days otherwise it can increase the chance of heavy bleeding during the procedure. 

For technical-related issues can also contribute to the reason you’re not the right candidate for eyebrow embroidery. For example, having allergies to metals (such we’ll be using needles for the treatment), pigments, and numbing cream that are used for eyebrow embroidery can be a hindrance for you to getting the best results from the treatment. If you have any allergies, it’s important to inform your esthetician during the consultation to ensure no unwanted side effects happen to you. It’s important for you to understand that the conditions shown above are not meant to prevent you from getting eyebrow embroidery but rather as a safety precaution to ensure you can maximize the results as intended. For peace of mind, it’s always a good idea to ask our esthetician regarding the procedure and to confirm if there’s a possibility you can still get an eyebrow embroidery treatment.