Permanently Beautiful

When choosing a permanent cosmetics technician, the expertise, experience and artistry of the technician are essential to achieving the beautiful, natural look you desire. In our November 19 post we shared some tips for selecting a permanent makeup technician from the Society of Permanent Cosmetic Proessionals. Today we continue with more tips:

• Ask about the technician’s background. Ask about experience and education. Find out how long the technician has been practicing in the industry. The application of permanent makeup cannot be learned in a two-day course. It requires continuous study to keep abreast of this rapidly evolving field and long hours of experience to perfect the exacting techniques involved in micropigmentation. Make sure the technician is Board Certified. Ask to see certificates of training and continuing education and inquire about professional organizations to which the technician belongs.
• Review the technician’s portfolio. To ensure that you are pleased with the end result, the technician’s work should match your personal style. When you look at the picture portfolio, pay attention to the details, such as the width of eye liner, depth of lip color and lip liner. Discuss your procedure with the technician and be clear about the look you wish to achieve. 
• Ask about experience in the specific procedure you seek. Different techniques are involved in applying micropigmentation to lips or eyes or the entire face. It is essential that the technician you choose have specific, long-standing experience performing the particular procedure you desire.

You should know that lip work is more advanced than eyebrows and eyeliner and that cheek blush and eyeshadow are the most difficult permanent cosmetic effects to achieve successfully. It takes years of experience and a certain artistry to create a beautiful, natural-looking permanent cosmetics effect. Choose a permanent cosmetics technician who can meet the challenge.

Choosing the right permanent cosmetics technician is critical. When you decide to invest in permanent makeup, your goal is to enhance and perhaps improve your natural beauty. You want the results to look beautiful and natural, not garish or artificial. The expertise, experience and artistry of the permanent cosmetics technician you decide to work with are critical to achieving the results you desire.

With its increasing popularity, permanent makeup services are more widely offered, sometimes by facilities and technicians with limited experience in the field. You should be aware that there are currently no uniform regulations governing the industry in the U.S. Because permanent makeup will permanently alter your appearance, it is essential that you carefully research any technician and facility you consider.

The Society of Permanent Cosmetic Professionals, which has been lobbying for the establishment of industry standards, recommends the following:

• Visit the site where the work will be performed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) do set standards for physical cleanliness and sanitary work environments. Ask to view the rooms where procedures are performed. Facilities should have the spotless cleanliness of surgical facilities. Rooms should be private to prevent contamination from other procedures being performed at the facility. Hot and cold running water should be available to technicians outside of the restroom.
• Meet the technician. Is their appearance clean and neat? Are their nails clean? Make certain that new gloves and clean sheets are used for every client. And, most critically, find out if new sterile needles and equipment are used for each client.

More on how to choose a Permanent Cosmetics Technician on Friday.

Some women seem to have a certain commanding presence. No matter where they are or what they’re doing, they stand out in a crowd. Your eye just seems to be drawn toward them. It’s not really a matter of beauty, though many are attractive; it’s more that they exude an aura of complete self-confidence. I noticed a woman like this across the gym floor the other day. Like the rest of us, she was working hard, sweat glistening on her face. But unlike the women to either side of her who looked tired and haggard from exertion, this woman looked radiant, her cheeks glowing, her eyes sparkling, her lips curved with pleasure. In a room full of many attractive and many younger women, this particular woman stood out and commanded attention.

If permanent makeup can keep you looking fresh, calm, collected and in control in the middle of a strenuous workout, think what it can do for you during a board room presentation. With permanent cosmetics you know you look your best whether you’re whirling away in spinning class or making a killer presentation to the firm’s top client. You never have to worry about your makeup. When you’ve added permanent cosmetics to your beauty regime, you know your brows are perfect, your eyeliner expert and your lips beautiful every hour of the day. There is no better boost to your self-esteem than knowing that you always look your best.

The Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics specializes in the artistic application of permanent cosmetics to enhance your natural beauty. Our expert board-certified permanent cosmetic professional, Melany Whitney, is a nationally recognized expert in permanent makeup. Recently featured on NBC Today, CNN and Entertainment Tonight, Melany Whitney is recognized as the national “Voice of Permanent Makeup.” To find out more about how permanent cosmetics can enhance your natural beauty, please visit the Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics website.

Permanent makeup evolved from the time-honored art of tattooing. From the time of early man, tattoos have been used to beautify the human form. The art of tattooing dates back at least to 12,000 B.C. References to tattooing can be found in ancient Chinese literature and the writings of Julius Caesar. Tattoos decorate the mummies of Neolithic cavemen and Egyptian queens.

Tattoos have a long tradition in human ritual and culture. Northern European clans used tattoos to identify clan affiliation. In Polynesia, they were used to indicate social status. Natives in Borneo used tattoos to advertise their weaving or hunting skills when seeking a mate. The early Chinese believed tattoos could ward off illness.

Our English word “tattoo” comes from the Tahitian “tatau” meaning “to mark or strike twice,” referring to the traditional method of applying tattoos with sharpened sticks. The earliest recorded purely cosmetic tattoos date to the time of the great pyramids where they were used to enhance the beauty of Egyptian queens and concubines.

Taking a page from the beauty secrets of those ancient Egyptians, modern women have embraced natural, beauty-enhancing permanent cosmetics as a way to ensure that they always look their best. Permanent makeup uses artistic cosmetic tattooing to enhance and augment your natural beauty. It can also be used to improve your natural features to restore confidence in your appearance. With permanent makeup you can have perfectly applied eye liner, beautifully defined brows, and lush, full lips every hour of every day — without any effort. Visit the Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics website to learn more about how permanent cosmetics can enhance your natural beauty.

You don’t have to be a metrosexual to understand the value of a sharp, attractive appearance in the business arena. Astute businessmen know that first impressions count. The way you look is an important component of the image you project in the business world. Permanent cosmetics for men give you an executive polish that boosts your image and confidence. With the help of permanent cosmetics, you look cool, collected and in charge no matter how long and stressful your day. That’s a business edge worth having.

The Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics offers special services tailored just to men. We understand the importance of maintaining a polished, vigorous appearance in the workplace. There’s a lot of truth to the old adage, “The face is the window to the soul.” The appearance you project in business defines you to associates and clients. Appearance has the power to create an aura of command and competence. Permanent cosmetics for men can enhance your appearance and augment your unique, personal style.

Many businessmen have found early male pattern baldness to be a disadvantage in the workplace. Our society values the vigor and enthusiasm of youth. The appearance of age can cause colleagues to unfairly stereotype you as outdated. Many men have embraced hair transplants as a way to combat early baldness and maintain an appearance as flexible and vigorous as their business ideals. Unsightly scarring, however, has been a major drawback. Paramedical cosmetic tattooing camouflages scars from hair transplant harvesting sites, giving you back the attractive, natural look of youth.

Eyebrow thickening provides vigor and forcefulness to facial planes, enhancing your unique, dynamic, personal style. Some men are born with naturally thin eyebrows, but Alopecia Areata Universalis, the second most common hair loss disease, can cause thick brows to thin unnaturally or even disappear. Because our eyebrows provide the frame that defines our face, they are an essential element in creating facial expressions. Thin eyebrows can make us seem ineffectual, unintelligent and constantly surprised; while strong eyebrows project a sense of command, authority and masculinity. How you look can affect the consideration and weight you and your ideas are given in the workplace.

I was captivated by Michelle Obama and Cindy McCain during the final days of the presidential election. Thrust into the national spotlight, both of these uniquely different women radiated a stunning presence deserving of our admiration. Each woman had her own definitive style, yet both earned our respect for their gracious demeanor and steadfast support of their spouse and his ideals. As the final frantic days of the election drew to a close, the candidates’ wives always appeared calm, serene and composed, an oasis of sanity in a sea of chaos. It was easy to believe that whichever man became president, the woman who was his partner would provide a centering influence in his life during the turbulent days to come.

In thinking about what engendered these feelings of admiration and respect, much of it came down to the physical presence of these two fascinating women. Despite what had to be long, exhausting days and nights on the campaign trail, these women were always impeccably turned out, their clothes tastefully chosen, hair immaculate and makeup flawless. Through their appearance and demeanor they created an aura of graciousness and generosity of spirit that we found compelling.

While we are taught not to judge a book by its cover, physical appearance will always shape the way we think and feel about people, at least initially. As with the candidates’ wives, an individual’s outer persona is too often the only indication we are allowed of the dynamic individual who may lie within. The 24-hour beauty of permanent cosmetics allows you to project your perfect persona at every hour of the day, no matter how hectic or exhausting that day may be. Through the artistry of permanent cosmetics, you wake up gorgeous and go to bed gorgeous.

The Whitney Center For Permanent Cosmetics

Perhaps you’re wondering why we just changed our name to The Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics. We wanted to recognize the artistry and skill of our premier permanent makeup expert, Melany Whitney. A pioneer in the field of permanent cosmetics, Melany Whitney is a nationally recognized expert in permanent makeup and artistic medical tattooing. Melany Whitney is the “Voice of Permanent Makeup.”

When the news media seek out expert information on the permanent cosmetics industry, they turn to Melany for professional comment and analysis. The growing popularity of permanent cosmetics to enhance natural beauty has led to interviews on many major news programs, including ABC Eyewitness News 7 in New York City, Fox 5 News New York, the NBC Today Show, CNN, Inside Edition, ET and Bravo. Articles featuring new beauty trends and Melany’s innovative beauty techniques and have appeared in Elle, Women, New Beauty, The New York Observer, New Jersey Monthly and a host of other magazines and newspapers. 

But permanent cosmetics have important applications outside the realm of everyday, around the clock beauty. Melany is a pioneer in the field of paramedical cosmetic tattooing.  When prominent plastic surgeons and physicians seek the services of a medical tattoo professional to restore the beauty and confidence of their patients, they recommend Melany. She is nationally recognized and sought not only for her expert professional technique, but also for the realistic artistry she brings to facial and breast restoration following surgery. In support of Cancer Awareness Month, Melany was recently interviewed about the unique areola restoration technique she developed that restores the three-dimensional appearance of a natural nipple and areola to the reconstructed breasts of cancer patients.

A Board Certified Permanent Makeup Artist and Instructor, Melany has earned a host of certifications and credentials in pursuit of professional excellence. Her extensive artistic background allows Melany to bring unparalleled artistry to her work, whether she is augmenting an individual’s natural beauty or restoring the delicate beauty and confidence of a cancer patient.

A friend of mine is a globally respected research scientist. She spent years hiking rugged terrains in remote corners of the globe and sailing on wind-swept research vessels. In such challenging physical environments, practicality ruled the day and there was little time or opportunity for perfecting the art of makeup, hairstyling or wardrobe. So it was a rude shock when she decided to pursue a high-level post in Washington D.C. and realized that she would be judged not only on her professional qualifications and personal demeanor, but also on her appearance. To be accepted and respected by the political, academic, and corporate elite of the nation, she found she would have to look the part and develop a new set of personal skills.

Attacking the problem with the same determination that catapulted her to the top of her profession, my friend engaged the services of a high-end professional shopper to school her in flattering wardrobe choices. She went to the city’s premier stylist for a cut and styling tips, then stopped by the shop every morning to practice until she could duplicate his technique. Learning to properly apply makeup was the most difficult of the tasks she set herself. Barely there eyebrows and a thin lip line marred by tiny lines from years of sun exposure increased the challenge.

For people like my friend, permanent cosmetics can be the perfect solution. A skilled permanent makeup technician can artistically style the face to enhance its natural beauty. Pale eyebrows can be given beautiful definition, thin lips made lush and full, and dull eyes given lustrous drama — and best of all, it’s permanent. No more morning struggle to make yourself look beautiful. No need for late afternoon touchups. With permanent cosmetics, you look beautiful every minute of every day!

We’ve just changed the name on our business from the Center for Permanent Cosmetics to the Whitney Center for Permanent Cosmetics.

Stay tuned for exciting new information about our name change in the near future!

While we may chide men for their sometimes obsessive interest, our breasts are among the features that make us uniquely female. Losing a breast to cancer, while sometimes necessary, can be a very traumatic experience. For the sake of their health, some women must choose to sacrifice a piece of their femininity. Melany Whitney’s unique three-dimensional cosmetic tattooing allows these courageous women to regain breast beauty.

Many were shocked when 36-year-old actress Christina Applegate, whose mother is a repeat breast cancer survivor, made the difficult decision to have both breasts removed after being diagnosed with breast cancer and finding she carried the BRCA1 breast cancer gene. Even though cancer was found in only one breast, the beautiful star of ABC TV’s hit comedy Samantha Who chose to have both breasts removed to ensure complete elimination of the cancer and minimize its chance of returning. It can’t have been an easy decision for a woman at the height of her career.  

Losing her breasts has been emotionally traumatic, Ms. Applegate admitted. “Sometimes, you know, I cry. And sometimes I scream. And I get really angry,” she said. But the actress considers her anguish “all part of the healing.” Over the next eight months, Ms. Applegate will be undergoing breast reconstruction surgery.  “I’m going to have cute boobs till I’m 90,” joked the irrepressible actress.

Restoring breast beauty after cancer loss to help survivors recapture self-confidence in their femininity has been particularly satisfying to Board Certified permanent cosmetics technician Melany Whitney. To restore natural beauty to reconstructed breasts, she has developed a unique cosmetic tattooing procedure that recreates the realistic three-dimensional appearance of a natural nipple and areola. “When my client cries after seeing herself looking whole again, I cry also,” she said. “I am so thrilled I can help each woman regain what she lost and move forward with their lives.”