Permanently Beautiful

The possibility of infection begins the minute you open a new tube of mascara or unscrew the lid on a new pot of creme eye shadow. Every time you touch the point of an eyeliner pencil or glide a wand of lip gloss across your lips you are collecting and spreading potentially harmful bacteria. Makeup applicators and the makeup itself are prime breeding grounds for harmful Staphylococcus bacteria, dermatologists warn.

Makeup contamination begins from the moment you open the package of a new cosmetic. The more often you use and the longer you keep a makeup product, the greater your risk of developing a serious bacterial or fungal infection on your skin or in your eye. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) received 169 reports of serious cosmetic-linked infections last year, but noted that the majority of infections attributed to cosmetics are never reported.

Contaminated makeup can cause irritation of the skin or trigger an allergic reaction. However, the most dangerous and most frequent health risk occurs when bacteria enter the eye where they can cause itching, highly contagious conjunctivitis, painful styes and, if left untreated, vision damage.

Dermatologists say creme and liquid cosmetics present the greatest risk and recommend replacing powdered makeup products every 12 to 18 months and creme or liquid cosmetics, as well as all eye makeup, every 3 months. That can be expensive if you wear quality cosmetics that often sell for $30 to $50 or more per item. The safe, cost-effective solution is permanent cosmetics.

Just because summer is officially over, don’t think you can put away the sunscreen. The sun’s rays threaten to damage tender human skin year round, particularly if you wear permanent cosmetics. Even in the middle of winter, sun can damage your skin. To be sure, it takes longer for sun exposure to occur during the winter months than it does in the summer due to differing angles in the sun’s rays; but damage can and does occur. The fact that the air doesn’t feel warm does not diminish the impact of the sun’s rays. A bright sunny day after a snowfall can even cause serious sunburn, as many skiers will attest. Snow reflects sunlight onto faces and exposed skin, accelerating damage to unprotected flesh.

Women and men who wear permanent cosmetics need to be particularly wary of potential sun damage. Skin that has been enhanced with permanent cosmetics is somewhat more sensitive to the sun’s rays which can also contribute to fading over time. Permanent cosmetics can fade over the years and require periodic refreshing, but people who wear permanent makeup can prolong the life of their cosmetic tattoos by practicing smart preventative skin care.

Recommended skin care for permanent cosmetics wearers includes cleansing with a mild face wash, moisturizing and wearing sunscreen year round. Many permanent makeup wearers simplify their lives by using a moisturizer that contains sunscreen.

Most women don’t change their look as often as Lady Gaga. While it’s fun to see what the notorious pop star comes up with next, most of us shy away from Gaga’s outrageous stylings. That’s not to say that women don’t like to experiment with their look. Trying out a new lip stain color or changing your hairstyle can be a real self-esteem booster. No one wants to be same old, same old. A hint of outrageousness adds a bit of fun to life and keeps the opposite sex off balance.

When contemplating permanent makeup, some women are concerned about being stuck with the same look for the rest of their life. They mistakenly assume that permanent cosmetics bar them from experimenting with new makeup colors and styles and changing their look. They couldn’t be more wrong. Permanent makeup enhances a woman’s natural beauty and provides the perfect base for new makeup styles.

Ordinary cosmetics can be applied right over permanent makeup. If you have permanent lip color and can’t wait to try out the latest lip stain, go ahead. If you’re dying to use that hot new eye shadow, go for it. When you want to experiment with your makeup look, permanent makeup provides a flawless base coat that will enhance any makeup applied over it. One of the real advantages of permanent makeup is that when strip off all that makeup, your naked face will still look fresh and beautiful!

The ever-growing popularity of permanent makeup is attracting a host of newcomers to the marketplace. Some spas and beauty salons, plastic surgeons and dermatologists, even a few tattoo parlors have started advertising permanent cosmetics services. With so many new players in the field, how do you choose a permanent makeup artist?

Artist is the key word. Many technicians have the technical skill to tattoo eyebrows or lips; but unless that technical skill is artistically applied, the results can be more Frankenstein than Angelina Jolie. Permanent makeup, a specialized form of cosmetic tattooing, is as much an art form as it is a paramedical procedure. Artistically applied by an experienced and knowledgeable permanent cosmetics artist, permanent makeup can enhance your natural features and correct minor flaws, making you appear more beautiful. Skill can be taught, but artistry comes from within. Anyone can paint a picture; there are few Rembrandts in the world.

The discovery of a Rembrandt is a precious gem that transcends the layman-like brush work of most painters, elevating art from ordinary to magnificent. In the world of permanent makeup, Melany Whitney is a Rembrandt, using the face as her canvas and carefully blended pigments as her paint. One of the nation’s most respected permanent makeup artists, Melany is a highly sought teacher of the profession. A professional artist and former makeup artist, Melany brings years of well-honed experience, extraordinary technique, intimate knowledge of facial features and a rare and unique artistry to her permanent makeup clients.

Heidi Klum

Summer travel means makeup needs to be fast, easy and portable. You want to look great when you travel during the summer, but who wants to spend their vacation in front of a makeup mirror when you could be splashing in the sun and surf? Hot, humid summer days invite a minimalist approach to makeup. Less makeup means fewer touch ups to control sweat and shine. Then there’s the whole space issue. When you’re trying to avoid those hefty baggage check-in fees, packing light becomes an art form. Every inch of space in your carry-on becomes precious. Who wants to choose between a bulging makeup bag and those to-die-for sandals? Pare down your makeup bag and pack both!

So what’s the absolute minimum amount of makeup you can comfortably get away with? Women who have artistically-applied permanent makeup need only pack a moisturizer with sunscreen and some lip gloss. When you wear permanent cosmetics, life is just that simple. The ultimate minimalist makeup, permanent makeup ensures that you look utterly fabulous whether you’re tanning on the beach, going for a dip in the ocean, sweating during spinning class or sipping margaritas by the pool.

Without permanent makeup, you’ll need to add a few items to your makeup kit. When model Heidi Klum travels, she packs only the bare necessities: sunscreen, concealer, gloss, lipstick and mascara. The rest of us would probably add foundation, powder, eyeliner and blush. Without permanent makeup, it’s hard to keep your makeup bag from bulging.

We’re careful to check the expiration date when we pick up a quart of milk. We toss leftovers when they start to turn. But our makeup? How many of us layer our faces, eyelids and lips with makeup we’ve had around for more than a year, sometimes many years? Be honest. Is there a reason you’re still making room in your makeup drawer for the purple glimmer eye shadow you loved in high school?’

Germs can grow on any surface, including makeup. Constant use loads your makeup brushes, puffs and sponges with makeup, grime, oil and bacteria. Every time you swipe your face, you’re leaving an unhealthy residue. Share makeup with a friend and you double your risk. Face it. We don’t go around licking our friends’ faces, but we don’t bat an eye at sharing a lipstick.

The only truly safe and healthy makeup is permanent makeup. Artistically applied by permanent makeup artists in a sterile environment, permanent makeup goes on once and stays beautiful 24/7. No more bacteria-laden brushes or sponges. Apply sunscreen-enhanced moisturizer in the morning and you’re good to go.

If you haven’t discovered the advantages of permanent cosmetics, follow these tips:

• Use brushes or sponges, not fingers to apply makeup.
• Wash makeup brushes once a month in warm, soapy water. Rinse, blot, blow dry.
• Sharpen eye pencils after use to expose a germ-free surface. Clean sharpener with alcohol.
• A cold is okay, but toss lipsticks if you get strep throat.

Summer Makeup

Sizzling hot summer days are just around the corner. Keeping your makeup extra-light and easy will banish sweaty rivulets and keep you looking fresh and cool while you enjoy summer’s many outdoor activities. The trick to keeping makeup light is to choose multi-use beauty products. Keep these cosmetics in your summer makeup bag:

• Tinted moisturizers with added sun screen provide light, all-over cosmetic coverage that hydrates skin, nourishes it with antioxidants and blocks skin-damaging UV rays.
• Deeply pigmented cream stains in pinks, roses or bronzes give a sexy pucker to lips, a rosy glow to cheeks and act as a long-lasting eye shadow when applied to eyelids.
• To camouflage dark under-eye circles and the occasional annoying blemish, choose sheer, creamy concealers that brush on with a sponge applicator. These super light-weight concealers make great primers under eye makeup too and will give your shadow longer staying power.
• Tame humid hair frizzies with a protective hair gloss serum made to protect hair from the heat of dryers, curlers and irons. These products hydrate hair and will give your tresses extra shine.

Of course, for the ultimate light-weight, no-fuss, always-perfect, sweat-proof makeup, permanent makeup is the best choice. Just moisturize and you’re ready to go! When you wear artistically applied permanent makeup, you can move through hot summer days with confidence knowing you always look your best.

Long, lush eyelashes are considered romantic and sensual which explains our love affair with lash lengthening and lash thickening mascara. Our desire to have alluring, femme fatale eyelashes doesn’t have to be done just with liquid applications.  With permanent makeup eyelashes can appear fuller and more alluring around the clock.

Using a careful process Melany Whitney can add color between your eyelashes top and bottom to create the illusion of more luxurious eyelashes. With some topical lash enhancing solutions costing over a hundred dollars, a “permanent” solution to enhancing your lashes may be just the perfect answer you have been seeking to give you years of enjoyment. Melany’s skill in adding the “right” color in the “right” way only comes from her years of experience.

By drawing attention to your eyes with eyelash enhancements you can choose to skip mascara altogether if you want. Why not also consider adding permanent eyeliner while you’re considering a permanent lash enhancement to add that extra definition that really draws attention to your eyes. You don’t have to be born with luxurious lashes or wonderfully accented eyes when you have Melany Whitney to enhance what you naturally have!

A great solution to thin eyelashes is permanent makeup which can create the illusion of longer, thicker lashes. Click here to find out how permanent makeup artist Melany Whitney creates beautiful, natural-looking eyelashes with permanent cosmetics.

Have you ever wondered if there isn’t something magical in the skin of Olympic athletes? Lindsey Vonn skied a grueling, heart-thumping run to take the gold medal; yet when the cameras zoomed in for a close up seconds after she crossed the finish line, her face looked as fresh and beautiful as if she’d just applied her makeup. Despite hot sun, soaking rains, humid arenas and super-human exertion, you never seem to see an Olympic athlete who doesn’t look beautifully made up and ready for the cameras. The rest of us stop by the gym for a 30-minute cardio workout and in minutes are fighting sweaty foundation rivulets and sweat-smeared mascara.

Asked how she manages to keep her makeup looking fresh even during grueling workouts, skier Lindsay Vonn confided to the LA Times that she keeps her ski really clean, exfoliating every day, and relies on a good medium-weight moisturizing sunscreen. Vonn, who does wear makeup on the slopes, starts with a base coat of moisturizer followed by a light powder foundation and prefers liquid eyeliner for its staying power.

Olympic athletes would be good candidates for permanent makeup. With permanent makeup your face always looks fresh and beautiful whether you’re sweating in the gym or taking charge in the board room. Clean, moisturize and you’re ready for the day — and night. When you wear permanent makeup, you know you always look your best.

Want to see how you’d look with Twilight smoky eyes or neon blue Alice in Wonderland shadow? There’s an app for that! Want to learn how to create zigzag hair or add hair extensions? There’s an app for that! Want to know what this season’s hottest “must have” fashion is going to be? There’s an app for that!

Apps are revolutionizing the way we live. Apple led the way with apps for its iconic iPhone, recently broadening the app market by making its iPod Touch app friendly. Other smartphone makers have entered the fray with their own app stores. Savvy app designers have created universal apps that can work on both Apple and Microsoft-based systems. Apps are not only fun to use; they take the effort out of so many of life’s little chores. It’s no wonder that the beauty and fashion industries have begun embracing apps.

Apps make it possible to try on new looks from makeup to hairstyles to fashion accessories right on your smartphone. Sure you can do these things on the Internet, but now you can experiment with new looks while you’re on the go. Makeup apps can help you see how you’d look with permanent cosmetics. Try out different eyebrow arches, redefine the shape of your lips, experiment with thick or thin eyeliner or find the perfect lip shade. Save your “look” and an expert permanent cosmetics artist like Melany Whitney can create and even improve upon the perfection you seek.