Permanently Beautiful

Did you know permanent makeup can be a stress relieving solution for those who suffer from Alopecia Universalis, a medical condition involving rapid loss of all hair including eyebrows and eyelashes?  This medical condition, which is the most severe form of Alopecia affects about 1 out of every 100,000 people throughout the world.  One fifth of people with the condition have a family history of Alopecia, or hair loss.   

Alopecia Universalis is thought to be an autoimmune disease in which a person’s immune system mistakenly attacks their hair follicles, although the cause is still technically unknown.  Although this disease is relatively rare, it is all too real to the many men and women who suffer from the condition.  Absence of normal hair growth on the head and face can cause embarrassment and lack of confidence.  It can sometimes also cause unwanted attention and questioning from strangers. 

Permanent tattooing (or permanent cosmetics) offers those with Alopecia an attractive and affordable solution to these issues.  Wigs can help with hair loss on the scalp, but what about eyebrows?  Permanent makeup can be used to create natural looking eyebrows in absence of hair growth above the eye. 

Whether you suffer from Pattern Alopecia, Androgenic Alopecia, or Traction Alopecia (compulsive hair pulling or tweezing), permanent makeup can help.

A new study, as reported in an April 1^st article in Womens Wear Daily, shows that women spent a significant amount more in 2010 on makeup than they did the previous year in 2009.  According to market Judy Galloway, a manager Partner of G-Group, “The consumer is typically interested in brands that solve problems…”

Solution driven collections and niche products such as liquid concealers, eye shadows, and other cosmetics designed with new technologies are becoming a popular choice of both brands and consumers today.  In addition, age old, classic, tried and true products and techniques that are solutions oriented and comprehensively fill women’s needs are the among the biggest survivors in today’s competitive market. 

One of those techniques is permanent makeup.  In fact, few things on the market are as solutions driven as permanent makeup. Permanent makeup or permanent cosmetics help women to maintain the look they want and need every day.  Whether it be permanent eyeliner, lip color, or brow color, permanent makeup is understandably becoming a go to solution for women in New York, New Jersey, and all over the world.  Permanent makeup is the smart solution for alopecia, tired looking eyes, pale colored lips, lack of time to spend on makeup application, and even can be the solution for women seeking to replace breast nipples after mastectomy.

Hair loss isn’t something that happens only to men. While female hair loss doesn’t usually reach the “bullet head” stage, many women do experience varying degrees of hair loss as they age. You may have noticed women in their golden years whose hair is so thin that their scalp can be clearly seen through the wispy stands. Some women even develop a circular bald spot at their crown.

Called Androgenetic Alopecia, clinical pattern baldness can happen to men, women and even children. When they’re pregnant, quite a few women suffer thinning hair caused by hormonal changes. In many cases the hair regains its pre-pregnancy thickness but in some cases the hair loss is permanent.

Thinning hair and bald spots can be especially distressing to women because it is unexpected and unaccepted by society. Men may loathe losing their hair, but at least hair loss is anticipated as a normal part of male aging. That is not the case for women which makes the thinning of their hair that much more devastating. Women may feel tremendously embarrassed by their loss of hair, even freak-like.

Fortunately, there is a solution. Paramedical tattooing, the clinical application of permanent makeup, can give the appearance of hair where hair has been lost, making it look as if you have a full head of hair. By injecting medical-grade pigment into the dermal layers of the skin, a permanent makeup artist can create the illusion of individual hairs on the scalp, effectively camouflaging female hair loss.

It begins with a small bald patch. In as little as 4 to 6 weeks, every hair on your body disappears. You are completely and totally bald. Your head, eyelashes, eyebrows, beard, arms, legs — yes, even there. Alopecia areata sufferers may joke about never having to wax or shave again, but nothing about this disease is funny. Alopecia drastically changes a person’s appearance, causing severe emotional pain.

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that induces the body to attack its own hair follicles. Progression of the disease, which attacks men and women equally, is individual and unpredictable for the 2% of the population affected. Some alopecia sufferers lose every hair on their body (alopecia universalis); others experience a few bald patches.

Genetic research at Columbia University shines the first rays of hope on this emotionally devastating disease. Researchers have discovered a genetic trigger that focuses immune cells on hair follicles, killing them. Previously, scientists believed alopecia was an autoimmune skin disease like psoriasis. New research indicates that alopecia behaves more like rheumatoid arthritis and celiac disease. Heralded as a major breakthrough, researchers hope new findings will lead to a cure for alopecia.

For now, paramedical tattooing offers the only solution for alopecia sufferers. A skilled permanent makeup artist can tattoo natural-looking hairs to fill in patchy beards or eyebrows for those suffering mild cases of alopecia. While there is little relief for alopecia universalis sufferers, tattooed permanent eyebrows can give the face a normal appearance.

Alopecia areata is a hair loss disease in which hair follicles are mistakenly attacked by a person’s own immune system. Usually it starts with one or more small, round, smooth bald patches on the scalp and can progress to total scalp hair loss (alopecia totalis) or complete body hair loss (alopecia universalis).

For men and women who have lost their eyebrows, permanent makeup can offer the chance to reclaim some of their facial expression, without worrying about makeup that might come off with sweat, or during sports.  Men especially might feel uncomfortable wearing makeup, but with micropigmentation chosen by a professional to complement the natural skin tone, there will be no reason to worry about smearing or smudging.

One person shared her permanent makeup testimonial: 

“One of my greatest pleasures occurs while showering! I look into the fogless mirror my husband uses for shaving, and see… EYEBROWS! I had been very sensitive of the sparsity of my brows prior to Melany’s ‘replacing’ them. I also enjoy not having to ‘remove’ my eyebrows when I retire.” 

Take a moment to see some examples of Melany Whitney’s Permanent Cosmetics Solutions For Alopecia.  You’ll notice that the eyebrow color is darker immediately after the procedure, but there is no down time, and the color fades in about 5 days!