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Lip Tattoo Gone Wrong: One Woman’s Permanent Green Lip Liner Nightmare

Fifty-year-old Karine Barry was a huge fan of lip liners and permanent tattoos. In fact, she started getting semi-permanent lip tattoos in her 20’s—that’s around 30 years of lip tattoos! But, one day, she decided she wanted something more than permanent. And that was when she went on a trip that, unbeknownst to her, would end with a lip tattoo gone wrong.

“Semi-permanent tattoos always disappear very quickly on me so I went overseas in the hope of getting a permanent tattoo,” Karine of Victoria, Australia told news.com.au.

“My parents live in Tahiti, and Polynesians are normally the best tattooists in the world. They’re brilliant, so that’s why I chose Tahiti,” she explained.

It was supposed to be an experience of a lifetime—but in a good way. Instead, when her chosen tattoo artist started explaining the lip tattoo process, Karine became unsure.

Blue + green = red?

“He started mixing blues and greens and a little bit of pink. He told me it was going to come up green, but [that] it would turn burgundy eventually,” Karine said.

Karine trusted her tattoo artist, however, and let him proceed with the tattoo. $250 dollars and thirty minutes later, Karine had green-lined lips.

“My son refused to sit next to me on the plane home,” she confided to New Idea.

“Back home, as a receptionist I was the face of a big company,” she continued. “I kept reassuring my boss the green around my lips would fade, but three months later, it was actually greener as the pigment had settled into my skin.”

A permanent solution to a permanent disaster

Despite lathering on lipstick, Karine’s lip liner was still very visible.

Fortunately, one of her friends recommended a laser dermatology clinic, and Karine made an appointment.

“They couldn’t promise good results as it was a foreign ink, with a color that is the most difficult to shift and in an area they hadn’t treated before,” she said. “I was a guinea pig, but I didn’t have much choice.”

This time, however, her appointment was a success. After just one session, the dermatologists were able to remove her entire bottom lip liner. The rest came off after three additional sessions.

“My boss is happy, my son is okay to be seen with me again, and I’m relieved I don’t have to look like that for the rest of my life,” Karine said.

Lesson learned: How to avoid instances of lip tattoo gone wrong

Karine isn’t the only victim of botched permanent makeup procedures. A few minutes of your day, however, can solve this issue before it even pops up.

Karine herself admitted it: she hadn’t done any research on her tattoo artist. If she had, she might have completely avoided her lip tattoo gone wrong moment.

Is permanent makeup safe or are we all destined for a lip tattoo gone wrong?

All beauty procedures can be dangerous in the hands of non-professionals. When attempting any beauty procedure—whether it’s a manicure, a haircut, a nose lift, or a tummy tuck—always seek out those who were trained on performing your chosen procedure.

The same goes for permanent makeup. Make sure to:

• conduct research on several clinics before choosing;
• inquire if they are qualified to perform your desired procedure; and
• go over customer reviews about similar, if not the exact same, procedure.

If you want to minimize as much risk as possible, avoid attempting beauty procedures that involve harsh chemicals. Not only are they harmful and unhealthy, they’re also much more difficult to deal with in case you want or need to modify your permanent makeup.

Organic Permanent Makeup (OPM) is the only location that offers organic and permanent makeup services, including lip microblading, eyebrow microblading, permanent eyeliners, scalp micropigmentation, and tattoo removal and correction.

OPM provides a safe and comfortable facility for all your eyebrow needs and houses a team of rigorously trained beauty experts. In fact, our beauty experts conduct training sessions of their own at the OPM Academy.

Don’t settle for less. When it comes to beauty, nothing beats best.

Schedule an appointment with OPM today.