[ Introduction: Researching Pigment Ingredients ] [ Technician Fears ]
[ The Premier Pigments Formula ] [ The Truth about Iron Oxides ]

Researching Pigment Ingredients

After their permanent cosmetics training, all cosmetic technicians explore the equipment available to them until they find a tattoo machine and power supply they are comfortable with, anesthetics that are reliable, and marketing materials that bring affordable results. The most important but elusive element in this process is pigment.

A well-trained permanent cosmetic technician quickly acquires the necessary skill to perform the basic procedures. However, without quality permanent makeup pigments, the results are never satisfactory. Satisfied clients and attractive results can do more to ensure the success of a technician’s practice than the most skillfully crafted marketing plan.

Technician Fears

Allergic reactions, color absorption, pigment migration, and changes in pigment color have always been the concern of every technician. Technicians must now also be aware of the ferromagnetic properties of some permanent pigments’ ingredients, which may increase risk by exposing their clients to painful and potentially dangerous burns if they undergo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or a CAT scan.

Some manufacturers claim to use only natural fruit and vegetable dyes or only FDA approved ingredients, when in reality, the FDA has never approved any pigment for use under the skin.

The Premier Pigments Formula

Of the two lines of pigments manufactured by Premier, the Original and the Concentrated Original Formulas, neither contains or has contained Iron Oxide elements, which have known to have strong side effects when implanted into the skin.

Our pigments are stable, free of iron oxides, true to color, and most important – safe. They have been developed over years of research the make them into the formulas they are today. Our pigments set the standard for quality permanent cosmetics for the industry. Over the years, our Original Colors and newer Concentrated Originals have been proven to be safe with no adverse reactions, long lasting and resistant to the sun. Hundreds of clients implanted with these pigments have safely undergone magnetic resonance imaging and CAT scans without burns or false images.

Sandi Hammons, president of Premier Pigments said, “even some of the Japanese masters, whose ancestors first introduced the use of colors in tattoo pigments, insist on using these high quality American-made pigments for both cosmetic and traditional aesthetic tattoos.”

The Truth about Iron Oxides

The iron oxide compounds typically found in inexpensive pigments are approved by the FDA for use in foods, drugs and cosmetics applied daily; but, these ingredients are inappropriate for use in permanent cosmetic applications.

The use of Iron Oxides in permanent cosmetics may only be due to its extremely low cost and its approval by the FDA for use in foods, drugs and conventional cosmetics; allowing unscrupulous manufacturers just enough legal license to deceive the public into believing that their products are approved for use under the skin.

Iron oxide is a binary compound consisting of iron and oxygen, most commonly seen as rust, hence the colors it bases, reds and browns. Iron oxide based pigments implanted in the lips or brows will sometimes disappear in a few days or worse, turn pink or purple in a few months. Pigments are no more magical than the ingredients that build them; therefore it is nonsensical to believe that implanted pigment could perform a disappearing act.

The inexperienced technician will too often blame their technique for lack of a better reason. Mapping the mechanics of a permanent cosmetic procedure, Dr. Narayan Hosmane, professor of inorganic chemistry theorized that iron oxide, when broken down, is both iron and oxygen, elements common to the hemoglobin found in human blood cells. The dermal layer of the skin is lined with blood vessels. When iron oxide or any pigment is implanted into the blood cells, it is interacting directly with the hemoglobin in each cell. The body, performing its natural functions and processes, does not distinguish iron in pigment to be any different from iron in blood and accepts part of the iron oxide base into the blood vessel. Therefore part of the pigment base is absorbed by the body as it would a Geritol iron supplement. The remaining cosmetic color will disperse in the dermal layer either leaving a faint pink discoloration or disappearing completely.

Technicians seeking natural pigments must understand that any natural pigment can be processed through the blood, much like food and therefore cannot be used to achieve a permanent color. Any technician performing procedures with iron oxide pigments is doing a disservice to themselves as well as their client. The client is paying a large sum for a procedure that will not be permanent and the technician is wasting valuable time doing repeated touch-ups.

Permanent cosmetic enhancement can be one of the most lucrative services the beauty industry can offer; it has the opportunity for enormous growth. However, technicians who insist on using inferior pigments may see the business opportunities vanish along with the pigment they implant.