Ok so, you wanted to get your brows done, right? You found a great deal ($199!! score!!), looked at the artist’s portfolio, looked pretty decent… you held your breath and took the plunge. You went in for your appointment, you closed your eyes for a couple of hours, and then… crap. You’re not happy. Immediate regret. Whether you express your feelings to your artist are irrelevant at this point, because you can’t wipe these brows off. They’re there whether you want them to be there or not! So you grudgingly pay, leave, and sit in your car looking at your botched brows in your rear-view mirror, not sure what the eff you’re going to do next. You search frantically on google to see what home remedies have worked for others, or look up microblading removal (insert city name here), ask another artist in town that you should have gone to…
I’ve heard this story so many times. If i had a dollar every time i heard this story… well, ok maybe i could buy a nice meal. In terms of removal, there are a few ways you can deal with this, but the business i’ve been referring my removal clients to has been Laser Away Ink in Cambridge. I interviewed Lee with my own questions, but if you have any further questions drop them in the comments below!
What kind of laser do you have for tattoo removal? At Laser Away Ink we use a Quanta Q Plus-C Q Switch NDYAG that has 3 true wavelengths for all colours.
Can your laser really give a client a clean slate? If you’re doing removal on bad Microblading, will it get everything off eventually? The laser can only grab what the laser can get. If the scar tissue is too severe, the laser may not be able to grab the pigment to remove it. There are many factors relating to scarring. **Laurie’s note: microblading that’s gone too deep will not only make the colour go blue-grey, but it’ll also leave divots in your brows, aka scar tissue
Is there any pigment your laser cannot treat? If a client has multiple layers of pigment, built up over years of having their brows tattooed, is this treatable? The laser can remove all colours. Certain shades the laser can’t pick up. If a client has nude colour there is a chance it will turn black. If a client had multiple treatments (layers) we can treat them but we let the client know we can only take one off at a time so multiple sessions are required. **Laurie’s note: Some cosmetic tattooing pigments contain titanium oxide, which is a major component of nude or camouflage ink. Even in body art, if a laser touches titanium oxide, it will turn black — the opposite of what you want.
Will the laser affect the existing, natural brow hairs? Is there risk of the hair follicles dying? As for killing the hair follicles. It’s definitely NO because tattoo removal is a short pulse and hair removal is a long pulse.
If a client has had a brow procedure done that they’re immediately unhappy with, can you help them? Do they have to wait for it to heal before they can have laser done? When a client has regrets immediately after brow procedure we can’t treat them the skin needs to heal before laser. Usually 4-6 weeks sometimes more.
Does it hurt? Can the client numb their skin? Brow removal isn’t painless but the procedure is quick we use a cryo 6 chiller that blows -30 air for the thermal heat the client can also use numbing cream if they wanted.
How long does a brow removal take? How often can someone have it done? What is the maximum number of times you can treat an area? Is there a threshold to pigment removal where it just won’t work anymore? Brow removal sessions are quick, they last about 10 min with minor downtime. After treatment the skin is a bit red but will go back to normal in no time. With session 6 weeks apart we can laser as many times as you want until you’re happy with the results. Laser is the most non abrasive way to remove pigment from the body. After laser you are left with perfect skin and no scar tissue so it makes it perfect to reapply new brows.
Laser Away Ink charges $130 per removal session, and is a great option if you are having some regrets. If you’re looking to have a different artist touch up your work, your new artist may also require a quick snapshot of their current state to see if removal is necessary — i usually send them to Lee because i know he’s got a great machine! If you have any questions, drop them in the comment section below!