Iron Oxide Or Synthetic Cosmetic Pigments

Updated: Aug 13, 2023

Why does the color of Permanent Cosmetic Tattoos fade into a reddish or bluish color over time?

We get this question all the time!!

Cosmetic Pigments are meant to fade over time and are not permanent like a regular tattoo with tattoo ink.

The most common Cosmetic Pigments are classified as Iron Oxide or Synthetic. They are the same in color combination only. Which consists of yellow, red and black which in turn gives you a brown color when mixed together. Some of these colors are less stable than others as shown in the pictures below.

The yellow color fades the quickest in both pigments, whereas the red color is more stable and lasts longer in the Iron Oxide as well as the black color in the Synthetic pigment.

Both Iron Oxide and Synthetic pigments have some good and bad qualities.

In Iron Oxide the red color has both positive and negative components. The red color in the beginning adds a nice warmth to the color but will remain longer than the other colors and will leave that dreadful reddish color tint after a year or two. Iron Oxide also contains high quantities of heavy metals and are magnetized.

In Synthetic Pigments the black color has both positive and negative components. The negative in the black color is it doesn’t add warmth to the color and can leave the color looking grey or blueish through the skin. The positive, it won’t leave the reddish color once it has faded over time. It also doesn’t contain heavy metals and is nonmagnetic.

The ideal choice of pigment contains all of the positive components so that you can achieve a nice warmth to your color until it completely disappears entirely. These results are beneficial to the client and for the artist.

@ Phi Brows Pigments Microblading Los Angeles by Tinted Liquid