Lip Neutralization

lip neutralization

Lip Neutralization (Before/After)

lip neutralization

Lip Neutralization (Before/After)

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What is Lip Neutralization?

Lip Neutralization is the process of lightening your lips that have darkened due to a number of reasons. The darkening of lips is called hyperpigmentation. We must first balance the hyperpigmentation of your lips - otherwise known as neutralizing - to ensure the color that is desired for lip blushing can be done. Hyperpigmentation of the lips is most often seen on those that produce more melanin and land on the Fitzpatrick scale between 4 - 6, but can also occur due to sun exposure, medical conditions, and even smoking. To neutralize your lips, we specifically curate a color that will help to lighten the hyperpigmentation so that your lips will all match your natural lip color.

Keep in Mind

I. Hyperpigmentation is natural!

There is nothing to be ashamed of if you have lip hyperpigmentation! Many adore their lips as they are and you should never feel as though you need to change parts of yourself just to fit in. Do what makes YOU happy and comfortable in your skin - not what makes others happy! We would never pressure you to get a service done if it is not something you truly want to do - that goes for all of our services

II. Lip Blushing without neutralization will be difficult

We want to ensure we provide you with the best service and that you are happy with it! One important thing to know is that without neutralizing your lips, you may not get the expected and desired results for Lip Blushing. This is because as we place pigment onto your lips, it will counteract with the color and tones already present in your lips. This can cause the pigment to appear way darker/lighter than you are wanting after curating the color you want for your lip blushing.

III. You may require multiple sessions of neutralization

Every individual's case will be different. Depending on the level of hyperpigmentation, we may require more than one session to successfully neutralize the darker areas of your lips to match your natural lip color. We book per session for lip neutralization as it is not guaranteed that one session will suffice for every individual's lips. It will take about 8-10 weeks for us to be able to access how much of your lips has been neutralized and to determine the tones that are present. Once your lips are at the desired color that we are looking for, only then can we discuss lip blushing if that is what you wish to pursue.

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Before
Appointment

After
Appointment

Day 1

Day 2

Days 3-4

Days 5-6

Day 7

Week 6

Progress of Lip Neutralization

As you can see, the lips will go through multiple phases of color changes. This is because the pigment is settling into the lips and beginning to counterbalance the undertones. It is normal for your lips to appear as though the pigment is gone during the healing process. This is what we refer to as color ghosting which is when the pigment that was put into your lips fades almost completely and then reappears.

Another aspect you should keep in mind is that when we perform lip neutralization, your lips may appear darker after the 7 days of healing. With neutralization, the color can take up to 6-8 weeks to truly settle. That is why we hold off on lip blushing until after that timeframe so that we can see how the color actually settled into the lips.

This client also happens to have photosensitivity and their short exposure to the sun caused a reaction to the red pigment. That is why the darkness on their lips is more drastic than what your lips would look like. To learn more about lip blushing precautions, read more about it here!

At week 6, the darkness around their lips are not as prominent. The lips appear more cohesive in color and the outline of their lips are now lighter. For this client, we would recommend a second round of Lip Neutralization to make their outline match their natural lip color more as it is still a bit darker.