My Lips Were Pale, Dry, and High-Maintenance—Then I Got Lip Blush.

I wouldn’t call my lips an insecurity, but they are both chronically dehydrated and pretty pale. I can’t go more than a couple of hours without applying lip balm, but my desire to always have a rosy lipstick or lip liner on has made this a challenge when it comes to my makeup routine. After discovering lip blush, a semi-permanent lip tattoo that provides long-lasting colour, I was convinced that it could combat all my woes. However, I was still left wondering whether it would actually make a noticeable difference, or if I could brave the tattoo process. I’m now two months healed from my final treatment with Karen Betts Clinics, and can very safely say that this is single-handedly the best beauty treatment I’ve ever done. Here’s why.

What is lip blush?

"Lip blushing is an advanced permanent makeup treatment designed to enhance the natural beauty of the lips by adding soft, sheer colour and improved definition," explains Karen Betts Clinics, where I had my treatment done. "Using precise digital techniques and high-quality pigments, the treatment subtly enhances the lip shape, balances tone, and creates the appearance of fuller, healthier-looking lips."

Essentially, lip blushing is tattooing the lips with a soft wash of colour that lasts. Once healed, you can expect a natural tint that lasts from one to three years and imitates the look of liner or lipstick. The colour is fully customisable, so the results can be as deep or as soft as you like.

Lip blushing: My honest review

First appointment

When I went in for my very first treatment, I really had no idea what sort of results or colour I wanted. Years of relying on lip oils and tinted balms for hydration have meant that I never really discovered my signature lipstick shade. If you do have a shade you wear daily, you can take that along with you to your appointment to have the shade matched for your lip blush. However, I worked with my artist to mix up a colour we both thought suited me, and aligned with my desire to have a noticeable but natural pink tone.

The very first step is numbing. As soon as I arrived, my artist applied numbing cream to my lips that got to work quickly, and I waited about ten minutes for it to settle in before I went into the treatment room. From here, we got to discussing the colour I was after. My artist then mixed up the pigments to create a custom shade, and I tried two different variations on my lips before settling on one. The colour can be altered exactly to your liking, so no colour is off limits. However, keep in mind that it will look lighter and softer when fully healed, so don’t let the intense tint put you off.

Once the colour was decided, it was time for the tattooing process to start. Going in, I had no idea how long the whole treatment would take, so I was a little shocked to learn that it was going to be 90 minutes of tattooing. However, my artist made the whole process comfortable and relaxed, checking in with me as we went to make sure I was okay. Plus, you’re lying down the whole time, so there’s no uncomfortable positioning involved.

My artist started the treatment by sketching out my lip line and checking I was happy with the shape before moving on to the whole lip. It’s a process that requires a lot of precision and going over the same areas to get the pigment to be even, so be prepared for working and re-working from your artist for best results.

Now, although you are numbed pre-treatment, it does require topping up mid-way through. When the treatment started, I could feel the needle on my lips in some areas—mainly around the lip line, as this requires precise sketching. It feels most similar to a cat scratch, with a very sharp effect at first. However, it was completely bearable and didn’t last too long at any one time. Your artist will tattoo a small section before taking a short break, so there’s time to recover in between. Mid-way through, my artist lightly tattooed across my lips to allow for the second round of numbing cream to sink in deeper, which I could also feel—but again, was very speedy. Once this second round of numbing cream was applied, I almost couldn’t feel anything at all for the remainder of the treatment.

Post-appointment

After the tattooing was finished, I was left with a very intense colour across my lips (pictured) that resembled a deep pinky red lipstick, so it wasn’t a problem for me to go out and about afterwards. However, my lips did feel extremely sensitive. It felt like a bad sunburn, where the lips are slightly swollen and very tender with a hot feeling. For me, the first 24 hours after the appointment were the most uncomfortable due to this sensitivity—much more so than the tattooing process itself. However, I was given a healing ointment to apply to make the lips feel nourished and less tight. Applying it was also slightly painful, feeling like small needles pricking my lips when I touched them. I was also advised to drink through a straw and avoid getting toothpaste on the lips so as not to provide any more discomfort or impact the pigment. However, by the 36-48 hour mark, they felt absolutely fine and I could go back to eating, drinking, and applying lip balm as normal.

By this point, my lips began to slowly peel. It’s important not to peel them yourself to allow for proper healing and for the pigment to stick, so on day two my lips did look slightly worse for wear with small bits of skin flaking off. This was probably the only day I didn’t feel completely confident being out of the house, but that will depend on personal preference. About three days after the treatment, the peeling had more or less finished and my lips looked almost back to normal, just with a dark pink pigment.

It’s important to know that your lips will get darker before they get lighter as the pigment settles. So, whilst they will look pretty dark for the first week or so, they will then fade to a more natural wash which is how they will heal. Fully healed five weeks after my appointment, I was left with a gorgeous pink shade that meant I never felt the need to apply any lip colour. I could just wear a hydrating lip balm and still look like I had lipstick on.

Follow-up appointment

Although just the first appointment produced fantastic results for me, there is a follow-up appointment six weeks later to check on the colour and top up the pigment. This was done in exactly the same way as the first appointment, except it only took about 45 minutes. I found it to be much less uncomfortable than the first session, and easier afterwards since I already knew how to care for my lips post-treatment and what to expect in terms of healing.

Again, I left the appointment with darkly pigmented lips that followed the same healing process as the first time. I went into the office the day after, and my colleagues thought I was just wearing a dark red lipstick—no sign of excessive swelling. I continued applying the healing ointment as directed (every couple of hours) until the flaking process was over and the colour started to settle.

The results

Now, two months after my second and final treatment, I couldn’t be happier with the results. It looks extremely natural—so my lips don’t look out of place when I’m makeup-free—but the pink hue is still noticeable and a huge change from my usually pale lips.

I have had several friends ask about my lipstick and note how well it stayed on before revealing that it was actually lip blush, and I can’t remember the last time I applied lipstick or liner. I just leave the house with my trusty lip balms, and I don’t need to faff around reapplying lip colour after eating, drinking, or on a long night out. This has been the biggest change for me. Not having to sacrifice lip colour in order to give my lips hydration has been a total gamechanger.

There’s also something about my lips finally having colour that changes my whole face. Not only do I feel instantly put together even without any makeup on, but the colour warms my skin tone and makes me look healthier and more awake—something I welcome on early mornings when getting ready for work.

It’s by far the beauty treatment that has made the most noticeable and long-lasting change to my face, without any huge adjustments to my appearance.

Would I recommend lip blush?

To be completely truthful, the first couple of days after my very first treatment left me with a few doubts. I found the sensitivity and discomfort of my lips fairly challenging, and since I wasn’t used to seeing myself with dark lips, I didn’t quite feel like myself. However, after a few days and the peeling process was complete, I was convinced by lip blush. It’s a process that requires some patience before you get the results you’re after—similar to a chemical peel where you look slightly worse before you look better. But those couple of days of discomfort were more than worth it for the results I have now. I will never stop raving about the results, and the compliments I’ve been getting speak for themselves.

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