Skin Type and Colour Retention — Why Results and Longevity Differ from Person to Person
Even with the same pigment and the same artist, results differ from person to person. The thickness and oiliness of the skin, and the underlying base tone (undertone) beneath it, all change which colour is chosen, how it settles, and how long it lasts. We will explain, through skin science, why CYAN designs anew for each individual.
Colour is made not ‘on the skin’ but ‘within the skin’
Skin is made up, from the top down, of the epidermis, the dermis, and the subcutaneous fat layer. The epidermis is a thin protective layer with no blood vessels, whose cells renew roughly every 28 days, while the dermis beneath it is 15 to 40 times thicker than the epidermis and is where blood vessels, nerves, and collagen gather. PMU pigment needs to settle at the boundary where these two meet (the epidermis–dermis junction), in the uppermost dermis (the papillary layer). Placed too shallowly, in the epidermis alone, it is pushed out by the 28-day cycle of skin shedding and disappears quickly; placed too deeply in the dermis, the pigment can bleed, or deep colour can scatter through the epidermis and show through as blue-grey. In short, how colour shows and lasts begins with ‘at exactly what depth it was placed’.
The same colour settles differently depending on skin type
The dermatologist Fitzpatrick divided skin into types 1 to 6 based on the amount of melanin and its response to sunlight. Light skin with little melanin (types 1 and 2) reddens easily, while dark skin rich in melanin (types 4 to 6) barely tans but tends strongly to retain pigment after irritation. The classification table in the literature likewise notes that post-inflammatory pigmentation appears from type 3, and that pigmentation always appears in type 4. Because PMU is a controlled injury that repeatedly stimulates the epidermis–dermis junction with a needle, the darker the skin, the more the body’s own melanin may be added after the procedure, so the final colour can settle darker or duller than intended. This is the first reason results differ from person to person even with the same pigment.
The colour you actually see = pigment colour + your skin’s base tone
Quite apart from how light or dark your skin is, a warm or cool base tone (undertone) lies beneath the skin. This tone is created by three pigments — haemoglobin (red, and sometimes blue), carotene (yellow), and melanin (brown and black). In PMU, the colour you see is the result of ‘the colour of the injected pigment’ plus ‘your skin’s undertone’. So if the undertone is misread, the colour settles or shifts differently from what was intended. For example, using a cool grey brow colour on skin with a reddish cast makes it float as a greyish tone; for cool skin with a bluish cast we use an orange-based brown, and for warm skin we balance with a cool pigment carrying a hint of yellow. The principle is simple — a cool undertone is complemented with a warm colour, and a warm undertone is neutralised with a cool colour.
Oiliness and pores — the same colour, different crispness and longevity
Skin type decides the result not only through tone but through texture. The dermis holds oil glands, and skin that is oily with large pores tends to let the borders soften as the pigment settles, making it hard for fine lines to stay crisp, with a tendency to blur further over time. By contrast, dry, thin skin keeps colour crisp but is sensitive to irritation, so the depth must be adjusted shallower. So even with the same design, for oily, large-pored skin we consider a technique that brings out texture rather than packing lines too tightly, along with a shade a step deeper, while for dry, thin skin we choose a shallow depth and a softer colour — taking technique and colour in different directions. When the skin differs, the method for achieving the same result must differ too.
CYAN calculates not ‘the colour that is pretty today’ but ‘the colour that will settle in 1 to 2 years’
PMU is not a procedure where the colour right after the session simply stays as it is. The pigment settles as it heals and fades, and throughout that process the skin’s melanin and undertone keep influencing the final colour. The true result is not the colour reflected in the mirror on the day, but the colour that will settle into the skin after recovery and fading, 1 to 2 years later. So CYAN does not immediately apply a colour that looks bright and pretty on the spot. We calculate skin type (lightness, oiliness, thickness), undertone, and where the colour will drift over time, then design in reverse so that it remains the intended colour even after 1 to 2 years.
That is why CYAN designs anew for each person
Skin type, undertone and personal colour (the harmony of skin, hair, and eye colour), oiliness and pores, and the direction of healing and fading — because all these variables differ from person to person, the same pigment and the same design do not give everyone the same result. Instead of applying a fixed colour chart as is, CYAN reads the skin directly in consultation and combines depth, technique, and pigment anew each time to fit that person’s skin. Because undertone can look different depending on lighting and condition, we cross-check several cues before judging, and we take a more conservative approach with dark skin or skin prone to pigmentation. A design for one person alone — that is how we turn results that differ from person to person into the best possible result for each.