Why eyebrow PMU done with organic inks turns grey over time

This post is directly related to and complements the article “Why do eyebrows turn yellow after laser removal of permanent eyebrow makeup?”

Why do eyebrows made with organic or hybrid inks turn a cool shade and grey over time?

Here, you need to understand what the inks are made of and the specific properties of the pigments that make up such organic PMU inks.

Here is an example of brown eyebrow PMU ink from a well-known producer.

Usually, to get different shades of brown for eyebrow permanent makeup, producers mix three primary colours – black, red and yellow – in various proportions.

And here is where the most interesting part comes in. For black, the inorganic pigment Carbon Black is usually used, as it is the most convenient and gives the deepest black. For yellow and red, various organic pigments are usually used. Specifically, in our example:

Yellow organic pigment

Pigment Yellow 14 CI#21095

Red organic pigments

Pigment Red 254 CI#56110

Pigment Red 269 CI#12466.

What happens to the organic pigments of eyebrow PMU over time?

Please note that the yellow organic pigment PY14 is the most abundant in the ink, and this is not a coincidence. Yellow organic pigment, like most organic pigments, is much less resistant to UV light and gradually degrades, which means that the number of yellow particles becomes smaller. But Carbon Black, as a pigment, is as UV resistant as possible, and virtually nothing happens to it over time.

This is when the greying of eyebrows occurs: gradually losing the yellow and red components, they turn from a warm brown to a bluish-grey colour. Schematically, it is shown in the image above. That is why producers, knowing about this fate of the pigments and their behaviour, initially introduce a large amount of organic yellow pigments into the composition to prolong their life and delay the moment when the eyebrows turn a cool grey shade.

This is exactly why many manufacturers of such hybrid inks recommend not removing eyebrow PMU with a laser in the first year after application, to avoid a bright yellow “poisonous” residue. I explained why this happens in the article “Why do eyebrows turn yellow after laser removal of permanent eyebrow makeup?”

Conclusion

Now the puzzle is put together, and you understand why such changes occur with hybrid permanent makeup inks! And it becomes clear why PMU artists must learn about pigmentology as well!