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Pigments – Iron Oxides ©
There seems to be much confusion over the use of Organic and Inorganic pigments used for permanent cosmetic makeup application.
There are 2 types of pigment colour ingredients used for permanent cosmetic makeup.
1. Iron Oxides (Inorganic)
2. Lakes (Organics)
Over 95% of the major permanent cosmetic makeup pigment manufacturers use both Organic and Inorganic cosmetic colorants in their pigment.
Permanent cosmetic application involves piercing the skin with single or multiple sterile needles utilizing various insoluble opaque oxides, lakes and iron oxide pigments to create a semi- permanent or permanent design or decoration.
Why Use Iron Oxides and Lakes?
Iron oxides used for permanent makeup pigments are essential because iron is the most stable and the most common of all of the elements. It’s nontoxic and has a variety of colours available to technicians.
Iron oxides have been one of the most commonly used coloring agents for cosmetics for over a century. They have also been used in natural minerals, not only for permanent cosmetics, but for traditional cosmetics, foods, medications, religious ceremonies and skin protection.
Iron oxides are inert, innocuous and non-reactive. In other words they are safe, harmless and inactive.
I have been in the industry since 1988, and many of my colleagues longer than that and no one has heard of any allergic reactions to iron oxides. The metal content is way below the FDA’s list of approved colorants.
Most of the major cosmetic manufacturers use straight iron oxides and lakes in their topical ‘mineral makeup’. That is why it is so well-liked by modern women. If people have a reaction to their traditional makeup it is usually to the perfumes, preservatives and other additives that have been added to the base of the colour product.
We have interviewed the most respected leaders in the permanent makeup industry both who manufacturer pigments and are technicians – their comments are throughout this article.
According to Darlene Story of Li Pigments “The FDA only certifies the use of pigments that cause the least reactions. For cosmetics they certify natural pigments, iron oxides, D&C and FD&C pigments. As a manufacturer in the cosmetic industry I wouldn’t feel comfortable putting an ingredient not certified for external use in a product I sell intended for use in the dermis. Natural isn’t as reliable so we use iron oxides and lakes.
I have been manufacturing permanent makeup colors since 1992 and to someone looking for the least risk of allergic reaction I recommend FDA certified
ingredients like iron oxides instead of traditional tattoo ink, especially when applied to the face.
Li pigments are sold in over 60 different countries.”
Manufacturing Pigments for Permanent Makeup
The need for regulation of colorants was born out of necessity. Manufacturing iron oxides as a coloring agent for cosmetics began around 1900.
“Other early examples of colorants were criminal and often deadly. In 1820 for example, Fredrick Accum reported the demise of a woman who frequently ate pickles while at her hairdresser – pickles that had been colored green with copper sulfate. A Manchester tea shop is said to have been found stocked with copper arsenite, lead chromate, and indigo for dyeing used tea leaves for resale. Cheese rinds and cayenne pepper were often colored with red lead , and copper acid orthoarsenite was once found in apple tarts. Before the advent of synthetic organic dyes, candy was generally shaded with a variety of mineral pigments including red lead, lead chromate, vermilion and lead carbonate. One survey taken in Boston in 1880 showed that 46% of all candy examined contained one or more mineral pigments chiefly lead chromate. Perhaps the classic horror story of the time is that of the druggist who in 1860 gave a caterer copper arsenite to use for making a green pudding for a public dinner. Two people died as a result.”
Colour Ingredients
Color ingredients are regulated by the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Most pigments used in manufacturing are dry colorants that are ground into a fine powder and added to a vehicle (matrix) of a relatively neutral or colorless material that acts as a binder. A colorant can be both a pigment and a dye depending on the vehicle it is used in. A soluble dye with metallic salts results in a lake pigment, other colorants are iron oxides.
Iron oxides have various colors which are classified into three major color groups: yellow iron oxide, red colcothar and black iron oxide. The following table shows the details of the chemical ingredients of each group, being mindful that each group does not consist of a single component, but of a mixture.
| Chemical name | Chemical formula | |
| Yellow iron oxide | Ferric oxide, hydrate | FeO(OH) |
| Colcothar | Ferric oxide | Fe2O3 |
| Black iron oxide | Ferrous ferric oxide | Fe3O4 (Fe2O3/ FeO) |
Color tone depends on the temperature, concentration, pH, and radius of the particle when manufactured. For example; different tones of yellow can be produced from yellow iron oxide using these properties.
At present, iron oxides are the most commonly used pigment for coloring cosmetics such as foundation, blush, lipstick and eye shadow. Various skin colors are produced by mixing these three groups of iron dioxide in different ratios.
ORGANIC
Certified colors are organic and are also known as metal salts. They are called “lakes” and are listed on ingredient labels as “D & C” (Drug and Cosmetic).
INORGANIC
Non-certified colors are inorganic synthetics. They include; zinc oxide, iron oxides, carmine, mica and ultramarine colors. They are less intense in color than certified colors. Zinc oxide and iron oxide help with opacity, meaning that they provide a solid color that is not transparent. They are used extensively in cover-up makeup products such as foundation. In most powders the ingredients include talc, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide and others.
“Since my initial introduction into permanent cosmetic makeup in 1987 my focus has been on product safety and client colour approval. I work diligently with our chemists to develop colours that would be conducive to our industry. We have had chemists compounding our permanent makeup pigments since 1990. Our products have always contained both Inorganic and Organic colorants. Absolute Perfection and Designer Series Colours pigment colours are made of from the FDA’s approved list of color additives for food, drugs and the cosmetic grade of Lakes (Organic) and iron oxides (Inorganic). These pigments are used in products that are used daily for food coloring, Jello, medications and any other product for consumption.
“Our pigment bottles are heat sealed, coded with a lot # and expiration dates. Pigments are physician tested, approved and used. Our products are sold in over 60 countries” states K. Church founder of PermanentMakeUpProducts.com.
How Are Pigment Colours Made?
The FDA – Food and Drug Administration
The FDA (Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states:
Tattoos & Permanent Makeup
November 29, 2000; updated June 23, 2008 and February 1, 2010
“FDA considers the inks used in intradermal tattoos, including permanent makeup, to be cosmetics and considers the pigments used in the inks to be color additives requiring premarket approval under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. However, because of other public health priorities and a previous lack of evidence of safety concerns, FDA traditionally has not exercised its regulatory authority over tattoo inks or the pigments used in them. The actual practice of tattooing is regulated by local jurisdictions”.
According to Bhakti Petigara Harp, Ph.D. Chemist Color Technology Team Office of Cosmetics and Colors states:
1. Synthetic organic tattoo pigments are more intense in color than inorganic pigments.
2. Give a wider range of colors
3. Some are removable by laser
Although a number of color additives are approved for use in cosmetics, none is approved for injection into the skin. Using an unapproved color additive in a tattoo ink makes the ink adulterated. Many pigments used in tattoo inks are not approved for skin contact at all. Some are industrial grade colors that are suitable for printers’ ink or automobile paint.
Organic Based Vegetable Pigments
Our main concern and focus has always been people’s allergies to vegetable and fruit dyes as so many people have developed life threatening allergies to nuts including peanuts, fruits and berries.
If a technician used a brown pigment made from any type of peanut, green made from kiwi, blue or red pigment made from berries and the client had severe allergies to these foods they could have a life threatening reaction go into anaphylaxis and die.
Vegetable Pigments can be very dangerous when used for permanent cosmetics.
(Read more about this in our article entitled “Organic Permanent Makeup Pigment – What’s the buzz all about?”)
What’s Used in Tattoo Inks?
According to ‘Medical News Today’ article on “Tattoo Chemical Warning”
“Fans of tattooing are putting poisonous chemicals into their skin because of widespread ignorance about the substances used in tattooing dyes, the European Commission is
warning.”
‘Would you inject car paint into your skin?’ the Commission asked in a statement accompanying its report on the health risks of tattooing and body-piercing.
With the fashion for body adornment growing, the Commission said too little was known about the chemical structure and toxicity of tattoos. It said most chemicals used in tattoos were industrial pigments originally used for other purposes, such as automobile paints or writing inks, and there was little or no safety data to support their use in tattoos.
Dr. Roy D. Geronemus states “Tattoo inks are pigments suspended in a carrier solution, The carrier solution helps make sure the pigments are evenly mixed and easy to apply.
It’s difficult to know what ingredients are used for pigments and carriers in a particular tattoo because some tattoo artists mix their own ink, while others buy unregulated
commercial products.
Common carrier ingredients include alcohol, glycerine and sterilized water, but may also include anti-freeze, formaldehyde, or other toxic materials. The ingredients in pigments vary according to color. For example, black pigments are often made from iron oxide of carbon; green from chromium oxide, ferrocyanides, or lead chromate; and white from titanium dioxide, barium sulfate, or zinc oxide.
A ground-down form of plastic-acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)- is used to create bright, vivid tattoo pigments. This is the same plastic used to make a variety of lightweight molded products, such as bicycle helmets, Legos and golf club heads”.
Traditional Tattoo Artists What do They Use?
Traditional tattoo artists choose to use bright vibrant colours for their art work. People have traditional artistic tattoos with ‘inks’ because they want their artwork to last
forever.
However, all of the traditional artists that I have trained choose to use cosmetic grade inorganic and organic pigments for their client’s semi-permanent and permanent makeup.
Why? Because it is safer than inks used for the body. There are thousands of tattoos performed safely on a daily basis and millions over the past years.
Industrial Inks for Traditional Tattooing
If asked, most people do not want industrial inks implanted into their face for their permanent makeup. So what does that leave us with?
Cosmetic grade iron oxides (Inorganic) and Lakes (organics) that have been proven safe over time.
Allergic reactions are associated with industrial inks consisting of reds, yellows, greens and blues.
I have several friends that are sleeved and have red ink in their arm tattoos. When they are ill or have excess sun exposure the red in their arm swells (puffs up). This swelling may not go down for days.
I personally have a traditional tattoo with black and red ink. I wanted it to last for a long time so I chose to have traditional ink instead of cosmetic pigment for my artwork tattoo.
What if that same red was used in a client’s lips? Would they be happy with the swelling and trauma to their lips until their lips returned to normal, only to swell up again in the sun? If a technician uses an organic pigment made with an ingredients the client is allergic to that client could have adverse reactions.
What other dangers are there in using industrial inks in the face? Who knows?
Always ask for an accurate MSDS sheet on pigments… The MSDS cannot state
“May or May Not contain iron oxides”
BEWARE: Some manufactures make up ingredients on their MSDS sheets. Is this legal or ethical? No, but they want to sell products to the public with little to no concern of client safety!
Adverse Reactions
Adverse reactions to oxides and lakes:
Since 1988 I have not seen any type of reaction to cosmetic pigments. I have polled hundreds of technicians and none of them have witnessed any type of reactions either.
Adverse reactions to inks:
1. Swelling, cracking, peeling, blistering, scarring
2. Granulomas (small nodules of inflamed skin)
3. Keloids (scars that grow beyond normal boundaries)
4. Allergic reactions
5. Photosensitivity
6. Serious disfigurement
7. MRI complications
Permanent Makeup Artist: Rebecca Bryant states “I have been using iron oxide pigments in permanent makeup since 1993 from manufacturers I trust and know personally. Iron oxide pigments are stable when implanted in the skin with less chance of migration, like carbon or organic based pigments.
I have never personally used an iron oxide based pigment that has caused any allergic reaction”.
Rebecca Bryant of ‘Permanent Makeup by Rebecca’ Las Vegas, NV
Fading of Pigment Colours
Eyebrow Fading:
Experienced technicians should want to use an eyebrow, eyeliner and lip colour pigment that will fade and lighten over time. This is considered semi-permanent makeup.
Why Should We Use Semi Permanent Pigments?
As our skin loses elasticity and collagen our eyebrows ‘sag’. This gives the eyebrow a ‘sad’ droopy look. When using iron oxides and organic pigments the colour will fade. When the client has a colour refresher application the technician can give their client a $10,000.00 face lift by making the tails of the eyebrows higher.
If traditional inks were used, the pigment would barely fade and the industrial ink colorants used for brows and lips would have a permanent ‘sag’.
Removal of the ‘sad’ droopy eyebrow is inevitable as the client ages. The client is now faced with laser removal which will cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars to remove
the ink.
So, the question to the client is:
Do you want a brow that will fade over time and when the skin loses its elasticity and collagen that we can lighten what is left at the end of the brows and make a new brow
giving you a $10,000.00 face lift? Guess what the client chooses??
Choices – Oxides VS Ink?
Do you want an eyeliner with industrial paint (ink) that may not lighten and fade (just like a body tattoo) and over time and when the skin loses its elasticity and collagen you are faced with an expensive laser treatment to remove the tails of the eyeliner?
Eyeliner Fading
Clients want their eyeliner colour to lighten and soften with age. When we are younger a darker coloured eyeliner is very attractive. However, as we age, acquire wrinkles and gray hair, that once dark eyeliner is not as attractive as it previously once was. The softer colouring is much more becoming to an older person. If oxides are used for the eyeliner and wings, the colour will soften/fade. When using inks the droop is permanent.
Eyeliner Wings
Most experienced technicians will not give an eyeliner client ‘wings’. As the skin loses its elasticity, the perky wings become droopy horns. The safest way to remove this excess colour in the sagging tissue is with a laser or surgery.
Lipliner Fading
Tattooing bright colours in the lips looks great on younger people. When we are younger, we can wear brighter, vibrant coloured lipstick. The tissue firmness of youth is on the young client’s side. Unfortunately, age compromises the skins integrity. As the skin ages and it loses the elastin and collagen, the lower lip droops and the once beautiful cupid’s bow is now sagging. Using pigments that fade with time will be better tolerated than using inks that will last for decades.
Viscosity of Products
Depending on the technician, they will choose the viscosity (thinness or thickness) of the pigment they use for their permanent makeup or artistic procedures.
Viscosity can be most easily described as a thick pigment that is used in an oil painting or thin pigment that would be used in a sumi picture. The oil painting is bold in colour and the sumi painting is like a very soft water colour painting.
Sumi colours are also used for semi-permanent makeup as it is soft and can fade quickly if it is inserted into the epidermal layer. This procedure is used for the client that is unsure if she wants permanent makeup.
Most technicians use thick pigment that needs little to no colour refreshers for a year or two depending on how the client takes care of the procedure area.
Iron Oxides VS. Inks
I interviewed several leading technicians that have been in tattoo and permanent makeup industry for years and here are their responses.
Permanent Makeup Artist and Traditional Tattoo Artist Pamela Abshear states “ I often wonder why people try to discredit the use of a inert particle,
that we know from scientific fact and practical use in the industry, will not move or migrate when placed correctly into the tissue. Inks are water soluble, that says a lot, especially in the face. The face is highly vascular and we work around and near a great deal of wet tissue and I have never had an issue with migration.
However a lot of people who use inks do when working on the facial tissue. Frankly I want to stick with what I know that is tried, true and faithful. Since 1999 I have had a successful relationship in permanent cosmetics. I have an excellent reputation in the industry and I have loyal and a very satisfied clientele. I also perform body art and use inks. I would never dream of using them on the face as the chemical composition is highly questionable and may cause a corneal abrasion or burn, or cause an allergic reaction Pamela Abshear of ‘Institute of Dermal Art Technologies’ in Phoenix, Arizona
Pamela Abshear CCPC, CPDA is a licensed Aesthetician, Educator and a former SPCP trainer member.
Professional Vivian Walters states “I have been a permanent makeup technician and have used iron oxides and lakes since 2001 and have never had an incident or reaction on any clients with all types of skin.
Yes the pigments fades but my clients can age gracefully and have color refreshers as needed to keep them looking younger.” Vivian Walters Permanent Makeup Artist, Electrologist, Aestitician and Cosmetologist. Owner of ‘Dottie’s Salon’ in GG, CA
I am a traditional artist and have been in the tattoo industry since 1975. I am an ‘Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Authorized General Industry’ Trainer. I became a permanent makeup technician and have been using iron oxides pigments since 1991 because they have been proven to have no reactions in the skin. I have not had any problems with the hundreds of clients I have tattooed.
I own a traditional tattoo studio and all of my artists use inks. I only use iron oxides in the face for cosmetic tattooing”.
Cathy Monty Owner of ‘Absolute Tattoo’ in San Diego, CA
Amy Kernahan New York’s premier ‘Eyebrow Queen’ professional makeup artist states “I prefer iron oxide pigments to ink as it looks more natural and is not as permanent as ink. I have performed cosmetic tattooing on hundreds of clients and have never had a reaction. I like how the pigments fade out over time and I am able to create a more youthful brow as my client’s age.”
Amy Kernahan is an award-winning, nationally recognized professional makeup artist with over fifteen years of experience. Starting her career at the young age of eighteen, Amy has done it all: photo shoots; runway shows, commercial work, plus was a former National Makeup Artist for Estee Lauder. She has earned a reputation in the makeup world for her clean and classic approach to beauty.
Amy Kernahan Owner of Amy Kernahan Makeup Studio, NYC and Raleigh NC
Traditional Cosmetics
Iron oxide, oxides and lakes are the same product that is used to make blush, lipstick, eye shadows, and face powders used in Estee Lauder, Lancôme, MAC, Gucci, Armani, Channel and other leading brands of cosmetic makeup. Complications and adverse reactions to the pigments/ inks are rare.
Check the back label of your cosmetic products. What do you see? Ingredient labels that state the use of iron oxides (inorganic) and lakes (organic).
Look at the photos and check out the list of ingredients on each cosmetic item. You will see iron oxides, titanium dioxide and lakes.
Take a look in your own makeup bag and look at the ingredients on your own personal makeup blush, foundation, powder, lipstick, eye shadow and pencils.
Even the lipstick ingredients are lakes, titanium dioxide and iron oxides.
If all of the national manufactures of makeup products use iron oxides, lakes and titanium dioxides, you can understand why we use them in our permanent makeup pigments. They are safe and non reactive.
MSDS
Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)
Always ask your manufacturer for an accurate MSDS. This will give you an exact listing of what ingredients are in the pigment you will be using for your procedure application.
“An MSDS is required under the U.S. OSHA Hazard Communication Standard. Most developed countries have similar regulations and requirements. The MSDS is a detailed
informational document prepared by the manufacturer or importer of a hazardous chemical. It describes the physical and chemical properties of the product. MSDS’s
contain useful information such as flash point, toxicity, procedures for spills and leaks, and storage guidelines. Information included in a Material Safety Data Sheet aids in the selection of safe products, helps you understand the potential health and physical hazards of a chemical and describes how to respond effectively to exposure situations. Although there is an effort currently underway to standardizes MSDS’s the quality of individual MSDS’s vary”.
MSDS should NOT say “MAY OR MAY NOT CONTAIN” a certain ingredient.
Our goal has always been to set and maintain HIGHER standards
for the permanent makeup industry.
If there was a better colour product than
inorganic and organic pigments we would be using it!
AMEN……
Definitions
Color – That aspect of visual perception by which an observer distinguishes differences between two structure-free fields of view of the same size and shape such as may be caused by differences in the spectral composition of the radiant energy concerned in the observation.
Cosmetic – Articles intended to be rubbed, poured, and sprinkled. or sprayed on, introduced into, or otherwise applied to the human body or any part thereof for cleansing,
beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance; articles (except soap) intended for use as a component of any such articles.
Lake– A pigment prepared by precipitating a soluble dye onto an insoluble reactive or adsorptive substratum or diluents.
Pigment– A colored or white chemical compound that is capable of imparting color and is insoluble in the solvent in which it is being applied. That which is a pigment in relation to one solvent may be a dye in relation to another solvent.
Definitions from the ‘Handbook of U.S. Colorants’ Foods, Drugs, Cosmetics and Medical Devices’ by Daniel M. Marmion
1. Handbook of U.S. Colorants – Food, Drugs, Cosmetics and Medical devices By: Daniel M. Marmion
2. http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/ProductandIngredientSafety/ProductInformation/ucm108530.htm
3. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/3964.php
4. www.fda.gov
5. http://www.ehso.com/msds_regulations.php
References:
Permanent Cosmetics “The Ultimate Guide” For Professional Technicians by: Susan Church CCPC
Permanent Makeup Beginning Class Manual by: Susan Church CCPC
Dr Roy Geronemus – Clinical Professor of Dermatology, New York University
Past President , American Society of Dermatologic Surgery
Past President, American Society for Laser Medicine & Surgery
Medical Director, Laser & Skin Surgery Center of New York
Handbook of U.S. Colorants – Food, Drugs, Cosmetics and Medical devices By: Daniel M. Marmion
Original Article was written in 1995 and updated in 2011.
Read our article on iron oxides:
Organic Permanent Make up Pigment
Semi Permanent VS. Permanent Makeup
BY: Susan Church CCPC, CPDA
