Rather than disappearing at a fixed point, the colour becomes progressively softer. Smoking, frequent exfoliation, sun exposure and acids or retinoids used over the lip area commonly bring fading forward. Discuss your routine with your artist rather than stopping prescribed or professionally recommended products.

What happens in the years afterwards

In the first year or two the colour typically looks close to how it healed. From roughly year two it reads as a soft tint rather than defined colour, and the border usually loses crispness first. Several years on, what remains is often a faint warmth rather than anything most people would identify as a tattoo. Noticeable blurring or migration is uncommon where appropriate technique and depth are used, though it cannot be ruled out.

When a refresh may be appropriate

A refresh is worth considering once the colour no longer does what you wanted it to: tone looks uneven again, the border has blurred, or you find yourself reaching for lip liner. There is no schedule that suits everyone — many refresh between two and three years, some go longer, and some never return. A refresh may involve less work than the original treatment, depending on the remaining pigment, colour change and desired result.

Why some clients refresh and others simply let it fade

Both are reasonable. Clients who chose lip blush mainly to reduce daily makeup tend to refresh, because that benefit is the point. Others let the pigment keep fading, which causes no problem. Removal and lightening options exist if a healed result is not wanted, though no method is guaranteed to clear pigment completely.

Why remaining pigment is assessed first

Before another treatment is recommended, your artist looks at what is still in the skin. Residual warmth, coolness or unevenness changes which colour can sensibly be placed over it, and heavily saturated or previously corrected lips may need a different approach. Occasionally the advice is to wait, or to fade further first, which is why the lip is reviewed in person rather than from a photograph.

The perfecting session at four to six weeks is a separate appointment with its own price and is not included in the price of the first session. Pricing and duration are shown on the live booking page. See also what lip blush costs and why.