Personal Letter - Sussex Permanent Makeup

Hi there, I’m Katy, the founder & the head trainer of the Permanent Training Academy.

Whether you reading this as a client wanting to know more about permanent makeup treatments with me, or if you are interested in learning about becoming a permanent makeup artist I’m honoured to share my personal journey with you. I strongly believe all business is personal.

I’m honestly an ordinary girl who has been very fortunate after I had been given the best advice anyone could take, (Thank you to Rhonda Byrne author of “The Secret”)

I’d hit my version of rock bottom, unable to leave my house for 12 months after the unexpected loss of two of my closest mentors in life.

It hit me harder than I thought possible. I used art as my therapy for grief, when my days became brighter I realised to my amazement my paintings started to sell not just locally but internationally in galleries around the world with one selling for £11,000 and the commissions kept flying in.

This was all possible because my amazing husband saw more talent and ability within me than I saw in myself, and helped bring it out of me. He made it happen.

My soon to be trainer and mentor in permanent makeup stumbled across my artwork and hounded me to train with her, she said “It was a job I was made for” but the thought of tattooing somebody’s face and going wrong absolutely terrified me!!!

Sick of rock bottom, I knew that the only way was was up. I bit the bullet and went for it. Here’s what happened next…

I knew from the first moment my needle touched my clients face that this was my calling.

I knew I’d never do anything else and that I’d be dedicating the rest of my life to being the best permanent makeup artist and paramedical tattooist I could be.

I was getting my artistic fix whilst changing peoples lives - To me the face the most exciting canvas I could ever work on.

To say I’m obsessed with permanent makeup is a bit of an understatement. I bl**dy love it. I love every day.

My career as a permanent makeup artist took shape very quickly and I succeeded in ways I never even thought possible.

Within a couple of years I had around 50 permanent makeup clinics across the country including London Harley Street. I serviced thousands of patients and clients including celebrities and even international royalty before I was approached to train paramedical tattooists in my own method of natural hair simulation for cancer patients.

As they say “an entrepreneur always bites off more than they can chew - and then learns how to chew very fast!” and thats certainly what happened with me.

If I’m honest though I’ve had a real love/hate relationship with my industry over the years and this is what led me to become the trainer and mentor that I am today.

I could see so much potential in permanent makeup but it was such a floored industry that had virtually exploded with popularity overnight but it still had so many teething problems.

Treatments were hurting people because of lack of good anaesthetics.
Machines were too big, loud and scary for clients making the technicians job harder.
The pigments placed into the skin were fading too fast and into undesirable colours.
Technicians were unable to change their brands, colours or machinery as they were locked into contracts with their training providers.
Insurance would be invalidated if technicians refused to repurchase inferior products from their trainers at super high rates.
Colours would heal too blocky ruling out natural or elderly clients.
No regulations upon shaping which created inconsistent and undesirable effects for clients.
Health and Safety checks were not tight enough as there were very little industry industry standards.
No accreditation process which was allowing substandard training to slip through the net.

All in an industry that could be so great and change so many lives, not just for clients and patients but also for highly skilled technicians.

It had to evolve and quick to catch up with the ever growing demand. I felt I had to rewrite the rules and raise the standards if this was ever to become a profession that had longevity.

To combat the problems over the last decade:

I scoured the world to find a silent motor which relieves the clients fears especially when tattooing so close to the eye.
I found a hand piece that can be personally tuned by myself to the hand of each technician that I train.
I can personally tune our machinery to ensure that naturally heavy handed and light handed technicians can get the same flawless results across all skin types.
My machine has over 2000 needle configurations whereas a typical permanent makeup machine will only accept around 6 creating endless styles and possibilities for clients.
My vast needle choice means we can service clients with even the most sensitive skins, vitiligo patients, fibrous scar tissues such as burns victims and those who have suffered injuries and facial disfigurements.
I have sourced & tested pigments that have incredibly long-lasting colour retention that fade gradually without changing tone.
I use colours that can be neutralised and diluted down to the most subtle washes for my natural clients or older ladies (one of my oldest and most beautiful permanent makeup clients was in her 90s)
Our product range is entirely vegan, cruelty free and hypo allergenic which allows us to service those with even the most severe allergies to conventional makeup.
We co-created flexible permanent makeup and paramedical insurance policies which allows for students professional growth as pigments, techniques and machinery evolve further.
I created repeatable templates for drawing and shaping. These are essential parameters so clients can have what they want and technicians still feel their work will be natural as their client ages.
My methods mean that my foolproof formulae takes the guess work out of shaping and allows non-artists to enter the industry and get consistently great results.
My powerful machinery means that skilful technicians can work faster and with less pressure, causing less trauma to the skin, faster healing process for clients, lowering chance of infections, virtually no pain and minimal touch ups over the years.

Over my early years in permanent makeup, I reinvested and spent in excess of over £100,000 learning from the best of the best around the world, how to perfect each treatment so that my students wouldn’t have to.

This intensive learning allowed me to cut down the learning curve for each of my students and create not just technicians but true experts in their field.

I like to show people from every background and walk of life that success is possible, that they are not alone & demonstrate a way out.

I’ve always belived that If you listen to someone who’s done exactly what you want to do, and do exactly what they say and copy what they’ve done, you will get exactly what you want.

No ifs, no buts, just this is what will happen.

This is why I have a knowledge is ours to share not ours to keep philosophy.

Learning from the best I pioneered my own technical methods and bespoke training packages.

Eyebrows – Natural hair simulation
Lips – Watercolour lip tinting
Eyes – Safe and simple eyeliner
3D Areola reconstruction following breast cancer.

Beautiful & Natural Eyebrows Just for Brunettes 3

Beautiful & Natural Eyebrows Just for Blondes 3

Beautiful & Natural Eyebrows Just for White & silvers 3

To my delight my signature course was voted as the ‘UK’s Health & Beauty Training Program of the Year’, whilst the training academy itself has won a ‘Training Centre of Excellence Award’, as well as a Global Business Award for ‘Outstanding Education’.

My courses have been officially CPD accredited and methods have been approved for insurance purposes.

My techniques and methods are used by permanent makeup technicians throughout Croatia, America, Russia, Poland, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Portugal, South Africa, Spain as well as throughout the UK.

My methods are incredibly simple and effective but most importantly so natural that they are almost undetectable to the untrained eye.

To ensure the quality and standards of my methods, each student receives a full pre-study training manual teaching them the basics and familiarising themselves with my techniques.

When arriving for their practical training, they then trial these procedures on prosthetic skins, before watching a live demonstration by myself. Only then do we move onto live models in my training centre under my 1 to 1 supervision. This way, every student is raring to go and will be full of confidence before they start working on live models.

Once they have completed their initial training course and received their full start up kit, they will then complete their own models and case studies in their own time with limitless access to me. Upon successful completion of their case studies I will then personally assess their work allowing them to start their own permanent makeup practice.

Many of my students have gone on to win both local and national awards after completing my training and mentoring programmes.

Personally myself, It’s been an absolute privilege either winning or being shortlisted for over 40 Industry, Training, Customer Service, Business, Entrepreneurial or Life Time Achievement awards, with the proudest moment of my career being named ‘Mentor of the Year’ by an Oscar Winning Actress at the 2019 Woman in Business Awards. It sometimes doesn’t feel real!

I am also delighted to be regularly asked to judge various industry awards and requested to speak at International Permanent Makeup conferences.

I have also thoroughly enjoyed being a regular permanent makeup & business advice expert for top industry magazines such as the Guild News, Salon Today and Spa Elemental and was even asked to appear on a popular Channel 5 TV show documenting my entrepreneurial journey.

I love working on my private clients, but I feel it’s also important to give back. Since 2014 I have been able to dedicate some of my time to my pro bono work called “pay with a smile: )” offering my paramedical skills free of charge to breast cancer patients and those with facial disfigurements.

I have personally trained Doctors, NHS Nurses, Maxilla Facial Surgeons, Body Modification Specialists, Celebrity Tattoo Artists, Paramedics and Paramedical Tattooists from the Katie Piper foundation “Look good feel Great”.

Over the last decade I have been able to break down my award winning signature training courses further, to tailor them for very niche groups of people.

For example, mum's wanting to get back to work, salon owners, makeup artists, hairdressers and beauty therapists to those wanting a complete career change.

I have created a a specialised ‘Upgrade, Reset & Reboot’ package to reignite the passion and careers of those technicians that have trained elsewhere, who did not get that connection with their original trainer and were left unconfident and in need of closer mentoring.

I love that I get to pass on my skills and knowledge to help others achieve their dreams too.

I have a tried and tested 2 year mentorship programme developed through our sister company Permanent Success, where we teach the blueprint to long term permanent makeup business success.

This ensures that our students continue to feel inspired, supported and motivated to build a profitable business in permanent makeup and to become the experts that they have always wanted to be.