If you just got your lip blush done and are super excited to put your new lips to use and give your loved one a kiss, we have some bad news – you’re going to have to wait a little.
Sure, the joy of a new look is probably making you extra affectionate, but rushing it may ruin the whole thing, plus it can be quite uncomfortable.
So, we’re here to provide answers to common questions like can you kiss after lip blush, how long the waiting period should be, and to give a few pointers on how to generally make lip blush heal safely.
First, Let’s Revise: What Is Lip Blush?
Lip blush is a form of cosmetic lip tattooing, and a very popular way to enhance the color and shape of lips.
It is done with a specialized PMU machine that is similar to a traditional tattoo pen, and implies injecting cosmetic pigments underneath the skin on your lips to provide them with long-lasting color.
The best thing about it is that it won’t ever smudge, since the color is under your skin, so you won’t have to worry about fixing your lips after having a meal, drink, or kiss.
Check out our detailed guide on lip blushing to find more information about this treatment.
Image source: Instagram @ashleighvictoria.pmu
So, Can You Kiss After Lip Blush?
No. During the lip blush healing process, you should refrain from kissing.
The lip blush healing process takes around 7-10 days, but that can look different for everyone. The important thing is to wait until your lips have finished peeling (on their own!) before continuing with activities like pouting or puckering up your lips, and of course, kissing.
Although it’s sometimes hard to keep your affections under control, a kiss-less week isn’t as bad as a few years of patchy lip blush results!
Kissing After Lip Blush – What Can Go Wrong?
Going in for a kiss while your lips are still healing can cause several different risks to increase.
It also checks off a few of the things that should be avoided during healing like exposing your lips to unsanitary surfaces and friction, which we’ll discuss in more detail below.
If you do decide to kiss someone with freshly done lip blush, you’re not just risking patchy results, but also an infection, which will only make the process longer and harder to manage.
Plus, kissing won’t even feel too great since your lips will be drier than usual, so they’ll sting and feel tight (not really what you would expect from a kiss, right?).
Read more on lip blush risks and side effects here.
How Long to Wait Before Kissing After Lip Blush
As we previously mentioned, you should refrain from kissing while your lips are in their lip blush healing phase.
To help you better understand that timeframe, let’s take a look at what the healing process for lip blush looks like day by day.
What Does the Lip Blush Healing Process Look Like?
The entire healing process, for most people, will last about 7-10 days. The process itself isn’t exceptionally long and it doesn’t require much effort, but we’ll talk about that in a moment.
Here’s what you can expect to see during that first week:
Day 1: Swelling, tenderness, brighter color. These are all completely normal and will subside on their own in time. None of the discomfort should be too much to handle, but you should prepare for the possibility that you’ll develop a cold sore too.
Day 2: Less swelling & tenderness, some dryness. Your lips will feel chapped during this time, so you can find products to alleviate that here.
Days 3&4: Itching and peeling. Do not peel your lips – you can end up damaging the pigment; just let nature take its course.
Days 5-10: Peeling, color fading. During this time, your lips will take on their expected color. Keep on refraining from picking them.
Image source: Instagram @88artistry
How to Painlessly Go Through the Recovery Process
Like we said, the process of helping your lip blush heal won’t require you to do much. Still, there are a few things you’ll want to avoid during that sensitive period to minimize the risk of infection or ruining your new look.
Here’s what you shouldn’t do:
- Don’t get them wet. This includes pools, saunas, long showers, washing your face, and even drinking. Clean the area by patting it with a damp cotton pad and stick to straws for the time being.
- Don’t apply any friction. This could rip the chapped skin and pull out the pigment, so be extra gentle.
- Don’t pick them. They might end up healing patchy.
- Don’t touch them with dirty hands. It would be best not to touch them at all, but if you do, make sure your fingers are clean.
- Don’t go into direct sunlight. The rays can make the pigment fade faster and change their color.
- Don’t use any products. The only exception is the specialized ointment.
- Don’t eat anything too hot, cold, or spicy. It’ll sting and could make the swelling worse.
- Don’t drink alcohol or smoke. It will dry out the lips even more.
- Don’t get any teeth whitening or beauty treatments done. Harsh ingredients won’t agree with your sensitive lips.
- Don’t use toothpaste. Read here what you should do instead.
What About Kissing Before Lip Blush?
The success of your lip blush treatment depends on many factors after, but also before the procedure itself. Since artists don’t really have much control over this, so it all comes down to you taking good care of your lips in the days before your appointment.
It is generally advised not to bite or lick your lips excessively, and this means no kissing.
Also, ignoring your artist’s instructions on not consuming certain medications, supplements, and substances like coffee and alcohol before the procedure can hinder the results and lead to certain complications during the procedure.
Image source: Instagram @pmuhub
To Sum Up
To answer the question of can you kiss after lip blush, let’s restate that it’s essential to wait out the 7–10-day healing process before kissing. During that time, your lips will go through stages of swelling, tenderness, and peeling. If you want a smooth recovery, try not to get your lips wet, pick at them, or apply any friction.
If you do kiss during this time, you may end up with patchy results or even an infection, so it’s best to wait for your lips to complete their peeling phase before kissing.
Cover image source: Freepik
