How to prepare for your lip blush appointment

Lip blush is the most colour-sensitive procedure we do — your lips need to arrive hydrated, healthy and free of anything that thins the skin. Here's the gentle two-week lead-in we recommend.

Two weeks before: stop retinols, AHAs and lip exfoliants. If you take fish oil or vitamin E supplements, pause them now — they thin the blood and cause bruising.

One week before: book a haircut, do a gentle lip scrub once mid-week, and start using a thick balm twice a day. Hydrated lips take pigment beautifully.

If you've ever had a cold sore — even once, years ago — please tell us at booking. You'll need a short course of antivirals from your GP, started two days before and continued for five days after. The trauma of tattooing reliably wakes the virus.

24 hours before: no alcohol, no caffeine on the morning of your appointment if you can manage it. Eat a real breakfast — you'll be with us for around three hours.

On the day, come bare-faced from the eyes down. Bring a balm and a water bottle. The rest of your kit — numbing, pigments, mirrors, balm samples to take home — lives in the cottage.