Reflections on Beauty

Reflections for laser tattoo removal.

Individuals who are seeking a high-profile career but are stuck with body art from their past – perhaps a conspicuous neck tattoo or offensive forearm ink – may consider laser tattoo removal in order to boost their chances of climbing up the corporate ladder.

Employers in the U.S. aren't prohibited by law to discriminate against job candidates based on their body art. Officials in Sydney, Australia recently enacted a ban on visible tattoos for police officers, leading to an uptick in the number of laser tattoo removal procedures being done in the area, according to a report by newspaper Sydney Central.

"We have noticed a large number of young professionals that are having their tattoos removed," said Jacinta Keoghan, medical director of a cosmetic procedure spa, quoted by the news source. "We find that these tattoos are often from previous relationships, or undertaken many years ago. We have also had an 80-year-old woman come through our doors."

For recent college gradates, there may be some other factors to consider.

An article in Purdue University newspaper The Exponent reports that some people entering the labor force with ink may be better off than others. For instance, one pharmacy student who has amino acid tattoos on the back of his arms found that his body art was actually appealing to his new employer, perhaps because the tattoos were related to his science field.

The news source states that some employers are bound to be more conservative than others, and that it may all come down to the placement of a tattoo. This suggests that college students may want to consider getting inked in an area that can be easily concealed. Hiding body art may be especially important during a job interview, when a potential employer is making his or her first judgment of candidates.

"Human nature, as it is, can be an unspoken factor," said Tim Luzader, the director of the Center for Career Opportunities at Purdue, quoted by the news source.

For some people, it's too late to take into consideration the size, location and appropriateness of a tattoo when it comes to job prospects. Luckily, modern laser tattoo removal procedures are more effective than before and tend to be less painful than getting inked. 

Although many people give their tattoos a lot of thought before getting inked, others do it on the spur of the moment. Years later, they might be stuck with something they don't want anymore. Sometimes, it simply doesn't look good anymore, especially if it has faded with time or is misshapen due to pregnancy. In some cases, getting rid of skin art is a matter of professional, social or emotional necessity.

Take actress Megan Fox, for example, who has a total of nine tattoos on her shoulders, wrists and ribcage, according to the Daily Mail. Perhaps her most well-known art is the image of Marilyn Monroe on her right forearm, which Fox once said was a tribute to the Hollywood icon's sex appeal and timelessness.

However, the 25-year-old starlet is now undergoing laser tattoo removal to get rid of it. Some critics allege that her floundering career, which took a nosedive when she parted ways with the Transformers franchise, may have something to do with this decision.

"I'm removing it. It is a negative character, as [Monroe] suffered from personality disorders and was bipolar," Fox told the news source. "I do not want to attract this kind of negative energy in my life."

Back in the day, she – as well as others who have changed their minds about tattoos – may have had to undergo painful procedures such as dermabrasion or cryosurgery. Thanks to advancements in technology, individuals who want to start over with clear skin can seek out laser tattoo removal at their local medical spa.

Common lasers employ a technique known as Q-switching, in which short, high-energy pulses of light are delivered into the skin. Physicians utilize different wavelengths for various pigments in order to achieve the most effective results. The process is considerably faster and less traumatic to the skin, making it much more comfortable for patients, who are often given topical or injectable anesthesia.

The number of treatments depends on the size and location of the tattoo, as well as the individual's ability to heal. Most people begin noticing results during the first few weeks after treatment, after which their skin art will continue disappearing.

The safety, availability and efficiency of this procedure may be good news for people who are growing tired of their ink. Getting clear skin again can be as simple as speaking to a laser specialist at a facility like Reflections Medical Spa in New Jersey. 

Another celebrity with a goofed up tattoo? Rihanna recently joined the list of stars to sport a tattoo with a typo, grammatical error, or completely different meaning.

The songstress’ latest tattoo reads ‘rebelle fleur’, which should translate to ‘rebel flower’ in French. The only problem is that, in French, adjectives typically come after the nouns they modify. In other words, ’fleur rebelle’ is the grammatically correct version of the phrase tattooed on her neck.

Rihanna isn’t alone. Britney Spears infamously had a Chinese character tattooed on her that was supposed to mean ‘mysterious’, however, it actually meant ‘strange’. Actress Hayden Panettiere has ‘Vivere senza rimipianti’ tattooed down her side, which translates into ‘live without regrets’. Somehow, an extra ‘i’ was slipped into the phrase…the correct spelling is ‘rimpianti’.

If bad tattoos can happen to celebrities, they can most definitely happen to the average person. The next time your favorite neighborhood tattoo parlor spells ‘mom’ wrong, rest-assured that you won’t have to live with that typo for the rest of your life. Laser tattoo removal makes it easy to get rid of those little mistakes.

The most common type of laser used for tattoo removal is called Q-switching, although the skin’s pigment may dictate a more suitable option. Lasers work by producing intense light that is projected into the skin. The light is absorbed by the tattoo pigment, which then fragments into smaller particles and is flushed out by the body’s immune system.

Lasers work by producing short pulses (billionth of a second) of intense light that pass through the top layers of the skin to be selectively absorbed by the tattoo pigment. This laser energy causes the tattoo pigment to fragment into smaller particles that are then removed by the body’s immune system. Different tattoo colors require various wavelengths.

Following a laser treatment, skin may be red with pinpoint bleeding or blistering at the treatment sight. Initial lightening of the tattoo can be seen approximately two weeks following treatment and will continue for four to six weeks. Multiple laser tattoo removal sessions are usually required and the number of sessions depends on the tattoo color, size and depth. Treatments are generally performed in six-week intervals.

If you are a New Jersey resident that is considering laser tattoo removal, it is important that you seek out a qualified doctor to perform your procedure. New Jersey laws states that only a licensed physician can perform laser treatments. At the Reflections Center for Skin and Body in New Jersey, we have a plethora of lasers and fully-trained staff of physicians to accommodate your tattoo removal needs.

If you’ve been thinking about getting body art (aka tattoos) but are afraid you might regret it later, you aren’t alone. The American Society of Dermatological Surgery estimates that about 40 million Americans have at least one tattoo, and at any given time a number of those folks are calling around to see how to get a tattoo removed.

Tattoo ink is pretty permanent stuff, however. The most reliable method for getting rid of unwanted ink is laser tattoo removal, but even that can take several sessions, depending on the type of ink used, its color, the depth it was injected and the amount used by the artist.

Now there’s a new ink on the market called Inifitink, a tattoo ink that’s as permanent as others, but is designed to be much easier to remove using lasers.   Infinitink was created right here in New Jersey by a company called Freedom2.

It looks like Infinitink might be a good option for the body art commitment-phobes out there. Consider it a little insurance just in case that person’s name you’re dying to have tattooed on your hip falls out of your good graces.

Of course, if you currently have body art that you wish to remove, call us to learn the latest tattoo removal technologies. We’ve got you covered–er, uncovered that is!

For all our patients who love tattoos, we’ve recently come across of a new kind of body art called “augmented reality tattoos.”  Basically it’s a barcode that’s tattooed on your skin and, when viewed through a webcam, the tattoo turns into three-dimensional art and animates. Check out the video above to see what we’re talking about. This was created by a Buenos Aires firm called ThinkAnApp, which specializes in augmented reality.

Augmented reality (AR) is poised to become big over then next few years. There are AR business cards, AR games and toys, and even slightly cheesy AR card tricks.

The tattoos are a natural progression of this trend, but it’s still a little mind boggling to see.

There are a few downsides to this otherwise pretty cool tattoo technology.  Let’s start with aesthetics. The tattoo seen in the video isn’t particularly pretty or interesting, so the only people who are going to say “cool tattoo” will be on the Internet (unless you can get it to work with your iPhone – expect that to happen soon).  Second is that tattoos tend to fade and bleed over time.  We’re not sure how this will affect the long-term functionality of the tattoo, but it’s something to consider before taking the plunge.  And finally there’s the idea of being bar-coded.  Maybe it’s just us, but there’s something a little sinister about having a barcode permanently imbedded in your skin.  But there’s always tattoo removal, so things are less permanent than they once were.  But still, it’s a little creepy.

Don’t expect to see these tattoos go away any time soon.  As the web continues to push itself into the center of our relationships, body art like this will continue to grow in popularity.  We hope that as this happens, the barcodes can be integrated more naturally into tattoo designs.  And we look forward to seeing what comes next. After all the nature of these tattoos should allow their online AR art to be modified and changed to fit your mood, match your outfit or to “erase” the name of that “special someone” who is no longer worthy of being displayed on your body. The only thing left will be your imagination.