Interview with Witomska Agnieszka Barbara. Her studio in Narni offers permanent make-up, paramedical aesthetic dermopigmentation and tricopigmentation treatments. Dermopigmentation is a technique that involves using colour to enhance or correct areas of the skin. This is done using special pigments that can be absorbed by the skin. Witomska Agnieszka Barbara, known as Agnese, has opened her own studio in Narni, where she carries out permanent make-up, paramedical aesthetic dermopigmentation and tricopigmentation procedures.
What does your work consist of?
I carry out three types of treatment: purely aesthetic, so permanent make-up; paramedical treatments, in other words, covering or improving the appearance of marks on the skin, like scars or imperfections; and the third is the least well known but very effective: tricopigmentation, which is a technique that’s used to give a shaved or filled-in effect on a balding head, or to disguise scarring.
What is the resulting effect?
Completely natural. My philosophy is to achieve an effect where it is impossible to tell that there’s been any pigmentation. That’s why I use different colours to those used by tattoo artists, which would risk having the opposite effect. The pigmentations that I use, on the other hand, can be absorbed by the skin; this makes it possible to create new solutions which adapt to the changes that come with time.
Why is tricopigmentation still rarely used?
It’s an innovative technique which not many professionals in the industry are familiar with, I myself being one of the few to use it. And it’s also a matter of mentality: a lot of men struggle with baldness, and it’s often seen as a trivial problem. But in reality it’s more serious than that, and people need to know that there are other ways, apart from hair transplants, to improve their condition.
Let’s talk about permanent make-up. What do clients ask you for when they visit your studio?
A lot of the time they don’t know much about the treatment, so I dedicate a lot of time to explaining to them what can be achieved, what precautions can be taken, and how to improve their appearance in a natural-looking way. This technique allows you to enhance your look, the line of the eye, the mouth… It’s not a coincidence that I called my clinic ‘Linee di Agnese’: the face is made up of countless lines, and permanent make-up can enhance these.
Why should women consider a treatment of this kind?
The face is the first form of communication – it’s what puts us in contact with other people. That’s why it’s essential to feel comfortable in your own body, and to have a positive self-image. Improving certain aspects of your appearance can help you to feel better psychologically too, and to overcome insecurities. You can’t even imagine how much physical defects can hold us back in everyday life.
Is dermopigmentation a technique that can be used in other ways, on other parts of the body?
This technique makes it possible to hide or improve the appearance of scars and skin defects in general. So it becomes particularly important in cases of surgical scarring, to try and improve the skin’s physical appearance. Many clients who have had a breast implant operation come to me for dermopigmentation of the mammary areola. A while ago I treated a lady who’d had an operation on her breast to remove a tumour. After the treatment she saw herself in the mirror and she burst into tears of joy – before, she hadn’t had the courage to look at herself. For a woman to regain her sense of femininity in these cases is a huge step forward.
What are the stages of treatment? How do things proceed from the moment someone steps inside your studio?
Firstly, and crucially, is the consultation stage. I assess the person in front of me – I want to know what expectations they have. If it turns out that they need a treatment I am not able to offer, I’ll send them to a different professional. I believe that the client’s interests should always come first.
Once the type of treatment has been decided upon, how do you proceed?
Normally the procedure is carried out in two sittings, about 30 days apart: the pigment needs to settle into the skin first, and in the second sitting we reinforce the colour. But, as I said, the colour is absorbed over time, so a little touch-up is needed every 12-18 months. The time can vary from person to person; every skin has its own characteristics and takes a different amount of time to absorb the pigment.
How did you develop your passion? What led you into this career?
Since I was a little girl I’ve always been fascinated by caring for the body, attending to the countless details which make someone beautiful… When I went to my first specialised course in dermopigmentation, I knew I had found my calling. I discovered this extraordinary and immense world, still full of huge potential to be explored, both in terms of its innovation in the market, and its benefits in improving clients’ quality of life. I undertook lots of other courses after that, before eventually specialising in my current profession. It’s a field in which training is indispensible – you can’t improvise.
Which aspect of your work gives you the most satisfaction?
The contact with clients, without a doubt. For me, working is about much more than earning money – it means entering into collaboration with people, understanding their problems and their expectations. For example, I work with women who are undergoing, or who have just finished, chemotherapy. To do a job like this, you need to have a special sensitivity – remembering to put the person first, not the client.
FIND MORE:
Read more: “Feel comfortable in your own skin: the philosophy of Witomska Agnieszka Barbara”
Web site Le linee di Agnese