Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:00 Good morning Fort with the Murray wood, Buffalo and the rest of the world. You've tuned into the Mac city morning show. I am your host Elliot Pierre, and we're going to start the show off the same way we start every show off with a moment of gratitude. I know you could be doing a million other things with your time. So the fact that you spend it with us truly does mean the world to me. So thank you on that note, tenor hidden with the intro
Speaker 1 00:00:20 And she caught me loves, and you're listening to the next city morning show.
Speaker 0 00:00:29 All right. And we're back. I'm excited about today's guests because for the most part, complete stranger and I like meeting new people. So as you guys know at home, I don't introduce my guests because they can do a better job at that than myself. So on that note, can you please tell everybody at home who you are and what your
Speaker 3 00:00:44 Yep. Um, my name is Shannon British and I'm here because my husband and I opened a cosmetic tattooing business and it's called Inc cosmetics.
Speaker 0 00:00:55 Okay. Tattooing and cosmetics. Like I know nothing about either one of those two industries is that common for them to be together.
Speaker 3 00:01:06 It's so some tattoo artists don't like that permanent makeup is kind of lumped into the tattoo industry, but, um, essentially it is a tattooing process. And so the cosmetic piece is where you're looking at, um, eyebrows, lip, blushing eyeline, or even some people get freckles done. So it's a little bit different than the tattoo process, because there's the, the idea that it's semi-permanent. But yeah, it doesn't, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's always going to fade. So
Speaker 0 00:01:43 I understand that I have so many questions about this. Cause I, like, I know nothing about this. People are like, I've heard and I've seen, I guess over the years about, uh, people who like shaved their eyebrows and like have them tattooed in first off that to me is tattooing, right?
Speaker 3 00:02:04 Yes. It is a tattooing process. It is a
Speaker 0 00:02:06 Tattooing process. People are doing their lips to explain like everything you said. I D I knew about the eyebrows. I definitely didn't know about the lips freckles. Like, please explain
Speaker 3 00:02:19 To me, you seem to, yeah.
Speaker 0 00:02:21 Okay. So what do you do? Like your actual lips? Yeah,
Speaker 3 00:02:25 So I'm not certified yet for lip blushing, but that's kind of next on my list. And so lip blushing yet, instead of somebody who wears lipstick regularly, or lip gloss regularly, because they just like the color. They can get that tattooed on essentially. And so then they always have a lip color that they, like, some people have kind of two tone lip colors. So they like to get that kind of corrected. And then some people just have like, of lack of kind of lip border compared to the skin. And so they can get that more defined.
Speaker 0 00:02:58 Wow. Neat. Okay. Uh, what about freckles are people like I've never heard about people are coming and getting freckles.
Speaker 3 00:03:08 Yep. You can get freckles done too. So anybody who really likes to look at freckles, they can get them done,
Speaker 0 00:03:16 Really meet.
Speaker 4 00:03:19 You can get anything tattooed people get tattoos, like inside their lips, people get the whites of their eyes tattooed.
Speaker 0 00:03:27 Like people against me, this, none of this, like,
Speaker 4 00:03:30 No, this is all standard. Wow.
Speaker 0 00:03:32 Oh, I, I didn't know any of this. How did you get into this?
Speaker 3 00:03:37 Um, I'll try to condense that story. Um, so I've always been into like makeup and stuff like that. I'm just not a very high maintenance person. Like I don't wear makeup every day. I think it's great. And women who do it. That's awesome. Um, so then when the industry started kind of coming about where it's like, people were getting stuff tattooed, I thought that was really interesting. However, when it first started, um, again, differences between tattoo and permanent makeup is, um, tattooing is an ink, which has like a much larger molecule than what we use. It's a pigment and the molecule is smaller, so it doesn't get implanted in the skin as deep or as permanent. Right. So I found like eyebrows were looking kind of like that Sharpie, Sharpie drawn on people were getting them tattooed. Um, so then the industry kind of developed and then went more towards this permanent makeup style. And it's just kind of blew my mind where it was like, this is awesome. So people think like, you know, you get your lashes done, you get your brows done, whatever else it makes you high maintenance, but this actually takes out the maintenance. Right. So you can wake up in the morning, those are done, lips are done and you go about your day. So I just thought that was super interesting.
Speaker 4 00:05:01 I think you might convince Elliot to get a tattoo.
Speaker 0 00:05:04 Yeah, I don't, I don't have any one, but you're not going to convince me, but I don't know. You look pretty, I'm blown away that this is a thing.
Speaker 4 00:05:10 Yeah. Yeah. You're only going to get those eyebrows filled in. Oh
Speaker 0 00:05:13 Yeah. These caterpillars. Yeah. I'm good. Yeah, exactly. Okay. So were you a tattoo artist before, or you just heard about this? You're like, this sounds cool. I see the, I see like, this is good and convenient. I'm going to look into it.
Speaker 3 00:05:32 I just thought it was again very interesting industry. Something that I was always interested in. Um, but I was a special carrot educator previously. And then when I had my daughter, um, she was actually born with special needs. And so I took a lot of time off work. And when I was ready to back to work, it was always like, how am I going to go back to work and juggle being a special needs mom, because her needs are pretty significant. And um, so I kind of started hemming and hawing more about the idea of like, well, what if I actually got into this? Because then I could be in charge of my own hours, a lot more flexibility as much in as little as I kinda needed. Right. So I brought the idea to my husband and he thought it was a great idea. And then he actually went for his own procedure, which is scalp micro pigmentation.
Speaker 0 00:06:31 So
Speaker 3 00:06:34 This was the other one I was throwing at you. So it's men who are, I shouldn't say men, anybody who's experiencing hair loss, balding, hair thinning. They can get hair follicles tattooed on their head.
Speaker 0 00:06:49 Okay. So
Speaker 3 00:06:50 What,
Speaker 0 00:06:52 What do you, what do you mean? Like, explain that to me, like, like your head, you know how it is now? Yeah. Tattooed. Yeah. But like, okay. So if you're going to do it, then like, you'd have to keep your hair like tight, like mine. Like you're not growing out your hair.
Speaker 3 00:07:06 No, you don't grow your hair. So if you're already, so in a lot of cases, men are experiencing balding or like a receding hairline. They're going to keep it short anyways. Right. So keeping it short, but you still don't like that. You know, there's a receding, hairline lack of, then you can get this procedure done and it reconstructs your hairline.
Speaker 4 00:07:29 Yeah. And you can get like the whole head done if you want to.
Speaker 0 00:07:35 That's cool. Okay. So wait a second. So you get this done, like, is it same with like the tattoo li the traditional tattoo needle that you see somebody going on your head with the same? So it's going to feel the same as getting a tattoo. Just like you said, the ink is,
Speaker 3 00:07:55 It's a different molecule. Yeah. And yeah, the, the needles or cartridges that are used are slightly different as well. They're usually a smaller one, but yeah, it's still done with a tattoo gun and it really looks amazing. Like you have to see results of scalp micro-pigmentation because, you know, you hear about people getting hair transplants and that stuff leaves scarring. And so as your hair continues to thin, or you lose it are then left with visible scars as well. So this really is like a less invasive procedure and it looks awesome. Wow. So, yeah, my husband's the one who does the SMP.
Speaker 4 00:08:38 It's just having like a whole week of mindblowing information. Isn't it?
Speaker 0 00:08:42 I really am. This is super interesting. Okay. I have so many questions. I don't know what to ask next. All right. So you guys are doing this cosmetic stuff. Is there traditional tattooing that you guys do as well? Or is this prime? This is it.
Speaker 3 00:09:02 It's just the cosmetic stuff. So my husband had the procedure done and it really just changed his life. Like for him, it was, his confidence just completely changed. Right. He doesn't feel like he's bald anymore, unless you know, and you're looking for it. You can't even tell. It just looks like he keeps his hair extremely short.
Speaker 0 00:09:25 Oh, okay. Neat. Okay. Now in regards to tattoos, traditional, do you guys have tattoos?
Speaker 3 00:09:34 Yeah, we
Speaker 0 00:09:34 Both do. Okay. So you were getting them before or after you started doing this? Oh,
Speaker 3 00:09:39 We've had them a long time before. Okay. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:09:41 Wow. And so if you went to a traditional tattoo artist, this is like a separate, this is a separate service. Like this is not something that like, if you watch Miami ink, for example, like they don't have somebody that's doing that in their
Speaker 3 00:09:58 No, not typically. And you do need training, like, is, it is different in terms of even so for me, I browse, like you need to know how to map out the eyebrows properly. I need to know what kind of color to use based on skin type, all those factors.
Speaker 0 00:10:14 I would say it's more specific than a normal tattoo, because like you're dealing with like body parts that people are things that people have on their bodies that you don't want to be messing that up. You're
Speaker 3 00:10:29 Controlling somebody's
Speaker 0 00:10:30 Whole facial reactions. Right. It's a real deal. You can determine how
Speaker 3 00:10:34 They like are viewed
Speaker 0 00:10:36 By people. That's right. That's right. The tattoo you can like cover it up or do whatever, but what you guys do, like the stakes are higher. Yes. Yeah. Okay. So how long have you been doing this for now?
Speaker 3 00:10:48 We just opened up shop in September,
Speaker 0 00:10:51 September of this year. Okay, great. And so how are things going? How are you, how people are finding you? How
Speaker 3 00:10:59 Good. So we're located in, um, Razor's edge, his new studio, the hair salon. And so they're in thick wood and our studio is located in there, right? Yeah. Yeah. Like their new location is awesome. I don't know if either of you have been there, but it's, it's super community oriented. Like you walk in, there's a little section for local vendors to sell their stuff. And then you've got us in there. There's a lady Luna lash bar who does, um, lash tinting. And she does, um, brow tinting.
Speaker 0 00:11:36 Okay. Keep going. I have, you're just giving me more questions
Speaker 3 00:11:40 And then you've obviously have the hair salon. And then there is a lady in there who does nails. So there's yeah. This whole kind of support Fort MacMurray, small businesses.
Speaker 0 00:11:51 All right. I know it's not your business. I need to ask a question about it. Cause you said it I've heard about fake eyelashes and like, you can get like magnets and stuff with like, uh, what is tinted? What is lash tinting? What does that mean?
Speaker 3 00:12:09 I can't speak to it fully, but so it's your natural lashes. You can get them, I guess kind of like it's a dye that goes on to dark in them and kind of enhance them and then they can get shaped so that they've kind of fan out more.
Speaker 0 00:12:25 Oh yeah. Things I have no knowledge about like, wow.
Speaker 4 00:12:33 We do a home makeover Elliot. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:12:37 My eye lashes. Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:12:39 You can do like a Maaco per episode of me. I just don't think it would get as much for you.
Speaker 0 00:12:43 Nobody would see it. It would
Speaker 4 00:12:44 Be like how far and after it would be like the exact same.
Speaker 0 00:12:47 This is so cool. I have to say you're one of my most interesting guests so far. Like you're my mind is being blown here. So this is really neat. So with the procedures that you're learning to do, is this something that you go to like a post-secondary for, or is it something that has its own type of Institute that teaches you how to do it? Like how does that work?
Speaker 3 00:13:09 So there's different, um, institutes or other businesses that do teachings and mentorships and stuff. So I actually took my training down in Okotoks and there's two, I mean, using ladies there who have been in the industry for, I want to say seven years or more even. Right. And so they started offering courses and kind of extending their knowledge from the courses that they took into this one condensed, um, academy essentially. And so, yeah, I took my, my brow course from them.
Speaker 0 00:13:48 Okay. And so when you're taking these courses, I've never even talked to a tattoo artist. So for me, like, I don't even know how you get started. Like you're obviously not like Guinea pigging. Somebody's face to learn for the first time. Like what do you practice on? How do you, how do you train on this?
Speaker 3 00:14:05 Yeah. So like I kinda mentioned, mapping is such a big process. So at first, when you're learning how to map, you're using the same tools that you would try to map, but you're doing it on a piece of paper with eyebrows. So then you're just scaling out, um, the different like points of the eyebrow and whatnot on like a fake face. And then essentially when you're learning how to use the tools, we have these kind of rubbery skins and it's has like eyebrow, um, printed on them. And then you can just go over. And so you're learning how to do the shading. You're learning how to do microblading. And then by the end of like your kind of initial learning, how to handle the tools and manage, we are doing live models.
Speaker 0 00:14:51 Wow. Okay. I know Tanner has his questions ready for the Maxine minute. I know I might be going over, but I got to keep going. Cause you just said something else. So you got these live models that are coming in, they know your, as my kid would say a newb, do they get like a discount? Is it for free? Like they're rolling their dice with their face. So like w Y
Speaker 3 00:15:16 Yeah. So it's free. And so I guess that's the, the appeal for somebody. They know that they're coming to a reputable, reputable, reputable studio. And you have
Speaker 0 00:15:27 Like your teachers there it's monitored. Exactly.
Speaker 3 00:15:29 They're there, they jump in. If they need to, they're there to kind of coach and guide you. So for them, they get free eyebrows done, which is probably a procedure they've considered for a while. Um, and essentially like the price range in getting IROs done can be quite expensive depending on the artist. Right. So for them, it's like, oh, free eyebrows. Like I'm going to do this. And they, they getting paid their faces for it. So, wow.
Speaker 0 00:16:00 And like, once again, just not the world I live in, I know nothing about this. Obviously if there's schools that are teaching it, you have a business doing this. There's a decent amount of people that are getting this stuff done. Oh yeah.
Speaker 3 00:16:16 It's always growing too. So yeah. Again,
Speaker 4 00:16:19 It's a tattoo.
Speaker 0 00:16:20 Yeah. Hopefully it grows more, hopefully more people see this and like hear about it.
Speaker 3 00:16:24 Yeah. So the other thing that the industry is now getting into is scar camouflage,
Speaker 0 00:16:32 Sorry, Tanner. We're really pushing your segment. What is scar camouflage?
Speaker 3 00:16:36 So anybody who has any scar that it really like fades the look of scars. Wow.
Speaker 0 00:16:46 Oh, wow. I'm learning so much today. Okay. Town or Europe. Tanner has a segment called the Mac CD minute. And he's going to ask you some questions. I don't know what they are. I wish you nothing, but the best of luck Tanner hit her with the maxi minute.
Speaker 4 00:16:56 Uh, this one's brought to you in part by Elliot's rabbit hole of questions. Question number one. What is the most interesting tattoo request you've received?
Speaker 3 00:17:10 Um, probably freckles. I haven't done that yet. And somebody just approached me to ask if either myself or my husband would be willing to do freckles. And so we, we kind of hemmed and hawed about it, but we didn't make a final decision yet. So that would be the one
Speaker 4 00:17:29 Question. Number two. What is your favorite part of working with people through the process of your job?
Speaker 3 00:17:36 I just love hearing people's stories. I mean, so it's a long process. People are usually with me for about two hours. And so in that time, I mean, you're chatting, you're getting to know somebody. So I've met some really interesting, just their backgrounds, um, their, their jobs. So I just enjoy interacting with people.
Speaker 4 00:17:57 Question number three. What is your favorite part about running your own business in such a unique industry?
Speaker 3 00:18:05 Uh, definitely just the flexibility again, I needed to being a special needs mom. So being in charge of my time, my hours, my availability, like, uh, just it's perfect.
Speaker 4 00:18:18 Question number four. What is something people would be surprised that your business can do?
Speaker 3 00:18:24 I'd say probably the scalp. Micro-pigmentation not a lot of people have heard about that yet. And again, it's just, the results are amazing and it really does a lot for people who are experiencing hair loss or thinning.
Speaker 4 00:18:38 And your final question. What is your favorite part of running your own business within Fort McMurray?
Speaker 3 00:18:46 Um, specifically to Fort McMurry, we just love the area. So I'm originally from Montreal. My husband's from Winnipeg and he's been here for, I wanna say 10 years now and I'm going to be here for eight and, or McMurray's just home. We have our kids here, life is here and it just feels like home. So we're really proud to be part of the community and, um, just always involved in something. So
Speaker 4 00:19:16 There you go.
Speaker 0 00:19:19 Well, listen, I have so many more questions to ask, but I already got signal. Like I only got one minute left and without one minute, it's not, my minute is your minute before everybody leaves, they get a shameless shout out or plug. So got the cameras on you, the lights on you. So have fun with it.
Speaker 3 00:19:36 Um, just want to say if you're down on like your Razor's edge Poppins, say hi to us. Um, again, scalp micro-pigmentation is such an interesting one for anybody experiencing hair loss. So even for women, cause they go through it with like pregnancy hormones and stuff like that, you can really consider it and it's life changing. Like I just, I love that process. It's one, that's so fascinating to me. So, yes.
Speaker 0 00:20:03 Sorry for everybody at home. I'm going to ask way more questions about that. When these cameras go off about everything like, so please, please, please. And I tell every guest this and I do mean it. Come back again. Obviously I got way more questions to ask. Um, we'd love to hear more from you. We didn't even get to find out about like, where are you from when you came here? There's so much more to ask. So please come back again. Sweet. All right. Well Fort McMurray, wood, Buffalo in the rest of the world, that's been another episode of the Mac city morning show. Thank you so much for tuning in. I really does mean the world to me. Hopefully you're having a great day. We'll see you tomorrow. Peace.
Speaker 5 00:20:40 I just dies that desk. Another max, any warning show Dawn?
Speaker 6 00:20:56 Yeah. Talk about quenching your ugly thirst.
