Even with the popularity of tattoos in today's culture, the idea of permanent makeup can be a little scary. Not only does the term 'permanent' cause one to think twice, but needles...near your eyes, vibrating at a high speed? That's enough to have even hardcore tattoo junkies a little nervous.

But by knowing what to expect from a permanent cosmetic procedure, it can be easy, relatively painless and extremely rewarding for years to come.

While there is the traditional method, which involves a tattoo machine (or gun, as many people like to call it), needles moving at a wicked fast clip and a loud buzzing that alone can make the experience nervewracking, there is another option.

The SofTap procedure, while a little more time consuming and slightly more expensive, is done with a manually operated needle -- in other words, human hands control the depth, speed and placement by carefully applying eyeliner, blush, eyebrows, lip color and even color enhancement to the areolas of the breasts, one 'tap' at a time.

With each 'dot' of pigment being individually placed by human hands, not only does it afford the artist more control and accuracy in placement, but also allows the artist more control over just how deeply the needle is penetrating, reducing the risk of puncturing too deeply which can lead to longer healing time, the pigment 'pulling' or rejecting, and in the case of eyeliner, blindness if the cornea is scratched or otherwise damaged.

Other things to consider when toying with the idea of permanent makeup are healing time, care and maintenance.

Healing time will vary from artist to artist as well as the area of the body being worked on, just like any other tattoo, but be prepared to go without makeup in areas that have been tattooed for a week if not longer. Also be ready to switch your skin care products, especially if you're using anything containing alpha or beta hydroxy acids (like most acne treatments or skin care for oily skin) or glycolic acid (found in chemical peels and some more intensive anti-aging products). Not only will these acids irritate a fresh tattoo, but they can cause fading in healed tattoos. Permanent makeup also requires a bit more upkeep than a 'traditional' tattoo, so be prepared to have your makeup touched up every couple of years to counteract fading due to heightened exposure from UV rays (both from the sun and fluorescent lights, which is why sunscreen is important even if you don't plan to spend anytime bronzing or baking) as well as other environmental hazards and free radicals.

I experienced the SofTap procedure personally about four years ago when I decided that I really wanted permanent eyeliner, but was skeptical about having a regular tattoo machine around my eyes -- one slip, shake or spasm and applying my eyeliner every day would be the least of my problems!

A good friend of mine who is an esthetician suggested the procedure and after reading up on it, I decided to give it a chance. After my custom color was mixed from a selection of a hundred or so different shades of pigment, my eyes were prepared with drops and the area was cleansed thoroughly with a special cleanser. Once the skin was dry, it was treated with a numbing agent which, throughout the entire procedure, was by far the most uncomfortable part -- for me, the burning sensation of the numbing agent on the freshly tattooed skin was more painful than the tattoo itself. The entire procedure took about two hours (for top and bottom lids on both eyes) and felt similar to being tweezed. Afterwards, discomfort was minimal, even though I spent the rest of the first day out in the sun and dusty wind of the AZ Renaissance festival. I found my eyes were slightly sensitive to light that first day, but by day two, didn't even feel like I'd been tattooed. The area did itch occasionally, and not being able to wear eye makeup was driving me nuts (no eye makeup for the first week, and then only mascara from a brand new tube for the second week to prevent cross contamination), but aside from that, I suffered no pain or irritation and can honestly say it was by far my least painful tattoo. Having 14 of them, not including the eyeliner, that's not an easy decision to make!

Aftercare was relatively easy; ointment (like basic A&D ointment) a couple of times a day along with gentle cleansing with a mild soap (I was given Arbonne to use, which I ended up scrapping the second day because it was causing me to break out) before applying the ointment.

Four years later, and I'm still loving it!

Not only is the permanent eyeliner fabulous for someone like me who is lazy but still likes to look good even just running to the grocery store, but anyone who has lost hair in the brow area and is tired of filling them in everyday, to help make the lashes appear thicker and fuller, any number of ailments or illnesses that cause the skin to look pale or ashy, or anyone with arthritis, bad eye sight or other conditions that might hinder daily make up application.

Before you dismiss the idea of permanent makeup, consider SofTap! Easy to experience, easy to heal and easy to love.

Photos from SofTaps.com, janeadler.com, mtderm.de.