Group E: Scalp Micropigmentation
Purpose and assessment
Scalp micropigmentation (SMP) recreates the appearance of hair follicles for clients with thinning hair, scarring or alopecia. Assessment includes hair colour, skin tone, scalp condition, and the pattern of hair loss. Understand that SMP is an illusion of density, not hair restoration, and consent must reflect realistic expectations.
Technique and design
Know the concepts of follicle replication, hairline design, density layering and blending into existing hair. Depth matters: too deep causes migration and blurring; too shallow fades quickly. A frequent trap is treating SMP like brow work; the scalp is thicker and the design is about thousands of tiny points, not strokes.
Colour selection
Match pigment to the client's hair and scalp tone, accounting for how healed pigment may cool or fade. Understand the risk of blue or green shift over time and how pigment choice mitigates it.
Sessions and aftercare
SMP is typically multi-session. Aftercare includes protecting the scalp from sun, avoiding heavy sweating and washing per protocol. Examiners may test the healing timeline between sessions.
Worked rule of thumb
Design the hairline to the client's age and natural pattern, and build density across sessions. If in doubt, go lighter and add later; darker overcorrection is hard to reverse.