Tattoo Coverup Guide
Let’s set the scene, you and your best friend go on the MTV’s How Far is Tattoo Far? and instead of getting a beautiful tattoo by Tiffany Tattooz like you always wanted, you end up with a smelly trashcan on your thigh. Yeah, we’d be heated too. So, what next? You’re two options are to either laser it or get a coverup tattoo; which let’s be honest, who wants to go through the pain and multiple sessions of laser removal? Here’s some things to consider before scheduling your coverup appointment:
By: Joe @bawdentattoos at Ink Gallery Tattoo Studio
Artist
Today, many artists refuse to do coverup tattoos for a multitude of reasons. Either they don’t feel confident that they’ll be able to cover your tattoo or they’re style of tattooing doesn’t work well for coverup tattoos.It takes a lot of thought and design to completely hide a tattoo especially if its large and has a lot of bold black in it. More important, is ensuring that the coverup is flattering. It takes a ton of finesse and skill as an artist to not only cover the design but to make it look like it isn’t a coverup in the first place. Choose a skilled artist who is experienced in coverups.
By: Tiffany @tiffanytattooz at Ink Gallery Tattoo Studio
Size
Sizing is crucial when it comes to coverups. Typically, the design should be three times bigger than the initial tattoo you wish to cover. Most coverups end up being on the larger side to ensure proper coverage. Just keep in mind if you’re already starting with something large, you’re going to end up with a decent sized piece.
Design
Picking the right design to go over your old ink can be tricky, not every design will work well. Designs to avoid would be lettering, mandalas or anything with a bunch of lines and no shading, fine line and minimalistic work. Some designs that make good coverups are flowers, some animals, blackwork or pretty much anything with a decent amount of shading. It’s best to be flexible with the artist but still choose something you love so they can work their magic and make the old tattoo disappear.
By: Joe @bawdentattoos at Ink Gallery Tattoo Studio
Scar coverup?
Covering tattoos with more tattoos is one thing, but scars can be quite different. The general rule of thumb is to wait at least a year before tattooing over the scar to ensure its properly healed. Also, tattooing over a scar, specifically if it’s larger tends to be more painful than if you’re getting tattooed on unscared skin so you may want to consider getting numb cream.
By: Tiffany @tiffanytattooz at Ink Gallery Tattoo Studio
Rework?
Sometimes people will get a tattoo they truly love but the execution isn’t what they anticipated or its aged and has faded greatly overtime. In that case the artist can rework the old tattoo and refresh it to make it essentially a brand-new tattoo while still keeping your original vision alive! Still, many artists turn this down because they don’t want to fix someone else’s work so make sure your artist is alright with doing so.
By: Tiffany @tiffanytattooz at Ink Gallery Tattoo Studio
Laser?
While most tattoos are able to be covered or reworked, not all of them are. That’s why consulting with the artist to ensure a coverup is even possible is important. If your tattoo is too big, and packed with bold black it’s likely that no artist will be able to cover it and advise you to get at least a few sessions of laser removal to lighten it before tattooing over it.
The bottom line is, make sure you’ve done your extensive research, choose your artist and design wisely and hopefully you’ll come out with a masterpiece worthy of showing off.