We all have regrets – thanks to tattoo cover up however, your tats don’t need to be one of them!
- Was your original tattoo artist inexperienced at slinging ink?
- Is your tattoo a reminder of someone who’s no longer a part of your life?
- Want to turn a mistake into a masterpiece?
- Have you simply outgrown one of your tattoos?
You’ll be glad to know that you no longer need to put up with a tattoo you’re no longer happy with: thanks to tattoo cover up, you can turn that old tattoo into a brand-new piece of art – one that you’ll be proud to show off!
What is tattoo cover up?
Tattoo cover up is a process of covering up an unwanted tattoo design with brand new design. It’s all about turning an old tattoo you simply no longer like or want anymore into one that you’re completely satisfied with.
Your tattoo cover up may involve a more detailed and refined version of the original design – in many cases, the original design can be seamlessly integrated into your new tattoo.
Alternatively, it can be covered up completely with a new, clean-sheet design – the choice is yours!
Whatever option you choose, it’s crucial that you choose a tattoo cover up artist who you can trust to deliver a quality result… especially if you’re covering up a piece of poor workmanship from the past.
What kind of tattoos might you want to cover up? Here are a couple of instances…
Faded tattoos
Despite its expected permanence, tattoos can fade over time. It’s never to the point of vanishing entirely – however, in most cases it’s just enough to ruin how your tattoo looks.
Here are some of the few reasons why tattoos fade:
- Low-quality ink
- Tanning beds
- Changes in skin elasticity
If your tattoo is fading, you might consider talking to a tattoo artist about a cool and unique design that can cover it up.
Poor workmanship
You get what you pay for – and when it comes to tattoos, choosing the cheapest artist (or even a backyard tattoo artist) often results in a cheap and nasty looking tattoo!
Talk to a professional about getting your existing design refreshed – and this time, by a tattoo artist who knows what they’re doing.
Distant memories and regrets
People come and go from your life. Sometimes, that special person stops being so special.
Instead of being left with a reminder, visit a tattoo cover up artist and find out how you can turn your existing tatt into a new work of art.
You’ve moved on
We’ve all done things when we were younger that we now regret. In many cases, that something may be getting a tattoo the moment you turned 18.
A talented tattoo cover up artist can turn it into a design that more accurately represents who you are today, and not who you were all those years ago.
What’s the difference between tattoo cover up and tattoo removal?
Essentially, tattoo cover up replaces an unwanted tattoo design with brand new design that you actually want. Think of it as transforming your tattoo.
By contrast, tattoo removal is all about – what else? – removing an existing tattoo altogether.
They’re different services – of course, there’s still a degree of overlap.
For tattoo cover up jobs involving larger, more elaborate designs, it may be necessary to begin with laser tattoo removal.
Lasers can break up the colour pigment and lighten up the tattoo design to better prepare for tattoo cover up.
In many cases, old ink can blend with new ink, leading to discolouration and a cover up tattoo that isn’t much of an improvement over the old one aesthetically-speaking.
A small tattoo with a minimalist design can be worked into a new design relatively easily. A full colour illustrative tattoo on the other hand means a lot of existing ink to work around!
By fading much of the old ink before we start working, we’ll have cleaner canvas to work with and a better end-result.
Click here to learn more about tattoo removal at Sin City Tattoos.
Choosing a tattoo cover up artist
If you ask us, the phrase “tattoo cover up” is a bit misleading. It isn’t as simple as going over an existing tatt – there’s a lot of careful consideration that needs to go into each tattoo cover up.
For example, your tattoo cover up artist will need to think about how the new ink is going to interact and blend with the old ink. It’s an intricate process that should only be done by trained and experienced pros.
Read on to learn the complex details involved…
How does tattoo cover up work?
When getting a tattoo, ink is deposited at least one millimeter beneath your skin into the dermis – a layer below the epidermis (the skin).
During tattoo cover up, the ink is deposited again in the same dermis where the ink from the previous tattoo is already presented.
The new ink does not cancel out or go on top of the ink from your old tattoo. Instead, these two colours combine to create a new colour.
There are chances that dark inks will dominate the mixture. In others, the two colours might merge – yellow and red together turn into orange, for example.
It takes an experienced artist to ensure that the old tattoo is obscured, and that the new one looks amazing.
Not to mention, a lot of thought needs to go into the design. Many tattoo cover ups are the result of an existing tatt that wasn’t properly thought-out at the time.
If you ask us, your tattoo cover up should be preceded by an in-depth consultation to ensure that we get everything absolutely right this time around.
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What are your options when it comes to covering up a tattoo?
Integrating old tattoos into new designs
Minimalist tattoos are an incredibly popular choice for many people’s first tat. They’re simple, relatively painless and most importantly for today’s subject, they’re relatively easy to cover up.
During your initial consult, your tattoo artist might suggest a design that incorporates your existing tat into your new design.
For example, a quote or name can be reworked into vines in a new design, or a cross might be turned into a part of a more detailed landscape or drawing.
Obviously, this will depend on the size and complexity of the original design, as well as what you decide to choose for your cover up tattoo.
Giving an old tattoo a facelift
If the goal is to give your existing tatt a bit of a facelift, we can do that too!
Your tattoo artist can go over your existing design, redoing all the lines and giving the colours a touch-up if that’s all you need.
If you prefer, we can also expand your tattoo to be more elaborate.
For example, you might have a line tattoo that you’d like to add colour to. Maybe you have a butterfly tattoo, and you want to expand it by adding some beautiful flowers to it.
In certain cases, we can even recolour an existing tattoo if you’re unhappy with your previous artists’ choice of colour.
Many lighter hues can be transformed into darker shades – for example, light blue to purple.
Completely new design
Not every design can be easily camouflaged.
For example, portrait tattoos that use a lot of blue and black inks may require a lot of work to cover up. In many cases, you might have to opt for a drastically different new design .
In these cases, you may have to start with tattoo removal to help fade your existing design, before choosing a design that covers and integrates what’s left over.
To give you an idea of what a tattoo cover up designs you can choose from, here are some ideas that are popular among both men and women:
- Animals and flowers
- Sceneries and landscapes
- Butterflies and flowers
- Mandala-inspired designs
- Cartoon characters and portraits
Want a tattoo in Essendon? Visit Sin City today!
In the past, black was the only feasible option for tattoo cover up that wouldn’t result in discolourations.
Nowadays however, modern techniques, quality inks, and clever design mean that your cover up tattoo is limited only by your imagination – and what your tattoo artist is capable of.
That’s why choosing the right artist for your tattoo cover up is so important. The last thing you want happening is your old tattoo being replaced with one that doesn’t look much better!
In addition to creating pieces of art, Sin City Tattoos can also turn an old or unwanted one into a new design that you’ll be proud to show off.
Get in touch with one of our talented tattoo artists today – contact Sin City Tattoos on (03) 9379 1181 or click here to make an online booking.
Alternatively, drop by our Essendon tattoo studio today – walk-ins are welcome! We’re open 11am-7pm from Monday to Saturday.