Cover Ups
Because of the challenging nature of cover ups, I only take them on if I have full creative freedom with them. This does not mean that I won’t take your idea into consideration. I only set this stipulation because I have been doing these types of projects for most of my career and have learned what does and does not work and have developed a method for the way I do coverups to yield the best results. That being said, here are some things you should consider when we discuss your cover up project:
The best subject matter for cover ups tend to be things with lots of texture and heavy lighting effects to create heavy shadows, such as underwater scenes, flowers, organic images, Japanese imagery, skulls, organic style bio mech.
I do cover ups in full color ONLY. Black and grey generally does not cover unwanted tattoos well because grey tones and softer greywashed blends are usually not dark enough to cover old tattoos. You have a little more leeway with colors and dark shading.
It is recommended to do your cover up about 3 times the size of your current tattoo. It’s very rare you can do a cover up the same size as what you are trying to have covered up. Think of it as not just covering, but creating more imagery to take your eye away from and camouflage the area we are covering.
Not all coverups are created equal. Some tattoos are covered more easily than others. Sometimes it happens in one sitting, but most of the time, cover up tattoos need 2 to 3 sittings to add extra layers of color for best results.
As such, cover ups are also a lifetime commitment, meaning that your tattoo will need touch ups sooner/more frequently than a tattoo that has be done on “clean” skin. Black is carbon based and interacts differently with skin and thus lasts far longer than color pigment, so, most of the time, as your skin heals over the tattoo, some color will lighten and black from the original tattoo will most likely start to show through again. To help maintain the quality of your new tattoo, the color will need to be touched up later down the road.*
More often than not, cover ups aren’t 100% opaquely covered, and you may notice that you have “peekers”, where bits of your old tattoo, especially line work, will show through. Touch ups will help, but when it comes to cover ups, the goal is to not simply to cover the old tattoo, but more to disguise the old tattoo within the new imagery.
To have the MOST freedom with your cover up, laser tattoo removal may be a good idea. Depending on how dark your tattoo is, it may not have to be removed completely to have a more successful cover up, but obviously a blanker canvas is easier to work on. If you have laser done, that skin cannot be tattooed until it is completely healed from the laser, which can be as little as 6 months but usually closer to a year.
*These touch up/re-layering sessions are not free. Same hourly rates apply. Results may vary for each person’s coverup.
