Cover-up tattoos are those done over one or more previous tattoos, scars, or skin conditions.
People cover up old tattoos for a variety of reasons, such as that the tattoos were references to relationships that have ended, the tattoos were nonconsensual, or the tattoos relate to gangs or hate speech. Cover-ups after breakups have received particular attention due to high-profile cases involving celebrities. Cover-ups are one of the two main options of removing an unwanted tattoo, the other being laser removal. Covering up an unwanted tattoo is generally cheaper, less painful and an overall easier solution than tattoo removal. [1] : 104
A decorative cover-up tattoo can obscure a scar or skin condition with personally meaningful art, making it an alternative to more flesh-like paramedical tattoos. For example, in lieu of reconstruction post-mastectomy, a person may choose to get a decorative tattoo over their scars. Self-harm scars are another common target for cover-ups.
Both scars and old tattoo ink present additional challenges for a tattoo artist. Some tattoo artists specialize in cover-ups, and some give free cover-ups for cases such as hate symbols, human trafficking tattoos, and self-harm scars.
A person may seek a cover-up tattoo if they wish to distance themself from existing tattoos. The simplest reason is that they do not like how a tattoo appears on their body. [2] In particular, cover-ups are associated with regret for the original tattoo. [3] [4] A 2013 study of tattoo removal and cover-up recipients found that regret often stems from dissatisfaction with the narrative that the tattoo represents, either due to the tattoo not being meaningful or to the symbolism being unsatisfying. [5] : 551 Tattoo artists who do cover-ups are commonly asked to cover tattoos related to a person's past relationship. [6] People also cover up tattoos related to non-romantic relationships, such as relatives from whom they have become estranged. [5] : 553
As tattoos grew more mainstream in the 1990s and even more in the 2000s, celebrity tattoos received significant attention, especially cover-ups of couples tattoos after breakups. [7] [8] [9] After breaking up with actress Winona Ryder in 1993, actor Johnny Depp partially covered up a "Winona Forever" tattoo, to read "Wino Forever". [10] Further notable post-breakup cover-ups include Denise Richards and Angelina Jolie. [7]
Popular culture in the 2010s included further growth in the popularity of tattoos and coverage of celebrity cover-up tattoos. In 2017, influencer Kylie Jenner had her "T" for rapper Tyga changed to "LA" after their breakup. [11] After marital separation in 2020, Nick Cannon replaced a large back tattoo of singer Mariah Carey's first name with a depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus. [12] Comedian Pete Davidson and singer Ariana Grande got a combined 16 tattoos relating to each other before breaking off their engagement in 2018, [13] then multiple cover-ups. [9] [14] [15] [16]
People also seek to cover up tattoos they received non-consensually. In the 17th century, the use of irezumi kei (penal tattoos) for prisoners in Japan fell out of practice largely because released prisoners would cover them up with decorative designs. [17] Some sex trafficking victims who are subjected to branding tattoos later cover them up with chosen tattoos. [18] : 64 In the United States and Canada, organizations including Survivor's Ink [18] : 64 and Unbound [19] facilitate such cover-ups.
Cover-ups can also be due to a change in what a person wants to be associated with, such as tattoos that convey religious views or connections to drugs or violence. [5] : 552–553 Tattoos that represent hateful views or affiliation with criminal groups are a frequent subject of cover-ups. [20] [21] [22] [23] In the 1800s, prisoners on convict ships from Great Britain to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) sometimes "over-tattooed" old tattoos with new designs that defied state efforts to track their tattoos as identifying marks. [24] Alphonse Bertillon's Signaletic Instructions, translated into English in 1896, contains instructions on identifying former prisoners who have had their tattoos "surcharged" (covered up) or removed. [25] Due to rising anti-gang enforcement from the 1990s onwards, it has become increasingly common for gangsters to cover up their gang tattoos despite still being members. [26]
The use of flesh-like medical tattoos to cover up skin conditions and surgical scars is a long-established practice, dating to the German doctor Pauli in 1835, who used mercury sulfide and white lead to tattoo over skin lesions including nevi and purple plaque, [28] : 930 [29] : 368–369 or even to Galen, who executed tattoos of sorts over corneal opacities in 150 CE. [30] : 81
In the 21st century, decorative cover-up tattoos became a more popular approach to obscuring scars, including burns, self-harm scars, surgical scars, and stretch marks. [31] : 540–541 In cases of scars that are hyperpigmented, uneven in texture, or cover a large area, it is often not possible to restore the flesh's previous appearance; decorative tattoos serve to either cover or camouflage these scars instead. [27] : 5 A 2008 case report, [32] one of the first medical articles on the subject, noted patients taking the initiative in receiving decorative cover-ups. [27] : 5–6 In the early 2010s, decorative tattoos emerged as a trend after breast cancer–related mastectomy, particularly in the United States. [33] Some transmasculine people who receive mastectomies also opt for decorative cover-ups. [34] A 2021 systematic review speculated that decorative scar concealment is one of the most common applications of medical tattooing in a cosmetic or reconstructive context, but noted a lack of evidence, perhaps because many such tattoos happen at the patient's initiative rather than through a medical provider. [27] : 6–7
Similarly, it can be difficult to hide vitiligo with tattooed pigment, and so some people choose to get artistic tattoos as a distraction. [35] Tattoos are recommended only for people whose conditions are stable, as tattooing may itself trigger vitiligo. [36] : 763 In 2021, a research team developed a system to print customized temporary tattoos onto the bodies of children with vitiligo. [37]
For people with self-harm scars, cover-up tattoos can be a way of moving past trauma. [38] [39] One motivation for tattooing an area may be to discourage oneself from self-harming in it again, [40] : 105 although some may nonetheless cut on top of a tattoo. [41] : 176 Some people choose to incorporate self-harm scars into tattoo designs, for instance making them look like scratch marks from a dragon. [40] : 105–107 Public figures with self-harm cover-up tattoos include Paris Jackson [42] and Pete Davidson. [43] Self-harm cover-ups raise the complication that the pain of the tattoo process may trigger memories of self-harming. [38]
Like past tattoos, intentional scars may also be covered due to their associations. For instance, actress India Oxenberg covered the brand she received in the NXIVM cult with a mandala design. [44] [45]
Covering a previous tattoo is more difficult than creating a fresh tattoo, so it requires skill and experience. [46] In cover-up tattoos, the previous tattoo has made the skin more sensitive and more passes of the needle are required, damaging the skin more than a first tattoo does. [47] : 34–35 This means the artist needs to be especially careful to work at the correct depth and with the right amount of color in the needle. [47] : 34–35
Poorly applied, faded, or light tattoos are the easiest to cover, especially tattoos that are at least several years old. [46] A person may choose to lighten a tattoo using laser removal before getting a cover-up design. [46]
When tattooing over scars, especially raised scars, it can be difficult for an artist to get the ink to stay in place. [46] As a result, some artists are averse to the practice. Canadian tattoo artist Becky Jónsson, who has cover-ups over their own dermatillomania scars and specializes in scarred skin, told CBC News in 2023 that many clients choose to continue with tattoos even if their tissue cannot hold ink to the desired degree. [38]
A cover-up can modify an existing tattoo by adding details, colors, or new elements, or it can completely mask the old tattoo with a new design. [48] A colorful image with a lot of shading and shapes, such as animals or flowers, can offer more coverage than an image in black-and-gray style. [46]
A person may choose to completely cover an old tattoo with black ink with a simple boxy shape [48] or a "blackout" tattoo design. [49] Flesh tones are generally ineffective for cover-ups, as they lack the translucence of untattooed skin and are rarely able to cover up dark colors. [50] : 68
Cover-up designs are typically bigger in size compared to the previous design, as it helps to hide the design. [46] Some of the previous tattoo may still be partially visible to a person familiar with the original design. [46] Special photography techniques, including infrared photography, may also be able to detect the underlying tattoo design. [1] [51]
Individuals may choose a new design that does not completely obscure the previous tattoo, a style known as "blast-over" tattooing. [52]
Tattoo artists may offer discounted or complimentary sessions for cover-up tattoos. Some artists have gained note for doing so for sexual trafficking survivors. [19] [53] Others do so for covering self-harm scars. [54] [55]
One tattoo shop in Kentucky, United States, which began offering free cover-ups of racist tattoos in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, received 20 requests in about a month. [20] Three months later, a different Kentucky shop with the same policy reported doing four to six cover-ups a week of racist tattoos. They deferred excess demand to other shops, some of which requested donations to Black Lives Matter in lieu of payment. [21] In the U.S. state of Oklahoma, an annual event offers free cover-ups of hateful and gang-related tattoos, including those associated with Juggalo culture (due to the existence of Juggalo gangs). [22] [23] However, the event's organizer notes that "Just because you hate your ex-wife, doesn't make that a hate tattoo". [23]
A tattoo applied on top of another tattoo can make laser removal more challenging, because lasers target specific wavelengths, and in the same location there may be multiple pigments with different wavelengths. [56]
A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing processes and techniques, including hand-tapped traditional tattoos and modern tattoo machines. The history of tattooing goes back to Neolithic times, practiced across the globe by many cultures, and the symbolism and impact of tattoos varies in different places and cultures.
Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin. It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medical doctor who manages diseases related to skin, hair, nails, and some cosmetic problems.
A scar is an area of fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. Scars result from the biological process of wound repair in the skin, as well as in other organs, and tissues of the body. Thus, scarring is a natural part of the healing process. With the exception of very minor lesions, every wound results in some degree of scarring. An exception to this are animals with complete regeneration, which regrow tissue without scar formation.
Scarification involves scratching, etching, burning/branding, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification or body art. The body modification can take roughly 6–12 months to heal. In the process of body scarification, scars are purposely formed by cutting or branding the skin by various methods. Scarification is sometimes called cicatrization.
Keloid, also known as keloid disorder and keloidal scar, is the formation of a type of scar which, depending on its maturity, is composed mainly of either type III (early) or type I (late) collagen. It is a result of an overgrowth of granulation tissue at the site of a healed skin injury which is then slowly replaced by collagen type I. Keloids are firm, rubbery lesions or shiny, fibrous nodules, and can vary from pink to the color of the person's skin or red to dark brown in color. A keloid scar is benign and not contagious, but sometimes accompanied by severe itchiness, pain, and changes in texture. In severe cases, it can affect movement of skin. In the United States keloid scars are seen 15 times more frequently in people of sub-Saharan African descent than in people of European descent. There is a higher tendency to develop a keloid among those with a family history of keloids and people between the ages of 10 and 30 years.
A medical tattoo is a tattoo used to treat a condition, communicate medical information, or mark a body location for treatment. People may get a paramedical tattoo to conceal a condition or the effects of treatment, such as creating the appearance of an areola after breast reconstruction, or a cover-up tattoo to disguise the area in an artistic way.
Pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) is a type of irritant folliculitis that commonly affects people who have curly or coarse facial hair. It occurs when hair curls back into the skin after shaving, causing inflammation, redness, and bumps. This can lead to ingrown hairs, scarring, and skin discoloration. PFB can be treated with various methods, including changing shaving habits, using topical creams or ointments, and undergoing laser hair removal. Prevention measures include proper shaving techniques, using sharp razors, and avoiding too close a shave.
A comedo is a clogged hair follicle (pore) in the skin. Keratin combines with oil to block the follicle. A comedo can be open (blackhead) or closed by skin (whitehead) and occur with or without acne. The word "comedo" comes from the Latin comedere, meaning "to eat up", and was historically used to describe parasitic worms; in modern medical terminology, it is used to suggest the worm-like appearance of the expressed material.
Permanent makeup, also known as permanent cosmetics, derma-pigmentation, micro-pigmentation,semi-permanent makeup and cosmetic tattooing, is a cosmetic technique which employs tattoos as a means of producing designs that resemble makeup, such as eye-lining and other permanent enhancing colors to the skin of the face, lips, and eyelids. It is also used to produce artificial eyebrows, particularly in people who have lost them as a consequence of old age, disease, such as alopecia areata, alopecia totalis, chemotherapy, or a genetic disturbance, and to disguise scars and hypopigmentation in the skin such as in vitiligo. It is also used to restore or enhance the breast's areola, such as after breast surgery, or to give an illusion of more hair volume to the scalp.
Pearly penile papules are benign, small bumps or spots on the human penis. They vary in size from 1–4 mm, are pearly or flesh-colored, smooth and dome-topped or filiform, and appear in one or, several rows around the corona, the ridge of the head of the penis and sometimes on the penile shaft. They are painless, non-cancerous and not harmful. The medical condition of having such papules is called hirsutoid papillomatosis or hirsuties papillaris coronae glandis.
UV tattoos or blacklight tattoos are tattoos made with dyes that fluoresce visibly under a blacklight or other ultraviolet (UV) light source. Depending upon the tattoo ink used, an ultraviolet tattoo can be nearly invisible when illuminated only by light within the visible spectrum. Blacklight tattoo ink does not glow in the dark, but reacts to non-visible ultraviolet light, producing a visible glow by fluorescence.
Tattoo removal is the process of removing an unwanted tattoo. The process of tattooing generally creates permanent markings in the skin, but people have attempted many methods to try to hide or destroy tattoos.
Cosmetic camouflage is the application of make-up creams and/or powders to conceal colour or contour irregularities or abnormalities of the face or body. It offers an answer to solve all related skin problems such as Congenital origin, Traumatic origin and Dermatological origin. Furthermore, cosmetic camouflage solves the psychological problems that a skin imperfection is sometimes able to provoke, it allows to rediscover its own beauty and to return with serenity to its own social life. Cosmetic camouflage creams were first developed by plastic surgeons during World War II to cover the massive burns received by fighter pilots. Nowadays, men, women and children can use cosmetic camouflage.
Tattoo inks consist of pigments combined with a carrier, used in the process of tattooing to create a tattoo in the skin. These inks are also used for permanent makeup, a form of tattoo.
Actinic granuloma (AG) was first described by O'Brien in 1975 as a rare granulomatous disease. Lesions appear on sun-exposed areas, usually on the face, neck, and scalp, with a slight preference for middle-aged women. They are typically asymptomatic, single or multiple, annular or polycyclic lesions measuring up to 6 cm in diameter, with slow centrifugal expansion, an erythematous elevated edge, and a hypopigmented, atrophic center.
Postinflammatory hypopigmentation is a cutaneous condition characterized by decreased pigment in the skin following inflammation of the skin.
Laser medicine is the use of lasers in medical diagnosis, treatments, or therapies, such as laser photodynamic therapy, photorejuvenation, and laser surgery.
Azeezia Medical College Hospital is a private hospital located in Kerala. It is a 540-bed multi-specialty hospital. The hospital provides treatment in various specialties, such as medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, dermatology, psychiatry, pediatrics, orthopedics, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, anesthesiology, radiology, emergency services, and laparoscopic surgery. Super-specialty departments include cardiothoracic, neurology, nephrology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, and neurosurgery. The private medical college includes super-specialty units and colleges for medical, dental, and nursing courses. The campus is in a rural area eight km (5.0 mi) from NH-47.
The process or technique of tattooing, creating a tattoo, involves the insertion of pigment into the skin's dermis. Traditionally, tattooing often involved rubbing pigment into cuts. Modern tattooing almost always requires the use of a tattoo machine and often procedures and accessories to reduce the risk to human health.
Microblading is a tattooing technique which uses a small handheld tool made of several tiny needles to add semi-permanent pigment to the skin. Microblading differs from standard eyebrow tattooing, a form of permanent makeup, as each hair stroke is created by hand with a blade that creates fine slices in the skin, whereas eyebrow tattoos are done with a tattoo machine. Microblading is used on eyebrows to create, enhance, or alter their appearance in shape and color. It deposits pigment into the upper region of the dermis, so it fades more rapidly than traditional tattooing techniques. Microblading is often referred to as eyebrow embroidery, eyebrow feathering, microstroking, 3D eyebrows, nanoblading or hair-like strokes.