I have a question I want to chuck out to you all... it's something I am struggling with, and need some advice.
Recently, I got a tattoo, that I am now very unhappy with. It's changed and looks very odd, and in one area, is downright awful. It's just bad work, period, end of story. Now, the person who did it, I can no longer see, due to a personal falling out, that I don't need to get into. I'll just leave it at that the artist, is not accessible.
My current (and simply amazing) tattoo artist, who is an expert on cover-up work, has suggested we work a cover-up for part of it. However, the one part of the piece is DARK and about 4x4 inches, and there's not much that can be done with it. So now I am facing the idea of laser removal, which is.... HELLA EXPENSIVE!!!!! WOW.
Have any of you ever has laser removal? Do you know someone who has? Can I get some advice or opinions on this? I'm actually very clueless... and want all the info I can get.
Thanks... :) :)
Recently, I got a tattoo, that I am now very unhappy with. It's changed and looks very odd, and in one area, is downright awful. It's just bad work, period, end of story. Now, the person who did it, I can no longer see, due to a personal falling out, that I don't need to get into. I'll just leave it at that the artist, is not accessible.
My current (and simply amazing) tattoo artist, who is an expert on cover-up work, has suggested we work a cover-up for part of it. However, the one part of the piece is DARK and about 4x4 inches, and there's not much that can be done with it. So now I am facing the idea of laser removal, which is.... HELLA EXPENSIVE!!!!! WOW.
Have any of you ever has laser removal? Do you know someone who has? Can I get some advice or opinions on this? I'm actually very clueless... and want all the info I can get.
Thanks... :) :)
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Buffalo
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Tue, April 15, 2008 - 4:12 PMI've had two solid black tattoos successfully covered up, without any kind of lightening beforehand (such as with white ink). The first was on my shoulder, about three inches long and one inch high. It was a solid black Aquarius symbol (two waves) with black kanji on either end. The second was a solid black tribal-ish tattoo below my navel, probably about 2x2" (triangular). I had several artists tell me that there was no way to cover these up without using solid black over them. My current artist looked at them and didn't bat an eye, he just said "yeah, I can fix that." There is now a vivid purple passionflower on my shoulder and an orange, brown, and black moth on my stomach. It can absolutely be done, if you want another larger tattoo in that area.
It's probably a blessing that the original artist is out of your life... I wouldn't want the person who screwed up my first navel tattoo to be the one to cover it up!
Laser removal can leave scarring, but I've seen a few pieces done over that scar tissue that covered it really well.
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Tue, April 15, 2008 - 4:25 PMI personally would never get laser removal because you'll just be left with a big ugly scar in the shape of the tattoo you had removed, I think a much better option would be to do the coverup. Even though that one piece is dark I'm sure you could come up with something that would compliment it and change it into something that would make you happy. Try tracing out the design with a sharpie pen on saran wrap held over the tattoo and then retrace it onto paper and draw out what you would like, I've done that with some of my tattoos, not necessarily to cover them but to add to them. This way I'm definitely happy with what I end up with, even if it takes me numerous designs and several years to figure out what I want done, better to take your time and be happy with it I say. Good luck! -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 8:35 AMI don't think laser removal leaves a scar or mark anymore. A friend of mine at work had it done to this horrid tribal mess on her belly (of all places) and she has no marks. She looks like there was never anything there. It's amazing!!! -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 9:08 AMmaybe it is a skin type thing--some people scar easier than others. if you look at me wrong i scar, but they fade fairly quickly (depending on what it is, of course) but my friend sarah could probably survive a knife fight with no scars.
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Thu, June 26, 2008 - 2:12 PMyeah, my sister is in the process of getting it done on her back and doesn't have any scarring.
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Tue, April 15, 2008 - 8:00 PMAlso, yo can do a couple of laser treatments to lighten it and that will give you more cover-up options. I've seen this done a lot.
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 1:02 PMYou can also get it surgically removed, I read that that leaves a straight line scar rather than a tattoo shaped one. I haven't done enough research on it to tell you for sure though. I like the idea of a cover up or lightening it and then covering it so you don't just have a scar... -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 1:02 PMAlso, I don't know if they could surgically remove one of that size. Would have to look up more info... -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 4:04 PMI'd be interested to hear about that... -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Wed, April 16, 2008 - 4:14 PMMethods for tattoo removal include laser removal (using lasers to fade the ink over a series of sessions), surgical excision (surgically removing the tattooed skin), dermabrasion/sanding (exactly what it sounds like) and chemical peels (I don't know much about this method).
Excision (which is what I think Anjali was talking about) is probably my least favorite of these options, mainly because it ooks me out. A small bladder is surgically inserted under the tattooed area and then slowly filled with saline solution over a period of time. This stretches out the skin. The stretched skin is then surgically removed, taking the tattoo with it, and the excess skin is sewn back together over the resulting wound. This will leave a scar, whereas other methods of removal have a much slimmer chance of scarring. -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Thu, April 17, 2008 - 10:43 AMI'm not sure I would want to invest the $$ and nastiness that the laser treatments would entail.
www.wreckingbalm.com/
This stuff has a money back guarantee, but from the looks of it, it's a chemical peel combined with dermabrasion. It's expensive as well though.
I don't know about the pain/gross factor on this one, since I've never used it. -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Thu, April 17, 2008 - 8:35 PMOh hell no. My tattoo artist said to stay away from :
1) Anything not done by a dermatologist.
2) Anything you do on our own, to yourself.
*Scared* -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Fri, April 18, 2008 - 2:04 PMLooks like it would probably be your previous options then. Lasers, chemical peels/dermabrasion done by a dermatologist or excision. (OW!) >.< Actually excision might not be too bad. If they can do root canals with minimal pain then a little local and you should be good to go! -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Fri, April 18, 2008 - 3:23 PMThe thing to bear in mind with excision is that you need to have the saline bladder under your skin for an undetermined period of time (as far as I know), because the stretching of the skin takes time. -
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This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.
Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Sat, April 19, 2008 - 3:38 PMI have an appointment to speak with a local derm about laser removal. I think that will be the best option at this rate. The rest all sound terrifying. Gah!!! :) -
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Re: Cover-Up Situation/Laser Removal
Thu, June 26, 2008 - 11:58 AMI got both, a cover up over a solid black tatoo, so that can be done, just like Bo said.
And I've been laserd on my belly, that one is not finisched yet because I'm taking it slow, that way it heals much better ;-)
I got my original skin colour back where its been laserd, at first it was white, ( so yes, you still have the tatoo, but then white ) but now, its like nothing has been there ;-)
The belly tatoo was 'big' like 3 inches long 1 inch wide, take a look at my pics and you will see that there's nothing there anymore, only if you look really close you'll see a little bit, but I still gotta go for 2 or 3 sessions....
Not on-important, laser hurts like hell!!!!! much, and then I mean Mucho-Much-More that taking a tatoo!!
Maybey in the end I will take a cover up on the same place where the tatoo was. Why go through al these session of lasering you think? That way i have a choice of what I want on my belly, without the lasering I would have no choice than go bigger and darker to cover up what was originaly there....so if in the end I'm not pleased with the result, I'll cover up, if i'm satisfied, I have my 'natural-born-belly' back ;-)
good luck Viva La Booz!
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