We often think of tattoos as finite, everlasting works of body art but that could not be further from the truth. Many tattoos don’t age well and thus, folks turn to tattoo cover ups to remedy their ink dilemma. Tattoos fade, stretch, and change over time; as do the people with them. Covering an outdated tattoo is big business as cover ups are requested often and tattoo artists have become masters at hiding old, unwanted designs.
You might find yourself wanting a tattoo cover up but not knowing the best route to take for it. Thankfully, millions of people have shared their own cover up journey on social media with before and after images so that you can see the possibilities and limitations of what a cover up tattoo can actually accomplish. Hint: they can fully cover your old designs if you work with an artist with experience and vision. We’ve rounded up dozens of tattoo cover ups so that you can see just how successful they can turn out. Discover the best way to disguise your ink below!
Find the Best Style of Tattoo Cover Up for You Below!
A theme you will recognize early with tattoo cover ups is that a maximalist approach often lends the best results. The flowers that were once on this shoulder have been expanded beautifully for coverage.
Another trend you will recognize is that flowers make for some of the most desirable tattoo cover ups. Their organic shapes can be altered to disguise existing tattoos extremely well.
Most people really love their first tattoo but it can fade over time. You don’t have to get something completely new if you liked the previous design, just ask an artist to improve on it.
A boring floral design is taken to a whole no astral plane with this tattoo cover up of a bottle filled with celestial bodies. Obviously, ink-saturated designs work well for coverage.
Wow! This giant chrysanthemum and snake takes the place of a geiko and we’d say this is one million times better. Find a talented artist with experience with cover ups and you can walk away with a masterpiece.
Coincidentally, butterflies are often used as cover up tattoos (which you will see shortly) but we find one getting covered by a black and grey rose. It looks fantastic!
As promised, here’s a small butterfly tattoo that covers an old letter. Like flowers, the shapes in a butterfly’s wings can be tailored to disguise an existing design.
We used the term “maximalist” earlier and we really mean it. You see this approach for this full-sleeve tattoo cover up. An entire nature scene has been created to blast over the previous design.
Flowers are your friends when it comes to tattoo cover ups. This gorgeous red rose has a slight watercolor effect that makes it look ethereal and haunting.
Again, big and bold wins the day when trying to find ways to cover up your tattoo. A lovely baby blue has also been employed to camouflage the existing flowers.
Well, that cute dolphin simply is no more! We find it overtaken by a skull and gorgeous flower. It’s tonally very different from the first tattoo but an upgrade, no doubt.
We find a clock that’s falling apart in this tattoo cover up. This meditation on time totally covers the existing design for something totally new and original.
This is wild! We find Cat Woman covering up an older, softer tattoo. It’s a wild tattoo cover up that might not be complete as there are still portions of the tattoo underneath around the face. Absolutely impressive at any rate.
Here’s one of the funnies tattoo cover ups we encountered. A paint roller has been rolled over the existing design to get rid of an unwanted name. How clever!
A faded botanical tattoo has been replaced with a stunning black and grey flower design. A gradient in the background helps provide additional coverage while also adding texture.
An owl, skull, and rose have been employed to cover an eagle tattoo that had seen better days. Almost anything can be used as a tattoo cover up as long as placement and shape are taken into consideration.
A watercolor lily looks fantastic covering some old characters that had faded. Again , flowers are truly excellent for getting rid of an unwanted tattoo and replacing with something beautiful.
Aren’t these tattoo cover ups fantastic? We hope you feel inspired by these designs that perfectly camouflage unwanted, faded, and bad tattoos with new ones that dazzle. Some tattoos simply don’t age well and you should not feel any sort of buyer’s remorse if your ink needs a makeover. Happy tattooing!
Andrew is an Assistant Editor for Mamas Uncut with over ten years of experience as a writer in the creative, marketing, and blogging spaces. After studying Film and Art History, he developed a passion for telling stories in a variety of mediums. Obsessively making lists, reporting celebrity news, and diving into emerging pop cultural topics are a few of his interests.
Mamas Uncut is THE online place for moms. We cover the latest about motherhood, parenting, and entertainment as well – all with a mom-focused twist. So if you're looking for parenting advice from real parents, we have plenty of it, all for moms from moms, and also experts. Because, at the end of the day, our mission is focused solely on empowering moms and moms-to-be with the knowledge and answers they’re looking for in one safe space.
