I wrote a blog about cover ups awhile back, and I lost it somewhere in the black abyss of technical mess ups which I do from time to time with my computer. So here I go again on this one.
When it comes to cover ups there is some educating you have to do sometimes for the person that is looking into a cover up. A lot of the times depending on the old piece, the new cover up has to be bigger than the existing tattoo. A lot of people understand that. But what I find to be the most difficult thing, is people usually don't pick the right image for the cover up. That's the frustrating part. If you are interested in getting a cover up I recommend that you stay OPEN to the possibilities and listen to your artist. Here is some guide lines:
~The new tattoo will be bigger in most cases.
~Using color to cover up usually works great opposed to black and gray.
~Don't try to cover something up with a tribal design.
~Flowers can cover just about anything.
~Don't use an image with a face to cover up something.
~If your old piece is beyond fixing, consider laser removal.
~Consult in depth with your artist about your cover up.
That being said here is the before and after cover I recently worked on. It took us 3 sittings to complete. I build up layers of colors in order to achieve successful covers, so patience is a must.I am pretty happy with how this one turned out.
If you are considering doing a cover up, this is your opportunity to do something awesome and fix a past mistake, so the best advice would be to work with someone really goo and fork out the cash for something outstanding. I have done a cover up of a cover up before! They are the worse!