Cover-up tattoos are even more popular than ever for many reasons. The number one reason people are needing cover-ups badly right now is because of the availability of second-rate rate tattoo equipment from online suppliers. This equipment ends up in the hands of inexperienced artists who, more often than not, have a bad experience in executing the tattoo. This leaves the client with feelings of regret and self-consciousness. The second reason people get cover-ups is having a person's name (such as an ex) covered. Many of these types of tattoos are covered up each year. The third most common cover-up is a tattoo that is older and possibly more faded. It is also important to consider that not all tattoos need covering. Some can be just touched up or fixed by redoing line work to make it much darker and coloring it in to make the colors or blacks look new again without creating a brand-new design.
There are many approaches an artist can take in covering a tattoo. The approach depends on the darkness and composition of hard lines and areas of black.
The cover-ups that are mostly from poor execution tend to be easier to cover. A well-done tattoo that has solid lines is much harder because of how dark it is. Most poorly executed tattoos are not as solid or as dark, which makes putting almost anything over them at the right size possible.
The second most common cover-up tattoo is the name. If the name is done well and very dark, whatever is covering it must have several layers of colors over it. This process could take more than one session in order to make sure the cover-up does not look like a cover-up. Things like dark green and black leaves, as well as feathers and dragon scales, work very well to create several layers to break up the existing tattoo.
The third most common cover-up tattoo is an older, faded, or poorly designed piece that could be from an older shop or an inexperienced tattoo artist. If the tattoo is small and still has great meaning, it might be able to be fixed or just touched up. If the tattoo is a larger one, much planning has to be done to recycle old lines and design something that will make sense.
Cover-up tattoos are a much bigger challenge when they are covering something well done or dark, and require a lot of planning to not look like a very dark and muddled tattoo.
It is also important to take care of your tattoo properly while in the healing process of your cover-up. Some existing tattoos may have scar tissue, which may reject a small amount of ink, and may need to be touched up after it fully heals. Covering up an old tattoo doesn't have to be another regret, and can be a lot of fun, but can also cost more depending on the level of difficulty or darkness and the size of the existing tattoo.