A New You for the New Year

Tired Of Your Tattoo? Remove It Or Cover It Up

26 June 2015

Adam Newman

If you have a tattoo that you no longer want, you can visit a cosmetic surgeon to have it removed. However, if you do not want to have a cosmetic procedure or have it permanently removed, you can cover it up yourself.

Cosmetic Surgeon to Remove the Tattoo

A cosmetic surgeon can use various methods to remove a tattoo. What they use depends on how deep the ink is on your skin, as well as the colors of inks used. Some of the common procedures include:

Exclusion

With this method, the cosmetic surgeon surgically removes your skin where the tattoo is located.  This method works well if you have a small tattoo. The surgeon removes the skin, and then will use stitches to put your skin back together. If this method is used for a large area, the surgeon will take skin from another part of your body, such as from your hip or buttocks, to use as a skin graft to cover the area.

Dermabrasion

The doctor will likely use a tool that is called a dermatome to scrape away the skin. They may need to scrape down to the dermis to get the entire tattoo removed, depending on how deep it is. How long it takes you to heal from this procedure depends on how deep the surgeon has to scrape.

Laser

This treatment involves breaking up the tattoo ink using a laser. It may take more than one treatment to completely remove the tattoo. This also depends on how large the tattoo is and how dark the inks are.

When you arrive at the doctor's office, they will likely use the laser in an inconspicuous area to make sure you do not have a bad reaction to it. You will have to wear goggles to protect your eyes. The laser is then placed over the tattoo, and the light pulsates to remove it a little at a time. The doctor will give you a prescription for a cream to help with the healing process.

For more information about these cosmetic procedures, make an appointment with a cosmetic surgeon.

Makeup to Cover The Tattoo Up

This is not a permanent process and you will have to do it every day. It works well for those people that want to hide their tattoo during the day while they are working, or want to hide it from a family member.

Purchase a concealer from a drug store. It should be a couple of shades lighter than your skin stone. To match this up hold it against your wrist. Gently wipe the concealer over the tattoo. When you are finished, use a makeup sponge to dab over the area to blend it in. Let it completely dry.

Purchase some foundation at the drug store that matches your skin tone. They also make spray foundations, which may be easier for you to use.

Either spray it on the tattoo or rub it on using your fingers until it is all covered up. Rub over it gently with a sponge to smooth it out. Let it completely dry, which will take a few minutes. To set the foundation on your skin, lightly spray it with hair spray, and then let it dry again. This will last until you clean it off.

You can also purchase products on the market to cover up your tattoo. These can be found at some drug stores or tattoo shops.

Share