Of course, we prefer to do new and self-designed tattoos. But if we can give someone a better tattoo than the one they want covered, we are happy to do so.
Not every tattoo is suitable for covering and not all designs are suitable for placing over an old tattoo. Below is the most important information for covers.
ENOUGH SPACE
For a cover to work, it needs to be about twice the size of the old tattoo. The old tattoo can only be covered with dark shades so there must be space around it for the light shades.
If you don’t have that, it will be dark on dark and will most likely not be any prettier than your old tattoo. Also, the light shades create a distraction and draw attention away from your old tattoo.
FREE SHAPE
The new tattoo should fit snugly over the old tattoo and should therefore follow the shapes of the old tattoo. Geometric shapes, clean lines or patterns such as maori or mehndi is often not suitable. What matters here is the negative, untattooed, space between the lines.
If a piece of your old tattoo falls under that, then all the attention goes to that. An example of free forms are flowers. These can be drawn freehand over your old tattoo. Please contact us to see what is possible for you, because in some cases a geometric or ornamental design is possible!
CONSULTATION MANDATORY
To discuss ideas for a cover you need to book a consultation and come to the studio. We need to see the quality, size and structure of the old tattoo to determine what the possibilities are. We will also make a print of the actual size and we will make some sketches on your skin, which is not possible through the mail.
We regularly do cover tattoos and during a consultation we have all the time to give you our professional advice. A consultation costs €35,- and will be settled with a booked tattoo.
PRIORITY
Please keep in mind that the priority of the cover is to cover your old tattoo. You will probably have to compromise on the new design. The new design may not be exactly what you were hoping for. We will tell you what is or is not possible and that is non-negotiable with a cover.
EXAMPLES
Just because it’s non-negotiable doesn’t mean you don’t have a choice in what your new tattoo will be. Send in as many examples as you can of what you like. We will then look at how to design the new tattoo based on your examples.