photo/tattoo dilemma Question.

[princess_ariel_85]

I have a minor photo related issue... (sounds silly really)

I have got 4 tattoos over my body. 1 of them will not be visable when I'm in my dress. I've got 1 on my right arm, 1 on my left shoulder and one on the left side of my chest...

the ones on my arm and shoulder don't bother me so much, it's the one on my chest. It's a super mario mushroom and I (if possible) would like to have it covered/hidden.

I live in the UK and was a bridesmaid for my cousin, who wanted all tattoo's covered. I accomplished this by using a concealer and foundation of my skin colour. The weather was warm so the make up lasted throughout the day. Now obvioisly weather in Orlando in Otober will be much much warmer, so I doubt I would be able to do that same again.

any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated

 

[PartofDisney'sWorld]

Have you booked anybody to do your makeup for your wedding? If so, I'm sure they would know exactly what to do for that.

 

[disneylizzylou]

If you are having someone do your hair and makeup for the wedding I would suggest asking them if they could help you cover it. I'm asking Beaute Speciale if they can airbrush over mine (airbrushing is supposed to last a lot longer than normal makeup). I tried buying the special coverup for tattoos but since mine are all black ink it didn't work without going a darker color than my skintone and making me look orange in one spot

 

[KristiLyn]

If you are having someone do your makeup, definately get them to try the airbrush to cover it. It works I have one on my foot and I've had it covered before...

 

[JessnRich225]

I would suggest "Dermablend". I have 10 tattoos, 3 of them will have to be covered for our May 16th wedding. I have been using this brand for years and it works great! It is a little pricey, but the end results are well worth it.

 

[princess_ariel_85]

thanks for all your responses

when I find someone for my hair/make up I'll discuss it with them

I'm glad it's not just me who wants a tattoo covering lol I was expecting some1 to ask me why have a tattoo if you're going to cover it up

 

[angel81uk]

A good make up artist will be able to do it for you or you can attempt it yourself. They key is to make it a multi step process, it's incredibly unlikely that you'll be able to cover a tattoo with an off the shelf, single colour concealer and be done with it! I'll post a quick step by step here for those who want to try it themselves.

Arm yourself with some dermacolor/dermablend/other brand of camouflage concealer (not regular concealer, it doesn't contain enough pigment). You'll want at least 2, 3 or more colours depending on the colours in your tattoo. If you want to find a supplier in the UK let me know where I get mine from!

You'll need to start off with a bright orange which you paint over the black sections/outlines only (yes, orange, really!) and set with powder. If you've got other strong colours in the tattoo you need to cover them with their opposite on the colour wheel (so red would be covered with green, blue covered with orange, purple covered with yellow etc). Paint over each strong colour in a thin layer as needed, powdering to set between colours/layers. Now mix a couple of flesh tones to match your skin colour and slowly layer it over the tattoo powdering between layers and blending the edges away as best you can.

If you've managed to do it successfully you'll now be left with a patch of skin which looks too flat and perfect so it stands out like a sore thumb. To do a truly successful cover up job you now need to trick the eye into ignoring the make up. In reality no one has perfectly flat, even toned skin, so grab yourself an eye pencil and draw on a freckle or two. It's those kinds of little imperfections that make skin look real.

The most important step though is without a doubt the orange colour to cover areas of black. Anyone who has ever tried to cover a tattoo with concealer will know just how difficult it is to hide the outlines and it's because the black ink actually contains a lot of blue pigment. It always seems that no matter ho think a layer of makeup you cover it with the black always shows through eventually. So don't skip the orange (a pinky mauve can be used in a pinch, but orange is more effective)!

 

[sambycat]

A good make up artist will be able to do it for you or you can attempt it yourself. They key is to make it a multi step process, it's incredibly unlikely that you'll be able to cover a tattoo with an off the shelf, single colour concealer and be done with it! I'll post a quick step by step here for those who want to try it themselves.

Arm yourself with some dermacolor/dermablend/other brand of camouflage concealer (not regular concealer, it doesn't contain enough pigment). You'll want at least 2, 3 or more colours depending on the colours in your tattoo. If you want to find a supplier in the UK let me know where I get mine from!

You'll need to start off with a bright orange which you paint over the black sections/outlines only (yes, orange, really!) and set with powder. If you've got other strong colours in the tattoo you need to cover them with their opposite on the colour wheel (so red would be covered with green, blue covered with orange, purple covered with yellow etc). Paint over each strong colour in a thin layer as needed, powdering to set between colours/layers. Now mix a couple of flesh tones to match your skin colour and slowly layer it over the tattoo powdering between layers and blending the edges away as best you can.

If you've managed to do it successfully you'll now be left with a patch of skin which looks too flat and perfect so it stands out like a sore thumb. To do a truly successful cover up job you now need to trick the eye into ignoring the make up. In reality no one has perfectly flat, even toned skin, so grab yourself an eye pencil and draw on a freckle or two. It's those kinds of little imperfections that make skin look real.

The most important step though is without a doubt the orange colour to cover areas of black. Anyone who has ever tried to cover a tattoo with concealer will know just how difficult it is to hide the outlines and it's because the black ink actually contains a lot of blue pigment. It always seems that no matter ho think a layer of makeup you cover it with the black always shows through eventually. So don't skip the orange (a pinky mauve can be used in a pinch, but orange is more effective)!

i just had to post that this is an AWESOME make up lesson post! great explanation!! heh!

so i second the above and i am sure a discussion with your photographer can lead them to help out with a little photo shop magice if anything does peek through!

 

[person]

So many brides and bridesmaids today have tattoos; some of them want to cover them up for the big day, others actually want to show them.

If you want to cover them (but need the bare arms and shoulders for the wedding day), then since so many brides and bridesmaids have tattoos, the professional make up artist is very likely to know exactly what to do.

 

[leonix8238]

Another vote for dermablend. I know QVC in the UK used to sell it at a good price, not sure if they still do though.

 

[CityGirlLost]

Wow, what a great makeup lesson! I knew about using green to cover red from those high school days of over-zealous boyfriends who like to leave love bites (soooo embarrassing!) but I didn't know about orange over black tattoo lines!

 

[bellaminnie]

i had the same problem. i was considering getting my tattoo covered but ended up not having it done. i sent pictures of my tattoo to Beaute Speciale and to Lejeune Artistry. They will be able to tell you from the photo if they can cover it and how much coverage you will have. i have fair skin and my tattoo is pretty dark so it wasn't going to work for me. also they were concerned about the makeup getting on my dress. i just decided not to bother getting it covered since i'd be paying to only get it partially covered.

 

[rosworms]

is it tacky if i want my tattoo showing? it's nothing extravagent... it's just the words "expecto patronum".

 

[LittleMissMagic]

is it tacky if i want my tattoo showing? it's nothing extravagent... it's just the words "expecto patronum".

Absolutely not! It's all personal preference. If you want to bear it on the big day, that's great. But if you want it covered, that can be achieved, too!

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Stage make-up with a sealer sprayed over it and you'll be fine.

 

[mom2aidanNpiper]

I agree with the PP to send a photo to your makeup artist ahead of time and see what can be done. Depending on size, darkness of ink, skin color, etc you will get varying results. They will be able to tell you

I have 6 tattoos (4, possibly 5 will be visible in my dress). I brought up to my fiance that I might look into covering them and he hated the idea! He doesn't have any, and is a little more straight laced than I am so I thought he might want them gone for our big day. He told me that he fell in love with me, tattoos and all and they are part of me

So I decided not to cover them. Good luck!!