Tattoos

lindaatno9

How about contacting the local health authority for make up artists who cover such things like birth marks?

Personally speaking, there are loads of ladies nowadays with tattoos and I don't think it should restrict the type of gown you are after.

http://www.camouflageskin.com/

HTH xxx

LittleMissAspie

I don't really understand the problem. Do you still like the tattoo? If so, why would you want to hide it? It seems silly to go through laser removal just for one day, when you are otherwise happy with the tattoo.

If you don't actually like the tattoo anymore then that's different.

paulies_nixie

Thanks for the replys

I'm umming and ahhing about having this tattoo removed anyway - or covered up. It's a bit... I dunno, I guess it belongs on a younger me

I have 2 others, one of which is really very prominent on my arm and I didnt even consider the possibility of covering that. I guess that tells me something.

I guess in my head I have this innocent maiden sort of idea - just doesnt fit with sleepy leopard cub who's a bit fuzzy round the edges cos hes more than 10 years old

off to look at your suggestions Thanks

Toothsmith

paulies_nixie wrote: »

Yes I know this is the time - the time when mummy said "You'll regret that when you're older"
Yes Mummy, you win, it will look pants in a strapless dress!

I have a leopard on my shoulder - a very cute baby leopard falling asleep in a branch.
Not the most ideal thing to match with the many beautiful dresses I've been browsing at.
So before I go tooooo far and fall in love with something backless or strappy, whats the chances of a decent coverup job on a tattoo as big as my hand?

Or am I looking at dresses with high back and sleeves?

I've tried to cover it with scar makeup before for a posh do I went to. Worked well but the dress showed half the tat, and where the edge of the dress was wore off the make up. Not only could you see the tat then but it stained the dress.

How good is laser tattoo removal these days? Does it leave a scar? (Do I want to get rid of him? he's been there since I was 18!)

Any ideas, thoughts, opinions?
Feel free to tell my Mummy was right, dagnabit! :eek:

OK - First of all, I should declare an interest here.

I have recently bought myself a laser, and I am developing a laser tattoo removal service.

I won't be so cheeky as to post a link on here - but if anyone wants details, then feel free to PM me.

Laser removal isn't perfect, in that it doesn't work on all colours. It will only remove pigments that absorb the particular light frequency the laser emitts. (Pigment absorbing different light frequencies is why we see colours as different).

The first lasers to be used for removing tattoos were ruby lasers. These were good for green colours (as the light was red) and the darker the colour the better. They also did black well (black absorbs all light frequencies). They couldn't do red, and they couldn't do blue.

The nature of the early ruby lasers meant that tissue damage was often quite a problem as well. They also couldn't be used on darker skinned people.

Nowadays, lasers have a q-switch mechanism, which allows a very intense pulse of light to be emitted in a very short (nanoseconds) burst. This zaps the pigment with very little tissue damage.

Probably the most versatile laser for tattoo removal is the Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. These are dual-frequency lasers and work on Black, Darker blues, red and will fade darker greens, but not really remove it.

Paler pastle colours are difficult, and yellow cannot be removed by laser - although these lighter colours tend to fade more quickly than darker colours naturally (especially with a bit of sun exposure).

Scarring shouldn't happen these days with laser removal. Some people do scar more easily than others, and hyperpigmentation, or hypopigmentation might occur (That's where the area goes darker than the surrounding skin, or lighter than the surrounding skin, and won't tan for a few months afterwards. These effects are rarely permanent.

For larger tattoos particularly, a test patch will (or should) be done which will show up any potential problems before a large area is treated.

The best responding tattoos are 5+years old (The older the better) and made up of blacks, reds and dark blues (or greens if it's a ruby laser). Tattoos on nice meaty areas like the arms, legs or body are best. Fingers, hands, ankles and feet are nightmares!

This is because all the laser does is break up the ink particles - it's then down to the bodies immune system to flush it all away. The better the blood supply, the better a tattoo will be removed. Also, the fitter the patient, and the healthier the immune system, the better the tattoo will fade.

The number of sessions needed will vary considerably depending on age, colour, site, health, depth and density of ink. But it will take several visits - I would say about 10 is a good number to have in mind. Some places charge by the session, some by the square inch. In general, I would say those that charge by the session would give better value.

Sessions should have a gap of 6-12 weeks in between depending on the site to give the body a chance to get rid of all the ink it can before the next session.

If you go for laser removal, make sure the clinic you're going to is registered with the Quality Care Commission. This used to be called the Healthcare Commission, and so some places might quote this on their websites. You can search the Care Quality Commission website for the clinic you've chosen though, to check it's there.

As a final warning - DON'T try the removal creams, abrasion systems or the one where bleach/acid is injected under your skin by tattoo needles.

The creams are - at best - useless. The acid injected under the skin WILL scar, as will abrasive techniques.

Sorry for the long post - but I hope it's helpful.

o_t_e

You could use this as one of you're criteria for hiring a photographer - get them to take a sample photo of you in a strapless top and show that they can remove the tattoo from the final image. Basically they'll draw round the outline of the tattoo and clone some nearby skin over the tattoo, it's not so much about air brushing.

paulies_nixie

oohhh good plan.

There's a lady photographer we like here - I know she does some computer jiggerypokery. (is that a word?) mebbe she could do it??

karen_newcastle

Hi I am a photographer and have shot lots of wedding where the bride and bridesmaids) were tattoo'd. I've never been asked to photoshop them out and I am so pleased! It's a time consuming job and I would expect photographer to charge you extra for the time it takes to remove these from the images. Editing photos takes many hours and quite often many days and the added time for removing tattoos would need to be compensated for IMO.

paulies_nixie

of course I'd pay the extra if I asked her to do that. I wouldn't expect her to do it for free.

it's only a option at this point.

Currently I'm thinking trying the makeup route again

jenhug

try popping into your local tattoo shop, sometimes they can bleed the tattoo out I think they call it that, might be worth a try before the laser treatment.

DKLS

karen_newcastle wrote: »

Hi I am a photographer and have shot lots of wedding where the bride and bridesmaids) were tattoo'd. I've never been asked to photoshop them out and I am so pleased! It's a time consuming job and I would expect photographer to charge you extra for the time it takes to remove these from the images. Editing photos takes many hours and quite often many days and the added time for removing tattoos would need to be compensated for IMO.

Its not that hard, if you have decent photoshop post production skills, I could edit out a tatt depending on location in about 10mins or less.
I agree it should be billable, but I would reckon 10-15mins per image is adequate.