If you're planning your first tattoo or wanting to fill a freckled piece of skin you might be wondering if a tattoo can cover your freckles. Tattoo artist Em Gormley gives us the good news we've been wanting to hear: “Yes you can tattoo over freckles.”
In theory you can certainly tattoo over these common types of skin growth that are caused by clusters of pigmented cells. Most people have 10 to 40 moles, so there is certainly nothing odd about them and most people end up tattooing over them without giving it any thought.
If you are planning to get a tattoo, it's recommended that you do not tattoo over or too close to any existing moles or sun spots.
Freckle Tattoo Risks
These mainly include allergic reactions and infections. Allergic reactions can happen in response to the pigments, the tattoo needle, or an aftercare product. Permanent makeup pigments are formulated in a way that lets the body metabolize them with minimal problems, but everyone's system is unique.
Changes in moles can be the first clue of melanoma and other forms of skin cancer. Two dermatologists say they don't recommend tattooing over moles, especially with blue or black ink. Tattooing one millimeter around the mole helps you notice any growth that could warrant a checkup.
Moles absorb ink differently
The texture of a mole is different from normal skin, and some artists have noted that if you try to tattoo over a mole it can absorb ink much quicker than the rest of the skin. This can lead to an area of oversaturation, which could impact the design as a whole.
Moles strangely consume ink differently, unlike the skin. Some artists say that it collects far too much ink far too fast, resulting in excessive color effects. If your tattoo does not look good, their business reputation may be at risk; that's why most of them refuse to tattoo over a mole.
PMU pigments are a safer choice, as they heal into more natural shades and have a more consistent fade over the years, but an experienced tattoo artist can mix tattoo inks to look just as natural.
There are two kinds of spots that people refer to as freckles, ephelides and solar lentigines. The former will go away with age, and usually fade on their own during the winter. The latter is actually sunspots, and they become more prominent with age. They do not fade with time.
Choosing the PicoWay laser to remove your tattoo will safely allow you to keep your underlying freckles and will easily correct your skin and remove the unsightly larger age spots and sun spots you may not want.
Now we know that your freckles won't affect your tattoos you can start thinking about the design. Your freckles shouldn't really influence the tattoo design you want or choose. However, if you want your freckles to be totally covered you may want to choose darker inks or black work.
Locations like the lips, hands, foot, and groin area experience more pain because they have more nerve endings. Areas with thin skin and near the bone also feel more pain than fleshy parts of the body.
The most painful spots to get a tattoo are your ribs, spine, fingers, and shins. The least painful spots to get a tattoo are your forearms, stomach, and outer thighs.
Freckles and moles are different in several ways: Moles may be flat or raised, while freckles are flat. Freckles are usually brown in colour, moles can be brown, black, pink, the same colour as the surrounding skin, and even blue or grey. Moles are genetically determined, and they can grow on any part of the body.
If you're curious about moles, you're also likely curious about the difference between a mole and a beauty mark. In truth, a mole and a beauty mark are the same thing. However, because certain placements of moles can add to a person's appearance, they've been coined as beauty marks instead.
Like moles, the colour associated with freckles is due to the presence of melanin that is formed in melanocytes that has appeared or darkened with sun exposure. Moles appear when skin cells form a cluster. Freckles have a normal number of pigment-producing cells and cannot turn into moles.
Freckles are an inherited feature and although not considered sun damage, they do occur as a result of sun exposure. Freckles are typically first noticed on children, especially those with fair skin and red hair. When UV rays hit your skin, freckles develop from an increase in dark pigments called melanin.
Sun exposure is a primary cause of both freckles and age spots. Age spots are typically larger than freckles, are more clearly defined, and tend to appear in older adults. While freckles are more widespread on people with light-colored hair and skin, age spots develop on people with a wider range of complexions.
"Freckle tattooing is meant to look very natural and undetectable. A random scattering and variety of tonal differences are what makes this procedure look the most realistic, and it should only be done by a trained professional and artist who specializes in natural-looking freckle tattooing."
Freckle tattoos aren't terribly painful
If you can't handle tattoo-related physical torment, you might also want to avoid getting inked on your elbows, kneecaps, neck, or over your spine. Your face also isn't exactly a painless place either, however, faux freckles are a little different than a typical tattoo.
Before getting a freckle tattoo there are a few preparation steps that you should take. These include avoiding sun exposure, alcohol and certain medications that can thin the skin or thin the blood and cause more bleeding and poor pigment retention (Accutane, Aspirin, NSAIDS, Ibuprofen, fish oil, etc).
Not only does it compromise the surface of your skin and prevent an artist from working on an ideal canvas, the process can spread bacteria to other parts of the skin and/or worsen existing breakouts. For this reason even small and less obvious (no discoloration or clear infection) breakouts call for rescheduling.
A Professional Dilemma
These professionals know that highly visible tattoos, such as on the hand and face, can cause the wearer to become the subject of ridicule or impede the chances of finding employment.
If it has been tattooed over with any kind of pigment, it will hinder your ability to spot any suspicious changes. Not to mention that ink can mimic the spread of metastatic melanoma by seeping into underlying tissues, according to the Harvard Health Blog. 2 For your safety, do not tattoo over a mole.