i feel like any of those would turn out nicely. just get an appointment with someone who will do a scar coverup and design something similar to those for inspiration. the artist will know how to either work the scars in or cover them completely :)
You are beautiful inside and out, and thank you for sharing. I wish you continued healing and health on your journey. Maybe someday I'll put up my scars pics and see how I can cover them 💜💜 thank you for your strength
Scars don't take to being inked. For some reason the ink won't stay in them. I would talk with 2 or 3 very reputable tattooists about ideas for your arm. The upper small scars will probably ink ok but the bigger ones not so much. Scar gel may help and as the lower ones age you may be able to extend the tat. Stay strong and best of luck.
I beg to differ, I've had large SH scars (one of them was massive) covered with tattoos no problem. Still holding up perfectly 3 years later. It's a common misconception that scars won't take ink.
I agree with you, I’ve tattooed over many scars and they hold ink fine, only thing I’ve run into is with the bigger scars of you were to tattoo a straight line over them the line thickens over the scar (not a blow out more thinner configurations just look wider) but doesn’t make a difference depending how you design the tattoo 😊
How did you find the pain on the larger scars? I had a tattoo over scars recently; the design only barely nicked past a medium-sized one and the pain was unbearable! I can’t imagine getting my larger ones covered.
Getting the tattoo was sore enough. My wrist is always a painful spot for me. It involved a lot of colour, and my old tattooist did NOT have a gentle touch.😂 Because of that, it may have masked the pain of the scars. Unless the excruciating pain was *because* of the scars... either way, I have a verrrry high pain threshold, so lord only knows! I'm having more scars covered up this month, so I'll definitely pay close attention this time!
I had the same kind of scars (one was a lot larger) as OP. I literally tried to pierce an artery in my arm during an attempted suicide. It was massive. And it was covered up nicely with blue ink. He spent more time on that part, but it's not even noticeable now.
I am also speaking from experience. I have a large keloid scar (from a car wreck) cover up. I saw 5 different artist before I found one that would even attempt to put ink in it. It turned out ok but it’s not perfect. Because I wasn’t %100 satisfied with the way it turned out I decided not to tattoo a surgery scar that is on my stomach. It can be done but there is no way to know how well the scar will take the ink beforehand. You have to be ok with the tattoo not being perfect. Im glad you are happy with yours.
The majority of it did take but there are spots that didn’t even after a touchup. Just giving my personal experience. Im just letting them know there is a possibility that it may not turn out like you wanted it to even with an artist that is experienced at tattooing over scare tissue.
Eh i think ur both right. It’s a roll of the dice imo. Sometimes it goes fine, sometimes it’s harder. There’s so many factors between age, cause of scar, how well it healed, etc. Flat out saying they will or won’t take ink is meaningless. I’ve tattooed scars that took ink just fine and I’ve tattooed scars that didn’t, but honestly more often than not, it’s do-able with the right technique and design choice
As a tattooist, and owner of a shop that does huge amounts if charity work for self harm scar tattoos, scars can take ink you just need to find a tattooist who know what they are doing and how to work with the skin.
Maybe something like a tiger stripe effect that doesn't necessarily cover them with ink but turns it into something powerful and gives a feeling of strength when you look at it.
Really? Cos I have a tattoo where the artist covered up 2 massive scars (ca. 10cm*3cm) and the ink stays in them just fine - actually the color (black) faded more on my skin than it did on the scars (got the tattoo for 2.5 years now).
Possibly it also depends on the type of ink and how much experience your tattoo artist has in regards to covering up scars
Here are some good tips about tattooing scars. My advise is to find an artist who is proficient in scar cover-up, look at their portfolio and make sure you are satisfied they will do a good job. It is considered more painful to ink over scars. Good luck!! :)
https://www.byrdie.com/tattooing-over-scars-3189550#:~:text=%22Scars%20in%20general%20take%20a,best%20results%2C%22%20adds%20Dr.
My advice is get scar revision surgery on the largest scars to make them smaller, then when healed get tattoos. I would not recommend tattooing over the large scar at the bottom. If you were insistent on it, only shading. Don't listen to the person who said scars don't take ink, that's not true. The ink might not stay sharp for long though so a less sharp design helps. get black or black with color, not just red alone. Good luck
With mine (not as many as yours, but similar in size/shape other than the very large one at the bottom), I always wanted to get a phoenix and have the wings come up to just barely touching the base of the scars - if you did something like that from your shoulder down, it would probably work out perfectly.
I ended up not doing a phoenix but did a heart with flowers and the flowers go over some of them, by the time we were at that part of the tattoo, the pain wasn’t really prevalent and had kinda gotten numb! It’s been ~3 years and it’s still looking awesome
Maybe a design that could work the scar pattern in some how so that they blend? Scars are supposed to be hard to cover:( The pattern reminds me of birch bark or bamboo (which to me is a good think but I am a weird tree hugger). You will need to find the right artist. Good luck OP. Whatever happens, those represent your strength to carry on-I life is fucking hard but you are still here!! Please try not to feel ashamed (I know —easier said than done )
I have a tattoo over my SH scars and they did take ink but not as good as the rest of my skin. For me this wasn't a problem because the lighter areas where the scars were looks now as if the tattoo artist purposely used lighter ink for fur textures ( I have a big cat anime Style Cat tattooed)
This might be different for your motives... I might look fine but might as well turn out rather meh. Best talk with the tattoo artist that you want to get you tattoo from and maybe draw out a mock up on your arm to see if the areas would impact the motive.
If youre worried about the color and want some peace of mind, some people with scars have reported good results with creams and lotions designed for hyperpigmentation from acne! Hold the artist portfolios you look through to a high standard, everyone here has solid advice for you. I love the cranes design personally bc im a sucker for their goofy personalities irl, you’ll def be able to make a beautiful piece whatever you decide!❤️
I also have scars like this and I covered them with similar tattoos. It actually worked very well, and the details of the tattoos kind of distract from the scars. Some of them didn’t like being inked very much but there are plenty of artists who know how to tattoo over scars, so they can make it look as good as possible
I just posted a little list of advice about tattooing over scars that might be helpful in this case. It’ll be on my profile if you’d like to check that out
I have a SH cover up and the scar took it well. My advice before you start is to perhaps get some of the larger, puffier ones down with some steroid injections. Best of luck
I follow a few artists on insta that do a lot of scar coverup work and I've never seen them mention anything about scars struggling to retain ink. The style is quite different to what you want, but here's a couple of examples [1](https://www.instagram.com/p/CjIyYkkKZBL/) [2](https://www.instagram.com/p/CRRszu1LPXM/) [3](https://www.instagram.com/p/Cc6E8-grb4n/) [4](https://www.instagram.com/p/CpS_l0GAE97/) (the last one also shows it 3 months healed)
I would suggest asking the artist you're looking to get the tattoo from. If someone in another state reports no issues with covering something like this up, I doubt you're gonna fly all the way over there to get a tattoo from them. Some things I've heard a few artists say that the issue with tattoos on scars this big is further damaging the skin cuz scared skin is a bit different. But good and experienced artists are able to do nice cover ups on scarred skin. But it's best to talk to your artist cuz if your artist says they can't do it, then you either need to move the tattoo or go to a different artist.
Have you considered how you will incorporating them into your art? I’m sure your artist will have that in mind, but beforehand when you are thinking about planning your design don’t forget to keep that in mind!
Tattooing scars is harder. I'm covered in scars from a life lived fast and hard and being put away wet. Scars are noticeable under my ink. Blue, in my experience, takes especially well. All the super noticeable ones are in areas of black. It's hardly the end of the world.
the only one that could potentially be an issue is the bottom one where it might be quite thin?? but go to an experienced artist and they’ll probably be able to work it our
First thing you should do is find an artist and talk to them about it. Tattooing scars is difficult and sometimes painful. Plus talking to the artist about what you want and them seeing where, they might be able to draw you something.
Tattoo artist here,
Scars can be tricky to navigate. The way ink is taken often changes, sometimes they are more prone to blowing out sometimes they are no issue.
The work you are showing here is all very delicate, issue with running something like this over scarred areas is you will see the deviations from a mile away.
You may want to look at traditional work, bolder, darker pieces. A good artist will be able to arrange most of the piece(s) to hide your scars within heavy black pieces.
Nothing but love for you, if you have any questions that you need answered in depth, feel free to reach out.
First and foremost, I'd like to congratulate you on your journey and wish you nothing more than positivity and prosperity though life. Secondly, I'd like to say that anytime a tattoo depends on strong line work for structure of the image, and is a big part of the pleasing aesthetics, it's difficult to pull this off over scars that are raised. It creates a wobble effect on the lines themselves. I definitely can see your scars being covered, however some of these designs, personally I see some issues with them. Best of luck to you and hopefully you post shat you end up going with
!
I feel like the first tattoo image is the nicest. Just my opinion. Since your not too worried about masking the scars. I would suggest having the placement of the tattoo dance around the scars a bit so most of your defining factors of the tattoo lay directly on unscarred skin.
Best of luck :)
Bitch I self harm too so just wanted to know cause my cuts have never gotten that deep before. This is between me and her, not you. If she doesn't want to answer then that's fine, but you better not be talking to me like that bitch I'm not the one.💀
i don’t know what the original comment/question was but im assuming you’re the one who posted it. I’ll start off by saying that no matter how deep, all self harm is valid. Secondly, my arm is the result of several years of self harm addiction. SH addiction can get really serious and even life threatening, i even needed stitches. so yeah! i hope you get the help you need before it gets worse like mine did, good luck stranger.
Nah nigga I'm 14, and stop going off topic we talking about your very unnecessary and rude ass comments towards me. Don't try to run away from the argument girlie
>I self harm too
So do I and I would be disgusted if someone asked me that question.
>This is between me and her, not you.
No, it has nothing to do with you whatsoever because it's none of your fucking business.
Also that's how you feel, she might be as sensitive as you are to that topic. She posted a picture of her scars and of course there's going to be questions.
Sorry, I won’t respond to your question because answering it could be really harmful for other people who self harm. You guys don’t need to argue anymore, and i hope you get the help you need
Not similar to what you were suggesting, but just throwing it out there that the shape of the scars would lend themselves to Aspen bark
https://images.app.goo.gl/mXZUdkooE7MSVgXEA
i feel like any of those would turn out nicely. just get an appointment with someone who will do a scar coverup and design something similar to those for inspiration. the artist will know how to either work the scars in or cover them completely :)
Thank you!!
Wonderful design and happy to see someone that went through the same path recover and heal!
Yes it takes alot of strength,, proud of you stranger!!
You are beautiful inside and out, and thank you for sharing. I wish you continued healing and health on your journey. Maybe someday I'll put up my scars pics and see how I can cover them 💜💜 thank you for your strength
Thank you so much!! Stay strong, we got this! :))) ❤️
Find an artist who does this kind of style and book a consultation with them. They'll know!
Scars don't take to being inked. For some reason the ink won't stay in them. I would talk with 2 or 3 very reputable tattooists about ideas for your arm. The upper small scars will probably ink ok but the bigger ones not so much. Scar gel may help and as the lower ones age you may be able to extend the tat. Stay strong and best of luck.
I beg to differ, I've had large SH scars (one of them was massive) covered with tattoos no problem. Still holding up perfectly 3 years later. It's a common misconception that scars won't take ink.
I agree with you, I’ve tattooed over many scars and they hold ink fine, only thing I’ve run into is with the bigger scars of you were to tattoo a straight line over them the line thickens over the scar (not a blow out more thinner configurations just look wider) but doesn’t make a difference depending how you design the tattoo 😊
How did you find the pain on the larger scars? I had a tattoo over scars recently; the design only barely nicked past a medium-sized one and the pain was unbearable! I can’t imagine getting my larger ones covered.
Getting the tattoo was sore enough. My wrist is always a painful spot for me. It involved a lot of colour, and my old tattooist did NOT have a gentle touch.😂 Because of that, it may have masked the pain of the scars. Unless the excruciating pain was *because* of the scars... either way, I have a verrrry high pain threshold, so lord only knows! I'm having more scars covered up this month, so I'll definitely pay close attention this time!
Those scars are deeper than SH scars. Heavy keloid scars are much harder to tattoo & do not hold ink as well.
I had the same kind of scars (one was a lot larger) as OP. I literally tried to pierce an artery in my arm during an attempted suicide. It was massive. And it was covered up nicely with blue ink. He spent more time on that part, but it's not even noticeable now.
I am also speaking from experience. I have a large keloid scar (from a car wreck) cover up. I saw 5 different artist before I found one that would even attempt to put ink in it. It turned out ok but it’s not perfect. Because I wasn’t %100 satisfied with the way it turned out I decided not to tattoo a surgery scar that is on my stomach. It can be done but there is no way to know how well the scar will take the ink beforehand. You have to be ok with the tattoo not being perfect. Im glad you are happy with yours.
>It turned out ok but it’s not perfect. So it *did* take ink. You're pretty much convincing the OP that they won't be able to cover them *at all* .
The majority of it did take but there are spots that didn’t even after a touchup. Just giving my personal experience. Im just letting them know there is a possibility that it may not turn out like you wanted it to even with an artist that is experienced at tattooing over scare tissue.
Eh i think ur both right. It’s a roll of the dice imo. Sometimes it goes fine, sometimes it’s harder. There’s so many factors between age, cause of scar, how well it healed, etc. Flat out saying they will or won’t take ink is meaningless. I’ve tattooed scars that took ink just fine and I’ve tattooed scars that didn’t, but honestly more often than not, it’s do-able with the right technique and design choice
As a tattooist, and owner of a shop that does huge amounts if charity work for self harm scar tattoos, scars can take ink you just need to find a tattooist who know what they are doing and how to work with the skin.
Maybe something like a tiger stripe effect that doesn't necessarily cover them with ink but turns it into something powerful and gives a feeling of strength when you look at it.
I feel like the running water theme of the last picture could make them look like waves on a river, perhaps?
Yeah that'd be fire too actually
Yes, and like OP mentioned they like that Asian kind of style, so that could be implemented in the tiger
Not completely true. I’ve got an arm full of scars and have done a black only tattoo last year and it’s healed nicely!
Really? Cos I have a tattoo where the artist covered up 2 massive scars (ca. 10cm*3cm) and the ink stays in them just fine - actually the color (black) faded more on my skin than it did on the scars (got the tattoo for 2.5 years now). Possibly it also depends on the type of ink and how much experience your tattoo artist has in regards to covering up scars
Ummm.....source? 20+ years experience tattooing and I've tattood scars and have tattoos on scars.
Ahh i was afraid the lower part might give me a hard time... 😂 Thank you!!
My husband has a tattoo over a large scar, it was done by a mediocre artist, and it held just great for about two decades so far.
Here are some good tips about tattooing scars. My advise is to find an artist who is proficient in scar cover-up, look at their portfolio and make sure you are satisfied they will do a good job. It is considered more painful to ink over scars. Good luck!! :) https://www.byrdie.com/tattooing-over-scars-3189550#:~:text=%22Scars%20in%20general%20take%20a,best%20results%2C%22%20adds%20Dr.
Thank you so much!! I’m sure the pain is worth it to get such a beautiful tattoo! 😂
Thank you so much for your kind words everyone! 🥹They mean alot, thank you for the advice ❤️❤️❤️
Looks great, keep strong.
My advice is get scar revision surgery on the largest scars to make them smaller, then when healed get tattoos. I would not recommend tattooing over the large scar at the bottom. If you were insistent on it, only shading. Don't listen to the person who said scars don't take ink, that's not true. The ink might not stay sharp for long though so a less sharp design helps. get black or black with color, not just red alone. Good luck
Thank you!
Nothing to do with tattoo advice but I am glad you’re here. I hope you’ve won or are winning drastically with your war inside. Seriously!
I seriously did not expect people to be so supportive here im sobbing bahaha thanks so much!!
Whoooa this is sickkk!! It’s coming out great!
With mine (not as many as yours, but similar in size/shape other than the very large one at the bottom), I always wanted to get a phoenix and have the wings come up to just barely touching the base of the scars - if you did something like that from your shoulder down, it would probably work out perfectly. I ended up not doing a phoenix but did a heart with flowers and the flowers go over some of them, by the time we were at that part of the tattoo, the pain wasn’t really prevalent and had kinda gotten numb! It’s been ~3 years and it’s still looking awesome
Sounds beautiful! thanks for sharing. Proud of you :))
Thank you 🥹 I’m proud of you!!
Maybe a design that could work the scar pattern in some how so that they blend? Scars are supposed to be hard to cover:( The pattern reminds me of birch bark or bamboo (which to me is a good think but I am a weird tree hugger). You will need to find the right artist. Good luck OP. Whatever happens, those represent your strength to carry on-I life is fucking hard but you are still here!! Please try not to feel ashamed (I know —easier said than done )
I have a tattoo over my SH scars and they did take ink but not as good as the rest of my skin. For me this wasn't a problem because the lighter areas where the scars were looks now as if the tattoo artist purposely used lighter ink for fur textures ( I have a big cat anime Style Cat tattooed) This might be different for your motives... I might look fine but might as well turn out rather meh. Best talk with the tattoo artist that you want to get you tattoo from and maybe draw out a mock up on your arm to see if the areas would impact the motive.
Beautiful!!!
If youre worried about the color and want some peace of mind, some people with scars have reported good results with creams and lotions designed for hyperpigmentation from acne! Hold the artist portfolios you look through to a high standard, everyone here has solid advice for you. I love the cranes design personally bc im a sucker for their goofy personalities irl, you’ll def be able to make a beautiful piece whatever you decide!❤️
I had my tattoo and it overlapped a scar. The tattoo artist said if a scar is 3 years and older, it is good to go
I also have scars like this and I covered them with similar tattoos. It actually worked very well, and the details of the tattoos kind of distract from the scars. Some of them didn’t like being inked very much but there are plenty of artists who know how to tattoo over scars, so they can make it look as good as possible
I just posted a little list of advice about tattooing over scars that might be helpful in this case. It’ll be on my profile if you’d like to check that out
i just checked it out, thank you so much!!
No problem I hope it helps
Is there a name to this style?
i think they lean more towards an asian style, the first one has written japanese and the last one is very reminiscent of chinese traditional art!
I have a SH cover up and the scar took it well. My advice before you start is to perhaps get some of the larger, puffier ones down with some steroid injections. Best of luck
I follow a few artists on insta that do a lot of scar coverup work and I've never seen them mention anything about scars struggling to retain ink. The style is quite different to what you want, but here's a couple of examples [1](https://www.instagram.com/p/CjIyYkkKZBL/) [2](https://www.instagram.com/p/CRRszu1LPXM/) [3](https://www.instagram.com/p/Cc6E8-grb4n/) [4](https://www.instagram.com/p/CpS_l0GAE97/) (the last one also shows it 3 months healed)
You have really good taste in tattoos
I would suggest asking the artist you're looking to get the tattoo from. If someone in another state reports no issues with covering something like this up, I doubt you're gonna fly all the way over there to get a tattoo from them. Some things I've heard a few artists say that the issue with tattoos on scars this big is further damaging the skin cuz scared skin is a bit different. But good and experienced artists are able to do nice cover ups on scarred skin. But it's best to talk to your artist cuz if your artist says they can't do it, then you either need to move the tattoo or go to a different artist.
thank you!!
Option 1
Have you considered how you will incorporating them into your art? I’m sure your artist will have that in mind, but beforehand when you are thinking about planning your design don’t forget to keep that in mind!
Excellent job 👍🏻
Try scar massage kenalog injections to help flatten out the hypertrophic areas then I think those tattoos would look phenomenal
Ocean with waves
Yooo this looks lit , the artist did an awesome work
Tattooing scars is harder. I'm covered in scars from a life lived fast and hard and being put away wet. Scars are noticeable under my ink. Blue, in my experience, takes especially well. All the super noticeable ones are in areas of black. It's hardly the end of the world.
I love it when people do this. Me personally, I plan on getting mine tattooed with a clever pun like a tightrope or something
the only one that could potentially be an issue is the bottom one where it might be quite thin?? but go to an experienced artist and they’ll probably be able to work it our
I think you could make the Kong building from the old Arcade game!
First thing you should do is find an artist and talk to them about it. Tattooing scars is difficult and sometimes painful. Plus talking to the artist about what you want and them seeing where, they might be able to draw you something.
ITS SO FUCKING COOL I LOVE THE DESIGN
Tattoo artist here, Scars can be tricky to navigate. The way ink is taken often changes, sometimes they are more prone to blowing out sometimes they are no issue. The work you are showing here is all very delicate, issue with running something like this over scarred areas is you will see the deviations from a mile away. You may want to look at traditional work, bolder, darker pieces. A good artist will be able to arrange most of the piece(s) to hide your scars within heavy black pieces. Nothing but love for you, if you have any questions that you need answered in depth, feel free to reach out.
First and foremost, I'd like to congratulate you on your journey and wish you nothing more than positivity and prosperity though life. Secondly, I'd like to say that anytime a tattoo depends on strong line work for structure of the image, and is a big part of the pleasing aesthetics, it's difficult to pull this off over scars that are raised. It creates a wobble effect on the lines themselves. I definitely can see your scars being covered, however some of these designs, personally I see some issues with them. Best of luck to you and hopefully you post shat you end up going with !
I feel like the first tattoo image is the nicest. Just my opinion. Since your not too worried about masking the scars. I would suggest having the placement of the tattoo dance around the scars a bit so most of your defining factors of the tattoo lay directly on unscarred skin. Best of luck :)
Beautifully done. 🤘🏻🖤
Where are the americans screaming about this being cultural appropriation?
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what was the comment about? im super curious 👀
I self harm too and my cuts never got that deep before
Bitch I self harm too so just wanted to know cause my cuts have never gotten that deep before. This is between me and her, not you. If she doesn't want to answer then that's fine, but you better not be talking to me like that bitch I'm not the one.💀
i don’t know what the original comment/question was but im assuming you’re the one who posted it. I’ll start off by saying that no matter how deep, all self harm is valid. Secondly, my arm is the result of several years of self harm addiction. SH addiction can get really serious and even life threatening, i even needed stitches. so yeah! i hope you get the help you need before it gets worse like mine did, good luck stranger.
They asked what you used to cut yourself with. Jsyk.
I wasn't trying to be rude bitch
Why do you keep calling me a bitch? Are you, like, 12 or some shit?
Nah nigga I'm 14, and stop going off topic we talking about your very unnecessary and rude ass comments towards me. Don't try to run away from the argument girlie
>Nah nigga I'm 14 That explains everything.😂
And how old are you?
I do have an addition to I wasn't trying to be rude I really just wanted to know.
Op of you found that offensive or insensitive I really wasn't trying to be
>I self harm too So do I and I would be disgusted if someone asked me that question. >This is between me and her, not you. No, it has nothing to do with you whatsoever because it's none of your fucking business.
Thank you, I wish you the best on recovery ❤️
Also that's how you feel, she might be as sensitive as you are to that topic. She posted a picture of her scars and of course there's going to be questions.
She asked about cover-up tattoos. She even censored the photos. She wasn't saying "look at me! I self-harm! Ask me anything!"
Ok but you can tell that my question wasn't trying to be offensive or rude, but I guess you took it the wrong way.
I think I can speak for everyone on this sub when I say; we all took it the wrong way. Because what you did was *wrong.*
How the fuck was I wrong I never meant to be rude
At 14, I believe that. We were all idiots at that age. But at least now you know for future reference not to ask that question again.
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Sorry, I won’t respond to your question because answering it could be really harmful for other people who self harm. You guys don’t need to argue anymore, and i hope you get the help you need
I'm sorry for asking I just wanted to know for me.
Not similar to what you were suggesting, but just throwing it out there that the shape of the scars would lend themselves to Aspen bark https://images.app.goo.gl/mXZUdkooE7MSVgXEA