Plan all your design work carefully before application. Sketch every design idea until you have a final image ready for application.
Select a design approximately 50 percent larger than the tattoo you wish to cover up. This will draw attention away from the previous tattoo and incorporate its elements into the new design.
Choose a detailed design into which you can incorporate elements of the old tattoo.
Work with colors similar to those in the previous tattoo to blend the previous design with the new one.
Set a focal point for the new design away from the focal point of the previous one. This will draw the eye away from the old design and unify the old and new designs.
Work on a tattoo that has fully healed without severe scarring. Scars can outline the tattoo you wish to cover up and decrease the effectiveness of the new design.
Apply a transfer of the new design to the skin.
Ink the outline of the new design.
Ink the details of the new design. Pay close attention to the points where the old tattoo meets the new one. Blend these points carefully to merge both images into one.
Incorporate elements of the original design into the new design. For example, words like "Winona" can become "Wino" or small hearts can become bats.
Color in the new focal point with bright colors. This will draw the eye away from the old focal point.
Cover bright colors of the old design with dark colors.
Blend the darkest colors of the old design with matching colors in the new design.