Tattoo over deep scars

[Summerflames]

Hi all,

I had surgery on my leg as a child and have always had deep ugly scars as a result.

I'm contemplating getting a tattoo over them.

Has anyone tattooed over a deep scar before? Not a regular "flat" scar but a deep indented scar? Did it hurt? Does it heal well. Have there been any issues with blowout or fading/healing incorrectly as opposed to regular skin.

Really hopeful for some advice here and obviously if I ever pluck up the courage to go for it I will find a reputable tattoo artist.

Thanks

Bump

Hello lovely!
Extensively tattooed here, I have a full leg sleeve, both arms blacked out, neck and throat, torso, full back piece, hands and palms.
My leg tattoo is over some deep indented scarring as is one of my blackout sleeves so I can give you some perspective hopefully, although unfortunately it differs from person to person and from skin to skin.
Pain will essentially be one extreme or the other- if the nerve cells died as a result of the scarring the area can essentially be numb, if not then it can be more painful than a regular tattoo. In this case I'd recommend tktx numbing cream for the area to make it more manageable.
Regarding bleeding out of the tattoo- less detailed designs on the area have much less likelihood of blowing out due to the scar tissue. I.e. traditional roses with thick linework may be a good option, a detailed realistic portrait with lots of fine linework may not.
Regarding how the tattoo will take in the scarred area- really this differs from person to person. Some scars accept the skin really well, others kick it out which can make it a longer process.
I would just advise finding a really experienced tattoo artist who has dealt with tattooing over scarring in the past and can give you the most tailored advice possible.
But I highly recommend- very therapeutic!

Thank you so much, this is a great response. I've messaged a few artists now, one of them I'm very impressed with and he has done pronounced scars before although mine are indented.

Am I okay to ask if your tattoos have disguised your scars? Or do they stand out? One of the artists said scars can look lighter than the rest of the tattoo. 25 years of hiding my legs is doing me in, especially in this heat so I just want it to look like if you didn't know I had scars you wouldn't even know about them under a tattoo

No problem at all!
So I would say it depends on what you cover them with. My leg is a full colour traditional Japanese piece and I have a very colourful crab over the top of the bulk of my scarring. As a result of the bright colours the scarring is almost totally unnoticeable unless you look super closely (which doesn't happen often!). The black out sleeve definitely did not disguise the scarring as block colour remains they are more or less as obvious as they were before bar a more consistent colour (although I knew this would be the case )
I would say to just keep in mind that a beautiful tattoo will be a great way to change your relationship with that part of yourself, that it will always be the first thing the attention is drawn to as opposed to the scarring itself and people will see the tattoo before they see the scarring but of course tattoos can't alter texture so that will always be the same as it is. Does that make any sense or am I blabbing?

Ohhh fab! It looks like maybe adding colour is a good option for me. I love really girly floral designs (cos I'm basic 🤣). You've been an absolute huge help to me so thank you and I'll definitely look into the numbing cream you mentioned cos if have got weird nerve endings after my surgery.

I'm glad I could be helpful good luck with it all and I'd love to know how it goes!! Xx

Thank you 😊😊😊

Omg, this thread is almost a year old. I didn't get a tattoo last year, life got in the way. But I have had numerous back and forth messages with a fabulous artist and went to see him last week for a consultation. I've given him ideas of what I like, he thinks my scarring will be easy to work with and has done multiple scar cover ups before.

And.... I'm now booked in with him for August. I'm hoping this is the last spring/summer I darent show my legs off, it's so damn annoying.

I googled loads of pics of scar cover ups and showed him what sort of thing I'm after so he's going to design some tatts for me that he thinks could work. I can't believe I'm doing this after all these years. Deposit is paid. I'll report back once I've had the tatt done. Only 3 months to go... ☺️

Wonderful, good luck!

Thank you 😁

Had my tattoo today! Absolutely thrilled with the result, you can't see the scars at all. Obviously needs time to heal now and its very tender but honestly im delighted. I will wear nice summer clothes again! I'm so happy I made this decision.