Crepey skin can be tattooed, with some caveats. Because crepey skin occurs where the skin has lost collagen and elastin, it's looser and saggy. Tattooing loose skin can be tricky because the image will stretch along with the skin, so that portrait of a mermaid may end up looking like an eel-lady.
Our skin becomes thinner as we age and its elasticity also reduces. The more exposure you've had to the sun over the years, the thinner your skin may become, and this can affect how painful it is to get a tattoo. Aim for your stronger or fattier areas of your body to help ease any discomfort.
There is a myth out there that old people can't get new tattoos, and it simply isn't true.
Places like your stomach and legs may gain weight as you get older or shrink as you get back in shape. This may distort your ink too. The best places to put your tattoo are areas that don't see as much light, friction, or stretching. These areas are your chest, your back, your shoulders, and your upper arm.
Plus, as new tissue forms, it looks a whole lot smoother, too… Fine lines, wrinkles, pores, acne scars, even stretch marks – they'll fade significantly, and in some cases will just go.
Amongst the factors already mentioned, you may also experience some tightness in the skin around your tattoo – this is due to the skin becoming drier than normal as it heals and is normal. Applying lotion if the skin becomes very tight can lessen the problem somewhat.
Natural aging of the skin may slightly alter the appearance of a tattoo. Aged skin is thinner, looser and less elastic. The surface is more dry and sensitive and needs more moisturization and care.
The good news is you're never too old to be inked and nowadays, tattoos have moved past many of their negative associations and are widely accepted.
The best tattoo palettes are black or greyscale, according to Villani. "You can never go wrong with black and greyscale tattoos," he says. "Black ink lasts better than any color ever will [...] Bright and vibrant colors look great at first, but tend to fade the quickest.
Otherwise, there's no reason for any healthy individual, be you from the Baby Boomer generation of Generation X, to miss out on getting inked. Whether you're 40, 60, or 80 (kudos!) getting your first tattoo later in life can be a great way to celebrate your life, so don't hesitate any longer.
If you have a medical problem such as heart disease, allergies, diabetes, skin problems like eczema or psoriasis, a weak immune system, or a bleeding problem, talk to your doctor before getting a tattoo. Also, if you get keloids (an overgrowth of scar tissue) you probably should not get a tattoo.
Nationally, the minimum age requirement in the United States is 18. That means anyone who is 18 or older can be tattooed without parental consent.
Moisturizing your skin is always important, but it's especially essential to get it supple and soft leading up to your tattoo appointment. "Dry, flaky skin can present considerable issues for a tattoo artist and negatively impact the final outcome," says Asami, who honed her craft in Kyoto, Japan, and New York City.
Shoulders and Calves:
These areas are great in that they avoid many of the problems with aging like stretching and wrinkles. If you get pregnant, your shoulder tattoo will be just fine. These are other locations that are generally easy to cover from the sun and others, but can also be shown off nicely.
Lighter inks like yellows, reds, oranges, whites, and any pastel tones tend to fade a bit more quickly than darker inks. Some white inks and pastel inks have trouble lasting longer than five years. Watercolor tattoos also tend to fade faster as the ink is lightly colored and very fine.
With proper care and maintenance, fine line tattoos can age well and maintain their sharpness over time. However, as with all tattoos, the aging process is influenced by factors such as the quality of the ink, placement on the body, exposure to sunlight, and individual skin type.
The least painful places for a woman to get a tattoo are areas with less nerve endings and thicker skin like the outside of your shoulders or the outside of your upper thighs.
The most painful places to get a tattoo are areas that have less muscle, lots of nerve endings, minimal fat, thin skin, and are close to bone. This includes obvious spots like your head, chest & rib cage, stomach, nipples, face, ears, neck, groin, and armpits.
Try a cold compress. As noted above, with aging our skin becomes more prone to bruising and color bleeding. To keep your tat intact, try this trick. After prepping your skin and right before tattooing, ask your artist to place a cold, damp paper towel or ice on the area.
Tattooing older skin means working with a softer, less elastic material that's far more prone to bruising. Choose a design that will work with you — and your skin: Fragile skin also means that the kind of intricate designs younger people get are far more difficult to do on seniors.
According to Forte, "It really varies from person to person, but typically it feels the same as when you first got the tattoo. That said, touch-ups usually take less time than the original design, so it's a shorter span of time to “feel the needle."' Mariah agrees: "It will only hurt as much as your regular tattoo.
Despite the reduced pain, getting a tattoo on an area of fat can also have some downsides. In areas with a lot of fat, the skin can be more loose and bouncy, which can make it more difficult for the tattoo artist to achieve a precise, clean line.