A makeup artist for film and television reveals the best tattoo cover-up makeup that’s waterproof, plus other pro tips for concealing ink.
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When you’re getting a tattoo, it’s hard to imagine there will ever be a day when you’ll want to cover it up. But if an occasion does wind up calling for it, there are ways to temporarily disguise your tattoos on your own. To borrow a few tricks from the pros, Elite Daily spoke with Rebecca Wachtel, a makeup artist who specializes in covering up (and sometimes even creating) actors’ tattoos for film and television. According to Wachtel, the best tattoo cover-up makeup that’s waterproof will be pigmented enough to camouflage black ink and durable enough so that it doesn’t rub off or wear away throughout the day. “Most tattoos are black, and that black ink has a blue undertone, so you need to block that out first with an orange-tone concealer,” Wachtel says of the importance of color-correcting. “The orange should be within the tone of your skin so that you can blend it out with a product that matches your skin tone,” she adds.
Rebecca Wachtel is a makeup artist for film and television who has more than 20 years of professional experience. Her work includes special effects and prosthetics for films and television series like Letters From Iwo Jima and Truth Be Told, as well as plenty of tattoo cover-up for Pretty Little Liars and the upcoming series, Daisy Jones & The Six.
Even with waterproof makeup, Wachtel says that what she uses on set tends to differ from what’s available for at-home use, so it may require a bit of trial and error until you find something that works for you. “For people that are wanting to cover their tattoos for daily life, it’s tricky because if you have a tattoo on your wrist, for example, regular cream concealers and foundations will rub off really fast on clothing,” says Wachtel, who often reaches for products from Skin Illustrator, EBA, or Temptu’s Dura Pro Palettes when on set.
