An old name, a faded piece, a tattoo that blurred or just never came out right — most tattoos can be covered or fixed. At Candy Ink in Sunnyridge, East London, we design custom cover-ups and reworks that turn the tattoo you hide into one you’re proud of.
Cover-up or rework?
- Cover-up — a brand new design built over the old tattoo so it disappears into it.
- Rework — we keep your existing tattoo and improve it: sharper lines, more shading and depth, refreshed colour, better proportions, or extending it into something bigger.
Not sure which you need? Send us a photo and we’ll give you an honest recommendation.
How we design a cover-up
New ink doesn’t erase old ink, so a good cover-up works through clever design: the darkest parts of the new tattoo sit over the old lines, and textures like petals, feathers, fur, leaves and smoke break up the old shapes. Cover-ups are usually larger than the original and are always custom drawn over your tattoo.
Styles that hide old ink best include blackwork, neo-traditional, dense florals, animals and dark black & grey realism.
What can be covered?
- Easier: faded or older tattoos, thin lines, names and small text, light colour.
- Harder: solid black fills, thick tribal, heavy saturated colour, scarring, and tattoos with no room to grow.
Even tricky tattoos usually have a solution — it may mean going bigger or darker, or a few sessions of laser fading first. We’ll be upfront about what will give you the best result.
Get a free cover-up quote
- Open the quote form and choose Cover-Up / Rework.
- Upload a clear, well-lit photo of the old tattoo, taken straight on.
- Tell us roughly what you’d like instead (or that you’re open to ideas).
Frequently asked questions
Will the old tattoo show through?
A well-planned cover-up is designed so it doesn’t. Up close in some lights you may see a faint texture, but to everyone else it simply reads as a new tattoo.
Can you fix another artist’s work?
Yes — no judgement. Reworking and covering tattoos from elsewhere is a big part of cover-up work.
Do I need laser removal first?
Usually not. For very dark tattoos, a few sessions of laser fading can open up lighter or smaller design options — we’ll tell you if it’s worth it.