You can have laser hair removal with tattoos, but the laser goes around the design itself. A flash over a tattoo causes a burn and damages the design, so the specialist covers the tattoo and keeps a margin of one to one and a half centimetres from its edge. Hair around it is removed as usual, hair inside the design stays, and there is another method for that. Step by step: what happens on contact, how the laser works next to a tattoo, what to do with a fresh tattoo and in what order to plan laser and tattoo.
Why laser is not done over a tattoo
The laser looks for dark pigment. Fair skin has little pigment and most of it is in the hair, so the hair heats up and the skin around it stays calm. In a tattoo the pigment sits right in the skin, in a dense layer. A flash set for hair goes into the ink. The ink heats up instantly, and the skin with it.
The result can be like a flash on a fresh tan, only stronger: a burn, a blister, then a scab and a scar. Dermatology journals describe such cases, after laser and after IPL. The tattoo itself suffers too: the ink partly fades or bleeds, the outline goes blurry. That is why laser is not used over any tattoo, dark or coloured.
Sources: Int J Dermatol 2006: tattoo burn after laser hair removal (PubMed), Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed 2013: burn within a tattoo after IPL (PubMed)
What happens if the flash hits the tattoo
Even one accidental flash on the edge of the design can cause not just redness and a burning feeling, like sunburn, but also a crust and a mark on the design. That is why the tattoo is always covered. If it does happen, cool the skin, keep it away from hot water and do not touch it. If a blister comes up, do not pop it, show it to a dermatologist: a scar on a tattoo cannot be fixed afterwards.
Going over the whole design cannot happen in a salon: the tattoo is visible and is avoided. It does happen with home devices, when someone runs the head over the whole leg without looking. A home IPL is weaker than a salon laser, but it burns ink too.
Sources: Int J Dermatol 2006: tattoo burn after laser hair removal (PubMed)
How the laser works around a tattoo
Before the flash the tattoo is covered with a special pad that does not let the beam through. The specialist may also outline the design with a white pencil, but the pad always lies on the design next to the handpiece. From the edge of the pad a further 1-1.5 cm margin is kept, and only then is the flash done: the handpiece has a slight spread, and the edge of the design must not be touched even partly.
Because of the margin a narrow strip of hair remains around the tattoo. On a leg or arm it is barely noticeable, on the bikini line or underarm more so, and it is worth knowing in advance. Hair on that strip and inside the design will never be removed by laser, however long the course.
How to remove hair inside a tattoo
The only method that works over ink is electrolysis: a fine needle goes into the follicle and destroys it with a current, and skin pigment plays no part. It is slow, one hair at a time, and more noticeable than laser, but it does not damage the tattoo. It makes sense on small areas: above the lip, on the hand, inside a design on the forearm. On a large tattoo covering the whole shin people usually stick with the razor.
Shaving over a tattoo is safe, wax and sugaring too, they do not touch the ink. We do not offer electrolysis, and if the hair inside the design bothers you, the specialist will say so straight away at the consultation.
A fresh tattoo: how long to wait
A fresh tattoo is a wound. While it heals, the skin around it is irritated, swollen and easily inflamed, and anything done nearby, a flash included, prolongs the healing. Laser next to a new tattoo is postponed for at least 4-6 weeks, until the skin has fully healed, is not peeling and not shiny. If the tattoo is large or healed badly, wait longer, up to two months.
The same rule works the other way round: a tattoo is not done on an area treated with laser less than two weeks ago. The skin is sensitive after a session, and the tattoo artist will ask you to wait.
What comes first: laser or tattoo
If the tattoo is still only a plan, do the laser course first, then get tattooed. Three reasons. First: clean hair-free skin is the best canvas, the artist works more precisely and a design without hair looks more even. Second: after the tattoo, laser on that spot is never possible again, and hair inside the design will always grow. Third: a strip will remain around the tattoo that will have to be shaved.
A course takes from 8 months to a year and a half, so it needs planning ahead. If the tattoo is already booked for the coming weeks, it is better not to start laser on that area: two or three sessions will not give a result, and then there is a pause anyway.
Permanent make-up and temporary tattoos
Permanent make-up on the brows, lips and eyelids is the same tattoo, only small. Laser is not done over it either, and that is one of the reasons eyebrows are never done with laser at all. Hair above the lip with lip tattooing is removed with a margin from the outline, as with a regular tattoo.
Temporary tattoos are a different matter. Henna sits on the top layer of the skin and fades in two to three weeks, but while it lasts it is dark pigment and the laser sees it. Transfers, black henna, party designs: all of it must fade completely before a session. It cannot be washed off before the visit, you simply have to wait.
How we handle it
At the consultation the specialist looks at every tattoo in the area, marks the outlines and tells you what strip will remain around it. During the session the design next to the handpiece is always covered with a pad that blocks the beam, and the flash is done 1-1.5 cm from its edge. We work on a hybrid laser with contact cooling, and the skin around the design handles the session comfortably. If you are planning a new tattoo, say so at the first visit: the course can be built so the area is ready by the date you need!
Reviewed by: MEDULLA team