Here is an overview of all these tattoo removal methods.

Laser Tattoo Removal. Laser tattoo removal is one of the most reliable, safe, and effective tattoo removal methods. It is widely available in cities throughout the world and has decades of use to its name. It must be administered by a professional – this is not a cheap, at home removal method. The risk of scarring is minimal, and compared to other methods, very low. It is however quite expensive. Treatments are done by breaking down a tattoo into smaller areas and treating the ink with lasers. The lasers aggravate the ink, causing it to break down and dissipate as part of the body’s response to ridding out foreign objects or unwanted cells into the body. It takes many months of treatments to remove a tattoo via laser tattoo removal; as such, this is not a quick method, but is reliable.

Rejuvi Tattoo Removal. Rejuvi is one of the newer types of tattoo removal methods that have skyrocketed to the top as an effective, reliable technique. Similar to many details of laser tattoo removal, a person must go into a clinic and have rejuvi administered by a professional over repeated treatments that target the tattoo. The risk of scarring is very small. This technique works by injecting rejuvi cream into the tattoo, which bonds to the ink pigmentation. This newly created rejuvi/ink bond is deemed by the body’s immune system as an unwelcome, foreign threat. The body will push the substance out of the skin, forming a crust or scab. Over repeated treatments, this will remove the tattoo from the body.

Dermabrasion. Dermabrasion is a technique that uses sanding or exfoliation of the skin, both chemical and physical. It has been described as sanding the outer layers of the skin to remove, and with this, the tattoo. It is prone to scarring. Dermabrasion was primarily used before the invention and proliferation of laser tattoo removal. It is not as common anymore, although doctors do offer this service still.

Excision. The excision technique is largely outdated and has been replaced by laser tattoo. In an excision, the skin containing the tattoo is cut out. For smaller tattoos, the skin is then tightened up over the area where the previous skin resided, and sutured up by a doctor. For larger tattoos, skin is even grafted over the area where skin was removed. Scarring is common and is an expected result for excision tattoo removal. Because of the pain and the scars left by this technique, excision is rarely used anymore.

TCA. Decades ago, TCA was shown to remove tattoos from the skin. Most commonly used to improve skin issues – such as wrinkles or wart removal – it can also target tattoo ink and remove or fade a tattoo. TCA is prone to scarring though. It is not regulated or done by a professional, thus making more room for user error. TCA chemical peels for tattoo removal can be purchased online and in beauty shops. Nuviderm is a popular TCA tattoo removal product.

Tattoo Removal Cream. Tattoo removal cream products are an over the counter, at home tattoo removal method. They work by applying a topical agent to the skin area of the tattoo. Over many months of applications, they intend to fade or entirely remove the tattoo. The effectiveness of these products is often challenged, although many people report that through repeated applications, tattoo removal cream did in fact fade away their tattoo. Wrecking Balm is the most widely used tattoo removal cream product on the market.

In this article, we’ll look at the cost of various tattoo removal methods. This is done for the sake of completeness, and is not an endorsement of these methods. For more information on each method, include the problems and risks associated with them, click on the corresponding link for more information on each tattoo removal technique.

Laser tattoo removal. Priced by a number of factors, including how many square inches of tattoo there is to remove, the colors used in the tattoo inks, and how many laser pulses are used in each treatment session. A good rule of thumb is to estimate that a tattoo the size of 3 square inches (about 3 US postage stamps placed together) would cost $150 each session, and could take 5-10 sessions.

Rejuvi tattoo removal. Similar to how laser tattoo removal prices are structured, the cost of rejuvi treatments depends on the total size of the total and the colors used. Treatments are broken down by pricing different areas of the tattoo by the square inch. Expect treatments to cost about $90-$120 per square inch treated.

TCA tattoo removal. Priced by the bottle. This is a cheap tattoo removal method often costing around $50 for a bottle. For example, Nuviderm, the most popular TCA containing tattoo removal product, costs $39.95 for a 1 OZ bottle. This is said to remove (“or extremely fade”) a single tattoo of 3×3 size.

Dermabrasion tattoo removal. Dermabrasion is priced by the size of the tattoo and number of sessions needed to complete it. It’s likely to run in the thousands of dollars for the removal of a tattoo.

Excision tattoo removal. For small tattoos, excision is relatively inexpensive, although it’s not without it’s problems. (See entire article.) A small piece of tattoo work can likely be excised for under $200. Larger pieces will cost substantially more, as it not only involves a bigger area of work, but additionally work for skin grafting and suture placement.

Tattoo Removal Cream. Tattoo removal creams are usually sold in kits or bundles, each corresponding to a number of treatments. For instance, a month long supply with daily treatments may run about $50. A 6 month supply may cost $300. There a number of different tattoo removal cream products, such as Wrecking Balm and Tat B Gone, but prices between competing products are largely in the same ball park.

As you can see, tattoo removal costs are very high, possibly costing up to $10,000 for a large tattoo that would require 15+ visits at a laser removal clinic. It’s estimated that most tattoo removal services end up costing about $1500-$3500. Something to keep in mind about the cheaper methods is that even over the counter products which are sold for $50 can end up costing hundreds of dollars if it takes 6 months of daily treatments.

In that regard, something to consider in place of the expense, effort, and pain of tattoo removal is the idea of getting the unwanted tattoo covered up with a good tattoo! In other words, why not consider getting a new tattoo over the old one?

Obviously this option is not for everyone. Some people regret having a visible tattoo and simply don’t want anything in its place as it would be just as visible. Others have grown tired of tattoos, delegating them as juvenile antics, and seek to rid themselves of them. But for many people wanting to get a tattoo removed, they simply just don’t like their tattoo anymore, but tattoos in general are not out of the question.

For those that fall in the latter category, consider this:

Getting a tattoo removed via laser can cost thousands of dollars. It can many months, too. Additionally, there is a level of pain to deal with for each treatment session, as the laser pinches the skin and disrupts the ink.

If you still like tattoos, but just not your current tattoo, it’s possible that a talented tattoo artist could instead offer their services of a cover up tattoo in place of dealing with tattoo removal.

For the pain and expense – and likely, LESS of an expense than laser removal – you’d commit to for having it removed, the same area can probably be transformed into a brand new tattoo.

Having never seen before and after tattoo cover up photos, skepticism is understandable. However, before that decision is made, consider looking at a portfolio of an artist in your area. Most likely, there will be a big surprise when its seen what can be done in regards to covering up a tattoo. While the inks and colors used in the original tattoo certainly are a huge factor in the success of a cover up piece, most tattoos can be covered up and will effectively disappear in place of the new, awesome tattoo.

For those that still like tattoos and want tattoos, consider the cover up tattoo as a viable option worth researching before you commit to the time and expense of laser tattoo removal.

There are a variety of products out there that fall under the unofficial term of “tattoo removal creams”. These products are primarily sold online. They do not require a prescription or any visit with a doctor or medical professional. One of the biggest selling points is just that – you can buy them online and use them in the privacy of your own home, without seeing a doctor or going in for treatments. Additionally, there is no pain involved in the application of these creams to the skin. This is a big contrast towards nearly all tattoo removal methods, such as laser removal, dermabrasion, excision, and rejuvi, all of which cause considerable pain and discomfort for their administration.

There are many different brand of tattoo removal cream. This includes Wrecking Balm, the most popular and widely available tattoo removal cream, and others such as Tat B Gone, Tattoo Off and Tattoo Away.. While there are even more removal creams than these, by far the two most popular products are Tat B Gone and Wrecking Balm.

Both of these products claim that they will fade or remove a tattoo through the use of repeated applications of their cream to the skin. This means applying a “topical” lotion, gel, or cream – and by topical, this simply means at the surface of the skin. Both Wrecking Balm and Tat B Gone kits have a handful of products included, that are to be used together. For instance, a person might use one gel first to prepare the skin, then a second gel that’s supposed to act to remove then ink, and then a third gel to finalize the process and rejuvinate the skin.

It’s unclear to many how these products work. Many consider the manufacturers claims to be more marketing and hype than anything else.
However, there are many online reports from people claiming that through the use of a tattoo removal cream product, they did in fact see a significant fading of their tattoo. For this reason, it’s fair to say that the products work to an extent. However, having a tattoo entirely removed at the level offered from laser removal, for instance, is a controversial claim.

It’s worth considering that tattoo removal creams may in fact work in the sense of fading a tattoo slowly. In this sense, cheaply done tattoos and tattoos that are already faded and old may respond better than newer tattoos with high quality ink.

For someone considering tattoo removal, these products are very inexpensive and do offer a money back guarantee. Note though that it can take many, many months of applications before the desired results can be seen. The total cost of so many treatments or tattoo removal kits can eventually outweigh what was originally perceived as a cheap tattoo removal method.

Take for instance the use of TCA cream. While it has been proven to remove tattoo ink from the skin, it can also lead to scars when used improperly or when used at highly concentrated levels. Products that create a “controlled inflammation” at the surface of the skin to remove a tattoo create a valid concern about the safety of such a procedure being sold unregulated and used at home by individuals without any training in tattoo removal methods. This is not a good situation and misuse of products can lead to damaging a persons skin.

The whole array of products that fall under the umbrella of tattoo removal creams presents a different set of concerns and questions. This includes products such as Wrecking Balm, Tattoo Off, and Tat B Gone. While there are concerns that these over the counter tattoo creams contained the skin bleaching agent known as hydroquinone, it’s a challenge to uncover if this chemical is actually present in any of these products or if it’s just a rumor. In any case, reports of safety problems in the sense of pain or scarring caused by tattoo removal cream is rare. The effectiveness of such products is another problem, with conflicting reports over their use in removing a tattoo. Some of these products work by bringing the tattoo ink closer to the surface of the skin and then out of the body. In the meantime, it can appear then that the tattoo removal cream is actually brightening or strengthening the tattoo ink, as it will temporarily become more visible and noticable as it gets closer to the surface of the skin.

Because of the high costs associated with more effective and reliable techniques, such as **laser tattoo removal***, the market is ripe for cheaper, easier solutions. However, just because a tattoom removal product is available at a cheap price, it doesn’t mean it’s necessarily safe or effective. Buyer beware.

There are a few different techniques that are used to remove permanent makeup, including dermabrasion (which in this case, is more about chemical exfoliation than exfoliating the physical surface of the skin), rejuvi cream, and laser tattoo removal.

Of these three methods, laser removal is by far the most popular and common removal method employed, followed by rejuvi, which is somewhat newer and less known, and then dermabrasion, which is an older method that many shy away from these days, as it’s prone to scarring, few something want to risk for their face.

The biggest factor involved in permanent makeup removal relates to the color of the pigments used in the permanent makeup. Some colors, such as green, blue and black, will typically respond well to laser removal techniques. However, other colors might offer unique challenges for removal. It is also possible that certain inks or pigmented cells will not respond well and cannot permanently be removed, even with repeated laser treatments. In these cases, the permanent makeup may become permanently faded but still present. Depending on how the ink ends up fading, this can cause problems with discoloration that cannot be removed.

The procedure itself is painful. To alleviate the discomfort of laser removal, doctors will give the patient a numbing agent or local anesthetic before the procedure begins. Afterwards though, the patient must deal with pain and discomfort during recovery for the next few days. During this time, the areas of the face treated may be swollen, bruised, or red. For this reason, it’s imperative to schedule some recovery time following the permanent makeup laser removal sessions.

For those underground permanent makeup tattoo removal, it’s normal for the removal process to take more than one treatment. In most cases, people go in for 3-5 treatments before the work is completed.

For these reasons, the decision to get permanent make up on the lips or eyes is something that should not be taken lightly, as the removal of permanent makeup is challenging, expensive, and painful.

An important note on terminology: Although rejuvi is often described as a cream or lotion, it is not a tattoo removal method that should be confused with over the counter products sold as “tattoo removal creams”. While the cream itself can be purchased without a prescription, the application of it for tattoo removal is NOT a “do it yourself” or at home tattoo removal method. Rejuvi tattoo removal is a medical procedure that requires admistration via a trained medical professional.

The rejuvi method for tattoo removal works like this:

Using equipment strikingly similar to a tattoo gun, a trained medical professional administers the injection of rejuvi cream into the skin above the tattooed area. The rejuvi cream passes into the epidermis and connects with the pigments skin cells of the tattoo. The rejuvi cream then bonds with these pigmented cells. In other words, the cream and the ink merge together at a microscopic level. The body sees the rejuvi cream as an outside threat, and the immune system works to remove or expel it from the body. Because rejuvi bonds itself to the tattoo ink, it is then able to remove a bit of the tattoo when the body forces the newly bonded rejuvi/tattoo ink to the surface the skin. This will come out as a crust or scab. Over repeated treatments, rejuvi will remove all parts of the tattoo with each new crust formation.

Rejuvi tattoo removal services are usually offered at clinics that typically offer other cosmetic, aesthetic, and surgical procedures, such as hair removal or laser tattoo removal services. A person with a medium sized tattoo (say for example, 3 inches by 4 inches) can expect to need 3-7 rejuvi treatments to remove the tattoo. Treatments must be spaced a part by a few weeks in order for the technique to have time to work it’s magic. It’s important to confirm any dietary changes that need to be made before treatments; some doctors may ask patients to avoid drinking alcohol before treatments, for example.

The treatment itself does create a considerable amount of pain; however, it’s not as bad as the pain of getting a tattoo itself, and the time it takes to administer is much shorter than that of receiving a tattoo. Anyone who was able to withstand the pain of getting a tattoo will be OK dealing with the discomfort of removing it via rejuvi. Additionally, clinics often offer pain medication and/or numbing agents to relieve this discomfort.

One other important thing to note is that rejuvi can be used for the removal of permanent make up, also called cosmetic tattoo makeup. While it’s not safe for the removing any tattooed eyeliner, rejuvi can be used to remove permanent makeup such as that done to the eyebrows or as a lip liner.

What does this mean exactly? To put it in simple terms, excision literally means to cut out. For excision tattoo removal, this means cutting out and removing the area of the skin which contains the tattoo.

This is one of the more traditional, older tattoo removal methods that is still around, similar to the dermabrasion tattoo technique, although it’s largely been replaced by more modern methods, less prone to the risks inherent in excision. That being said, excision is considerably less expensive than laser removal, for instance, and because of this, it’s still favored by some people.

The biggest problem associated with removing a tattoo via excision is the fact that by simply cutting out the skin, a person’s body is obviously going to be prone to scarring from such a procedure. It’s not so much a risk as a known effect of the procedure; you will almost certainly have a scar in place of the tattoo.

Excision works best on smaller tattoos compared to larger tattoo pieces. This is for two reasons – one, the smaller the tattoo, the smaller the scar left on the skin. And secondly, it’s easier for the doctor to re-connect the skin with sutures in a small area where skin was removed versus a larger area.

A person receiving excision services to remove a tattoo needs to keep the tattoo area free of sunlight exposure for 3-4 weeks before going in for excision. After excision, the person is free to leave after surgery(there is no overnight stay or anything like that) and must again keep the area protected from sunlight for a solid month. Otherwise, the sunlight may interfere with the healing and the pigmentation of the effected area.

When compared to other methods of tattoo removal, excision seems to offer little benefit other than cost. Many do not find it acceptable to use a tattoo removal method that by nature is going to leave a scar on the skin. For this reason, methods such as rejuvi or laser tattoo removal are considered much better tattoo removal methods.

Additionally, because this method is not as popular as it once was in light of improved removal methods in other areas, it’s much harder to find doctors performing excision versus more modern techniques, such as laser tattoo removal.

TCA stands for Trichloroacetic Acid. TCA chemical peels contain a certain percentage of TCA; the more TCA, the stronger the solution. Traditionally, TCA chemical peels are used to treat a variety of skin conditions. This includes removing or improving the appearance of wrinkles, dark spots, skin discoloration, lip creases, lines around the eyes, stretch marks, birthmarks, and cellulite.

In addition to the long list, TCA is effective to some degree at removing tattoos. It is also relatively cheap – very cheap when compared to something like laser tattoo removal. For example, a bottle of TCA solution sold as a tattoo removal product only costs about $50.

But how effective is TCA at removing a tattoo?

Through the repeated application of TCA peels, tattoo ink will fade and eventually be entirely gone. However, this is not a procedure or method that many dermatologists or doctors are going to recommend, especially those trained in tattoo removal methods!

The reason is that TCA for tattoo removal is not something that is regulated well. It’s not performed by someone trained in tattoo removal or TCA applications. Instead, it’s done by the person itself who has the tattoo. The irony is that the very reason TCA is touted as a great removal method (by those selling it, that is!) is the same reason tattoo removal professionals feel uneasy about it! Individuals applying these solutions to themselves, without any medical supervision, are at risk of doing it wrong, applying too much, applying at an inappropriate strength, and so on. This can lead to the very real concern of scarring. Making an acknowledgement to the fact that TCA works by creating a tiny “controlled inflammation” at the surface of the skin alludes to realistic concerns about scars.

For these reasons, while TCA has been shown to remove tattoos, it is not generally considered a safe, reliable, or recommended tattoo removal method. This is especially true in light of modern techniques such as laser tattoo removal, which has decades of proof behind it and carries a relatively small risk of scars and complications compared to TCA tattoo removal.

In regards to tattoo removal, dermabrasion is a technique for removing the layers of the skin that contained the tattoo ink, and thus, in this way removing the tattoo as well. It’s a tattoo removal technique with somewhat of a shady past, whose performance often lead to scars and unwanted skin conditions left in place of where the tattoo used to be.

Currently it’s still possible to consult and work with a doctor who is trained in this technique and have your tattoo professionally removed via dermabrasion, but, it’s availability has been overshadowed by superior techniques and developments in ***laser tattoo removal*** methods.

Before laser tattoo techniques took off, in the past – as in, decades ago – dermabrasion was one of the main removal techniques available, as it really was one of the only methods available that was offered by trained medical professionals.

Compared to more modern tattoo removal methods, dermabrasion runs a high risk of scarring on the skin. This is simple due to the fact that the technique itself involves rubbing the skin and removing the layers of the skin itself. This naturally presents a risk of skin scarring. In literal terms, dermabrasion removes these skin layers via sanding (also called abrasion, and hence derma (skin) abrasion (sanding) The term “skin sanding” is righly frightening!

Additionally, dermabrasion for tattoo removal is a very painful method. Individuals receiving dermabrasion treatments usually also receive medication to deal with the pain. (However, patients are never unconscious during the procedure.)

The pain involved coupled with the risk of scarring makes the dermabrasion of a tattoo a hard sale to most people wanting to get tattoo removal!

While dermabrasion techniques are better now than they were in the 1970′s, this technique is largely considered outdated. Instead of dermabrasion, a person is better off investing in rejuvi tattoo removal or laser tattoo removal.

Ironically, the evolution of dermabrasion techniques has led to the use of lasers (such as Co2 and the Erbium YAG laser) to perform the dermabrasion itself, instead of the aforementioned sander. While promising, the validity of these newer dermabrasion techniques for tattoo removal has not been proven yet.