During and after the summer vacation, the skin changes significantly, especially if you don’t protect it properly with sunscreen. Exposure to the UV rays during the holiday and hours of sunbathing can not only give you a tan but also potentially damage the skin. On the other hand, an increasing number of people opt for spray-tan salons to get that sunkissed skin, thinking the damage would be minimal, while the tan would be natural and sunkissed.

Either way, during the summer holidays, it is almost impossible to avoid getting a little bit of a tan, even when you’re avoiding the sun. So, what if you want to get a new tattoo during or after the summer? Will your tan, fake or natural, affect the whole tattooing process, or will the damage to the skin be even more significant?

In the following paragraphs, we’ll discuss the issue of getting a tattoo onto tanned skin and see what your options are. So, without further ado, let’s get started!

Tan and Tattoos: Everything You Need To Know

Tanning Levels

It is important to start this topic by explaining that there are several skin tanning levels that can determine whether you can get a tattoo or not.

• Moderate Tanning

Also considered the most natural tanning, moderate tanning means your skin has tanned slightly after a few days at the beach. There is no redness, burning sensations, or overall sunburn appearance of the skin. This means that the skin was also protected by SPF between 30 and 60. Moderate tanning is perfectly fine in case you want to get a tattoo; there should be no issues in regards to tattoo color appearance or skin damage, but more on that later.

• Sunburnt Skin

This means you’ve spent too much time sunbathing, with or without proper SPF protection. There is a general redness to the skin, sometimes even pain or skin peeling. The skin is sensitive and painful to touch, which is far from the ideal scenario if you want to get a tattoo. Sunburnt skin means there is significant skin damage, and the skin simply needs time to heal. Sunburnt skin generally implies first- or second-degree burn, which can be accompanied by blistering, peeling, and pain.