Do hand and finger tattoos last?

Why these two areas behave differently

Hands are exposed to sun, water and friction more than any other part of you, and the skin replaces itself quickly. Fingers add constant creasing, and the sides of fingers barely hold ink at all.

This is physiology rather than technique. A better artist gives you a design that ages well; nobody gives you skin that behaves differently.

What ages best there

If you want one, the design decides how it looks in five years more than the artist does.

• Bolder lines with space between them. Fine detail closes up as it spreads.
• The back of the hand holds far better than the fingers or the palm.
• Simple shapes over intricate ones. A blurred simple shape still reads; blurred detail becomes a smudge.
• Expect a touch-up, possibly more than one. Budget for it rather than being annoyed by it.

Think about work

Some employers still take a view on visible tattoos, and hands are the hardest to cover. This is not us telling you what to do · it is the thing people most often wish they had thought about, and it costs nothing to think about now.

What we will tell you at the consultation

Honestly whether the design you want will hold in the spot you want it. Sometimes the answer is to move it two inches onto the wrist, where it will still be seen and will still look like the drawing in ten years.