Things You'll Need:
- Design of your choice
- Waterbased marker or ballpoint pen
- Colorant (what you'll use for ink, such as eye liner, henna, or temporary tattoo ink)
- Brushes, narrow tipped for applying the colorant
- Spray fixative, such as a lacquer hair spray
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Step 1
Select your design. If you draw your own, consider starting with a simple line drawing to which you can add color as you wish.
If you want to start with a pre made design, search the Internet for tattoo designs and print out the design you want to use. -
Step 2
Source your colorant and applicators
If you are going to use eye liner or nail polish, decide which colors you will use and obtain them. If you are using temporary tattoo ink, you can order it from a number of online sources (see links below).
Remember that you need to be able to apply the color, which means obtaining paint brushes from a craft store that are small enough and stiff enough to stand up to the colorant. -
Step 3
Transfer the design to your skin. If you are drawing your own, use a ball point pen to outline it on your skin. If you have printed one out, use a water-based marker and draw over the lines quickly, then press the paper to your skin and hold in place. Then apply a wet paper towel compress on top of the paper and hold in place for 30 seconds. Remove the wet towel and the paper carefully--the design should now be on your skin.
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Step 4
Paint in the color areas using the different colored temporary colorant you have chosen. You'll highlight the lines afterwards, unless you choose to have color-to-color boundaries instead of lines separating the colors.
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Step 5
Using a contrasting color, paint any boundaries you wish to set off, for example, paint the lines separating blocks of color with a darker color to define their boundaries.
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Step 6
Allow to air dry for 30 minutes or longer. Try not to move the body part you have tattooed to prevent distortion of the tattoo' s shape while it is wet.
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Step 7
Once the colorant you have used is completely dry, spray the tattoo with a lacquer hair spray, or a craft fixative (make sure it is nontoxic!). This reduces the risk of smearing or transferring the ink from your temporary tattoo to your clothing.
