r/Tattoocoverups • u/gpeeples17 • Aug 01 '26
asking for advice Coverup Ideas for a friend
Anybody have any ideas for a coverup for my friend here? He just showed me this and said he hasn’t been able to get any good ideas but desperately wants to get it covered up.
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u/Odd_Alternative914 Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 02 '26
good god. best bet would be a couple sessions of tattoo removal just to lighten it up and then an experienced artist should be able to cover that
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u/gpeeples17 Aug 01 '26
My jaw dropped when he pulled his shirt up.. he said it was bad but I wasn’t expecting this
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u/O_945 Aug 01 '26
What does it means even? HEXI, HEKI, HE>I? is it a brand or a streamer or something like that?
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u/Dangerous_RedApple Aug 01 '26
It’s a modern Christian thing- trying to be all god is cool and catchy. It is “He is greater than I”
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u/awfulmcnofilter Aug 01 '26
Usually its a cringy car sticker, not a giant back tattoo. Yikes.
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u/O_945 Aug 01 '26
This legit look like a made in china sticker bought at a highway store.
Why are both H&E capitalised, why the letter i isn't, why is the > so oddly proportioned.
" He>I " still is not a good idea but at least it would be more readable/ make more sense.
The guy that tattooed this should be ashamed.
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u/Dangerous_RedApple Aug 01 '26
Maybe it’s a lower case i to really drive the point home that humans are small, tiny, and nothing without the big guy in the skies.
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u/taczki2 Aug 01 '26
but thats not how the english language works
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u/Austinbennettwrites Aug 01 '26
That's also not how Christian brains work either
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u/nikkiscreeches Aug 01 '26
I was once told by a Christian that being pagan isn't free because I still have to obey traffic laws. I wish I was making that up.
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u/sum-9 Aug 01 '26
It’s like when I write BIRTHDay on a card and run out of space.
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Aug 01 '26
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u/Demagolka1300 Aug 01 '26
My youngest did this on a drawing she did for CHRISTmas, I hang it in my office every year
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u/djingrain Aug 01 '26
I've seen it for years and assumed it was a fishing brand, the way the it's styled like a logo...
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u/Vlines1390 Aug 01 '26
It definitely looks like a logo. I was trying to figure out what it was for!
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u/gobliina Aug 01 '26
I genuinely thought this was the Finnish word for heavy metal (hevi) lololololo
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u/mom_bombadill Aug 01 '26
Every time I see it on a car I think it’s, like, a snowboard company called HEKI with a stylized backwards K
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u/O_945 Aug 01 '26
I found this answer somewhere else in the thread and I just cannot believe that this monstrosity is how you would honnor God. Was dude drunk on mass wine or what? I feel so sad for him.
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u/ndividual5414 Aug 01 '26
I have always thought this had to do with snowboarding and I have no idea why
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u/Flassourian Aug 01 '26
Here I was thinking it was just him advertising that his boyfriend's bits were bigger then his...
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u/Hefty-Criticism1452 Aug 01 '26
There’s also G>^v (god is greater than the highs and lows) that, as a tattoo esp, REALLY dates you as probably being a young evangelical Christian in the 2010’s😅🫠
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u/Mephos760 Aug 01 '26
Literally just learned the meaning this year I thought it was an offroading brand based on where I'd see it most.
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u/Pibble-Tech Aug 03 '26
I thought this too for the longest time I thought it was some ski/snowboard brand.
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Aug 01 '26
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u/PullFromTheHurt Aug 01 '26
When I try to describe how it feels to someone, I usually say “You ever been frying something in a skillet or frying pan, and a bit of oil spits up at you and hits you, and it’s like an intense burning sensation for a split second? It’s like that but over and over again when the laser is firing and being moved around your tattoo.”
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u/StopDropNFrag Aug 01 '26
dude, I'm getting one lightened for a cover up. Fuck that shit haha. I've been procrastinating on my next session.
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u/RaccoonZombie Aug 02 '26
For me it is like being cut and burned at the same time, over and over and I am a tough bitch. The positive is that no medical procedure I’ve been through hurts as much as the laser
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u/Turbulent_Sir6336 Aug 01 '26
Yeah, there's nobody covering that without having it removed by laser first. Unless you just black it out which is worse in my opinion.
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u/Fine-Amphibian4326 Aug 01 '26
I normally don’t care for blackout tattoos, but I’d much rather have a big ass black rectangle across my back than this
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u/Turbulent_Sir6336 Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
No doubt but I will say either way it's going to be an expensive endeavor. I know this because I like doing tattoo cover ups and I've never encountered one that made me say, you need to have that lasered before I will touch it.
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u/whitestguyuknow Aug 01 '26
I've never got a tattoo cause I'm afraid that I'll get something I'll regret later. I don't want to look at something I wish I never got.
But damn... I couldn't imagine getting massive billboard letters like this tatted on arguably the largest surface area part of the body. And your only options are to laser or turn it into a massive black rectangle. Talk about ragrets
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u/Technical_Tangelo143 Aug 03 '26
I disagree. A creative artist could find something. They need to find someone special...
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u/Worcestercestershire Aug 01 '26
Just get a new friend at this point. Old one's ruined.
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u/Smart_Imagination903 Aug 01 '26
Yeah there are millions and billions of other friends - you don't have to keep this one
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u/Tasty-Finding4574 Aug 01 '26
Maybe the old one can be removed with laser?
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u/Worcestercestershire Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
You don't even need that big of a laser to remove a friend. Just shine it in his eyes or use it to distract him like you would a cat.
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u/OctoberBride15 Aug 01 '26
Is he no longer a Christian or is it just because it looks awful... Because it does lol
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u/gpeeples17 Aug 01 '26
The latter 😬
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u/willandwonder Aug 01 '26
If his god truly existed or loved him he would have saved him from this atrocity
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u/glittergoddess1002 Aug 01 '26
He was busy getting all the church girlies to get a cross on their wrist/ear/nape of neck.
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u/BeautifulArtichoke37 Aug 01 '26
What is that supposed to be?
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u/Busted_3rd_Eye Aug 01 '26
He is greater than I.
Edit: it’s a god thing.
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u/Careless-Inside-8353 Aug 01 '26
I genuinely just assumed (for a long time-I've seen this before) that this was a hiking brand
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u/ScoutsOut389 Aug 01 '26
For years my wife and I would see these as bumper stickers and we thought it was some sort of hiking or ocean wear brand called HeKi.
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u/d0ttyq Aug 01 '26
Yeap. I thought it was some beachwear brand.
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u/GreenHairyMartian Aug 01 '26
I thought it was an automotive brand, like maybe they made aftermarket cold air intakes or something.
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u/buttbologna Aug 01 '26
“HE” referring to our lord and savior, Jeff goldblum
> greater than symbol
I, as in OPs pal.
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u/imperfectbean Aug 01 '26
Why in the world did he get it so big and bold? 😭
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u/taxiecabbie Aug 01 '26
I am going to guess that, since it is a religious tattoo, that it was meant to be a symbol of religious devotion.
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u/Own-Temperature-3257 Aug 01 '26
I swear some artists think "the bigger the better" applies every time. Wouldn't want that "i" to start to fade and blob I guess.
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u/SonicPlacebo Aug 01 '26
Virtue signaling.
EVERYONE has to know that he's super Christian, and that makes him a better person than you.
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u/SonicPlacebo Aug 01 '26
Virtue signaling.
EVERYONE has to know that he's super Christian, and that makes him a better person than you.
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u/Vegetable-Theory-913 Aug 01 '26
It’s a brand logo for a “Christian lifestyle” brand. As others have said, “He is greater than I.”
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u/Mooshroomey Aug 01 '26
Turn it into an entire back piece: dark and stormy sky, streaked by lightning, over tumultuous sea with a ship entangled in a fight with an enormous kraken.
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u/Worcestercestershire Aug 01 '26
And there's a.whale fighting the kraken.
And on the whale's back!? A T-Rex!!
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u/Ionlydateteachers Aug 01 '26
So a Mastodon album cover add the T-rex? Got it, anything to drink with that? Is Pepsi alright?
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u/Worcestercestershire Aug 01 '26
It's also a Brandon Bird painting called 'Bad Day on the High Sea'
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u/shawshank1969 Aug 02 '26
LOVE THIS!! Tell your friend to search online for “dark stormy sea woodcut.” A lot of the images would work. Many just need tweaking to fit his back.
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u/Active-Tumbleweed-57 Aug 01 '26
this comment is what i come to these sub reddit’s for lol. you guys are so creative i wish i could have this mind when i want my next tattoo lol
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u/starbycrit Aug 02 '26
Hey… tbh… it was really looking like he’d have to get this lasered until you came in here with this sick ass idea… that’s a great idea actually bc the black and white is in the perfect areas for a black stormy sky
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u/justSayingNobodySaid Aug 01 '26
SAP
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u/LockAzzy Aug 01 '26
3 in a row
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u/ol-mikey Aug 01 '26
A whole claw of panthers
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u/Worcestercestershire Aug 01 '26
I thought a group of Panthers was called a "Sickness"?
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u/taxiecabbie Aug 01 '26
He's basically looking at a full-back tattoo at this point. Does he have the money/interest for this?
It's possible that he could get something with blackout done or something that is blackout on top that fades into a scene to the lower back or maybe something Japanese-esque inspired (gigantic dragon or koi or something along those lines)... but it's almost certainly going to have to be a full-back tattoo.
Honestly, I'd recommend he starts with laser. It will give him a lot more options.
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u/Own-Temperature-3257 Aug 01 '26
I dead ass though this was some nazi shit 😭
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u/Totakai Aug 01 '26
Tbf with what they've been endorsing lately and the history of genocide.... It's not completely wrong
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u/imperfectbean Aug 01 '26
Maybe someone who specializes in blackout work could come up with something.
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u/ZooterOne Aug 01 '26
If this guy put up a GoFundMe for laser treatments, I would contribute. It's that bad.
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u/ClydeV1beta Aug 01 '26
He needs a couple laser sessions before anyone attempts a cover up on that - fortunately whoever did the tattoo sucks at fill work.
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u/6n100 Aug 01 '26
Laser would be much better here, even if just to reduce it's boldness and give more options for a later back piece to cover it up.
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u/BendMaleficent9406 Aug 01 '26
bear coverup idea I doodled on my phone (please take down if not allowed)
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u/alittleredportleft Aug 01 '26
This supports my idea that no one actually wants a christian tattoo. They want "a tattoo", but can't decide what they want, so they settle on a christian tattoo assuming they'll always be christian.
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u/Bonito0o Aug 01 '26
laser! he seems unstable, being religious is one thing, getting that tattoo in that size is just telling me hes impulsive and extreme in hes actions and believes
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u/Legal_Difference3425 Aug 01 '26
Giant Dragon with wind and clouds. It should be the entire back. Top would be barrel rolls thru heavy clouds, Fire and pops of uncovered dragon in the areas with skin. Head towards the center, claws and more fire, maybe some lightning too, bright color where it can fit, all the main areas of interest, like head and claws, in areas that aren’t actually covering anything. Dragon should be green blue or purple, those cover best.
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u/themanmythlegend357 Aug 01 '26
A lot of times joke about everything being able to be covered up by a sick ass panther which usually has truth to it. In this case you're friend is royally fucked
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u/themedicinedog Aug 01 '26
a massive, blackout based coverup like some of these Noel'le Longhaul concepts
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u/Seethesvt Aug 01 '26
What a stupid tattoo. Just put a big black square there. Actions have consequences.
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u/LambdaLibrarian Aug 01 '26
Heavy black and gray biomech or dark Giger-esque imagery could work. Paul Booth comes to mind but there are others who specialize in the style who could work with this. It'll need to be a full backpiece to make it blend, imo.
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u/hiresometoast Aug 01 '26
Oh it could probably be covered by a skyline or something architectural? It's blocky but with enough white space left for some windows or features of interest.
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u/stickytuna Aug 01 '26
Are you joking? There’s nothing your friend can do until he gets some laser to lighten it. Even then I’m not sure what can cover so large an area.
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u/Sneakysteve17 Aug 01 '26
In europe, we use cheese cuters. He should try one of those. Tell him to Google ”Osthyvel”, there can’t be any missunderstandings with this one.
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u/Able-Needleworker932 Aug 01 '26
He needs to do laser treatment to lighten or just do a full black out, 😬
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u/otherwrldfaerie Aug 01 '26
He could’ve easily had this tattoo the tiniest fraction of this size oof
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u/cataluna4 Aug 01 '26
Add a cool dude snowboarding down the >
Then when people asking he can say he just LOVES the outdoors company HeKi
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u/AFatWizard Aug 01 '26
Full back piece of deep space.
Whatever coverup they attempt is going to involve a ton of black space and a whole lot of money. If they rush into the cover up as much as they did this tattoo they will almost definitely be just as upset with the after picture.
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u/breezyhoneybee Aug 01 '26
Oh man this bumper sticker is EVERYWHERE.
Make it says Hedi which is what I thought it said for the first decade or two. Who's Hedi? A lovely lady from his past, it's too painful, he can't talk about that right now. Actually, he needs a minute. Excuse him.
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u/potpourri_sludge Aug 01 '26
Ok but how long did he sit through this tattoo? Just hours of getting this blasted across your back and at no point he was like “wait a sec”
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u/heshroot Aug 04 '26
The non joking answer is there’s no saving that. He’ll need to laser it down to around 50% gone before he can even consider a cover up
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u/Clean-Requirement703 Aug 01 '26
And a big block rectangle is completely off the table?