My attempt at temp tats with OCC paints

[shamanstar]

Hi,
I have been airbrushing on canvas and clothes for a couple of months and bought some OCC body paints. I got the Metallic Inks. I know this paint has a good reputation so there must be something wrong with my technique. The paint only lasts for a couple of hours. I have tried lowering the air pressure I am using, and tried spraying from closer and further distances. I am using 91% isopropyl alcohol to prep the skin, but I have also tried without the alcohol. I have some clear coat OCC paint and have tried laying that down first and then after the design is done. I have tried brushing lightly with powder when the tat is done. I blow the tat dry with the airbrush as I have read someone recommended doing that.
I just can't get the tats to last. Does anyone have any suggestions? I keep thinking it must be my air pressure.
Thanks for any help! I really want to try my hand at making some money doing this but I need to get my technique down first so that the tats last atleast a day, hopefully more.
star

[Cowboy]

I cant help You Star , But Hopefully someone will come along soon with some advice . Best of luck , CB

[shamanstar]

Thanks cowboy! (: i am going to try to drop the air pressure way down to 20 or 30, do light layers and see if that helps.

[ABD]

Thanks cowboy! (: i am going to try to drop the air pressure way down to 20 or 30, do light layers and see if that helps.

Never done any body painting, but thought the working Airpressure for people was like 5-10 tops.....Could easily be wrong tho...lol

[Skids]

I know you don't want to get to lay down thick layers....less is more in this case.

[bigwater]

My guess, and keep in mind it's only a theory because I don't airbrush people, is that you're shooting it at such a high pressure that the bonding agents (solvents if you will) are vaporising as it comes out of the brush, and the paint is basically partially or mostly drying before it hits the skin meaning it isn't gonna stick well.

As was already mentioned, drop the pressure down to 5 of 10 psi and see if that doesn't produce better results. Maybe one our body painting experts will chime in here with a better answer...

[shamanstar]

yup! i think thats absolutely right- i was painting on canvas and clothes so i had the pressure up to 70. I thought it was a big deal when i turned it down to 40. hahaha im still new at this :)
tonight i turned it down to 20 and i can already tell it is going to last longer by the way it feels on my arm. guess i need to turn it down even more! Thanks so much for being here and willing to help! It makes starting something new so much easier!

[bigwater]

Glad we could help, and let us know how it goes at even lower pressure. Hope you stick around and enjoy the fun here as well.

[shamanstar]

yea for sure. this site has been bookmarked since i first got my airbrush. i love it. if you want to see some of the work i did when i first got my equipment, its posted here- http://www.airbrushtech.info/AIRBRUSH/forum/showthread.php?t=14598
i am definately looking to work more and develop my skills with the airbrush bcz it gives me the ability to move color in a way that i cant wait a paint brush. Last night, I actually got a gig body painting my friends models for a big fashion show coming up in San Francisco! Im stoked! Now I really have to get that technique down! Im glad to say that I put some paint on yesterday to see how long it would last and I worked and slept in it and its still on. Im sure if i lowered the pressure even more when i apply it, it will stay even longer. So yea- wouldn't it be nice if I found out that I really CAN make a living as an artist?!

[Donna]

Congratulations on the Body Painting gig! This business can be great for the wallet! OCC is a great paint to use and yes lower the PSI 15-18 should be good! don't want to blow any skin off ! too low causes it's own problems to!

[sweet loretta]

Wow - 30 psi! There are some heavy body inks like ABA that could use that but OCC def go about 18 psi.

Just curious why would you put the clear sealer down first? Just hoping it would stick when you found problems?

Sweet Loretta

[bigwater]

Thanks for chiming in Loretta. Hadn't seen you around in a while and I was starting to get worried that our body painters had given up on the site ;) Most of us have been sitting around going Uh... uh... what should I say? because we don't paint skin.

Donna, welcome to the site. Please drop into the "Introduce Yourself" forum and tell us a little bit about yourself and your business. It's always exciting when somebody replies with enthusiasm for fat wallets!

Okay, thread jack over. Carry on ;)

[shamanstar]

i just put the sealer down after i started trying everything i could think of. i thought maybe it would stick better to the skin and then the paint could stick to it.
loretta, you are in my area. i am in the santa rosa area. i checked out your site. i bet you are going to be busy for halloween!
thanks for the replies!!!

[Donna]

One more thing I meant to mention I'm sure you have this figured out but you don't need to put down anything on the skin first what you need to do is clean the skin for better adhesion removing any oils/lotions (I use 70% Isopropyl Alcohol) . AB tattoos I use a 50/50 mix of cornstarch and baby powder which I brush on the AB tattoo with a nice soft make-up brush or blush brush to set the paint however I really don't know how it would work with a full body paint which I would guess most would not want it lasting 7-10 days. I would guess with full body paint would make sure that the promoter or organizer is given some sort of do and don't list for there model like shower before coming to the studio and the really big one DO NOT PUT ON ANY LOTIONS OR OILS as well as a "how to remove your body paint"

hope that helps

Ron I am the ultimate "LURKER afraid to come out and play" I have been a member since 2006 and this is my 2nd post lol.

[bigwater]

LOL Donna, well I'm glad to see you coming out of the proverbial shell. That lurker title can be set to whatever you want it set to after you've made five posts. I hope to see you posting more. Don't be scared, we don't bite.

[sweet loretta]

Just to note the cosmetic "inks" we use to airbrush tattoos rarely is what we use to cover a whole body. OCC makes several types of products. When I do full body art I use Kryolan Airstream, or Mehron Liquid or Mehron's new LUX. OCC is great stuff we just get in our groove of what we use. And I'd love to carry in in my shop but no one there answers my inquries. Graftobian is another great choices.

I am pretty busy for Halloween worked last night - but while my overall business was way up this year Halloween calls are down. Still I am working several jobs as and only book private work for the day. I do not work Halloween past 4 pm.

[Skids]

Loretta, who paints you on Halloween?

[soulman]

I guy from another forum does it full time and typically shoot around 35-40 psi.

Quoted....
Body painting is pretty simple, You need nothing special to do it other than the paint its self. I recommend to anyone doing body painting or temporary tattos that you purchase the proper paint. True body paint is alcohol based. You clean it off and clean your equipment with denatured of 90%+ isopropyl rubbing alcohol. The paint is pricy (I pay $65 for 16 ounces) but it will last for days if taken care of. People will tell you to use createx and other water based paint. I strongly advise against it. It will come off as soon as the body starts to sweat or develop more oils and nothing will tick off a customer more than making them look like they got in a fight with a paint can when they paid for artwork.

Prep the skin by wiping away the body oils with alcohol or an astringent. Once allowed to dry, shoot your work. In body painting, you want to keep the layers thin. The thicker the paint layering the more likely it is to peel.

There are various setting powders you can apply to make the body paint last longer. I use standard talcum powder if I use anything at all. It's half the cost and every bit as effective.

here is his web site, with gallery. Some of his body tattoos are amazing....
http://www.oceanairbrush.com/index.php

[sweet loretta]

Hahaha - I paint myself for Halloween - just not with the airbrush that's too tricky, but with classic brush. Most the really good painters who are my trusted makeup artists are close friends, and top talents in the face and body art industry - but most live a ways or quite a ways from me, so alas I do myself. I do have some really wicked face art pics of me painted by friends. Currently, one is on my myspace and another on facebook. Personally, I am really bad at taking pictures. Not bad at it, rather bad about taking time to take them. So I paint and go.........

And (perhaps a bump is needed here) as a professional body painter I disagree that body painting is rather simple. Ocean Airbrush is a talented airbrush artist - who airbrushes full time but does not body paint full time - he also does tanks, helmets........ It is not simple because many other factors must be heeded and many other skills heeded. As a full time face and body artist I can tell you just how not simple it is until one becomes a seasoned pro.

And "true" body paint is not alcohol based. I sell the the most widely used brands and there are several other great ones out here. However none of the top artists I know use Paasche to paint bodies with - yep he must, as he notes on the other forum, get a good deal on the price. I not saying it is not a good product - the well known brands are all good, and we all develop preferences. With the exception of some new ones I have used all the brands. And many are simply private labeled. I know most the international reps for these companies and many of the owners. I teach body art at international face and body art events, as well as compete and attend said events. So I must take exception to his misinformation.

The vast majority of body makeup aka paint is water based the newer makeup are hybrids removable with soap and water. He's painting at Fantasy Fest so to make it really durable he uses alcohol based makeup (I call these inks and water based paints - as that is what we called 'em when they first came out and their weren't really any hybrids made). One can use all alcohol based makeup Ms Gair does on the Sports Ill models but whata' think they pay Ms Hunter to pose? A hell of a lot more than most of us compensate our models - and I'm not painting my professional models in something the have to remove with rubbing alcohol. And he saying he preps the body with rubbing alcohol for body painting (of just not clearn about doing it just for tattoos)? Those poor women at Fantasy Fest they paid him to cover them with a difficult to remove product - oh well they were most likely full of alcohol themselves. Hey I'm not saying by request I have not painted party goers with alcohol based products or used it on certain parts of the body to withstand a water photoshoot but it makes more sense to use hybrids. And depending on the durability needed water based makeup can be very long lasting with and without a good fixer.

Yes body paint makeup can be expensive. One big reason that most body artists (painters) use water based makeup - as it is more affordable.

And all good airbrush artists know that 3-4 passes are better than 1. Good to point that out to folks.

[Skids]

Thanks for your insight Loretta, it's obviously easy to over-simplify when it comes to dabbling in any aspect of the airbrush world, but even more so when the product so directly involves our bodies. It's good to have seasoned pros like you here to clarify the whys and why-nots in such a mystified area of our industry!

[sweet loretta]

Like any thing it is only mystified if it is not what you do - only when you are learning.
It certainly is no mystery to many people. Professional face and body airbrush artists do teach classes, granted their are only a few of us but 3 of us post here. Ladypainter/Lisa, Neil and I all teach body painting, Neil and I teach AB Tattoos and we cover everything.

Now figure out how to paint a fender start to finish - well to me that still a bit mystified, but I keep learning.

[Fishboy]

Absolutely DO clean the skin with alcohol before applying the tat. So often I pull the cotton off the skin to see it dark brown. It's sunny where I am so people tend to have a sun tan. Because of this I always make sure that I clean well to remove dirt, oil and dead skin. Believe it or not I end up exfoliating the area from time to time because the nasty old tanned skin is just about ready to slough off. If I don't remove it the tat doesn't last. Don't scrub though. Just gently rub with cotton and alcohol.

After cleaning give the area a once over with air to make sure it's dry. It's pretty humid down here and if the skin feels sticky I blast with air before painting.

Also make sure to tell people not to rub the tat with the towel after showering. Just blot it dry or let it air dry. Most tat paints are waterproof, but they do get a little tacky when wet and scrubbing a wet tat with a towel will scratch it or even peel it.

[Stang]

When I do the tatts at fairs I wipe em down with 70%. I spray around 30psi. When I body paint, I use the same ABA ink but don't wipe em down. For 1, if I wiped all the boobs I paint, I would never get to the paint. Also, by not wiping them down I'm hopin that it won't last a week or better. I use the body paint so as they are drinkin all day and sweating, it doesn't wear off later that night and I have a ton of redo's. I tell them it comes off with lotion so when you are back at the motel later and you want to get it off, grab the lotion and have fun. Before I started doing this I knew a gal that was in FL and got painted. Later she was on the dance floor and didn't notice that all her paint had sweated off and she was dancin nude. Also, I've had several people in Sturgis stay the week and appreciate it staying for the week. It makes them think they got their moneys worth. I also don't powder them on the full body, that would be a mess.

[Neil]

I'm a bit late answering this,but, never spray over 20psi on skin.High PSI can smart a bit.Metallic inks rub of a bit quicker than regular colors but should still last 4-5 days and up to a week for some skin types

Neil
www.getpainted.com
Painting America one body at a time