Design

Design Your Own 2-Week Tattoo: Step by Step From Idea to Skin

Heidi By Heidi Updated October 20, 2026 4 min read

Custom tattoo design sketch next to the finished tattoo on an arm

In short

In the Tattup Custom Studio you turn your own artwork, text or a sharp photo into a 2-week tattoo: choose a size, upload your image or use our motifs and the AI, see it on the sheet and true to size on skin, then add it to the cart. Every design is checked by hand, printed for you and develops dark blue to black on your skin.

Your own sketch, your partner's handwriting, a date that matters or the design you have had in your head for years – a custom 2-week tattoo turns it into ink on your skin for up to 2 weeks. Here is how it works, what your file needs and how to make your design look as good as possible.

How does designing your own 2-week tattoo work?

Pick a size. Each size is a fixed design canvas in real centimeters. You decide how big your design is within that canvas.
Create your design. Upload your own image, pick from hundreds of motifs, add text, draw right on the canvas or let the AI design a motif for you. Combine as many elements as you like – we remove light backgrounds automatically.
See it on the sheet and on skin. The "Design" view shows exactly how your tattoo will be printed on the sheet. Switch to "On skin" to try it true to size on different body areas – or on a photo of yourself.
Choose the quantity and add to cart. Custom tattoos are produced in a detailed process, so you order several copies of your design. The more you order, the lower the price per tattoo.

Start right away in the Custom Studio.

Which sizes are available?

From tiny finger tattoos to full sleeves: these are the design canvases you can choose from.

XS — 3 × 4 cm
S — 5 × 9 cm
M — 7 × 13 cm
L — 10 × 18 cm
XL — 13 × 22 cm
Huge (Half Sleeve) — 20 × 30 cm (also for back pieces)
Extra Huge (Sleeve) — 20 × 60 cm

Tip: leave a small margin between your design and the edge of the canvas. Designs that touch or cross the border may be cut off.

What does your design file need?

Requirement	Why
Black and white only	Every Tattup develops in dark blue to black. Colors are converted to black automatically.
Clean, sharp lines	Blurry edges blur on the skin, too.
Lines at least 0.5 mm wide	Thinner lines may not transfer completely.
PNG, JPG, WebP or SVG	Up to 10 MB per image. iPhone photos (HEIC) usually work too – otherwise save them as JPG.
Light or white background	We remove the background so only the motif remains.
No gradients or shadows	Soft shading cannot be printed as a clean tattoo.
Your rights to the artwork	You need permission to use the design.

Examples of good and bad designs for a custom tattoo: clean black line art versus colorful photos and fine gradients — Do: clear black line art. Don’t: color photos, fine gradients and complex patterns.

Can you upload a photo instead of a drawing?

Sometimes. A photo needs to be sharp, high in contrast and have clearly visible lines. We review every photo upload individually and contact you if something needs to change. If you want to turn a photo of an existing tattoo into a clean design, the AI tattoo generator can extract the motif for you.

Several designs and texts on one tattoo

On one design canvas you can combine as many designs and texts as you like – your own images, studio motifs, AI designs and text in more than 60 fonts. That opens up a lot:

Matching tattoos for couples – two halves of one design or two initials.
A design with a name or date next to it.
Shared tattoos for friends, teams or a bachelorette party.

Which fonts work best on skin is in our guide to tattoo fonts.

Do you need to mirror your design?

No. Upload your design exactly as it should look on your skin. We take care of the rest.

What happens after you order?

Every custom order is checked by hand. If your design is not suitable for production, we contact you by email before anything is made. Custom tattoos are printed for you in batches, so delivery takes longer than for ready-made designs – plan around four weeks. For a wedding or festival, order early.

Plan aheadOrdering for an event? Count the production time plus 1–2 days on the skin, because the color needs 24–48 hours to fully develop.

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Heidi Tattup Team

Heidi is part of the team behind Tattup, the 2-week tattoo brand from Switzerland. We write about what we know from thousands of orders and our own tests – no hype, just facts.