Ingenious Tattoo Ink Designed to Disappear from Skin After a Year

Many people love the idea of having a tattoo but are unsure of what they'd want on their body for the rest of their life. Tech startup Ephemeral is currently developing a way to wear an inked design for an extended period of time without the eternal commitment. Their solution uses a process akin to traditional tattooing, but will last only about a year before it begins to fade.

Conventional body art is made permanent because the dye molecules are too big for our immune systems to eliminate. Ephemeral incorporates this same idea, but they’ve developed smaller molecules and encapsulated them in a protective coating that will eventually break down after the 365-day mark. If you want the tattoo removed sooner, a special solution could be applied that will instantly remove it.

Ephemeral is still testing their product with the hopes of making it to market in the fall of 2017. Once available, it’ll offer a fantastic way to test drive a permanent design—chances are, if you still like it after a year, it’s a good bet you’ll continue to enjoy it in the future.

Above photo credit: Ephemeral Tattoos

Photo credit: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock

Photo credit: TechCrunch

Ephemeral: Website | Facebook
via [Mental Floss, TechCrunch]

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met and Manager of My Modern Met Store. She is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art where she earned her BFA in Illustration and MFA in Illustration Practice. Sara is also an embroidery illustrator and writer living in Seattle, Washington. She runs Bear&Bean, a studio where she stitches pet portraits and other beloved creatures. She chronicles the creativity of others through her website Brown Paper Bag and newsletter, Orts. Her latest book is Threads of Treasure: How to Make, Mend, and Find Meaning Through Thread, published in 2014. Sara’s work has been recognized in Be Creative With Workbox, Embroidery Magazine, American Illustration, on Iron and Wine’s album Beast Epic, among others. When she’s not stitching or writing, Sara enjoys planning things that bring together the craft community. She is the co-founder of Camp Craftaway, a day camp for crafty adults with hands-on workshops in the Seattle area.
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