Temporary tattoos look like the easiest thing to order in promotional print. Four decisions separate a run that works from a run that looks washed out.

Ask for a white underlay

Tattoo inks are translucent. Without a printed white layer beneath them the colour blends with the skin it is on.

The result is a design that reads on pale skin and disappears on dark skin. If the audience is the public, the underlay is not optional.

Design for a surface that creases

Large solid blocks of colour crack wherever skin folds. Line art and small shapes move with it.

Placement matters more than print quality: forearms and shoulders last for days, knuckles and wrists do not.

Pick the finish from the venue, not the mood board

Metallic foil is a real metal layer, so it flashes in sunlight and cracks across a hard fold. Keep it to lines and bands on flat skin.

Glow charges under any light and glows in the dark. UV does nothing in the dark and only shows under a blacklight. Buying the wrong one wastes the whole run.

Get the sheet kiss-cut for how you hand it out

A kiss cut goes through the transfer and stops at the backing, so one design lifts and the sheet stays intact.

Layouts that maximise designs per sheet are a false economy on a busy stand. Fewer, well-spaced designs move faster.

What to send when you ask for a quote

Artwork, quantity, where the tattoos will be handed out, and what the venue lighting is. The last two decide the finish and the cut before anything else.