If you're planning a multi-day festival and don't want to reapply your glitter makeup from scratch every morning, you can build your festival look around one or two temporary tattoos instead, adding glitter to them on just a few evenings. With the right placement and a little care, a temporary tattoo can last well for up to 15 days, according to InkLabs' own care instructions. A festival weekend with sun, sweat and dancing puts more stress on your skin than an ordinary day, but with a little preparation, a single well-placed design usually lasts for the whole festival. The plan below breaks the look into three stages, explains which parts of the body stand up best to friction and sweat, and shows how to add glitter around a tattoo without damaging the design.
- Plan the look in three stages: a subtle design for arrival, a statement design for the main day, and a version with glitter for the final night.
- Low-friction areas such as the forearm, ribs, shoulder blade or ankle keep a temporary tattoo intact longer than hands or fingers.
- Apply sunscreen before the tattoo, not over it, and add glitter only once the design has reached its final color.
- A few spare tattoos and some water in your bag are enough to reapply a design on the go if it comes off prematurely.
The 3-day look plan: arrival, main day, final night
A temporary tattoo doesn't have to look the same from the journey there to the trip home, and that's exactly what makes it more practical than a glitter look that comes off again each humid festival day. By thinking about the three typical stages of a multi-day festival separately, you can tailor the design and the effort to each one, instead of showing everything at once on the first night.
Arrival day: subtle and quick
On arrival day, there's usually little time and even less space: putting up the tent, stowing your backpack, finding your group again. A small, delicate design such as the fine infinity symbol from the fine-line range takes just a few minutes to apply and goes with practically any outfit, leaving you time for what matters before you head in.
Main day: the statement piece
On the main day, when most of the photos are taken and the lineup is at its busiest, the design can be larger and more visible. A geometric design like the Compass works well because it's still recognizable from a distance.
The forearm is also a good choice for a practical reason: according to InkLabs' care instructions for temporary tattoos, it's one of the areas that gets the least friction, which helps keep the design in place throughout the main day. If you're specifically looking for designs for this spot, you'll find more designs in a similar size in the Temporary Forearm Tattoos collection.
Final night: paired with glitter
For the final night, when you can go all out with your look, a design that covers a little more area is a good option, such as a butterfly from the Butterflies collection, which gives you plenty of space to add glitter around it.
If you'd rather add a smaller detail, you can instead accent a single design, such as the Heartbeat design on your collarbone or wrist, with a few rhinestones, leaving the main design from the main day untouched.
Placement for sweat, friction and sunscreen
Where you place the tattoo has a greater effect on how long it lasts than the design itself. According to InkLabs' own care instructions, low-friction areas such as the forearm, ribs, shoulder blade and ankle stay intact much longer than hands or fingers, which are constantly in contact with objects, clothing or other hands.
Heavy sweating and repeated friction, for example from dancing, bag straps or swimming, speed up fading too, according to the same instructions. At a festival, movement and heat typically go hand in hand for several days in a row, which makes choosing a low-friction spot even more worthwhile than it would be for a one-off event with little physical activity.
Apply sunscreen before the design, not over it: if you apply it directly to a fresh tattoo, the oils it contains can affect adhesion. The easiest way is to apply the tattoo first, let the surrounding skin dry completely, and then apply sunscreen to the rest of your skin before heading out into the sun.
How to add glitter without ruining the design
The biggest mistake when combining the two is rushing: glitter ends up directly on the fresh transfer, and the outline blurs. After application, an InkLabs temporary tattoo takes about 24 to 36 hours to change from its initially pale, slightly bluish shade to its final dark blue-black, according to the explanation of how the color develops. If you apply the design for the final night the day before, you'll see its finished color that evening and can coordinate the glitter and outline realistically, instead of working around a shade that's still changing.
When applying the glitter, it helps to place glitter gel or glue carefully along the edge of the outline rather than over the design itself, especially during the first few hours after application. It's better to gently dab away excess glitter near the tattoo than to rub it off, because rubbing creates exactly the kind of friction that speeds up fading, according to the care instructions.
Packing list: what to bring for your festival body look
A tent rarely offers the same conditions as a bathroom, so it's worth packing the supplies for your look separately from your usual makeup bag and keeping them within easy reach.
- Two or three spare tattoos of the designs you're using, in case a design comes off before planned or you'd like a second copy for another spot.
- A small spray bottle or wet wipes, so you can apply the water for the transfer even without a sink nearby.
- A flat card or similar item to press the design down evenly as you peel off the backing paper.
- A small pair of scissors, in case you want to trim a larger sheet design to size before applying it.
A quick touch-up on the go
If part of a design comes off on the second or third day, it's usually not worth trying to repair the loose edge. It's quicker and neater to gently clean the affected area and reapply the tattoo using the same method as the first time: exfoliate lightly, let the skin dry, place the design with the adhesive side down, wet it thoroughly with water and, after about a minute, slowly peel off the backing from one corner, as described in the step-by-step application guide.
In good conditions—that is, on a low-friction area and with the care described—a single design usually lasts through an entire festival weekend. A tattoo in a high-friction area, with no care taken to avoid sweat and friction, on the other hand, visibly fades within just a few days.
If you're looking for more festival designs beyond this look plan, you'll find a wider selection organized by style in more festival and summer styling ideas. If you're planning the look with your girlfriends while pre-gaming, you'll find ideas for getting ready together in ideas for a temporary tattoo night before going out. The same approach of planning in stages, choosing the placement and timing the glitter can also be adapted, with a few small adjustments, to other themed parties.
