Skin pens are a specific type of pen applied to the skin to create a permanent image. These kinds of pens are normally used by either surgeons before proceeding with surgery for either medical purposes or cosmetic surgery. Also, they are often used in tattoo parlours before applying the actual permanent ink.

Body art tattoo pens can add a touch of realism to a vibrant body paint project or allow you to freehand complex designs for a personal touch. While long-lasting, this ink is temporary, as it has a specific substance that removes it within 3-4 days.

Skin pens are made specifically for drawing directly on to the skin. The Skin Doodler Pens are made with a 1mm ball point and are 4.25″ long and are 1.6mm thick. The 1mm ball point rolls onto the skin with little effort. These pens are great for free hand outlines and come in various colors including: Blue, Green, Red, Black, and Purple.

Research does not recommend using the Skinpen on skin. Skinpen with the ACMI “non-toxic” seal have been tested and deemed safe for art, even by children, but this does not include body art, such as drawing eyeliner, filling in tattoos or making temporary tattoos. Sharpie pens may contain n-propanol, n-butanol, diacetone alcohol and cresol. Although n-propanol is considered safe enough to be used in cosmetics, the other solvents may cause reactions or other health effects.

In order to bear the ACMI seal a product must undergo toxicological testing for the Arts and Creative Materials Institute. The testing is concerned with inhalation and ingestion of the materials and not absorption into the bloodstream, which could occur if chemicals in the marker permeate the skin or enter the body through broken skin.

Rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) will remove Sharpie ink. However, alcohols penetrate skin and may carry undesirable chemicals into the bloodstream. A better choice is grain alcohol (ethanol), such as you might find in hand sanitizer gel. Although ethanol also penetrates intact skin, at least the type of alcohol isn’t particularly toxic. Completely avoid using toxic solvents, such as methanol, acetone, benzene, or toluene. They will remove the pigment, but they present a health risk and safer options are readily available.

Skin pens are widely used in Body art tattoo but pre-operative marking of patients may be a cause of bacterial cross-infection. Skin pens are used directly on or around infected areas, for example, to mark out areas of cellulitis.

Usually, harmless skin commensals are not pathogenic except in immunocompromised patients. Old or dried-out Skin pens can harbour pathogens and should be discarded before attempted use on patients.

Three types of Sharpie markers contain xylene (see MSDS), a chemical capable of causing nervous system and organ damage. Only the King Size Sharpie, Magnum Sharpie and Touch-Up Sharpie contain this chemical.

Some tattooist use Sharpies to draw designs on the skin, but at least one professional warns against using the red markers because the ink sometimes causes problems with the healed tattoos, sometimes long after the tattoo has been inked.

For the most part, it’s the solvents in the ink of a Sharpie pen that present a health concern more than the pigments, so once you’ve drawn on yourself and the ink has dried, there is not a lot more risk from the product. It appears reactions to the pigments are uncommon. The pigment only penetrates the top layers of skin, so the ink will wear off within a few days.

If you wish to remove the Sharpie ink rather than let it wear off, you can apply mineral oil (e.g., baby oil) to loosen the pigment molecules. Most of the color will wash away with soap and water once the oil has been applied.