Flash Tattoos Kick It Up A Notch With Color

Flash Tattoo, the company that brought you those metallic temporary jewelry tattoos that generated leagues of copycats, are getting a gorgeous update. Flash Tattoos released a colorful new collection of temporary tats with lush rainbow colors instead of the usual silver and gold metallics. Nothing screams Coachella like fake tats — except for maybe fringe-y shawls, floral crowns, face paint, and the occasional tactlessly appropriative headdress.

Flash Tattoos' newest collection, dubbed Illia, offers up the same hippy dippy gorgeousness that the original metallics are known for, but with a delicious brush of color. Illia is "inspired by the beauty and magic of the rainforest," according to the company's website, which explains the luscious butterfly, bird, and floral designs that the Illia four-pack includes. And with electric hues that make those tattoo necklaces, bracelets, armbands, and floating feathers pop, I'm sure that these pretty babies will adorn the skin of many a festival-goer this coming season.

Of course, it is worth mentioning that there are some troubling aspects of the temporary tattoo trend, namely, cultural appropriation. The tattoos have in fact received some backlash for appropriating symbols from other cultures deemed "exotic" by some and having packages with names like "Desert Dweller" and "Dakota."

This particular collection's saving grace is Flash Tat's collaboration with Rainforest Partnership. Not only are the floral and butterfly designs super chic, but but they do some good, too. Five percent of the proceeds from each $25 tattoo pack goes right back to the Rainforest Partnership, which works to preserve tropical rain forests against deforestation. While this isn't the solution to the cultural appropriation debate, it's definitely a step in the right direction.

Images: FlashTat.com, Giphy.com