No matter what your body type, stretch marks, particularly on the hips and breasts are a reality for most women. While some choose to embrace and even celebrate their “tiger stripes” others look to various pills, creams, and oils and hopes of getting rid of them, though efficacy of such products is widely debated.

Rodolpho Torres, a tattoo artist from São Paulo, Brazil is using his skills for a unique purpose — he specializes in stretch mark tattoos.

Torres, who shares his work on Instagram with over 1.2 million followers, uses flesh-colored ink to fill in the lighter areas of stretch-marked skin. His technique either completely hides the stretch marks or significantly reduces their appearance. Torres’ technique appears to work, with varying but successful results, on a variety of skin tones.

Torres mostly works on the butt and outer thighs, but his technique also works on the chest and stomach.

While his method seems pretty safe and reliable, as with all tattooing, complications such as infections and allergies, are possible.

“It can work, but the thing is, what a stretch mark is, basically, is loss of skin,” NYC-based dermatologist Dr. Doris Day tells Fashionista. “The risk is, if [a tattoo] is done by someone who doesn’t understand how to [treat skin], you can end up with a scar, and a potentially worse problem, especially in an area that’s already thinner and missing some of the essential elements of skin.”

As with any beauty process, especially one like this which pierces the skin, it’s important to do your research and seek out a reputable artist or medical professional.