Tattoo Aftercare

Before You Tattoo:  Chapter 6

You have your “tat”. It’s beautiful and worth all the effort you put in to the research. Now it’s up to you to keep it looking that way.

As tattooing has become more popular, the aftercare suggestions from your tattoo artist, friends who have gotten tattoos and any other resources you have tracked down will often contradict each other.

Stick to the advice your tattoo artist gives you. Also, use your common sense and pay a trip to your pharmacist or doctor in advance.

Initial Care Instructions

Aftercare of tattoos is a subject no one can agree on. Ask 10 different tattoo artists and you’ll get 10 different responses. It also doesn’t help that you probably won’t remember what your tattooist has recommended. Remember, you’ve just undergone a body trauma and have endorphins running in your bloodstream that you don’t usually have. Your head will tend to be a bit “cloudy.”

It will help greatly if your tattooist has a printed sheet of tattoo aftercare instructions for the two-week (approximately) period that it takes most tattoos to heal. Or, that you get your instructions in advance and write them down.

Please note that if you normally heal slowly, your tattoo will usually take more time to heal. Hand and feet tattoos take more time to heal. If you’ve been tattooed before, healing time can be different for each tattoo. The healing process can take more than a month and a half to complete, it’s different for everyone.

The reason you should follow your tattoo artists instructions are simple. They’ve been at this a long time, have seen tattoos in various stages of healing, and ultimately are responsible for your touch-up. If you don’t follow their instructions, they are well within their rights to charge you for additional touch-ups.

If you follow their instructions and your tattoo healing goes bad, your artist will usually do the touch-up for free. Please check with your artist for their policy.

A new tattoo is an open wound. Open wounds are prone to infection. Follow the instructions from your tattooist. He or she wants your tattoo to turn out well. Temper their instructions with your own common sense. If they recommend a product that has lanolin and you’re allergic to wool, don’t use the lanolin product and let your artist know you’re allergic.

Don’t pick at your bandage. Leave it alone for the recommended period of time. Some tattooists recommend leaving it on overnight, some for only three hours. Plan on staying at home for that night, avoiding alcohol and getting plenty of rest.

Touching your healing tattoo – pat or dab, never scrub, prod or pick.

Because your tattoo is multiple puncture in your skin, when you remove your bandage, you’ll find dried blood and scabs may have begun to form. This is perfectly normal, but you want to keep scabbing at a minimum.

When your tattoo artist has advised you that you can use water on your tattoo, keep your new tattoo clean by washing it with antibacterial soap.

• Wet your tattoo and your hands, under warm running water.
• Put soap on your hands, and rub to make a lather.
• Don't do this under the water stream; you'll wash away the soap.
• Do not use a wash cloth, use your hand and fingertips only.
• Using lather, wash tattoo for at least until dried blood is gone.
• Rinse soap away under warm running water.
• Dry tattoo thoroughly with a clean towel.

Ask your pharmacist which anti-bacterial soap one has the least perfume and additives. Lather up with your hands, do not use soap directly on tattoo. Use lukewarm water, not cold, not hot. Pat dry. No rubbing. Use a clean towel or paper towels. Don’t use the towel you meant to wash last Thursday, but forgot.

Repeat this three to five times a day for four days. Or, repeat as suggested by your tattoo artist. You will not take long soaking baths during the period it takes you to heal the tattoo. Short soaks or short showers are best.

As your tattoo begins to heal, continue to keep it clean, and use whatever your tattoo artist has recommended to keep your skin moist.
In the beginning, that generally means an ointment for four or five days. After four or five days, you’ll switch to a moisturizer. You use an ointment or moisturizer is to keep your tattoo from scabbing. If your tattoo feels stiff or dry, it’s time to use the ointment/moisturizer.

Some tattooists don’t recommend your putting anything at all on your healing tattoo. (Remember what I said about 10 tattooists, 10 different opinions.)

However the majority of tattooists recommend an ointment or moisturizer. If a generic moisturizer was recommended, talk to your pharmacist to find one with no perfumes or additives.

Now, too much ointment or moisturizer will smother your tattoo. You should only use enough that you barely know that it’s been applied. There should be the faintest gleam on your skin. Anything more and you’re using too much. One of the complaints most tattooists have today is that their clients use too much ointment/moisturizer. Scabs can actually form if you smother your skin with too much product.

A properly healing tattoo will have a light membrane over it instead of a scab and you might see flakes of skin falling off, as if you received a sun burn. Do not peel your healing tattoo.

When your tattoo starts itching, which is normal, tap it or slap it lightly to relieve the itch. Do not scratch it.

What happens if your tattoo starts healing badly?

A tattoo that is not healing correctly develops a thick scab. Let your artist know. They will probably advise you to stop using moisturizer and to let your tattoo dry heal. Let the scab fall off naturally, do not pick at it. If you find the scab cracking apply a miniscule amount of moisturizer on it. Remember you probably formed a scab by using too much moisturizer, too often.

Keep your tattoo from being exposed to the sun. You’re not at the point where you can use sun block on it yet. Cover it with your clothing or a light loose bandage if you can’t avoid exposure for the first two weeks.

If you’ve tattooed your hands, you shouldn’t wash dishes or wear gloves. If you’ve tattooed your feet you can’t wear socks, stockings, or shoes on the tattooed area. Nothing should rub against your healing tattoo.

Avoid bathing in extremely hot water for two weeks. Avoid hot tubs and saunas. Avoid long baths. Showers should not last longer than 10 minutes.

Also, avoid salt water. No swimming at the beach for at least two weeks.

Do not shave until your tattoo is completely healed.

Keep your skin clean and moist.

Specific aftercare ointments. Your tattoo may recommend one. With the popularity of tattoos today, aftercare ointments, lotions and creams for tattoo aftercare are popping up all over the place. Your tattoo artist will be will be up to date on all the latest and most effective ointments.

A & D ointments. Ointments made with vitamins A and D help healing but do nothing to stop infections. Ask your tattoo artist or pharmacist to recommend an ointment, as they come in different grades.

Bacitracin. Be careful with bacitracin, some people have allergic reactions after using this product. I personally, was very happy to see this product sold over the counter. I heal very badly and Bacitracin or its generic equivalent is a fixture in my medicine cabinet. I’ve heard from people that Bacitracin causes oozing and spots of missing color.

Unless your artist recommends bacitracin, don’t use it.

Tattoo Goo. I’ve heard comments from “it’s a godsend” to “it’s useless.” Whether or not to use Tattoo Goo should be left up to your tattooist.

No Neosporin. You can have allergic reactions that will leave you with spots of no color.

No Vasoline. Petroleum jelly is a petroleum product. It will draw the ink out of your skin causing the colors of your tattoo to become dull.

No Hydrogen Peroxide. It will also fade your tattoo.

No Salt Water. It will draw out the inks and fade the tattoo.

Allergic Reactions

Now is not the time to find out you have an allergic reaction to a specific product. Buy small sizes and try out things in advance.  Let your tattoo artist or pharmacist know about any allergies you have and ask for recommendations.

Peeling, Scabbing and Itching

Just like any other wound you’ve had, do not scratch! The dirt and bacteria under your fingernails can cause an infection. Pat moisturizer on your tattoo with a clean hand. Then pat off the excess moisturizer with a paper towel. That will help to lessen the itching and the peeling. Expect a light membrane to form over your tattoo.

You can damage your tattoo at this point by scratching and picking at a healing tattoo. If the itching becomes unbearable, put moisturizer on your tattoo, cover with a paper towel and lightly slap it. Hitting it too hard might break the skin or cause bruising, which will damage your tattoo.

No tattoo artist wants to touch up a great tattoo that you’ve damaged.

How do I know if something is wrong?

Go to your doctor or a health professional if your tattoo is severely irritated after 12 hours. Your tattoo should begin to scab and flake after three or four days. If you’ve ever scraped or cut yourself, you have a good idea of how you heal.

When is your tattoo completely healed?

When there is no detectable swelling, scabbing or peeling. If you can run your fingers over your skin, and are not able to tell where the tattoo begins and ends, it has healed. This can range from ten days to two months. Everyone heals differently. Some people heal very slowly.

After You Heal – Long Term Care Instructions

Forget about ever exposing an unprotected tattoo to the sun. Use a sun block of SPF 30 on your tattoo. Exposing your tattoo to ultraviolet rays can cause a beautiful tattoo to become dull and faded. And yes, this includes you in the tanning booth at the salon.

You can buy sun block in convenient sticks to carry with you. There are tattoo specific sun blocks your tattoo artist can recommend.

Basically, you’re going to have to make a choice. The sun or your tattoo?

Hopefully, it will be years down the road before you start to see changes in your tattoo. It may start looking drab or start loosing definition. You’ll need to go see a tattoo artist again, to get your tattoo touched up. Consider it part of regular maintenance.