Aftercare
Day 1
You’ll come home from the tattoo studio with a dressing over your tattoo. You may remove this dressing 2 hours after you get home.
You’ll probably notice fluid oozing from the tattoo. This is blood, plasma, and some extra ink. Your skin will also be red and sore. It might feel slightly warm to the touch.
When it’s time to remove the dressing, wash your hands thoroughly before gently peeling back the wrap.
Use warm water and fragrance-free soap to cleanse the area. Then rinse well with cool water before lightly patting the skin dry with a clean paper towel or cloth
Day 2-4
By now, your tattoo will have a duller, cloudier appearance. This happens as your skin heals. Scabs may start to form.
You may gently wash your tattoo once a day with cool water. A shower counts as a wash. Try to keep your showers in the cooler side to avoide your skin tightening up. You might notice some ink running down the drain. This is just excess ink that’s come up through your skin. Once your done pat dry with a clean paper towel, do not rub.
Day 5-14
By now, any scabs have hardened and will begin to flake off.
Don’t pick at them or try to pull them off. Let them come off naturally. If you got an itch lightly tap your tattoo to relive it , if you scratch you risk pulling out the ink and leaveing scars.
At this point, if your skin feels extremely itchy or tight. You may Gently rub a pea size amount of on a fragrance-free and alcohol-free moisturizer (an example is lubraderm) once a day to reduce the itch.
If your tattoo is still red and swollen at this point, you might have an infection. Speak with your tattoo artist or consult with a healthcare professional. It's better to ask then to assume.
Day 15-30
In this last stage of healing, most of the big flakes will be gone and the scabs should be going away. You might still see some dead or dry looking skin, but it should eventually clear up too.
The tattooed area may still look dry and dull. At this point you may moisturize again with an unscented lotion or lubraderm
What not to do during healing
- Dont submerge your tattoo in bodies of water for extended periods of time time
- No hottubs
- No saunas or tanning.
- No Vitamin E.
- No petroleum products
- No alcohol based products
- Avoid clothing that may snag and pull on scabs
- No picking , scratching or rubbing.
- No hot showers during healing. (Regular showering is fine.)
If any of the following is unclear or you have a question please don't hesitate to contact your artist, We will gladly help you out.
Tips for long-term tattoo aftercare
Once your tattoo has healed, you move into maintenance mode. Although you don’t have to worry about infection after the first 3–4 months, there are things you can do to prevent the ink from degrading.
• Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water to support your overall health and improve skin elasticity.
• Prevent sun damage. Wear sun-protective clothing and apply sunscreen to keep your ink vibrant.
• Avoid rapid weight gain or loss. Rapid fluctuations in size could stretch out or distort the tattoo.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can't I use vitamin E on my tattoos?
Vitamin E is meant to remove impurities in the skin, to your body the ink is an impurity. The vitamin E can actually remove the ink from your skin causing spots and damage. Many added vitamins can do damage to your new tattoo, so be careful and listen to your artist.