How do you care for your new tattoo?
-Leave bandage on overnight (most important!)
-Get in the shower and wash your tattoo with hot soapy water and your finger tips and hand as soon as the plastic is taken off next morning.
-In the first 48 hours wash your new tattoo no less than 3 times a day and use a small amount of salve or moisturizer that doesn't contain alcohol twice a day.
-For the next few days wash your tattoo twice a day and use moisturizing product sparingly twice a day.
-Do not scrub off flaky skin or scabs in the shower. leave them be and allow them to shed on their own.
-Stay out of direct sun for 2 weeks, hot tubs and bathing for at least 1 week. Showers are fine.
Some thoughts:
The goal- what you are trying to accomplish in tattoo aftercare is prevention of scabs, infection, and keeping the tattooed skin moisturized yet not overly so. The goo and slime under than bandage is the bodies fluids that are secreted to create a scab. When these are not thoroughly washed off immediately after the bandage is removed this is where and why scabs form around day 3-5. There is no going back in time to the first day of aftercare so you need to be vigilante and thorough on day one more than any other time. Use your finger tips, hot water and small amount of liquid hand soap. NEVER use a wash cloth or sponge. Allow the hot water to loosen the shmeg for a few min before you begin your washing. Make small circles over every part of the tattoo, rinse repeat.
The body will continue to secrete the fluids to make a scab for up to 48 hrs which is why you must wash it often in the first two days especially. These micro beads of fluids are not visible to the eye always but they are still present and must be washed away at regular intervals throughout your day.
The lotion or salve should be applied when the pores of the skin are closed and the skin has air dried for a few min. The moisturizer DOES NOT HEAL THE TATTOO, its only job is your comfort and to not allow the tattoo to become too dry from the frequent washing's. Use no more than a normal amount and work into the skin. Never leave a layer of product on the skin this will suffocate the tattoo and cause problems.
-Certain artists work heals better with other methods and if your going to a TOP level tattooist listen to them, otherwise my healing method has been from a lifetime of healing and trying new things.
-The first 48 hours are crucially important and often where most people do the wrong thing but it doesn't make itself apparent till days later around day 4-6. so they think everything is going well.
-I could write a whole essay on healing a tattoo. There are multiple methods of healing tattoos that can differ massively but still achieve the same results: A tattoo that looks great as it should without fall out, color loss, or patches.
-If you went to a tattooist who isn't very proficient and efficient with getting the ink in the skin with as little damage to the tissue as possible, as they should be, then healing a tattoo perfectly can be impossible. But most often with well done work healing poorly, the biggest problem is not washing the fresh tattoo enough and properly the next morning and then 3 times minimum that first day after removing the bandage.
-I feel wearing plastic wrap over the tattoo over night or no less than 12 hours makes things easier and gives such a better advantage to correctly do a proper first wash.
-Personally I don't put any ointment or salve under the plastic on the bandaged new tattoo. In my experience some brands and products cake on the the new tattoo and make it very hard to wash the tattoo completely removing every subtle patch of slime, or residue behind, these are the areas that will take the longest to heal and a good chance of creating a scab. Scabs aren't the end of the world as long as they aren't picked at or are scrubbed off in the shower when soggy. Leave scabs alone and don't put lots of moisturizing products on them.
-Leave bandage on overnight (most important!)
-Get in the shower and wash your tattoo with hot soapy water and your finger tips and hand as soon as the plastic is taken off next morning.
-In the first 48 hours wash your new tattoo no less than 3 times a day and use a small amount of salve or moisturizer that doesn't contain alcohol twice a day.
-For the next few days wash your tattoo twice a day and use moisturizing product sparingly twice a day.
-Do not scrub off flaky skin or scabs in the shower. leave them be and allow them to shed on their own.
-Stay out of direct sun for 2 weeks, hot tubs and bathing for at least 1 week. Showers are fine.
Some thoughts:
The goal- what you are trying to accomplish in tattoo aftercare is prevention of scabs, infection, and keeping the tattooed skin moisturized yet not overly so. The goo and slime under than bandage is the bodies fluids that are secreted to create a scab. When these are not thoroughly washed off immediately after the bandage is removed this is where and why scabs form around day 3-5. There is no going back in time to the first day of aftercare so you need to be vigilante and thorough on day one more than any other time. Use your finger tips, hot water and small amount of liquid hand soap. NEVER use a wash cloth or sponge. Allow the hot water to loosen the shmeg for a few min before you begin your washing. Make small circles over every part of the tattoo, rinse repeat.
The body will continue to secrete the fluids to make a scab for up to 48 hrs which is why you must wash it often in the first two days especially. These micro beads of fluids are not visible to the eye always but they are still present and must be washed away at regular intervals throughout your day.
The lotion or salve should be applied when the pores of the skin are closed and the skin has air dried for a few min. The moisturizer DOES NOT HEAL THE TATTOO, its only job is your comfort and to not allow the tattoo to become too dry from the frequent washing's. Use no more than a normal amount and work into the skin. Never leave a layer of product on the skin this will suffocate the tattoo and cause problems.
-Certain artists work heals better with other methods and if your going to a TOP level tattooist listen to them, otherwise my healing method has been from a lifetime of healing and trying new things.
-The first 48 hours are crucially important and often where most people do the wrong thing but it doesn't make itself apparent till days later around day 4-6. so they think everything is going well.
-I could write a whole essay on healing a tattoo. There are multiple methods of healing tattoos that can differ massively but still achieve the same results: A tattoo that looks great as it should without fall out, color loss, or patches.
-If you went to a tattooist who isn't very proficient and efficient with getting the ink in the skin with as little damage to the tissue as possible, as they should be, then healing a tattoo perfectly can be impossible. But most often with well done work healing poorly, the biggest problem is not washing the fresh tattoo enough and properly the next morning and then 3 times minimum that first day after removing the bandage.
-I feel wearing plastic wrap over the tattoo over night or no less than 12 hours makes things easier and gives such a better advantage to correctly do a proper first wash.
-Personally I don't put any ointment or salve under the plastic on the bandaged new tattoo. In my experience some brands and products cake on the the new tattoo and make it very hard to wash the tattoo completely removing every subtle patch of slime, or residue behind, these are the areas that will take the longest to heal and a good chance of creating a scab. Scabs aren't the end of the world as long as they aren't picked at or are scrubbed off in the shower when soggy. Leave scabs alone and don't put lots of moisturizing products on them.
