You’re going to hear a lot of different information when it comes to caring for your tattoo.

Something I always like to tell my first-time clients is that aftercare is really easy to overthink, but it’s actually really simple!

The advice we give is generally to supplement your lifestyle: If you’re very outdoorsy, you might need to wash your tattoo more often, if you tend to have dryer skin, you might need to moisturize more often.

Aftercare

At the end of the day, my job is to give you the best advice I can so you can find a routine that works for you.

There are a couple ways I bandage my clients up after the tattoo is finished—

Bandaging

Second Skin

I advise leaving the second skin bandage on for around 3 days. If it does come off on it’s own before then, not to worry! Just make sure you’re taking care to keep the tattoo clean while it’s still fresh.

I strongly recommend taking the bandage off in the shower or under warm, running water. Work it off gently from a corner, keeping in mind to be very gentle with your tattoo!

&

Plastic Wrap

It’s a good idea to keep the wrapping on until the morning after you received your tattoo. If your tattoo is leaking or dripping through the plastic, you can remove it and clean off the skin gently with a clean paper towel and warm water.

If you want to replace the wrap yourself, it’s really important to make sure both the skin and wrap are clean with no soap left on the skin!

A tattoo is essentially an open wound, and you kind of have to treat it as one.

Having a covering for the first day or first few days will help protect your tattoo from infections while it’s still open— after the first few days, it will have scabbed over and, for the most part, can protect itself!

Lotion & Moisturizing

After taking your bandage/covering off, you can start moisturizing the tattoo!

As a starting point, I recommend applying lotion once a day. If the tattoo feels dry or crusty, or you have a tendency to have dryer skin, I’d say you can apply up to 3 times a day. On the other end, if you feel like you’re applying too much or you’re seeing breakouts or spots around the area of the tattoo, you may limit application to fewer than once a day— maybe once every few days or once it starts to feel dry.

This aspect of the aftercare process really varies from person to person— as you continue getting tattoos, you will find what frequency works for your skin!

Remember to only touch your tattoo with clean hands!

These are examples of products that I’ve used in the past for my own tattoos. Whatever you use, it’s really important to only use non-scented products on your tattoo.

It’s also really important to take note of how much product you’re applying at any one time— especially with thicker products like Aquifor, shea butter, or cocoa butter, having excess lotion sitting over your tattoo can cause irritation and breakouts.

A good rule of thumb is too little is always better than too much— make sure you only apply just enough to cover the skin. It should look a little shimmer-y, but you shouldn’t be able to see any product sitting over the tattoo.

Cleaning & Showering

This is another one of those things that really varies person to person, depending on your lifestyle.

For example, if your new tattoo is in a high-contact are like your wrist or hand, you’ll probably need to wash it more often than a tattoo on your thigh or torso.

My tattoo has gotten dirty!

What to do if your tattoo has gotten dirty?

Don’t panic! All you really need to do is wash off your tattoo as soon as you can.

Wash it gently in a sink or shower (under running water) and rub it gently with non-scented antibacterial soap. You can use a clean paper towel to dab it dry, but avoid agressive rubbing!

However, even in cases like this, it’s my opinion that you don’t really need to be washing off your tattoo more often than just taking regular showers.

Showering with a fresh tattoo is totally fine, and it’s normal to feel some tenderness in the first few days. Again, while showering, it’s important to only use scentless products on a healing tattoo.

I strongly recommend using a non-scented body wash during the healing period!

If you have longer hair, and the tattoo is anywhere on your upper body, it’s also a good idea to make sure your shampoo and conditioner doesn’t run down over your tattoo.

Do’s and Don’ts

Your tattoo will take anywhere from a month to 6-8 weeks to heal completely.

Some things you want to avoid during the healing window:

Any form of still water, no matter how clean you think it is, can still be a breeding ground for infection-causing bacteria. This includes pools, hot tubs, baths, and of course outdoor bodies of water like lakes and the ocean.

Because of this, it’s a good idea to avoid any still water during the healing period, especially the first two weeks.

In the case that your tattoo does get submerged, remove it from the water immediately and wash it off under running water, like in a sink or shower, with scentless anti-bacterial soap.

Exercise is something I recommend avoiding for, at minimum, the first 1.5-2 weeks of the healing period. Sweat can carry bacteria, as well as gym and exercise equipment, which poses a risk of infection for your tattoo.

If exercise is necessary, I would still advise waiting minimum 1 week to return to working out. When you are exercising with a fresh tattoo, I’d recommend having something like a clean roll of paper towels on hand to dab off the area of the tattoo, and to avoid any shared gym equipment.

Outdoor activities, like hiking & camping, can pose a risk to your tattoo. Contact with dirt and sweat, and prolongued exposure to sunlight, and all affect the healing process.

I recommend avoiding outdoor activities like these for at minimum the first 1.5-2 weeks of the healing period. If you do end up in a situation like this before your tattoo has healed, it’s a good idea to make sure you’re keeping the area of the tattoo as clean as possible, and keep scentless antibacterial soap on hand as much as you can.

During or after the first week of the healing proces, it’s not uncommon for the tattoo to be very itchy for a little while. This is a totally normal part of the process and nothing to worry about!

It’s really important you don’t itch your tattoo while it’s healing. This can cause irritation, and you can disturb the protective layer that’s growing over the area of the tattoo, which increases your risk of infection. Sometimes gently tapping or rubbing the tattoo can help stimulate the skin and satisfy the itch, but it’s important to make sure your hands are clean before touching your tattoo! Ice packs help as well, especially overnight, to numb the itchiness.

Lots of rubbing or constriction can irritate the tattoo as well, such as with tight clothing. I’d recommend that during the first 1.5-2 weeks, you avoid compression or body-tight clothing over the area of your new tattoo.

Sunlight can irritate your tattoo while it’s healing, and the UV light from the sun can degrade the ink over time. While your tattoo is healing, do not apply sunscreen over the area. Instead, wearing clothing that will cover the tattoo, or wrapping the tattooed area, is strongly recommended to protect your new ink.

Direct sunlight can still affect and fade tattoos even after they’re healed! Once the healing period is finished, sunscreen is totally fine to apply over your tattoo, and recommended to keep it looking fresher for longer.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to me via email!

sphinks.tatts@gmail.com