We've broken down tattoo aftercare to its essential steps, as well as do's and dont's! If you follow this guide with care, your tattoo healing process should go as smoothly as possible.
Immediately after the tattoo session
Leave the bandage on - After finishing your session, the artist would clean the area, apply a soothing ointment, then cover the area in cling wrap or a clear bandage. You can leave this on anywhere between 3-24 hours. Take it off when you can immediately wash the tattoo after removal.
Wash the area - Immediately after removing the bandage, wash the tattoo with clean water and mild soap. This should remove excess ink, blood, and plasma. Pat the area dry with a clean towel or tissue paper.
Moisturize - After drying the area out, moisturize the tattoo with an unscented lotion or an oil-based product, such as coconut oil, tattoo healing balms/salves, and the like (Inkling Tattoo has its own natural tattoo healing salve!). Spread thinly - a healing tattoo needs to breathe.
At this point, you can leave the tattoo alone to heal on its own! Simply follow the next general steps over the next few weeks until the tattoo is fully healed (which takes around a month).
Week 1 - What to Expect
General tip: Wash and moisturize 1-2x a day
Expect some itching and scabbing to start around Week 1! This is perfectly normal, but remember: DO. NOT. SCRATCH! Scratching your scabs will peel up some ink, resulting in bald patches. Yikes! To relieve some of the itching, it's okay to reapply moisturizer/salve as needed. You can also gently tap around the area, but not the tattoo itself.
Weeks 2-4
General tip: You can reduce the washing to once a day. At this point, the tattoo is starting to close, so there's less fear of getting an infection. You can reduce the washing now, but feel free to keep moisturizing as needed throughout the day.
Expect the scabbing to develop more around week 2. Its appearance will depend on the complexity and size of your tattoo. Some will scab very lightly, and some get really gnarly, large scabs. Don't worry about either. Just let the scabs fall off on their own, and don't pick on the scabs!
Once the scabs eventually fall out, you'll be near the finish line of the healing process! Just remember to keep the area clean and moisturized, and you should have a fully healed tattoo by the end week 4!
General Tattoo Aftercare DO's:
DO keep the tattoo moisturized throughout the day - an overly dry tattoo might cause unnecessary over-flaking of the skin, which might take out more ink than you want. Keeping the skin moisturized keeps it flexible and soothed as it heals.
DO wear SPF after the tattoo fully heals - once your tattoo is fully healed, remember to wear SPF or keep it out of direct sunlight whenever you go outside. Bright sunlight destroys pigment particles over time, making your tattoo fade faster.
General Tattoo Aftercare DONT's:
1. DON'T submerge the healing tattoo in water - showers are fine, but try to avoid long baths and swimming while your tattoo is healing. Water can cause the ink and scabbing to swell and dissolve, leaving faded patches of ink.
2. DON'T use antiseptics unless prescribed by a doctor - there's NO need to use rubbing alcohol, betadine, and other antiseptics on a healing tattoo. The gentle daily washing is more than enough to keep infection away! If it does somehow get infected, see a doctor instead of self-medicating.
3. DON'T wear tight and rough clothing - try to avoid wearing clothing that would rub harshly on a healing tattoo.
4. DON'T scratch or pick at your tattoo! - again, just for emphasis, do everything you can to stop yourself from scratching at your itchy tattoos. Some people even resort to wearing gloves just to keep their nails from digging into a healing tattoo.
5. DON'T do hard exercise for the first few days - keep from moving the tattooed area too much for at least the first 3-5 days.
Inkling Tattoo Butter
Tattoo artist Mikki has worked in an organic skincare company for 4 years now, and her formula know-how helped her develop a vegan-friendly, fragrance free, oil-based healing skin salve that has everything you need for tattoo aftercare!
Directions for use:
Apply thinly (a little goes a very long way!) over your cleaned, healing tattoo. Shake well before use to avoid oil separation.
Benefits:
Shea Butter - reduces inflammation, relieves itch, moisturizes;
Sunflower Oil - rich in Vitamins E, A, and D; eases redness; protective barrier;
Avocado Oil - rich moisturizer, heals chapped and flaky skin, rich in Vitamin E;
Green Tea Oil - antifungal and antibacterial, rich in antioxidants;
Vitamin E Oil - promotes wound healing, reduces inflammation, moisturizing.
For more information on Inkling Tattoo Butter, read the full product description here.