After Care by Brandy Devoid at Old Towne Tattoo

 

When you get a new tattoo it is important to remember that your tattoo artist is not responsible for how well you take care of your tattoo during the healing process. It is important to take a break from activities that might irritate or cause trouble in your healing process. Maybe take a break from moving those boxes in the garage, roller derby practice or scrubbing out the sewer line with Mike Roe. But the good news is if you take care properly the healing time for your tattoo is not as long as you think. You will be back in business soon.

 

I know you are excited about showing off your new tattoo but…

It is important to leave the bandage on as long as your artist says without fussing with it. Your friends can wait to see your awesome work until later. With any of my tattoos I ask my clients to leave the bandage on for 1 to 2 hours take a warm shower rinsing gently with unscented soap. If your bandage gets stuck on the healing skin you can use the warm water and unscented soap to gently clean this off. Never peel off rip or tare it’s always better to soak and rinse.

 

Plastic wrap?

I personally was advised to never use plastic wrap to cover a finished tattoo because the skin needs to breathe in order to get a jump start on healing. The only reason I might cover a tattoo with plastic is if we had to stop tattooing so the client could use the rest room or take a smoke break and I was intending to come back to tattooing. This would be to keep the area clean for a short period of time and then uncovered to go back to work on it.

 

Keep the care of your tattoo simple

It is important that you don’t do anything other than what is written here and you will have a healthy bright and shining tattoo with no problems. So the first thing you want to do when you take off the bandage is wash it with warm water and unscented soap. The more natural you go with your soap the better. Katie at Lotus Healing makes great hand crafted soaps and tattoo balms that can be used and work great. When washing your tattoo you simply want to rub it with your hand. A wash cloth can tend to be too harsh. If it feels slimy it’s because the plasma from your blood dries on the surface to create scabs. Finally you pat it dry with a soft towel.

 

After you wash your tattoo

 You will want to moisturize with unscented lotion or you can use an all natural healing balm. Keep in mind that hand made natural lotions can go rancid and not have a very long shelf life. If you try a natural lotion like shea butter or cocoa butter check if it is fresh. You will want to moisturize any time your tattoo feels sore, itchy or is dry. There will be a period of time where layers of dead skin will be flaking off. This is normal for the first two weeks.

 

Do not use Neosporin or Bacitracin.

Some people can have allergic reactions to these products but because of the antibacterial qualities in these products some of the ink can lift out of your skin leaving a spotty or patchy tattoo that will need touching up later. You can rub a little vitamin E oil on your tattoo and it will help heal your skin a little quicker. (Katie’s tattoo balm has vitamin E oil in it.)

 

Specialty Products and Lotions  Aquaphor or, Tattoo Goo, or H2Ocean can have petrolium based oils in them. Read your ingredients carefully. Everything can have varied results however remember to keep it simple and consistent. Unscented soap and unscented lotion is really the best and not very expensive. Don't slather the lotion on.  Just a thin application and let the tattoo breath. 

Keep it up!

I like to suggest you keep up this regiment of cleaning and moisturizing for 2 weeks.

 

Bathing, Hot Tubs, and Swimming versus Showering.
For the first two weeks it is a good idea to simply shower rather than to soak in the tub or use a hot tub. It is also a good idea to avoid swimming for two weeks as well. These things can cause damage to your tattoo. Mostly this causes inconsistencies with the healing and dead skin flaking off process. Your colors can fade or be patchy.

 

Scabbing, peeling and flaking

It is normal for scabbing, peeling and flaking to occur. You have just had a medical procedure performed on your skin. This is not to be taken lightly but also no reason to panic. Sometimes you can place a warm moist compress on the area that’s scabbing and some of the dead skin will naturally flake off very much like a sunburn. Never scratch, pick or peel your tattoo. Moisturize and leave it alone. The less you do the better. Healing takes time. Itching means it’s healing and you should apply more moisturizer.

 

And remember always to use sunscreen  
You want to protect your beautiful art from ultra violet rays. Have you ever hung some art in the window and had the colors fade out from the sun? If you leave something colorful out in the sun all the time it is inevitably going to fade. Imagine what the sun does to your skin. Not to mention causing skin cancer. Before spending a lot of time excessively worshiping the sun, protect your tattoo with at the very least 30SPF sun block. This will keep your tattoo vibrant for many years.

That’s it. That’s all I have for now on this topic.  Enjoy your tattoo!