TATTOO PREPARATION
DO…
Eat a meal beforehand
Stay hydrated
Pre-moisturize your skin
Make sure your body and clothes are freshly cleaned
Get approval from your doctor if you have any medical conditions
Buzzing excess hair is helpful, but please don’t do a close shave if you don’t typically do it on a regular basis. Leave that part up to us, we’re pretty good at it!
DON’T…
Drink alcohol up to 24 hours before the tattoo
Take painkillers or other drugs
Be in a rush
Wear constrictive clothing
Forget to double-check your design and placement for final approval while it’s still a stencil
TATTOO AFTERCARE INSTRUCTIONS
Tattoo aftercare can be confusing until you become familiar with how your body heals them. Here are some highly recommended instructions to give you the best, smoothest transition from fresh to healed.
Never touch your tattoo without first washing your hands for at least 20 seconds.
Avoiding things like direct UV exposure and submerging your fresh tattoo into any body of water for 2-3 weeks will prevent your tattoo from becoming irritated or exposed to unnecessary bacteria.
Intense workouts that produce a lot of sweat should be avoided for at least 2-3 days.
Acceptable soaps to use during healing: Original Soft Soap or original Dial.
Acceptable hydration for your tattoo: Non-Petroleum based balms. We offer Reborn Tattoo Care and Hustle Butter. (Do not use Hustle Butter if you have any allergic reactions to Mango)
UNACCEPTABLE HYDRATION:
Harsh lotions or Petroleum-Based ointments (ie: Vaseline, A&D, Aquaphor) These ointments will protect the skin in a way, but they also smother the skin and do not allow the tattoo to heal properly. Additionally, if used improperly can pull the pigments from the tattoo, making it heal patchy and faded, and trap bacteria in the skin creating a problem you don’t want to have that can result in a hospital visit for infection.
Derm Shield
(Sani-Derm, Second Skin, Tegaderm, etc.)
This clear, breathable and latex-free adhesive can stay on your tattoo anywhere from 48 hours to 4 days. Your tattoo artist will inform you of the best duration for your tattoo depending on size and how much skin was worked on during your session. Larger tattoos with more color packing or shading will weep more than a linework piece.
If you have a more worked-on tattoo, you will accumulate more fluid under the derm shield. This is blood, ink and plasma and is completely normal. Don’t worry, your tattoo isn’t going anywhere.
Derm Shield on a tattoo allows plasma to remain a liquid, which will help heal your tattoo. But only if it is liquid! Dried plasma on the skin of a fresh tattoo has the potential to pull ink from the body and cause large scabbing if not taken care of and removed immediately.
If your adhesive leaks, peels up to or past the tattoo, or is punctured, remove it immediately.
If liquid can get out, bacteria can get in!
When the time comes to remove your adhesive, start by lifting an edge and peel parallel and as close to the skin as possible, whether it is pulling to lift it off the skin, or peeling to expose the skin. This is easiest when rubbing lathered soap between the skin and adhesive.
Once your adhesive bandage is removed, wash thoroughly with lathered soap and tepid water. Hot water will hurt, be careful!
Pat your tattoo dry with a clean paper towel or allow to air dry. Hand towels, although clean, can still harbor bacteria and leave fuzz on your fresh tattoo.
There is no need to apply your balm immediately after cleaning your tattoo. Let it air dry for at least a few hours before applying to avoid an excess of moisture.
Always apply a *very thin* layer of balm to your tattoo. Less is more. All you’re doing is keeping it from drying too much. Your skin should not glisten and be overly wet from it.
Keep your tattoo clean from bacteria and debris, and keep hydrated for 3-4 days after you receive it. After that, clean as necessary and apply balm as needed.
NON-ADHESIVE BANDAGE INSTRUCTIONS:
Keep your bandage on for 2-4 hours, up to 6
Once you’ve removed the bandage, lather and thoroughly wash your tattoo with original Soft Soap or Dial.
Pat dry with clean paper towel or allow to air dry.
Keep your tattoo clean of bacteria and debris and apply tattoo specific balm 2-3 times a day or as needed for 1-2 weeks.
Once your tattoo begins to heal, you will have flaking like dead skin peeling off after a sunburn. This is a normal part of the process.