A tattoo is like an investment; if you take care of it properly from the beginning, it can be something you will enjoy for many years to come. But if you don't work at proper healing with good aftercare practices, it can truly take a roll on the finished work, no matter how talented the artist who applied it. So how do you know how you should take care of your new tattoo? 

 

Most important thing that you need to remember is to keep your tattoo moist with BEPANTHOL that will be given to you for next 2 or 3 weeks because if you dry it out by forgetting to put the cream on in that period, it will result in damaging your tattoo!

 

Tattoo is responsibility for the rest of your life so try to follow carefully this aftercare instructions ;)   

 

 

When you leave the tattoo studio, your new tattoo will be covered with plastic foil that you would need to change every 3 hours in a first day (including keeping it on over night for next 1 or 2 days).

Why keeping the foil on?

Plastic foil will keep the dirt and air-born bacteria from entering the fresh wound, it will keep tattoo from eventual damaging, making your close dirty and it will keep the cream good moisturized, specially over the night. But watch out, keeping the plastic foil any time longer than 3 - 4 hours over the day can result bacterias inside to spread so don't forget to change the plastic foil! 

 

change the plastic foil every 3 hours for first day

 

Next thing what you should do after 3 hours from setting your tattoo is taking your plastic foil off and slightly wash your tattoo with little warm water. 

 Rinse the tattoo indirectly,

meaning don't just hold your new tattoo under the faucet, splash water over it or let it run down from just above the tattooed area. Also be careful not to wash the area with anything other than your fingertips!

Pat it dry with a clean paper towel and leave it alone for 5 till 10 minutes.

This allows for excess moisture from the swelling under the skin as well as moisture introduced by washing the tattoo to evaporate out.

It's very important to let your tattoo "breathe" like this any time you get it wet before it gets into the peeling stage.

 Showering as you normally would is fine, but it's definitely a good idea to keep the tattooed area as much out of the water as possible. The already fragile skin becomes even more so when it absorbs excess water.

  

use a little warm water to clean your tattoo and tap it with towel, do not rub it dry

 

Once your tattoo is sufficiently dry, it's time to apply BEPANTHOL to moisturize and soothe the area.  Once upon a time, it was widely recommended to use petroleum jelly (Vaseline),

but it can clog pores, causing breakouts in the healing tattoo, as well as work as a drawing agent to pull ink out of the middle up to the surface of the skin, fading the tattoo before it's even fully healed!

Bepanthol/Bepanthen Ointment is one of the best creams for tattoo aftercare, it not only soothes the tattoo or irritation, it forms a protective waterproof barrier that still lets your skin breathe. It also keeps your tattooed area healthy and helps the skin to repair its natural protective barrier!

  Do not overdo the cream!

The tattoo must be allowed to breathe! A thin layer over the day every 3-4 hours will be enough!

 

apply thin layer of Bepanthol

 

 After a few days to a week, a thin layer of skin will start to peel or flake away from the entire tattoo, much like the peeling you get from sunburn. Again, this is totally normal.

It is essentially the scab coming off. Do not pick it or play with it!

It will itch during this time, do not scratch!

Your tattoo will still be very sensitive and you may end up scratching or picking it open. No-one wants holes in their tattoo.

 Most tattoo artists can tell by looking at your healed tattoo if light spots were caused by picking and scratching so just don't do it.

 

keep the tattoo fatly with Bepanthol for the next 10 days

 

Your tattoo will take 1 to 3 weeks to heal. This is again dependent on the aftercare method, size, position, and style of the tattoo. A full colour tattoo will typically take longer to heal than a grey shaded piece.

Applying lotion to it on a regular basis will make the colors look as bright (or as dark) as they can.

 

  Do not expose your tattoo to direct sunlight for at least 1 month!

Afterwards use cream with FACTOR 50+ only on tattooed area in the summer time and any universal creme or lotion like Nivea for a lifetime to maintain your tattoo beautiful.

Why is it so important to use high factor on your tattoo??

UV rays damage the skin, and they will definitely fade tattoo color!!

You can fix your tattoo afterward, but if you don't take proper care while exposed to the sun, your tattoo will fade every time!

This is really important because tattoo is for life and having factor 50+ all the time with you may help you take better care of your investment!

 

 

Here are some extra tips and advices in tattoo aftercare;

 

 

avoid any longer contact with water (bath, pool..) for next 1 month 

 

also avoid sport, sauna or any harder contact with tattoo for next 1 month  

 

avoid direct sun next 1 month (apply FACTOR 50+ every time you're exposed to sun) 

 

Do not wear tight clothing over your new tattoo while it is healing

 

NOTE; If you wear a bra and the tattoo is in a location where the bra may rub or press into it, either go without a bra during the healing process or keep it loose

 

Also, please do not wear panty hose for 7 to 10

days as the tattoo will bond with the nylon

 

The new tattoo may form a light protective crust over the top of it, do not pick this layer, let it flake off on its own

 

tattoo may itch.

DO NOT SCRATCH IT!

 

 

Don’t forget!

Caring for your tattoo isn’t just for a week or two after it’s been done, it’s for life! The better condition your skin is in, the better the tattoo will look and last over the years.

Moisturize daily and use sunscreen. Not only will your tattoos continue to look great, you will have less wrinkles! Bonus;)