Aftercare is the key to a beautiful healing.
Your tattoo is a small open wound for the first days, and how you treat it decides how it heals. None of it is hard. Here is everything I tell my clients, in order.
Just tattooed?
The second skin stays on. Showers are fine. No soaking and no sweating under it. If it has lifted and the tattoo is exposed, take it off under warm water and start washing and moisturizing.
Tell me the day of your appointment and this page shows you what matters each day, with the dates for everything that comes back: workouts, swimming, the sun, your touch up.
The short version
- Keep the second skin on for 3 to 4 days.
- Take it off under warm water, wash gently, pat dry.
- Moisturize little and often with a light, water based, fragrance free lotion.
- Never pick, peel or scratch.
- No swimming, baths or hot tubs for 4 weeks.
- Keep it out of the sun for 4 weeks. Cover it with loose clothing, no sunscreen on it until it has healed.
- No heavy workouts or sweating for the first week.
- Send me a healed photo after 5 weeks. The first touch up is free if you need one.
What you leave with
- A clear film over your tattoo. I call it second skin. It protects the tattoo while the first healing happens underneath.
- A small balm for the first two days after the film comes off.
- This page.
Day by day
- days 1 to 4
The second skin
Leave it on for 3 to 4 days. You can shower with it. Do not soak it, and do not sweat under it: no gym, no hot yoga, no sauna while it is on.
A little fluid and ink collecting under the film on the first day is normal. It looks messy and it is fine.
Take it off earlier if
- water gets under it,
- it lifts enough that the tattoo is exposed,
- a lot of fluid builds up under it,
- the skin around the edges turns red, itchy or bumpy from the adhesive.
On ribs, along the bra line, on wrists, hands and feet the film often lifts early because the skin moves so much. That is normal for those placements and nothing is wrong. If only a corner lifts and the tattoo is still covered, you can leave it until the next day.
Right after the session. You can still see your new tattoo through the second skin, and show it to everyone. - day 3 or 4
Taking it off
Do it in the shower or under warm running water. Find a corner and peel it back slowly over itself, along the skin, not straight up. Warm water loosens the adhesive.
Then wash the tattoo gently with clean hands and a mild, fragrance free soap. Pat it dry with a clean paper towel. Let it air dry for a few minutes, then put on a thin layer of the balm I gave you.
Do not put a new bandage, plastic wrap or anything tight over it. A covered healing tattoo traps bacteria. From here on it heals in the open.
- days 4 to 14
Keep it clean, keep it moisturized
- Wash it once a day for the first week, before you moisturize. Clean hands, mild soap, lukewarm water, no scrubbing, pat dry with a paper towel.
- Moisturize little and often. Not a thick layer at once: a thin layer, more often. The balm is for the first two days. After that use any lightweight, water based, fragrance free lotion.
- It will peel and flake, like a sunburn. It may itch. Filled areas and color peel more than fine lines. All of this is normal.
- Never peel the dry parts and never pick a scab. While it is healing it is still an open wound. If you pull a scab off, the skin underneath has to start healing all over again, and it can take ink with it. If it itches, moisturize.
- Do not touch it with unwashed hands, and do not let anyone else touch it.
- Wear loose, clean clothing over it. Nothing tight, nothing that rubs.
- weeks 2 to 6
It looks healed before it is
During the scabbing and peeling stage the lines often look faded, cloudy or patchy, and sometimes it looks as if a line has gaps. Most of the time the color comes back as the new skin settles. Lines cannot move from washing. Fine lines always heal a little lighter than they look on the first day. That is how fine line is meant to look.
A tattoo takes 4 to 6 weeks to heal fully, even when it feels healed sooner. Solid black and color take the longest.
Keep moisturizing twice a day for two months. If your skin is dry, more often.
What healed looks like
This is how fine lines should look when perfectly healed: no blowouts, no inconsistencies, and not disappearing. The day it was made on the left, healed on the right.
Is this normal?
Normal, no reason to worry
- redness, slight swelling and soreness for the first days,
- clear fluid or a little ink under the film on day one,
- peeling, flaking and itching in the first two weeks,
- a cloudy, faded or patchy look while it peels,
- fine lines that look lighter than on day one,
- solid black or color scabbing thicker and taking longer.
Write to me, with a photo
- if a line looks broken or a part looks much lighter once it has fully peeled,
- if a scab came off early and took ink with it,
- if you are not sure. I would rather see it than have you worry.
Tell me what day you are on.
An infection can happen with any tattoo, and it needs a doctor, not a lotion. See a doctor or a dermatologist right away, and tell me too, if you notice any of these:
- redness that gets darker or spreads instead of fading,
- pain that gets worse after the first days instead of better,
- the skin feeling hot, or swelling that increases,
- pus, yellow or green discharge, or a bad smell,
- itchy, red, painful bumps or open sores in the tattoo,
- red streaks running from the tattoo,
- fever, chills, or feeling unwell.
If you have trouble breathing, a racing heart, dizziness, intense swelling or hives, get emergency care.
A rash in only one ink color, most often red, can be an allergy to that ink. It can appear weeks or even years later. If it lasts more than a week or two, see a dermatologist, and let me know.
These signs follow the guidance of the American Academy of Dermatology and the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.
What to avoid, and for how long
- Swimming, the ocean, lakes, pools, baths, hot tubs, saunas4 weeks
Soaking softens the healing skin and carries bacteria into it. Showers are fine.
- Direct sun and tanning4 weeks
New skin burns fast and sun fades fresh ink. Stay careful for two months.
- Sunscreen on the tattoountil healed
It irritates healing skin. Cover the tattoo with light clothing instead.
- Heavy workouts, sweating, hot yoga1 week
Sweat and friction irritate it and lift the film. Nothing sweaty at all while the film is on.
- Tight clothing, straps, socks and shoes rubbing on it2 weeks
Friction lifts scabs.
- Shaving over ituntil healed
The razor takes the healing skin with it.
- Picking, peeling, scratchingalways
It pulls out ink and the skin has to start healing again.
- Covering it with bandages or plasticnever
Once the film is off, a cover traps bacteria.
If you cannot avoid water, for work or for a trip, tell me before we book and we will plan around it. I would rather tattoo you four weeks before your holiday, or after it.
Placements that need more from you
Hands, fingers, feet and ankles heal differently. The skin there moves, rubs against socks and shoes, gets washed all day and sees more sun. Lines heal lighter there, and touch ups are normal. I design for it, and I will always be honest with you about it. Be extra careful with moisturizing, and keep shoes and gloves from rubbing for the first two weeks.
On the ribs and along the bra line the film usually lifts early. Behind the ear the skin is very thin, so I keep the lines very fine there and we plan a touch up once it has healed.
Products
You do not need anything special.
- Soap: mild and fragrance free.
- Lotion: lightweight, water based, fragrance free. Lubriderm is a good one.
- Paper towels for drying, not the bathroom towel.
- After it has healed: sunscreen of SPF 30 or more on the tattoo every time it is in the sun, in a thick layer, put on 15 minutes before you go out and again every two hours. Sun is what fades tattoos over the years.
- A balm stick is nice for healed tattoos, not for fresh ones.
Remember to always hydrate your tattoos.
Touch ups
Your first touch up is free.
- It has to wait at least 5 weeks, until the skin has fully healed. Going in sooner damages the skin.
- Send me a photo of the healed tattoo in daylight. I will tell you honestly whether it needs one.
- If all the lines stayed where they should, I will say no. Going over good lines again can make them heal thicker or uneven, and we chose fine lines for a reason.
- If you would like it a little bolder than we made it, we can do that at the touch up.
- I usually do touch ups on weekdays. If you live in another city, we do it on my next visit, so write to me as soon as I announce dates.
Before your appointment
It starts before the tattoo. Sleep well, eat a proper meal, drink water, no alcohol the day before, keep the skin out of the sun in the weeks before, and wear something loose that leaves the area easy to reach. I take care of the rest.