Aftercare
Each artist has a preferred aftercare method they recommend. Your artist may use tegaderm on your tattoo- There are many different brands of tegaderm such as SecondSkin, Helios, Saniderm, etc. If your artist has used and/or sent you home with tegaderm, you can visit this website to watch an instructional video and review some written instructions. Extra instructions for tegaderm will also be pasted at the very end of this page.
Basic tips for tegaderm:
-Your first bandage can stay on as long as it doesn’t leak. On average, this is 1-6 days.
-It’s easiest to remove the bandage in a steamy shower. Pick up a corner and gently pull away from the tattoo (not upwards).
-Gently but thoroughly wash your tattoo with warm water and unscented soap from a bottle (bar soap harbors bacteria!). Just use your fingertips and avoid contact with any loofahs, washcloths, towels, etc.
-Make sure to rinse off all of the soap residue, but avoid “soaking” the tattoo for longer than 3-5 minutes.
-Allow your tattoo to air dry or pat it dry with a clean paper towel.
-Your artist may have sent you home with a second application- if not, skip to the following “basic aftercare routine”.
-If applying a second bandage and some time has passed since your first bandage removal, wash the tattoo once again with unscented soap and pat the tattoo dry with a clean paper towel. Watch the application video linked above.
-This second bandage will hopefully last you a full 6 days, after which you can return to a basic aftercare routine.
A basic aftercare routine when not using tegaderm or after your last tegaderm is removed is:
1. Gently but thoroughly wash your tattoo with warm water and unscented soap from a bottle (bar soap harbors bacteria!). Just use your fingertips and avoid contact with any loofahs, washcloths, towels, etc.
2. Allow your tattoo to air dry or pat it dry with a clean paper towel.
3. Apply a thin layer of a balm like Hustle Butter, an unscented lotion or a specific ointment recommended by your artist.
4. Repeat this 3-4 times a day until your tattoo is healed. You’ll know your tattoo is healed when it’s no longer shiny, flaky or itchy.
Speaking of the itchy flaky phase, it’s important to avoid scratching or picking at your tattoo. You can actually gently slap your tattoo with clean hands for some relief.
Other things to avoid are:
-Soaking a healing tattoo by over-moisturizing, swimming, hot-tubbing or soaking in a bath.
- Dirty clothing, sheets or furniture
- Contact with pet dander
- Products with fragrances
- Prolonged sunshine. Over the long life of your tattoo, some blurring and fading is totally expected. Sunshine and sunburns have the ability to expedite and increase fading, especially in color tattoos. After your tattoo is healed, applying a generous amount of sunscreen during a day in the sun is a must.
Tegaderm tips and troubleshooting:
*Make sure to thoroughly rinse off any soap residue before applying the bandage.
*Make sure the room your bandage is being applied in is clean and free of children and pets, and that the surface holding your bandage has been sanitized.
*Be sure that whoever assists you in putting on a dermal bandage thoroughly washes their hands and dries them with a clean paper towel.
*If the bandage leaks at any point, it is no longer protecting your tattoo. Remove or replace it.
*Some irritation and redness may occur, often due to pulling of the skin when we naturally twist and turn. This is most common on the inner arm. Pay close attention and use your best judgement on whether to remove or replace the bandage. If you replace it, move it a bit closer in to the tattoo so that it doesn’t again touch the irritated area.
*If the tattooed area is swollen, elevate it if possible and take whatever anti-inflammatories you’re used to taking. You can also wrap an ice pack in a t-shirt and lay it over the bandaged tattoo.