Tattooed Skin Care Tips

Although you should receive detailed tattoo aftercare instructions from your artist, following these tattooed skin care tips should aid healing and help you preserve that freshly inked look for years to come.

Moisturizer and sun block both play an important role in tattooed skin care.

General Tattooed Skin Care Tips

Keep Your Fresh Tat Clean

Post-tattoo infections can be devastating to your new tattoo; they can ruin the ink and leave a scar that spoils your tat. Follow these tattooed skin care tips to give yourself the best chance to heal.

• Make it a practice to wash your hands before touching your tattoo. This will greatly reduce the chance of introducing germs to the open skin and launching an infection.
• Wash your new tattoo two or three times each day. Choose a gentle soap, such as Johnson's Baby Soap, Baby Magic Bath Lotion or Ivory Soap. Your tattoo artist may recommend an anti-bacterial soap, and you can use this if you like, but nearly any gentle soap will kill germs. Baby products are less likely to strip the skin of its natural oils, even with frequent washing.
• Smooth the soap on with clean fingers, not a washcloth. Washcloths, even velour ones, still have an abrasive effect on the skin, and this can leave your tattoo feeling raw and delay healing. It's far better to lightly work the soap over the tattoo in a circular motion. If it tickles a bit, you're using the right amount of pressure.
• Rinse the soap off under running water. Again, avoid using a washcloth to remove the soapy water. Letting clean, lukewarm water run over the area carries away all the soap and germs.
• Do not rub your fresh tattoo dry. The best way to dry your tat is to let it air dry. If you don't have the time to do that, you can gently pat it dry with a soft towel. An even better technique is to cover it with a clean paper towel and let it wick up the moisture on its own. This will only take a few moments and is well worth the time.

Keep Your New Tattoo Protected

• Cover your tattoo with a fresh bandage if needed. Most artists only recommend keeping your new tat bandaged for the first couple of hours after tattooing in order to soak up the worst of the bleeding. However, a new tat can continue to "weep" fluid for a few days, especially if the air can't get to it. If your tat weeps enough to run, rebandage it and ask your artist or physician to look at it to determine if an infection is starting. If all seems well, let fresh oxygen do its healing job.
• Resist the urge to pick at any scabs that may form. This is one of the best tattooed skin care tips you'll ever get, as scarring can devastate that artwork you went through so much to get.

Keep the Area Moisturized

Traumatized skin has a tendency to peel, and that can really affect the look of your new tat.

• Apply a small amount of a color-free, scent-free moisturizing lotion to the area. You are more likely to find a nice bland lotion in a health supply store than in a cosmetics aisle. The dyes in colored lotions can affect your ink tints, and scent oils used can be harsh on open skin.
• You can choose to use an antibiotic ointment on your tat if your artist recommends it, but it's not usually necessary. Washing your tat two or three times a day should be sufficient for killing germs.
• No matter which lotion or ointment you use, apply it sparingly. A thick layer of moisturizer can leach color out of your tattoo. If your skin feels excessively greasy after an application, gently pat up the extra with a soft tissue.

Protect Your Tat from the Sun

Brand new tattoos are especially sensitive to ultraviolet rays. The skin burns more easily than normal, and the sun can actually bleach the color from your tattoo.

• Apply a thin layer of SPF 50 sunblock lotion over the tattoo, and reapply often.
• Wear a light garment over your tat for even better protection. Go ahead and combine this effort with the sunblock. When it comes to sun exposure, you really can't be too careful.
• Never forget to apply sunblock to a tattoo of any age. Even seasoned tattoos can be affected by the sun, and a sunburn can cause peeling and scarring, neither of which are any good for the look of your tat.

Conclusion

Following these tattooed skin care tips about keeping your tat clean, protected and moisturized are the best ways to preserve your body art, but if your skin begins to show any signs of infection, don't hesitate to visit your doctor.

Have any tattooed skin care tips of your own? Log in and add them in the Comments box below.

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