Credit to Teen Vogue
Getting your first tattoo is a big deal — and so is knowing how to take care of a tattoo. Whether you spent tons of time carefully deciding what to get (and where) or took a spontaneous leap of inked faith, we’re willing to bet you want to keep your new ink looking as good as possible for as long as possible.
And it's not just about looks — it’s also important to make sure you avoid infection as a result of the bodily addition, because, in reality, it's a wound to your skin. So for both aesthetic and health reasons, it’s important you know what exactly to do once you leave the parlor. “Having a new tattoo is nice, but maintaining the quality is determined by the aftercare,” tattoo artist Hongdam Kim tells Teen Vogue.
So what does tattoo care entail? We spoke with Hongdam, as well as a couple other experts, to find out. Here, 9 tips for keeping your skin healthy and your ink bold.
1. Talk to the tattoo artist about your allergies.
Before you even get the tattoo, make sure you’re setting yourself up by success. “Most of the time, there aren’t that many reactions for people who get tattoos,” Evan Kim, tells Teen Vogue. “However, some of the common skin irritations usually have to do with latex — if you’re allergic to latex, definitely let your artist know!” And mention other allergies, too: Evan says allergies to certain metals, which are in tattoo inks, can cause reactions. “Red is the one color that we see a lot of people getting reactions to,” he says. “You might just have to ... refrain from using the red ink.”
2. Find out what tattoo covering your artist uses.
Different artists use different materials to cover the fresh ink; and what your artist uses will dictate how long you should leave it on. “For plastic wrap or dri-loc pads, you keep it on for a short period of time,” Evan says. For those, he says you can leave the cover on for 3-5 hours, or a full day. But if your artist uses Tegaderm (“which is kind of like a fancy bandaid”) like Evan does, that can stay on for 3-5 days. Rather than make assumptions, ask your artist what they’re using, how long you should leave it on, and if you should keep your tattoo wrapped at all times or only in certain circumstances (like in the shower).
3. Keep it moisturized.
It’s super important to keep a fresh tattoo good and moisturized right from the start. “A tattoo takes approximately 4-6 weeks to completely heal,” Shari Marchbein, MD, board-certified dermatologist and Assistant Clinical Professor of Dermatology at NYU Langone, tells Teen Vogue. “One of the biggest mistakes you can make after getting a tattoo is to let it dry up.”
To keep that from happening, Hongdam says to apply Vitamin A&D ointment (which you should be able to find at most drugstores) every two hours for the first three days, and three or four times a day from the fourth to the 14th day, and before you go to sleep. “It is important to apply a thin layer of it in order to keep it moisturized,” he says. “You want to make sure that the skin does not scab. A tattoo is essentially a wound and the nature of the skin is to scab in the healing process.”
If you do see any scabs, resist the temptation to mess with them. “Care must be taken to not pick off the scabs, or you can be left with light spots or scars throughout the tattoo,” Dr. Marchbein says. And pass on antibiotic ointments, like bacitracin or Neosporin, which she notes aren’t necessary and may cause some people to have an allergic rash. Just make sure to care for your tattoo and apply the A&D ointment with clean hands each time.
After two weeks, he says you can continue to moisturize with lotion for two more months. “I’ve noticed clients who’ve done so showed better results,” he says.
4. Clean it regularly.
As Hongdam noted, new tattoos are fresh wounds, which means you have to be extra careful to prevent infection. “Tattoos create thousands of microscopic holes in the skin in order to deposit the tattoo pigment,” Dr. Marchbein says. “In doing so, the skin is now open and is predisposed to various infections, including bacterial infection such as Staphylococcus aureus. The most important thing is to make sure the tattoo site is being properly cleaned by gently washing with soapy water twice daily.” Always make sure your hands are clean before you start cleaning your tattoo, and be gentle on your skin (no scrubbing!) to keep it from scabbing.
5. Avoid water and other activities that’ll increase your body temperature.
Dr. Marchbein notes that water can also lead to infection in a new tattoo, so avoid fully submersing it in water (AKA, swimming or sitting in a bath) until it is fully healed. You don’t have to wait quite that long before you shower with a new tattoo, but Hongdam says to wrap it with clean wrap or a waterproof band when you do and keep water completely out for the first seven days.
Keep the strenuous activity to a minimum in the beginning, too. “It is good to avoid any activities that can increase the body temperature, as it can increase inflammation,” Hongdam says.
6. Keep an eye out for possible infections.
Aside from proper aftercare, one of the best things you can do to avoid infection is to make sure you get your tattoo at a clean, reputable parlor where you can verify everything they’re using is sterilized. But even if you do, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the signs of a possible infection, just in case. Hongdam says your skin may temporarily swell and feel itchy as the tattoo is healing (and slight scabbing, as previously noted, may also occur), though if any such symptoms look or feel concerning to you, it can’t hurt to visit a dermatologist.
Dr. Marchbein says typical signs of an infection typically include redness, swelling, pain (at the tattoo site), pus or drainage, and fevers or chills. And “some people can develop lumps or bumps at the site of the tattoo as a reaction to the color/pigment in the tattoo (known as foreign body reaction),” she says. “There have also been outbreaks [of] atypical mycobacterium, a potentially aggressive bacterial infection, following tattooing. This presents are large lumps or bumps within the tattoo, skin breakdown, fevers, chills, and redness, among other symptoms. This can be seen immediately or delayed for months and warrants aggressive medical care to prevent its spread and further complications.” If you experience any of these symptoms or think you might have an infection of any type, call your doctor immediately to determine the best course of action (which may include prescription antibiotics).
7. Know some fading may happen, especially with thin-lined tattoos.
Ideally, your tattoo will remain as vibrant as it was the day you got it, but a bit of fading can happen. “Fading may be due to the depth at which the pigment was deposited during the tattoo placement (if placed too close to the top layer of skin, some of the pigment may shed and not look as concentrated),” Dr. Marchbein says.
That's certainly the case with dainty tattoos. "Due to the nature of a fine line tattoo, there's a higher chance of fading compared to that of a bold line tattoo," Evan says. "This is because the thin needle doesn't penetrate the tissues as it would with a bold needle." If you do want a dainty tattoo, he recommends finding an artist who is experienced with fine line work for the best possible results.
Some fading, on dainty or bold tattoos, can also be attributed to nature. “Tattoos are on your skin, and skin changes,” Evan says. “Good work doesn’t fade that much, but there could be some lines or spots that are missing ink, as well as fading that comes with time." To help minimize fading, Evan says to make sure you keep your new tattoo moisturized and use SPF when you're out in the sun.
8. Protect your ink with ample SPF.
The sun can also wreak havoc on a fresh tattoo. Over the first six weeks, try to keep your new tattoo out of the sun. If covering it up isn't possible, make sure to at least apply ample sunscreen. Because your tattoo is really a fresh wound, your skin is so much more vulnerable to damage that this point. If you end up getting a blistering sunburn, it can cause fading, not to mention pain.
9. Consider touch-ups down the road.
In the event some fading does occur, you can get a touch-up down the road. To make sure the artwork is consist, Evan recommends going to the same tattoo artist who originally did the work. It's also key to wait at least one month after the original work was done to give the skin a chance to heal.
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