AFTER CARE

•  Your bandage should stay on for a minimum of 8 hours and a maximum of 12 hours unless your  artist tells you otherwise.  

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• When you remove your bandage, wash your hands first, then thoroughly wash your tattoo with a mild fragrance free antibacterial hand soap such as dial or cetaphil. Do not use any sponges or luffas to wash your tattoo. Bare hands only! Please refrain from using any soaps that contain aloe, oatmeal, scrubs, tea tree oil, or fragrance. All petroleum jelly needs to be removed in this process, so use a heavy lather of soap and firmly (not roughly) wash your tattoo, then rinse off all soap. You may need to wash your tattoo 2 or 3 times to get all of the petroleum jelly off.

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• When you have finished washing your tattoo, pat it dry with a CLEAN towel. If your tattoo appears to be sticky after drying it off, gently wash it again to ensure that all of the vaseline has been removed.

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• You should wash your tattoo once to three times a day gently with antibacterial soap, and pat dry with a clean towel until it is completely healed. NEVER remove your scabs in the shower, this can prematurely pull ink out of your tattoo and damage the skin which will prolong the healing process and compromise the richness of your tattoo.

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• Fragrance free ointment may be applied 1 or 2 days after you receive your tattoo unless your artist specifies otherwise. Ointment should be applied after each cleaning in VERY THIN amounts. DO NOT USE: Sunscreen, tanning lotion, fragranced oils, aloe vera, A & D or cortisone cream until your tattoo is fully healed.

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Ointments containing these things should also be avoided. Good simple ointments to use include Cetaphil, Eucerine, Aveeno, and 100% coco butter.

Things to be avoided while healing:

• Bodies of water (baths, pools, lakes, oceans)

• Gym equipment (including workout mats and gym floors)

• Prolonged sun exposure and tanning beds.

• Heavy working out that strains the area where you are tattooed, and always wash your tattoo at the end of any workout.

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. Touching your tattoo unnecessarily

• Scratching & picking at scabs

• Remember that pets can be dirty. Make sure that your tattoo comes in as little contact with your pets as possible.