Care and Feeding of Your New Tattoo
~ Remove Bandage in about 2 hours. If we worked for longer than 2 hours you can leave
it on for as long as we worked.
~ Wash gently but thoroughly with water, mild soap and your hand (do not scrub). Continue
to rinse until all surface blood, ointment and soap is removed.
~ Dry by blotting very gently with a paper towel or a clean towel. Continue to air dry until
tattoo feels slightly tight (15 minutes to 1 hour).
~ Apply Ointment in a thin light coat rubbing completely into tattoo. If there is any excess
ointment, remove it gently with a paper towel. Tattoo should feel moistened but not heavily
coated (or slimy - we’re not going for icky here).
~ Wash tattoo a lot. Pretty much as frequently as you can for the first day or two. Each time
making sure your hands are clean before and that you reapply a light coat of ointment after.
If you are home, go ahead and wash with soap and water. If you are at work or somewhere
that you can not be sure to rinse well enough - a wipe with a damp paper towel is still much
better than nothing.
~ Rebandage with a non-stick (or telfa) pad only if:
1. You may roll over and sleep on the tattoo (or tattoo may come up tight against the sheets)
2. You have to wear tight clothing directly over tattoo area (such as a bra)
or clothing that will rub hard against tattoo (such as waist area on jeans).
While your tattoo is covered it is healing at a much slower rate - so whenever possible
expose to the air or cover with loose fitting soft clothing instead. Never bandage with gauze
or any absorbent material (tattoo will heal to bandage if this is done)!
~ Continue Washing and Ointment treatments until tattoo starts to “peel” this looks very
much like a sunburn peel and should happen in 3 to 7 days. It may have a waxy or shiny
appearance when it first peels - this is normal. Once tattoo begins to peel you can switch to
a hand lotion or stop using any ointment. Do not help the flakes or peels come off (This is
very tempting to do, but it really is important not to). Sometimes your tattoo will peel and
you won’t notice (in the shower or something). If you hit a week and it hasn’t peeled you
can go ahead and switch to the lotion anyhow.
~ DO NOT: expose tattoo to sun (yes, this includes tanning booths), salt water, chlorine,
dust, dirt or any other substance which could dry out or infect tattoo until after tattoo peels.
(No mud wrestling or washing the dog - you get the idea) Now if you want to use the tattoo
as an excuse to get out of housework or gym class, I am all for that, but the truth is it really
isn’t necessary.
~ After all of this... you can treat your tattoo just like the rest of your skin. Sunscreen is a
great idea and will help keep your tattoo bright and beautiful. Moisturizer is a nice thing to
do for any skin - rather it is tattooed or not.
~ Questions? - I can be reached at (585) 621-4460 or 1-888-305-7155 (long distance only)
or teejay1@frontiernet.net
~ Ointments that I recommend are Aquaphor (my personal favorite), Betadine H clear,
Bacitracin (if you really think you need an antibiotic), Tattoo Goo & A&D Ointment. Please
use common sense and if the ointment burns or hurts, stop using it immediately!
~ Thank you for trusting me with your art work and your skin, please let me know if there is
anything else that I can do for you. ~Namaste, TeeJay