Aftercare

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Click here for TatuDerm® Aftercare Instructions.

Washing Your Tattoo

Remove bandage after 3 hours, but no more than 12. Don’t remove the bandage  until you can properly clean the tattoo with mild, unscented soap (we recommend Dr.  Bronner's Baby Unscented Castile Soap) and warm water. Rinse it well; taking off as much of the slimy coating that may have formed  over the tattooed area while underneath the bandage (the slimy coating  is plasma/white blood cells. Scabs form when the plasma dries on the  surface of the skin). Gently pat it dry with a paper towel, then allow  it to air-dry for 10-15 minutes before applying ointment. 

Applying Ointment

Apply Redemption or another specialty tattoo-healing product to the tattoo as needed, massaging a very small amount into the skin to keep the tattoo slightly moist, but NOT smothered. Use just enough product to moisturize the tattoo and blot off any excess with a paper towel. If the tattoo appears shiny, you have applied too much. Continue cleaning and applying  ointment to your new tattoo 2-3 times a day for the first 10-14 days of  the healing process. For the first day or two, your tattoo may require  more cleaning or blotting, as the traumatized skin will still be losing a  small amount of fluid. Once the tattoo starts the peeling stage, switch to After Inked or a fragrance free lotion like Lubriderm or Eucerin.

Maintaining Your Tattoo While It Heals

The healing tattoo should never stay submerged in water. Limit yourself to  short showers until the tattoo has finished peeling. It is also important that a fresh tattoo be protected from the sun and dirty environments,  as it’s still an open wound at this time. All normal activities  involving water or sun exposure can usually be resumed after 14-21 days.

When the peeling begins, the tattooed skin will flake like a sunburn and  become dry and itchy. Avoid picking and/or scratching at the cracked and flaking skin. Keep using lotion until the skin returns to its normal texture.

Troubleshooting

If bumps, bubbles, or pimples form on the surface of the tattoo, stop applying lotion, letting it dry and peel on its own. This bubbling is caused by moisture getting trapped in your skin, usually from using too much ointment (mostly from petroleum based products like A&D and Aquaphor), and could lead to scabbing. If scabs develop, they can remove the color beneath them if prematurely removed. It is important that the scabs are allowed to dry out completely and not get waterlogged at any time. They will eventually fall off on their own and the tattoo should be fine if no deep cracks have formed.

Remember that until your new tattoo peels, it is an open wound and needs to be treated as one. Give your tattoo the time and attention it needs to properly heal. Engaging in actions such as swimming, tanning, removing the bandage early, picking at the tattoo, and general disregard for it, are done at your own peril. If you suspect an infection has developed,  please seek medical attention immediately as untreated tattoo infections can have very serious consequences.