Same Day After-care
Posted: Wednesday November 2, 2022
So, you’ve just got home from your appointment with your new tattoo and with all the excitement of having a new beautiful design on your skin, you’ve forgotten a few of the important things your tattooer told you about how to look after your new ink. Don’t worry!
Below are our top same-day aftercare tips to make sure your tattoo stays clean, infection free and looking lovely. You can also find further, long term aftercare info on our website here.
Creams
The cream we recommend is this Palmer’s Unscented Cocoa Butter we would recommend nipping to one of the shops in Manchester (Boots is only a 5 minute walk from Flesh tattoo) and picking up a tub.
For cling filmed tattoos:
- If your tattoo artist wrapped you up in cling film, you should leave this on for about 3-4 hours after your tattoo.
- Once it’s time to remove the cling film, clean your hands thoroughly with some antibacterial soap and water (sing happy birthday twice – you know the drill!).
- Remove the cling film and run some warm water over the tattoo or splash the area if you can’t get it under a tap. Top tip – if the area feels a bit tender and stingy, it feels soothing to use cooler water.
- Gently rub any excess gunk* away from the area.
- Pat the skin dry with a clean towel or kitchen roll. Make sure you don’t rub the area dry, just a gentle pat will do.
*Don’t be worried about the stuff that’s under the clingfilm, even though it might look a bit weird, it’s totally normal. It’s just blood, plasma and excess ink.
If you are going to work somewhere like a bar or building site or you’re going out somewhere where you think your tattoo could be exposed to irritants, we would recommend following all of these steps, then re-wrapping your tattoo at home with your own cling film then repeat these steps again when you’re home.
Once the tattoo is clean and dry, spread a thin amount of the aftercare cream over the tattoo. The tattoo should look shiny but not wet. Repeat this step at least twice a day until the tattoo is healed.
For tattoos with Dermalize/Second skin:
If your tattooer applied second skin to your tattoo, the rules for same-day aftercare are pretty easy!
Unless your tattooer told you differently, keep the second skin for the next couple of days and then once the time has passed just hop in the shower and start carefully peeling the second skin off.
If your second skin has peeled off earlier than you expected, it’s nothing to worry about. If it has started to peel in the corner but your tattoo is still covered, try and keep it that way for as long as you can! Once it has peeled so much that the tattoo is exposed, remove it completely as above.
Once you’ve got it off, just begin following the same-day aftercare advice as the cling filmed tattoos, to clean, dry and then moisturise the skin.
If you have any other questions regarding the same-day aftercare procedure and what to do with your new tattoo once you get it home, don’t hesitate to give us a call or email, we’ll be happy to help!