Tattoo Aftercare
Your tattoo is an open wound. How you care for it in the next few weeks shapes how it heals, how the colour settles, and how it ages. Please read this carefully.
✦ The first few hours
- Keep the wrap on as instructed — usually 2 hours for a basic wrap
- Don't touch the tattoo with unwashed hands
- Some fluid build-up under second-skin is normal — that's plasma, ink, and a little blood.
- If it leaks, replace the wrap or remove it and wash gently
✦ The first wash
- Wash your hands thoroughly first
- Gently remove the wrap
- Wash the tattoo with lukewarm water and a fragrance-free, antibacterial soap
- Use your fingers only — no washcloths, sponges, or loofahs
- Pat dry with a clean paper towel (cloth towels harbour bacteria)
- Let it air-dry for 10–15 minutes before applying anything
✦ Days 1–3: Healing begins
- Wash 2–3 times a day with fragrance-free soap and lukewarm water
- Apply a very thin layer of unscented healing balm or moisturiser after each wash (less is more — too much suffocates the skin)
- Recommended: Bepanthen, Hustle Butter, Dr. Bronner's, or any fragrance-free aftercare balm
- The tattoo may feel warm, tight, or sunburnt-like — this is normal
- Sleep on clean sheets and try to avoid lying directly on the tattoo
✦ Days 3–14: Peeling and itching
- The tattoo will start to flake and peel — this is normal and means it's healing
- Do not pick, scratch, or peel the skin, no matter how tempting. It can pull ink
- out and cause patchy healing
- Keep moisturising lightly — 2 times a day
- Avoid tight clothing that rubs on the area
✦ Weeks 2–4: Settling
- The top layer is healed, but the deeper layers are still repairing — be gentle for another 2–4 weeks
- Colour and detail may look dull or cloudy during this phase — that's the new skin settling over the ink. It will clear up
- Continue moisturising once a day until the skin feels fully normal again
✦ For the full healing period (4–6 weeks), avoid:
- Soaking in baths, pools, hot tubs, the ocean, or natural water
- Saunas and steam rooms
- Direct sun exposure on the tattoo
- Heavy sweating and intense exercise (especially the first week)
- Tight or rough clothing rubbing on the area
- Pets sleeping on or near the tattoo
- Scratching, picking, or rubbing
- Shaving over the tattoo
✦ Long-term care
- Once fully healed, sunscreen is the single best thing you can do for your tattoo — UV breaks down tattoo ink faster than anything else. SPF 30+ on the area whenever it's exposed
- Keep skin moisturised generally — well-hydrated skin keeps tattoos looking sharp for longer
- Free touch-ups are available within 6 months of your session, provided aftercare has been followed