Ditch the tight clothing…for now. During the first two weeks of healing, you should avoid wearing anything tight.
As long as the clothes aren't tight or super scratchy, you'll be fine!
Just let it breathe! If you can help it, keep clothes off of it for a few days, or wear loose clothes. I recommend ONLY re-wrapping it if it's a decent sized tattoo for the first 1-2 NIGHTS only.
10. Don't Wear Tight Clothing It's time to ditch the super skinny jeans in exchange for your mom denim for a couple of weeks. ``For the first two weeks, avoid wearing tight clothing that might rub up against your tattoo as well as sleeping on your tattoo so you don't agitate the healing process,'' Inked warns.
Tattoo wrap/sterile bandaid for the first day after poke then. After the wound closes (there's no leaking fluid), you can wear socks, as long as you clean the wound twice a day with water and soap.
Avoid wearing tight clothing.
Let your tattoo breathe! Wearing tight clothing can cause friction on your tattoo, and irritate the area greatly. Aside from terrible irritation, tight clothing can also cause sweat build-up on your fresh tattoo, especially in the warmer months.
You can shower 3-4 hours after getting a tattoo, if you have a Saniderm bandage on, however, if you have a plastic wrap wait 24 hours to unwrap your tattoo and shower. In either case, shower in cold or lukewarm water and avoid prolonged soaking or submerging your tattoo in water for 3-4 weeks.
Sweat can irritate the skin and damage the tattoo, while friction from clothing or equipment can break down the ink. Sun exposure, especially during outdoor workouts, can degrade the pigments, leading to faster fading.
Wear loose clothing
You don't want your clothing to get too tight around your tattoo, as the pressure can cause pain, aggravate the skin, and make the healing process take longer. Like with the bedding, we recommend choosing clothing you don't mind possibly getting stained if your tattoo leaks!
Use the Aquaphor for the first 2-3 days then switch to a regular FRAGRANCE-FREE lotion such as Lubriderm, or any other fragrance-free brand. 5. Fresh tattoos sometimes “weep” during the first couple of days, meaning that plasma and ink form a thin moist coating on the skin. This can be DABBED with a clean paper towel.
Sleep on a clean surface
Avoid sleeping directly on the tattoo, as the friction from the sheets can disrupt the healing process. Be sure to follow the aftercare instructions provided by your tattoo artist and use a clean pillowcase or bedding to promote a healthy healing process.
Until the surface of the tattoo is healed (at a minimum of two to three weeks), wash the area gently 2-3 times per day. After cleaning the tattoo during this two to three week period, gently apply a thin coat of a lotion-based care product. We recommend After Inked tattoo moisturizer and aftercare lotion.
During healing do NOT: Wrap the tattoo after the first night (wearing breathable clothes over it is fine as long as they are not causing friction. (Keeping tattoos wrapped in plastic or bandages will stop air from getting to the tattoo, slow healing, and make gross stuff grow in there.)
Many artists will recommend leaving your bandage on overnight to prevent sticking to clothing and sheets. Wash your tattoo with warm water and liquid soap. Gently dry your tattoo. There is no need to rebandage.
Is it OK to wear clothes over a new tattoo? Yes, but try not to after the few initial days after application. If you do, make sure you change your clothes frequently. In our experience, tattoos can weep onto the clothes and if you don't change them, it can cause infection.
A minimum of two days and as much as a few weeks are generally recommended to hold off on more moderate and intense activity. Yet even yoga and other low-intensity exercises could be in risky territory if they lead to friction, sweating, or stretching the tattoo.
As with tipping waitstaff, 20-25% percent is a good standard. An easy way to include tipping in your budget is to add it in when getting the estimated costs for having your work done. So, if your tattoo is expected to cost $200, with a 20-percent tip, that's $240.
Don't worry, this is completely natural. It happens because the old skin, damaged during the tattooing process, forms a thin layer over your tattoo and masks its true appearance. In time this old skin will naturally exfoliate itself, revealing your tattoo underneath in all its vibrant glory.
Leaving the bandage on for too long can result in infection, so always change your bandage within the stated timeframe. Most tattoos can be properly healed with 2 applications of the bandage, with each application being left on the skin for 1-2 days, for a 3 or 4 day total.
To aid the skin healing process, the tattoo needs to be kept moist. You can use a very thin layer of hypoallergenic ointment or fragrance-free lotion like Vaseline® Intensive Care™ Advanced Repair Unscented Lotion, or Vaseline® Healing Jelly Original. Repeat daily for 2-3 weeks to help wound healing.
Natural migration of pigment in the skin is manifested by: lines become visually wider; a small (about a millimeter) shadow may appear near the tattoo lines; there will be less empty space between the lines.
Aftercare & Aging
Fine line tattoos are applied with less ink. While the ink is still embedded in the second layer of skin, the single needle does not penetrate as deeply or deposit as much ink. As a result, it is common for fine line tattoos to fade with age.