Tight clothes will constantly rub against your tattoo, potentially damaging any new protective layer your skin has grown. This constant rubbing can cause irritation, inflammation, and possible infection if you wear clothes that rub your skin constantly.
Tattoo Tips
Your tattoo may be susceptible to sticking to your sheets or clothes. It is better that it sticks to you clothes rather than your sheets. If the tattoo sticks to your clothes, splash warm water on it and remove the clothing from the tattoo very gently. Remember, this is an open wound, so use common sense.
Avoid Tight Clothing
One of the most important things you should do to go through a smooth recovery is to let your fresh tattoo breathe. As you can imagine, tight clothing prevents this from happening and can, consequently, cause damage to your tattoo.
What should I wear after getting a tattoo? If your new tattoo is on a covered body part please try to wear loose clothing made of soft materials. For example, wearing jeans after you have a thigh tattoo is not recommended-sweat pants or shorts are much better choices.
Ditch the tight clothing…for now.
Time to bust out those hammer pants. During the first two weeks of healing, you should avoid wearing anything tight. Think of it like having a scrape or burn—you wouldn't want clothing to be rubbing against it all day.
A lot of tattoo artists recommend sleeping with the wrap that was put on. Others recommend re-wrapping, or just applying healing ointment and keeping the tattoo clean. The important thing is avoiding infection.
A tattoo can become raised for a number of reasons. The most common factors that can cause tattoo raising are allergies, tissue damage, certain weather conditions, poor healing and rough tattoo artist work.
After washing, apply a thin layer of fragrance-free lotion to keep your skin moisturized. Wearing tight clothing can cause friction against your tattoo and lead to rubbing. Opt for loose-fitting clothes made of soft and breathable fabrics like cotton. This will help reduce irritation and allow your skin to breathe.
Over-moisturising can lead to inflamed tattoos and potentially infection. Excess moisture can clog your skin's pores which prevents it from breathing, something that's important for your skin to heal. This can lead to breakouts on the skin that can damage the tattoo.
Signs of an Overworked Tattoo
A Change in Appearance - If the tattoo looks faded, pale, cloudy, blurry, or heavily distorted, this could be a sign of overworked skin. This may also appear as ink distortion and blurring. During a tattoo, ink needs to be deposited in your dermis so the pigment stays put.
This “tattoo flu” is pretty common and should fade into memory in a few days (unlike your new tattoo). Your body's immune system is making you feel wiped out while it attacks potential threats to your bod. Be on the lookout for a mild fever, chills, fatigue, and some tummy discomfort.
Many times if A&D ointment is applied too heavily it may also promote a type of rash. If this happens you should carefully wash the area with anti bacterial soap, lightly pat dry with paper towel or clean dry cloth & re-apply a VERY thin layer of A&D ointment.
Your tattoo does need oxygen to heal, and putting on too much Aquaphor can suffocate the skin and clog pores. To make sure you're not using too much, use a clean paper towel to dab off the extra ointment after you apply it.
Days 2 to 3
Over the next couple of days, you may notice that your tattoo looks dull and cloudy. No need to panic or start thinking about a touch-up. This happens as your skin heals and new skin starts to form. Excess ink and plasma may still ooze from your skin during this time.
Once the tattoo is dry apply AQUAPHOR healing ointment, made by Eucerin. Apply a thin layer and rub it in, then dab excess off with a clean paper towel. 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.
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.
Tattoo cream: how many days you need to apply it for optimal skin healing. After getting a tattoo, you should moisturize it daily for at least 10 to 14 days. Respecting these timeframes is absolutely crucial because, if your skin dries out, you are likely to get very disappointing results.
Tattoos and body piercings provide an opening in the skin that may allow germs to enter your body and cause infections. These infections could cause sepsis. It is for this reason that anyone who receives a tattoo or piercing must take special care to reduce the risk of contracting an infection.
In fact, you'll actually burn calories during a tattoo because your metabolism speeds up in response to tension. Carb loading is a great way to make sure you'll have enough energy to get through your next tattoo appointment.
For a person with diabetes, this could be something that includes clear medical symbols and/or text that indicates their condition. These so-called 'diabetes tattoos' have become quite common in recent years, with many diabetics using them to replace medical jewellery as a permanent form of diabetes identification.