A patchy tattoo could be the result of bad technique; if the artist hasn't made sure the ink is deep enough to stay put. It could also be due to them not 'packing' the ink enough; certain ink colours, or areas of concentrated black, often need to be packed in quite a lot in order to create a solid area of colour.
Older tattoos may be raised due to scar tissue
It's nothing to be concerned about, but it can sometimes raise up, and this is generally caused by changes in body temperature or weather conditions, as well as general health.
Your tattoo is going through the normal healing process.
A lack of ink isn't a problem if your tattoo is still peeling and healing. Chances are, your skin won't all heal at exactly the same rate, which may leave you with a patchy, inconsistent-looking tattoo.
If the needle being used on your tattoo doesn't go deep enough into the dermis layer of your skin, that means the ink has been deposited in the epidermis layer. As we mentioned before, ink deposited here will quickly leave the skin when epidermal cells renew themselves, making for a not-so-permanent tattoo.
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.
While a new tattoo can push out ink, along with blood and plasma, it typically does no harm and doesn't lead to a tattoo blowout. This leaking typically lasts no more than 48 hours. However, bruising from a new tattoo can make it look a little blurred or smudged as it goes through the healing process.
Pooling can also happen if your needle hang is too short (less than 2mm) when the tip makes contact with the skin and drops a big puddle. Set your needle hang at 2-2.5mm to prevent this – leaving the ability for pigment flow and precision.
"Tattoos create thousands of microscopic holes in the skin in order to deposit the tattoo pigment; in doing so, the skin is now open and is predisposed to various infections, including with bacteria such as Staph Aureus." As Palm points out, an allergy to certain inks is another common reason for itchy tattoos.
In order to “fix” the blurry ink, you can try to correct it with additional tattooing. This may mean getting a full cover-up tattoo that covers the old, messed-up design, but it could also mean finding a tattoo artist who can work with the fuzzy and over-blown lines to simply clean up the ink.
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.
If after the healing process has come to an end, the lines are blurry or the various colors of ink have bled into each other, you most likely have a tattoo blowout.
Now, save for moments you catch a glimpse of the design in the mirror, you usually forget the whole thing happened. What's done is done, right? Not always. In fact, skin irritation or a full-blown condition can develop months, years, even decades after the initial tattooing process.
While there's no solid evidence to prove that getting tattooed is addictive, there are many factors that make it seem like it could be. For instance, getting a tattoo can release adrenaline (resulting in an adrenaline rush) and endorphins, which is why many may feel such a positive mental reaction after getting one.
Tattoos reduce stress
Cortisol is a stress hormone. It was tested in the study because cortisol is an immune response suppressant. Multiple tattoos were found to reduce cortisol levels, improving the immune system benefits of tattoos, but also helping with stress reduction.
Still, the chance of tattoo ink causing health care issues is very, very low. Under 7% of people experience issues long-term. If you are worried about an allergy or other issue, it's best to talk to your doctor about your potential for health effects, your tattoo artist, and to try a skin test.
Then come the endorphins. You know that amazing mood boost you get after an intense gym session? The tattooing process has the same effect. These feel-good chemicals reduce your perception of the pain in the same way as drugs like morphine or codeine.
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.
It's normal for a brand new tattoo to have some redness around it, and appear swollen for a day or two, especially if it's very large or in a sensitive area. But if the redness and swelling persists for more than a couple of days, or if it gets worse and begins to feel more tender, this could be a cause for concern.
Redness and warmth
You can have swelling and warmth even without infection, says Tonkovic-Capin. But if it persists for more than three days or gets worse, then it is an infection. And you guessed it: See a doctor.