Aftercare
Tattoo AfterCare
Saniderm:
You can leave on up to 5 days. Remove in shower after running warm/hot water on it for a few minutes to loosen up the adhesive. Wash tattoo with soap and air dry. If any holes are poked in the wrap or if it peels back and exposes the tattoo then take the wrap off immediately and care for it as normal.
Washing Your Tattoo:
Your first wash happens right after you remove your bandage. Wash 1-3 times a day depending in how dirty the area gets. Use unscented antibacterial soap such as Dial gold, Dove or Dr. Bronners. Bar or liquid soap are both fine. Avoid applying the soap directly to the tattoo. Using your hands, get the soap sudsy and wash gently for about a minute. Rinse and air dry. Do not dry with hand towel. You can dap dry with a clean paper towel if you are in a hurry.
Lotion:
Your body heals the tattoo, not the lotion. The lotion is for keeping your skin from drying out too much and keeping the healing tattoo more comfortable. In fact, you can wait up to 3-4 days after getting the tattoo before putting it on. But that's personal preference. Apply unscented lotion 1-3 times a day. Apply very thin layer of lotion, your skin shouldn't be shinny. Less is more. Recommendation for lotions are Cetaphil, Lubriderm and coconut oil. You can also use specific aftercare cream, but it does the same thing and costs way more. We don't recommend Aquaphor or other petroleum based products. These are often applied too thickly and can suffocate the skin. However, if used correctly, they can be a great option especially for highly saturated tattoos.
Things to Avoid while healing:
Submerging your tattoo in water: Swimming, baths, hot tubs, saunas, etc. These WILL make your tattoo fade fast, heal poorly and greatly raises the risk of infection. Limit showers to 10 minutes.
The sun: A sunburn will make your tattoo heal poorly. Do not put sunscreen on in the healing process, keep the tattoo covered by clothing. After it's healed use sunscreen as the sun will age the tattoo faster.
Re-bandaging your tattoo: Unless given instruction by your artist, don't do this. It doesn't need it and if you don't clean it probably, you raise your chance of infection.
Scented lotion/ soap: Avoid these, they make your tattoo heal poorly and your skin can have a bad reaction from them.
Scratching/itching/picking: Let your scabs do their thing. If your tattoo itches you can gently slap it (it really works) or scratch around the area.
Piercing AfterCare
Cleaning Solutions:
We strongly encourage you to use a sterile saline labeled for use as a wound wash. Contact lens saline, eye drops, and other saline products should never be used on a body piercing. Your saline ingredients should list .09% sodium chloride as the only ingredient. Mixing your own sea salt solution will commonly result in the product being far too salty and strong, this can over dry the piercing and interfere with healing.
Cleaning Instructions:
WASH your hands thoroughly prior to cleaning or touching your piercing for any reason.
SALINE rinse as needed while healing. For certain piercings it may be easier to apply using clean gauze saturated with saline solution.
RINSE site as needed to remove cleaning solution residue. Moving or rotating jewelry is not necessary during cleaning or rinsing.
DRY by gently patting with clean, disposable paper products.
Healing Information:
• Initially: some bleeding, localized swelling, tenderness, and/or bruising.
• During healing: some discoloration, itching, secretion of a whitishyellow fluid (not pus) that will form some crust on the jewelry. The tissue may tighten around the jewelry as it heals.
• Once healed: the jewelry may not move freely in the piercing; do not force it. If you fail to include cleaning your piercing as part of your daily hygiene routine, normal but smelly bodily secretions may accumulate.
• A piercing might seem healed before the healing process is complete. This is because tissue heals from the outside in, and although it feels fine, the interior remains fragile. Be patient, and keep cleaning throughout the entire initial healing period.
• Even healed piercings that you have had for years can shrink or close in minutes! This varies from person to person; if you like your piercing, keep jewelry in - do not leave the hole empty.
• Avoid submerging the piercing in unhygienic bodies of water such as lakes, pools, hot tubs, etc. Or, protect your piercing using a waterproof wound-sealant bandage. These are available at most drugstores and work best for nipple, navel, and surface piercing placements.
• Avoid all beauty and personal care products on or around the piercing including cosmetics, lotions, and sprays, etc.