Tattoos

[klyfe]

Those of you with tattoos, what method of healing do you use?
When I got my first tatt about a year and a half ago, the artist told me to pat the tattoo dry whenever it oozed, keep it uncovered and rub cream in three times a day.
I just got four new tatts a few weeks ago from a friend who is starting his tattoo apprenticeship and their studio is all for gladwrapping for 2 or 3 days and then rub cream in whenever it starts to feel dry.
Two very different methods, and I have heard many people agree and disagree with both.
So just curious as to what works best for you. Also, what cream do you find works best? So far I have tried a home made cream of god knows what, and Bepanthen.
And if you feel like showing off, I say post pics of your ink!

[phi-tec]

hey man, fk ye i love tattoos, i got half sleeve to finish >_<

umm, i usually only gladwrap for a couple hours at first, as most know, tattoos are technically wounds, so leaving them free to air helps the healing process, i think gladwrapping for days is a bad idea lol
then take of, wipe blood off and clean, by then no more blood (if any) should be present, with moisturising etc~ really any cream of that type would work, but i also prefer bepanthem, its easily sourced, cheap and does the job, cause if you really think about it, the ink is under your skin, so theres not much that could happen, keeping your skin moist will help avoid scratching/grazes that sort of stuff, i prefer just rubbin the cream on whenever dry.. like 2/3 times a day is very vague as people have different living styles, i say once when u wake up, then every 3hrs (depending on how dry) til you go sleep. and really the most important factor as to the finished product, will be upto the tattooist, personal experience (my left arm, dodgy) (right arm/chest, pro as fck)
thats my opinion so hope that helps

[Akys]

i've got six now. haha. next will be full back. love inks, tells the "story of my life"

anyway, gladwrap when tattoo just got done is good. but 2-3 days seems a bit too much. tattoo which are wounds need air to heal. bepanthem is good to fight off bacteria and also moisturises new ink. but some people might require a more moisturising cream as they have dry skin. also the places that you live is also a factor. there are no hard and fast rules, just keep it clean, try not to touch and scratch and let it heal.

btw, i find H2Ocean cream works the best on me.

[topgun]

I have 6 tattoos. Bepanthen (i think its called) is what I used for a few days. Its basically the same as nappy rash cream lol. Keeps the skin moist etc

[klyfe]

My first tatt was done by a sh*t artist, but it healed really well. So when I got my new ones done and they suggested the glad wrap, I glad wrapped 2 tatts and left the other 2 to see which would end up best. The ones that I left uncovered healed fine, but the ones that I glad wrapped had some colour fall out and one got a slight infection. I've always been told not to glad wrap, but some people swear by it. I found that Bepathen was good for healing, but I found it hard to spread when cold, was a tad painful to spread on fresh tattoo lol. Heading back soon to get the two tatts that I glad wrapped completed and touched up, and I dont think I will be wrapping them this time. Man, I hope you get your back done in a few sittings, I was exhausted after the 5 hour sitting I endured for my thigh tattoo haha

[Akys]

ribs tattoo took 3 1/2 hours. was the worst one. but i still manage to drive an hour back home with my bumpy FTO. haha

prob 2 or 3 sittings. outline, shading x 2. black and grey. but wont happen untill end of the year.lols

[Bennoz]

+1 on the glad wrap for only a short period like a couple of hours. I usually only use the Bepanthen sparingly too, otherwise it keeps it too moist.

[klyfe]

Mm, definitely think I am going to follow my instincts this time around. Can't complain though, got that tatts for sh*t cheap, one was even free cos he just felt like doing it so meh haha.
Ugh, how bad was the pain on the rib tatt? I'm wanting to get a tatt kind of around/on my boob, hoping I can get it on a fleshy enough part that I won't have to deal with the pain over the ribs
By the way, have any of you had white ink done? Mine went really odd during the healing process, wondering if it's normal or not lol.

[phi-tec]

Mm, definitely think I am going to follow my instincts this time around. Can't complain though, got that tatts for sh*t cheap, one was even free cos he just felt like doing it so meh haha.
Ugh, how bad was the pain on the rib tatt? I'm wanting to get a tatt kind of around/on my boob, hoping I can get it on a fleshy enough part that I won't have to deal with the pain over the ribs
By the way, have any of you had white ink done? Mine went really odd during the healing process, wondering if it's normal or not lol.

NEVER, ever go around asking for prices, look at their portfolio (especially for images etc)
i havnt got any on my ribs but i imagine it would b killer, i got my half sleeve , and like on the back of your upper arm, towards armpit, that hurt the most for me OO, my skin swelled up real bad and the guy had to stop haha.

nd the thing with white ink is, u gotta go to a really good tattooist

[Bennoz]

and like on the back of your upper arm, towards armpit, that hurt the most for me OO, my skin swelled up real bad and the guy had to stop haha.

Yeah I bruised up real bad in that spot. Was a touchy area!

[klyfe]

My artist is a close friend. He is only an apprentice, but he is a f**king good artist, so I have full confidence in him. My thigh tatt was his first ever colour tatt and it's awesome.
I haven't really had any pain issues with any of mine as of yet.
The one on my wrist was a tad stingy going over the veins but otherwise fine.
I have one on each thigh which when getting the outlines done, I almost fell asleep haha.
The one on the inside of my ankle stung a bit, but that was mainly because the majority of it is white, so he went over it a few times to ensure he had covered the area.
And the one on the side of my neck, I did not feel a thing, just had to put up with my tonsils vibrating....
I am a tad scared of having my ribs and collarbones done though.
I'd imagine that near your armpit would indeed sting quite a bit, bad enough when I nick myself shaving my armpits haha.