How to Take Care of Your New Tattoo
You'd been thinking about getting a tattoo for a long time, and now that you've taken the plunge you're excited about what you're seeing. You know that the pain you went through getting the tattoo was nothing now that you see the results. Don't make the mistake, though, of thinking your job is complete. Without the proper care, your beautiful new tattoo can end up being your worst nightmare.
A new tattoo is fragile. It is prone to infection, it could lose some of its beautiful color, or you might lose the design completely unless you take the proper precautions to take care of it. After finishing your design your tattoo artist took certain steps to protect it. And before you left, he gave you instructions for its care. If you're smart, you'll follow his instructions to the letter in order to avoid possible problems.
You know you didn't go through all of that pain and expense just to allow your new tattoo to self-destruct. By following the techniques in this article you'll be sure you're doing your best to protect the investment you made in your tattoo.
Step One - Leave the Bandage on Overnight
Right before you left the tattoo parlor, your artist most likely bandaged your new tattoo. He did this for your protection. The tattoo was created by poking a needle into your flesh. It broke through your skin and drew blood with every poke. Therefore, at this point in time, your new tattoo is more of an open wound that a finished work of art.
While some artists may tell you that you can remove the bandage after a minimum of two hours, most will advise leaving the bandage on overnight. That way you continue to keep your wound free from dirt, lint, and air-borne bacteria.
Step Two - Removing the Bandage
In the morning, it'll be time to remove the bandage. Prior to getting the tattoo you should have purchased a liquid-based antimicrobial or antibacterial soap that is also very mild. After removing the bandage you will want to gently wash the tattoo and the area around it with the soap and lukewarm water. Take care to wash away any remaining dried blood or ointment applied by the artist.
The best way to wash the tattoo at this point is with your hand alone. If you use a washcloth, it might damage the tattoo. After carefully washing the entire area, dry it completely using firm pats and a paper towel or a clean bath towel.
Step Three - Taking Care of the Tattoo
After your still-vulnerable wound has been cleaned and dried, you need to cover it with a protective antibacterial medication. Either Bacitracin or A&D Ointment will do the trick, and both can be found at your local drugstore.
Instead of recommending antibacterial ointments, your tattoo artist will probably suggest preparations that were designed specifically to treat new tattoos such as H2Ocean or Tattoo Goo. You can choose to follow his advice or use the ointment. Both will work, and the choice is up to you.
The treatment you choose needs to be continued for the next three to five days. At that point you can quit using the medications, but you will still need to keep the area very clean until your tattoo has had a chance to heal completely. If you'd like you can replace the ointment with a mild lotion which is perfume- and dye-free. This will keep your skin soft and supple while continuing to protect the tender skin of the tattoo.
The Scoop About Caring for Your New Tattoo
Its okay to get your new tattoo wet, but you'll want to avoid letting it soak. It is best if you shower for the three weeks immediately following your tattoo procedure, because tub baths allow too much soaking to take place. Soaking the tattoo could result in it being damaged. Swimming should be avoided for at least two weeks after you've gotten a new tattoo.
You can expect your tattoo to form scabs or peal slightly. It's a normal part of healing process. If your tattoo seems to be scabbing more than you think it should, that could be a sign that your tattoo artist didn't do his job right. You never want to pick or scratch your scabs. That could damage your tattoo. Instead, you can put warm washcloths over the area and wait for the scabs to fall off by themselves.
Showing posts with label Design My Own Tattoo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Design My Own Tattoo. Show all posts
Friday, February 19, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Best Tribal Butterfly Tattoo
Tribal Butterfly Tattoo
There are many options available for a tribal butterfly tattoo. This is one of the huge benefits of using the tribal design incorporated into traditional tattoos. First of all, the chances of seeing someone else with the same tattoo will be drastically reduced. Plus, you can incorporate other symbols or patterns into your design to add depth to the meaning of your tattoo.Another thing to consider is that if you get a tribal butterfly tattoo, you don't have use colors if you don't want to. One color tattoos, black work or black and gray work are often the top choice for some. Over time, some inks fade. There have been great advances to eliminate this problem, but it will always exist due to poor quality inks, inexperienced tattoo artist or even skin pigmentation.
Some people think that females are the only ones attracted towards the tribal butterfly tattoo, but I've actually seen some great pieces that were inked on men. I'm not sure that I would go that route myself, but hey that's the great part about tattoos. You can express yourself in any way that you want to. Usually tribal tattoos have a masculine energy about them because of their bold, thick lines. But in the case of the tribal butterfly tattoo, for example, they are versatile and they tend to look very good on women as well.
here are many things that a tribal butterfly tattoo can symbolize, and there are many variations. Now I'm not so sure that they hold magic powers, but in some cultures, still to this day, tribal tattoos are believed to posses such power. For example, in some tribes, a boy is assigned a totem animal during his rites of passage. Their belief is/was that the wearer inherits some of the powers of his totem animal by wearing a tattoo of such animal.
So, if you are looking for a cool tribal butterfly tattoo or other tribal tattoo ideas for yourself or a friend, you should take your time and make a wise choice. This is a lifetime commitment. Don't decide on a particular tattoo design after just looking at few hundred sketches. There are thousands and thousands of examples and ideas that are easy to find online. There are many membership websites that offer abundant selections from professional tattoo artists and flash artists. The membership fee is usually affordable and worth the money when doing your research for your next piece of body art!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Best Design My Own Tattoo
Tattoos are art, plain and simple. The problem is coming up with the master piece that is worthy of being displayed on your body for the rest of your life. A tattoo is a statement about who you are and is the ultimate in self expression - so you've got to get it right!
So where do you start?
Looking at tattoo design pictures, that's where. Its simple, but effective. Its like doing research for anything. The more research you do, the better the end result.
The next question is where do you get good quality pictures of tattoo designs to start your research. Well, Im glad you asked.... There are many sources, but some provide better quality tattoo designs than others, as I will show you.
Online Designs
The lowest quality tattoo design pictures are the free pictures that abound on the internet. Don't get me wrong, some of the tattoo designs are great, but everyone has access to these pictures, so you can bet your bottom dollar there are a number of people around with the exact same tattoo design. Just imagine seeing someone else with your tattoo on them! That is why they are low on the quality ladder.
Flash at the Tattoo Parlor
Next is flipping through tattoo deigns at the tattoo parlor just before you get your masterpiece inked on you. Now, that is pressure! Again, the designs may be great, but you want to enjoy the process of choosing a tat, and come up with something unique, so never put yourself in that situation. If in doubt, don't do it. Keep looking.
Online Tattoo Galleries
Then there are tattoo designs that you can purchase over the internet. These are the most exclusive designs you can get straight off the rack. These days, due to the power of the internet, it is possible to download massive numbers of unique tattoo design pictures right to your computer to help you decide which design is for you. Also, there are some tattoo design products on sale that continue to update the tat designs even after you have made the purchase. You can even take the design of your choice to the tattoo parlor and get it modified to your own taste. Now no one will have your tat design!
Tattoo Artists
The ultimate source of a quality tattoo design, though, is to take an idea to the tattoo artist and get them to draw something up for you. Tattoo artists are experts at what they do, and they can guide you to a design that you are happy with. However, depending on how much of a design you take to the tattoo parlor, this is by far the most expensive.
Conclusion
Well, there are some sources to get you going on your search for that elusive (and hopefully exclusive) masterpiece. It all boils down to cost. How much are you prepared to pay to find your dream tattoo? Just remember that this is an investment in yourself and you will live with the design you choose for the rest of your life.
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