Prepare & Aftercare

Before You Book

Proper planning makes a big difference in both the tattooing process and the final result. Before requesting an appointment, make sure the timing works well with your schedule and allows your tattoo to heal without unnecessary complications.

Plan Around Healing

If you have vacations, travel plans, weddings, surgeries, or other major events coming up, consider how they'll affect your healing. Fresh tattoos require consistent care and should not be exposed to swimming pools, lakes, oceans, hot tubs, excessive sun, or anything that increases the risk of contamination while they're healing.

If you'll be traveling, be sure you'll still have the time and ability to clean, protect, and care for your tattoo properly throughout the healing process.

Set Yourself Up for Success

If this is one of your first tattoos, take a few minutes to review all preparation and aftercare information before booking. Knowing what to expect ahead of time helps create a smoother experience and gives your tattoo the best opportunity to heal beautifully.

Preparing for Your Appointment

Stay Hydrated

Drink approximately 1–2 liters of water each day during the week leading up to your appointment. Well-hydrated skin typically accepts pigment more evenly and supports a smoother healing process.

Keep Your Skin Moisturized

Apply a fragrance-free moisturizer once or twice a day to the area being tattooed. Healthy, hydrated skin creates a better canvas for tattooing.

Shave and Exfoliate

If the area has hair, shave it and gently exfoliate once or twice during the weeks before your appointment. A soft exfoliating cloth or mild scrub works well.

If shaving causes irritation or razor burn, stop shaving at least one week before your session so your skin has time to recover.

Protect Your Skin

Avoid tanning, sunburns, self-tanners, chemical peels, deep exfoliation, or injuries to the tattoo area for at least one month before your appointment.

The skin should be completely healthy before tattooing. Recently damaged or healing skin does not hold pigment as predictably.

Reduce Strenuous Exercise

Avoid intense workouts that heavily involve the tattooed area for at least two days before your session. This helps minimize unnecessary inflammation and soreness before we begin.

The Day Before

Get Plenty of Rest

A full night's sleep makes a noticeable difference. Being rested helps improve your comfort, focus, and ability to sit through longer sessions.

Skip the Alcohol

Avoid drinking alcohol or staying out late the night before. Both can contribute to dehydration and may make the tattooing process more uncomfortable.

Appointment Day

Eat Before You Arrive

Please eat a full meal before your appointment. Tattooing places physical demands on your body, and arriving hungry can make the experience much more difficult.

Bring Food and Drinks

Pack lunch, snacks, and drinks for the day. Breaks are kept fairly short, so eating at the studio is usually the easiest option. A refrigerator and microwave are available if needed.

Simple snacks that are easy to eat during short breaks are always a good idea.

Dress Comfortably

Wear clothing that provides easy access to the tattoo area while keeping you comfortable throughout the day. Since temperatures can vary, bringing an extra layer is recommended. If your shoes need to come off during the session, bringing clean socks or flip-flops is appreciated.

Make Yourself Comfortable

Feel free to bring headphones, earbuds, a tablet, laptop, or even your own pillow if it helps you relax during longer sessions.

Appointments Are Private

To maintain focus and minimize distractions, appointments are one-on-one. Please plan to attend your session without guests.

Leave Time After Your Appointment

Avoid scheduling important plans immediately afterward. Occasionally sessions run longer than expected, and it's helpful to have flexibility in your schedule.

During Your Appointment

Creating a high-quality tattoo requires precision, consistency, and focus from both of us. Following these guidelines helps maintain a clean environment and allows me to produce the best possible result.

Avoid Touching the Tattoo

Once tattooing begins, avoid touching the fresh tattoo unless I ask you to. Fresh tattoos are vulnerable to bacteria, and unnecessary contact increases the risk of contamination. Please also ask friends or family not to touch the tattoo after your appointment.

Respect the Work Area

For safety and cleanliness, please avoid touching tattoo machines, supplies, trays, bottles, or any equipment within the workstation.

Stay as Still as Possible

Conversation is always welcome, but try to minimize unnecessary movement while being tattooed. Even small motions like turning your head, shifting your shoulders, moving your hands, or bouncing your leg can affect precision and make certain areas more difficult to tattoo.

Notify Me of Any Injuries

If you experience a significant injury before your appointment, such as a broken bone, major cut, severe illness, or anything that could affect the tattoo area or your ability to sit comfortably, please contact me as soon as possible so we can determine the best course of action.

Healing & Aftercare

Every person's body heals differently, and every tattoo has its own healing process. Even if you've been tattooed many times before, your next tattoo may heal differently depending on placement, size, lifestyle, and your body's natural response.

The instructions below provide a general guide for a healthy healing process. If your tattoo requires anything different, we'll discuss those details during your appointment.

Step 1 — Your First Cleaning

Leave your initial non-adhesive bandage in place for approximately six hours unless instructed otherwise.

Once removed:

• Wash the tattoo gently using lukewarm water and a mild fragrance-free soap.

• Rinse thoroughly until all blood and excess plasma have been removed.

• Finish with cool water.

• Pat dry using a clean paper towel.

• Allow the tattoo to air dry for about ten minutes.

• Before going to bed the first night, rewrap the tattoo using the clean bandages provided during your appointment.

Step 2 — The Following Morning

After waking up:

• Remove the overnight bandage.

• From this point forward, leave the tattoo uncovered unless instructed otherwise.

• Wash the tattoo again using mild soap and water.

• Carefully remove any remaining plasma or dried fluids.

• Pat dry with a clean paper towel.

• Allow the area to air dry completely before getting dressed.

Continue washing approximately every six hours until peeling begins.

If the tattoo starts feeling tight or uncomfortable, apply a very small amount of fragrance-free lotion such as Lubriderm Sensitive Skin. Use only enough to lightly moisturize the skin, as excessive lotion can slow healing.

Step 3 — During Peeling

Peeling is a completely normal part of healing.

Once peeling begins:

• Apply fragrance-free lotion two or three times each day, or whenever the tattoo feels dry.

• If your skin becomes unusually dry, you may switch to a slightly heavier moisturizer.

• Allow peeling skin to shed naturally.

• Never scratch, rub, or pull away loose skin.

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Step 4 — If Scabs Develop

• Continue washing the tattoo as directed.

• With proper care, scabs usually don’t form. If they do, it’s often a sign that the tattoo isn’t being cleaned enough, and blood/plasma/lymph is drying on the surface of the skin.

• Once a day on scabs use a hot compress with warm water and clean paper towel on the scabbing  for 30 seconds to help allow it to soften a little and allow it to breathe which will help it heal better. 

• Then let dry and lotion anything around the scab areas.

• Never pick or remove scabs — let them heal and fall away naturally. Picking can cause uneven healing, scarring, or color loss.

Healing Do's & Don'ts

The way you care for your tattoo over the next several weeks plays a major role in how it heals and how it looks for years to come. Following these guidelines will help protect your investment and encourage the best possible outcome.

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What to Avoid During Healing

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Do Not Soak Your Tattoo

Keep your tattoo out of standing water until peeling has completely finished. This includes bathtubs, swimming pools, hot tubs, lakes, rivers, oceans, and saunas.

Normal showers are perfectly fine, but keep them reasonably short.

Avoid Long, Steamy Showers

Excessive steam and prolonged exposure to hot water can overhydrate healing skin and slow the recovery process. Keep showers comfortable but brief while your tattoo heals.

Stay Out of the Water

Do not swim until all peeling has naturally finished. For most people this takes approximately two to three weeks, although larger tattoos may require additional healing time.

Protect Your Tattoo From the Sun

Fresh tattoos should never be exposed to direct sunlight, tanning beds, or UV radiation while healing. Healing skin is extremely sensitive, and UV exposure can permanently affect both the appearance of your tattoo and the healing process.

Avoid Heavy Exercise

Until peeling has completely finished, avoid activities that create excessive sweating, friction, or repeated stretching of the tattooed area. Walking and normal daily activities are generally fine, but intense training should wait until the skin has recovered.

Stay Away From Dirty Environments

Construction sites, dusty shops, mud, excessive pet hair, dirty water, and similar environments increase the risk of contamination while your tattoo is healing. Whenever possible, keep your tattoo clean and protected.

Keep the Surface Clean

During the first few days, your tattoo may release small amounts of plasma and lymph fluid. Clean the tattoo as instructed so these fluids don't dry on the surface, which can contribute to unnecessary scabbing.

Long-Term Tattoo Care

Healing doesn't end when the peeling stops. Proper long-term care helps preserve detail, color, and contrast for years to come.

Return to Water Activities

Once peeling has completely finished and the skin has fully closed, you may return to swimming, hot tubs, lakes, and other water activities.

Wear Sunscreen

After healing is complete, apply SPF 60 or higher whenever your tattoo will be exposed to sunlight. Reapply every two hours during prolonged outdoor activities.

Sun exposure is one of the biggest causes of premature fading and loss of vibrancy.

Keep Your Skin Healthy

Healthy skin helps tattoos continue looking their best. Staying hydrated, moisturizing regularly, and occasionally exfoliating healed skin can help maintain brightness and clarity over time.

Ease Back Into Exercise

Once peeling has finished, most normal physical activity can be resumed. For very large tattoos placed over major muscle groups, consider waiting an additional three to four weeks before returning to heavy strength training to allow the deeper tissues additional time to recover.