The Show Off Your Tattoo Thread

Nothing special, just something my dad always used to say to me...

Took the bottom bit off a birthday card, he passed away of cancer last year
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Folks, I had the start of my half sleeve Polynesian design done last Saturday. It's my first ink. Going back in a couple of weeks for a further 3 hour sitting to have it finished and some more shading completed. Chuffed with the design so far. I have a couple of questions for you guys who have had ink done.

Been washing it with baby soap, rinsing and patting it dry with kitchen roll 3 times a day. Then applying Bepanthen cream. It's been 4 days and so far so good, no scabs have started to form and its also not peeling yet. I have some red marks especially around the inner bicep area (ouch! :D) but that's about it. When is it likely to start peeling/scabbing? My artist said it varies between individuals, some folk have little of either at all, some folk have loads. The artist did tell me when to switch from Bepanthen to moisturiser but I can't exactly remember the timescales he mentioned?

Also, when I asked him about going to the gym he said as long as I'm not stretching the skin then to crack on but maybe avoid exercises which have an effect re: stretching skin where the ink is. Anyone get back in the gym and start lifting again after a few days if you have had a half sleeve? I'm in the gym 5-6 times a week mixing up weight training/Pilates, Yoga and 30-40k stationary bike rides plus some Concept II rowing. Thinking I'd be better sticking with the stationary bike for a week or so just to keep my fitness ticking over and leave the weights for a while yet. Thoughts?
 
Mine just goes like sunburn and goes flaky after a few days. I don't get the scabby. I use bepanthen then just keep moisturising regularly.

I've been in the gym with the cling film on. I can't see how you'll damage it. It's just ink under the skin where's it going to go?
 
That's kinda what I was thinking. Not sure weight training would stretch a new tattoo to the degree it would damage it or cause any degradation in the design. However, I'm sticking with cardio and yoga for a week or so, not really too much hardship.
 
Draeger said:
That's kinda what I was thinking. Not sure weight training would stretch a new tattoo to the degree it would damage it or cause any degradation in the design. However, I'm sticking with cardio and yoga for a week or so, not really too much hardship.
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My aunt had a dolphin on her stomach. It's now a whale.
 
Rids said:
The better you are at the aftercare the less severe your scabbing will be in my experience.
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I've been pretty diligent with aftercare so far. No scabs yet, just peeling, like sunburn almost. One thing I'm a bit unclear on though is that now that it's started peeling, it looks a bit faded, ink wise? Having Googled this, it appears to be normal and once the peeling subsides, the vividness of the colour will come back? Mine is all black but it's not as jet black as it was a couple of days ago since the peeling started? Is this fading issue just something that happens because the top layer of skin is starting to peel off?
 
It'll start fading straight away. It'll never be as vivid as day one. My oldest blacks are more dark blue now after just a couple of years.

Don't compare to any social media pictures you see they are very much filtered and or enhanced.
 
I use savlon cream instead, keeps it dry but moisturised. Most tattoos will peel within 7 days, just don’t pick it as you could pull away some ink, wait until it goes flaky and then remove it.

For the first 2 days I wash mine with warm water and soap, after that I just use shower gel when having a shower.
 
Cheers guys, as I said, I'm a tattoo n00b so just asking all sorts of perhaps daft questions. And here is another one.....lol.

1 week in, peeling but no scabs. We are heading off for a hotel spa break in a weeks time. Can I swim in the hotel pool ok without having to worry about the tat? I know, daft question perhaps......sorry!!
 
So I went in yesterday to have my second sitting done on my Polynesian half sleeve design - 3 hours. Mostly involving shading and some additional outlining which needed added. Have to say that since I had the first sitting I was expecting this one to be not quite as sore but wow....!!!....it was a bit more intense this time around. Think the shading hurts a little more than outlining but maybe that's just me.

Anyhow, nearly done now, need to book another 1.5 hour sitting to have it completely finished but I'm chuffed to bits with the result so far. I do however, have a quick question for you guys who have previously had ink done (this is my first).

The shading I'm having done to some aspects of the design is a sort of 'grey wash' to go with the rest which is black. However a day later I'm looking at the tattoo and the shading is a reddish colour. My artist did explain that these areas would appear dark at first but would lighten up in the next week or so. He didn't say anything about it being red? Anyway, I Googled it as you would and it seems that when grey wash shading is used its normal for it at first to look red/brown and then after a week or two this fades and the true grey colour appears. AMIRITE? :)
 
Draeger said:
So I went in yesterday to have my second sitting done on my Polynesian half sleeve design - 3 hours. Mostly involving shading and some additional outlining which needed added. Have to say that since I had the first sitting I was expecting this one to be not quite as sore but wow....!!!....it was a bit more intense this time around. Think the shading hurts a little more than outlining but maybe that's just me.

Anyhow, nearly done now, need to book another 1.5 hour sitting to have it completely finished but I'm chuffed to bits with the result so far. I do however, have a quick question for you guys who have previously had ink done (this is my first).

The shading I'm having done to some aspects of the design is a sort of 'grey wash' to go with the rest which is black. However a day later I'm looking at the tattoo and the shading is a reddish colour. My artist did explain that these areas would appear dark at first but would lighten up in the next week or so. He didn't say anything about it being red? Anyway, I Googled it as you would and it seems that when grey wash shading is used its normal for it at first to look red/brown and then after a week or two this fades and the true grey colour appears. AMIRITE? :)
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That'll be fine, once the skin has settled down, the ink will go back to a grey colour and it will lose the red tint it has on it, nothing to worry about. :)
 
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