To not ruin a new tattoo, keep it clean with mild soap and water, moisturize with a thin layer of artist-approved lotion, avoid sun exposure, don't submerge it in water (pools/baths), don't pick or scratch, wear loose clothing, and follow your tattoo artist's specific instructions for the best healing and longevity.
Keep your tattoo clean, out of the pool/ocean for 1 week minimum, out of the sun for 3 weeks minimum. Don't wear tight clothing over your tattoo that can cause friction, this will ruin your tattoo quickly. Don't pick at your tattoo while its healing.
Generally, it's okay as long as the surface/clothing/etc is clean. If you know it's dirty, keep the wound/tattoo clean.
Excessive sun exposure can quickly ruin a new tattoo. Especially during the first 40 days, stay out of the sun as much as possible. If you have to go outside, then make sure to cover up your fresh tattoo with clothing.
Among the rest of the Stories & Ink team, the most painful places to get a tattoo include:
As time passes, your skin regenerates its traumatized layers, covering and protecting the inked stratum. A surface cut to a fully healed tattoo may look bad, but it has very little chance of affecting the actual tattoo as long as it doesn't scar.
Yes, a $50 tip on a $300 tattoo is a good tip, landing around 16-17%, which is well within the standard 15-20% range for good service, but if you absolutely loved the work or it was a custom piece, tipping $60-$75 (20-25%) would be even better, showing extra appreciation for exceptional quality and effort.
Should I cover a new tattoo when I sleep? Keeping your new tattoo covered for at least the first night or two will help reduce the risk of it leaking onto your bedding and lower the risk of infection.
Not taking proper aftercare precautions could also contribute to patchiness; picking scabs off your new tattoo, swimming or submerging it in the bath, exposing it to UV rays while it's still in the early stages of healing could all lead to ink loss and patchiness. Read our complete tattoo aftercare guide here!
A $500 tattoo is typically a medium-sized piece, often around palm-sized or slightly larger (roughly 4-6 inches), but the actual size heavily depends on the artist's hourly rate (usually $100-$200/hour), design complexity, color, and location, allowing for 2-5 hours of work, potentially resulting in a detailed forearm piece or a smaller chest/back design, rather than a full sleeve.
Research on tattoos older than 40 years shows that ink particles remain in the deep dermis and local lymph nodes. According to the WHO data from animal experiments, black and red tattoo ink particles reach the liver, and titanium dioxide (white pigment) reaches the liver, spleen, and lung (4).
No, $200 an hour is generally not considered a lot for a quality tattoo in many areas; it often falls into the mid-to-upper range for experienced, reputable artists, reflecting their skill, custom designs, and the permanence of the art, though rates vary significantly by location, artist reputation, and specialization. While some very in-demand artists charge more, $200 is a fair market value for professional custom work, not excessive.
You have a rash or bumpy skin around your tattoo
If you notice a rash or lumpy, bumpy skin around your new tattoo, this could be something to worry about. Any itching that seems extreme, or rashes and cracked skin, could indicate infection.
Is it OK to wear clothes over a new tattoo? Yes, but try not to after the few initial days after application. If you do, make sure you change your clothes frequently. In our experience, tattoos can weep onto the clothes and if you don't change them, it can cause infection.
Find the perfect sleeping position
The main thing to remember is to keep pressure off the tattoo. For example, if you sleep on your side and recently got a new arm tattoo, sleep on the opposite arm. The same goes for a back tattoo. If you're a back sleeper, change positions and sleep on your front.
Since oxygen itself plays a huge role in allowing the skin to heal properly, covering a new tattoo in plastic wrap or smothering it in petroleum-based products that limit oxygen supply can further complicate the healing process.
You'll want to keep the tattoo wrapped for at least the first night because it will take a while for it to settle down and stop leaking. You don't want an open wound like that touching your bed sheets, getting blood everywhere, or dirt and dust getting into the wound itself.
A $1000 tattoo can range from a large, detailed piece (around 6-10 inches or palm-sized with complex shading) to a significant portion of a larger project, like a half-sleeve or a sizable back/chest piece, often requiring multiple sessions, depending heavily on artist skill, complexity, color, and location, as rates vary greatly.
The answer, of course, depends on the artist and the size of the tattoo. However, touch ups typically start at around $50 and can go up from there. So, if you're looking to keep your ink looking fresh, be prepared to spend a little extra cash. But touch ups are worth it!
In short, yes. You should always strive to tip your tattoo artist. “Often, tattoo artists are renting a chair or space and give as much as 50% of their earnings to the shop owner,” Sinatra says.
A recent review found that the number of skin cancers in tattooed skin was low, and therefore seems coincidental, however a number of carcinogens that have been found in tattoo inks have been associated with cancers elsewhere in the body, such as the liver or bladder.
The most commonly used neutralizing color is a deep orange to cancel out the blue and blue-green shades of common tattoo inks. For tattoos with dark black ink, you should use a deep red neutralizer.
When applied correctly, a good tattoo aftercare moisturizer can make colors look sharper and keep irritation down. However, overdoing it may slow healing, damage the skin, and even affect how the tattoo looks long-term.