When it comes to the aftercare phase, the first question comes up to your mind that “is Vaseline good for tattoos?” Here’s your best answer to that big concern.
Do you find it hard to take good care of a new tattoo? So for the aftercare process, let’s find the best products to keep those tattoos moisturized and healthy. Then how about Vaseline? We know that it’s a popular product for protecting and recovering wounds, but is Vaseline good for tattoos? Here’s your best answer:
Is Vaseline good for tattoos?
Tattoo art has been trending quite well recently among people in the fashion industry. It’s mainly created by the act of inserting ink and dyes right into the dermis layer of your skin. This changes the pigment of your skin! During the process, never let the tattoo be soaked in the water right at the moment of taking a bath. If so, then how about the Vaseline? Is Vaseline good for tattoos? And could we use it on our new tattoos?
In fact, it’s such a bad product for you to use on a newer tattoo. This is because of the thick texture that makes it hard for your skin to breathe.
Worse than that, after applying the ointment to the tattoos, it can form an airlock around your piece of art. In other words, the product easily prevents the oxygen from getting to the injured skin area that needs the most to fix itself.
Moreover, when applying such a thick layer of vaseline onto the tattoo, it’s likely to make up a moist layer of trapped air between your skin and the vaseline. It’s said to be a good place for bacteria to live and multiply at the same time. And you won’t imagine how dangerous these germs might be to a new tattoo as well as other skin wounds. These tend to be vulnerable to other possible infections.
Another solid reason for not using Vaseline on a new tattoo is that it will certainly cause some unwanted consequences related to the tattoo ink. It mostly happens when you used too much of it, or leave the ointment on the skin for too long. The answer to your big concern “is Vaseline good for tattoos?” is a no-no, especially when the ink is still new! This would fade the ink out of your lower skin layers before it could set, possibly forming some ugly areas of patchiness.
In short, your new tattoo is a part of the skin, so it needs more fresh air to breathe to get healthier. Vaseline feels thick and hard to wash off. It only adds the layers upon the layer to the skin, and then lock in the bacteria as well as cause a bad skin condition. In my experience, ensure everything you’re using is salt-free, fragrance-free, or alcohol-free.
Apart from limiting the use of Vaseline, you should be aware of some important things to avoid turning your beautiful tattoo into a terrible mess. Note that the initial week of healing is the most important to how your work of art might look like for the rest of life.
Four ways you’re ruining your skin
1. Sleep on the top of your new tattoo
Sleeping on the tattoo is the worst thing you did. Therefore, if getting a new tattoo on the back, try to sleep on the belly for a few days. And if you can do it with a tattoo exposed, then it’s also a great idea! If not doing that, let’s put a clean cloth or towel between you and the bed sheets. When seeing the sheets get stuck to your skin in the morning, do the same routine as for how you do with the stuck bandage.
Stop peeling the sheet off and take it with you to the shower. After that, you can moisturize it with a bit lukewarm water.
2. Touching the hands
They can be your hands, or the hands of your beloved family members, lovers, friends, and kids. If so, don’t touch that tattoo if you don’t wash both hands as fresh as possible. Let’s keep that tattoo as clean as possible, which is an important step in the whole healing process. Next, you can wash the tattoo a few times within a day so that it’s easy to avoid any potential infection.
3. Sunburn
Any sunblock or sunscreen is often not formulated to guard your wounds. Thus, you might feel your tattoo a bit burning here whenever it’s directly exposed to the sunlight. Hear your body, once the tattoo feels a bit hot or uncomfortable, then stay out of that sunlight. Once being out in the sun, you’re advised to keep that art covered.
4. Scrubbing
Your tattoo won’t fall out at all, so there’s nothing to worry about it! The scabbing here is only an ordinary part of the entire healing process. In this case, do not ever think of picking up the scab or scrub it. When you scrub it, there will be a risk of pulling out the same color as the tattoo pigment that was applied. Leave the tattoo alone and let it head by itself. All you need is be patient!
Conclusion
Is Vaseline good for tattoos? While it bears many benefits, it’s still not recommended to be used so often on a new tattoo during its healing process. Or it can draw the ink out of your work of art and then might cause some unwanted infections.
Last but not least, we can’t deny the fact that Vaseline is pretty good at creating a temporary barrier against the water during your bath. However, you should not use that ointment in the long-term. And if weird things occur with your tattoo, don’t mind consulting your tattoo artist and even a doctor as soon as possible.