Ignoring Your Aftercare Will Affect The Results Of Your Tattoo
Youre super excited about your new tattoo but when its finished is the most critical time to listen up. Want a distorted, faded, infected tattoo? I didnt think so. Artists dont go over their step-by-step aftercare procedures for new tattoos just for fun. You just sat through hours of pain for beauty now its time to take care of your new piece for a lifetime of enjoyment.
Dress For Your Tattoo Appointment
Make sure you wear clothes that allow easy access to the area thats going to get tattooed. Think loose and comfortable clothes. Theres no need to dress up or be constricted its about accessibility and ease.
Bookedin has made a huge positive change in my business. I love how simple the platform is for everyone myself, and my clients to navigate. Brandy Burgans, Tattoo Studio Owner
Tattoos Are Going To Hurt
Theres going to be blood, needles and yes, pain. If you have a low threshold for the pain, speak with an experienced artist about what the best choice will be for you before you sit down. Look, the pain is part of the process, and tattoo artists prepare for you to gasp or groan every once in a while. If youre getting a large piece done, it might even warrant a break midway through if youve reached your breaking point. However, screaming, crying and physically wincing now youre moving into a territory thats going to affect your finished tattoo.
Before you sit in the chair, you need to evaluate your tolerance for pain and decide if you can sit still throughout the entire process. If the answer is no, a tattoo may not be for you.
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Thank The Artist In Your Sign
Why A Deposit Time Is Money
Aaron Elk Grove Location
When you schedule your appointment, a deposit is needed. Most shops wont even put you in their books without one! Why? Because this ensures that youll show up for your appointment. When you carve out a block of time in an artists schedule, especially if theyre drawing a custom piece for you, its costing them time, and time is money! It also pays for that time an artist spends creating and drawing your tattoo. There are people who dont show up for their appointments, so this is a way to make sure an artists time isnt completely wasted.
Making that first appointment can seem a little intimidating, but we treat everyone like family here at Emerald Tattoo & Piercing! As long as you stick to our shop policies, scheduling your appointment will be a breeze. Be it your first tattoo, or your 50th, well take care of you!
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Eat Before Your Appointment
Heading into a long tattoo appointment on an empty stomach is a recipe for disaster. To avoid feeling faint get some food in your belly and stay hydrated. On a side note, make sure you use the bathroom and take any other breaks you need before heading into your appointment. Time is money for your artist, and unless youre in for a long session, you want to get everything out of the way before you get into the chair.
How To Maintain Your Tattoo
Most tattoos heal at the surface layer within the first couple of weeks, but it may be months before its healed completely. Skimping on care can delay the healing process and also affect how your tattoo looks in the long term.
Practicing good hygiene is the only way to reduce your risk for infection. See your doctor right away if you begin experiencing:
- skin thats warm or tender to the touch
- a burning sensation
- swelling after the first couple of days have passed
- green or yellow pus
In addition to keeping the tattoo clean, you want to keep it fresh and hydrated. Exposing the tattoo to direct sunlight can cause the colors to fade, so invest in a quality sunscreen or SPF clothing. Dry skin can also cause a tattoo or the ink to look dull.
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Can I See My Design Before The Booking
This is down to artists discretion. You will need to let us know if this is something you require. the artists tend to work daily designing for the next day so nothing is done a long time in advance, and we are very wary of sending out images as it is not uncommon for the work to be stolen and taken to other artists.
Unfortunately its a thing that has happened enough times for us to not be comfortable sending out designs. Generally our artist are very happy to work with you on the day to tweak the design and hopefully you will have looked through their work and got an idea of what they do, and given us a good enough description to create something perfect for you.
How To Email A Tattoo Artist Or Tattoo Studio
How do you normally go about contacting a tattoo artist or tattoo studio? Do you call, email, Whatsapp or slide into their DMs? Calling is absolutely fine, Whatsapp is also fine for some, but sliding into DMs is a bit of a grey area . It’s usually best to email your tattoo enquiries in as you can explain in detail what tattoo you want, send reference photos and describe how you want the tattoo to look. Due to the current pandemic, face to face consultations are tricky and some studios might not offer them for a while and so it’s really important to make sure that you include all the vital details of your enquiry in your email.
Often, people send extremely short emails such as I want a tattoo. Are you open?. Due to the busy schedules of tattoo artists, whether they’re drawing, tattooing, responding to enquiries, doing their taxes, attempting to live a life outside of tattooing, time is precious. Sending many emails back and forth is a no-no. So how do you cut down on back and forth messaging whilst making sure that you have made the tattoo artist understand your vision of how you want your tattoo to look?
Include the following in your email:
Design
Note: Most artists offer custom design tattoos rather than copy, out of respect for other tattoo artists and for originality’s sake. You wouldn’t want a tattoo that’s already been done on somebody else anyway, right? Right?
Size
Body Placement
References
Permission to get artwork tattooed
No bookings on behalf of others
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How To Make An Appointment
We are primary working my appointment at this time, we will take walk-ins if we have the available time but currently that time is rare.
Plan ahead for an appointment. Depending on the artist you are looking to work with they can be booking anywhere between 1 week to 4 months in advance.
Expect to leave a NONREFUNDABLE $100 deposit. We do this for all appointments whether its tomorrow, or two months away. It is a reassurance for the shop in case someone no call no shows, and in those cases we keep the deposit to pay the artist for their wasted time.
If you give us 48 hours notice PRIOR to your appointment, you can move your appointment ONE time and retain the deposit with the appointment.
The deposit will come off the price of your tattoo: for example if your tattoo totals up to $200, you would only have to pay $100 that day since you already paid $100 of it.
We use scheduling software that will remind you via text about your appointment and give you plenty of time to move it if necessary.
How To:
Call: 883 9996 Between our office manager, artists and piercers we are good at answering the phone during business hours, however if you dont get an answer or call after hours: just leave a voicemail with your name and number and well call you back as soon as possible.
** we will NOT quote prices via e-mail, phone or on social media.**
Thank you,
How To Tackle Potential Pain
If the area in question is prone to pain, this will be a great time to get in touch with your meditative side and practice some deep breathing techniques. If at any point the pain becomes too much, let your artist know. A good artist will get to a stopping point and allow you to take a breather. Use this time to get your head back in the game.
A general rule of thumb is to keep the dressing on for a few hours especially if you plan on spending the rest of the day out and about. When you get home, be sure to wash your hands before you remove the dressing. Remember, a fresh tattoo is an open wound. Dirt or bacteria can damage it or slow the healing process.
After you take the dressing off, wash the tattoo with your artists recommended cleanser or a gentle, unscented soap. You should avoid using any soap with fragrances or alcohol, as these ingredients can cause irritation.
After you wash, gently pat the area dry with a clean towel. Whatever you do, dont rub! Rubbing can pull at the skin and may cause ink fallout.
If youre dealing with itchy, dry skin, apply a thin layer of your artists recommended ointment or a gentle, unscented lotion. As with the cleanser, you should avoid using anything with irritants like fragrance or alcohol.
Most artists will give you a verbal rundown of how to take care of your new ink and send you home with a handout to reference later. You should always follow your artists aftercare instructions.
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How Do You Pick The Best Tattoo Artist
Picking the best tattoo artist for you is going to require you to do some research. Tattoo shops vary depending on where you live. Looking at their websites, Instagram, reviews, or asking a friend would be a good way to decide on an artist.
Checking an artists Instagram would allow you to see photos of an artists work. The tattoo shop itself may have photos of artists work on their own website as well. Reading through reviews is another good way to pick an artist. Youll be able to see other peoples experiences with a shop or an artist. You should consider how far you are willing to travel to get your tattoo. If they are too far then picking someone closer would be a better option.
When Should I Make A Tattoo Appointment
You should make a tattoo appointment when you are certain you want a tattoo and know you have the money to do so. Deciding to get a tattoo is a big deal because tattoos are permanent. It is best to come up with a design or have a general idea of what you want then to sit on it for a week or two to make sure you really want it. Although, this is just a suggestion. You could very well make an appointment the day you decide you want one. If you have a busy schedule, you should find some days that work with you and let the artist know.
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Approve The Placement For The Stencil Transfer
Most tattoo studios use a machine called a thermal imager to make their stencils. This saves on literally hours of tracing time by simply inserting your tattoo design into the machine, and it transfers it onto a special thermal paper in seconds.
Once your stencil is ready, its time to create the transfer onto your skin. Some artists will use soap or water to moisten the skin, and some will use stick deodorant. These aid in making the design transfer better and darker onto your skin. When the paper is pulled away from your skin, it will leave you with a purple-ish blue likeness of your future tattoo. Once you approve of how everything looks, youre ready to go.
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What Happens During The Session
Well, its a chance for you to share ideas with the tattoo artist and both learn about each others expectations. Knowing how to schedule a tattoo consultation is also different depending on the tattoo artist themselves, but many will give you a form to fill in beforehand.
Among the things discussed, you will be likely to discuss the price of the tattoo, and the timeframes of getting your ink. Scheduling the time to get the tattoo can be a challenge if you have a busy working life, and good artists are often busy.
Of course, youll chat about the tattoo itself, and both the size and placement are key to the consultation, you may also chat about some stylistic features and design details such as the coloration. This is so that you both know you are on the same page.
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Complete Paperwork And Settle Payment
Once you have decided on your tattoo design and your artist, you will be required to show valid identification for proof of age. You may also be asked for your address and phone number, so your artist can contact you in the future if need be. In most studios, payment must be made before services are rendered. It is up to each studio to decide which methods of payment they accept. Whatever method you pay with, make sure they give you a receipt.
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Schedule In Picking Up Supplies
Youll need some specific things for aftercare that you may not already have, so make sure to schedule in picking up supplies. You can always do this after you get your tattoo, but its totally up to you! Having some non-fragrance, hypoallergenic soap on hand, preferably in a squirt bottle since bars of soap can carry bacteria, will be great for keeping your new baby clean. No need for towels though! Youre better off air drying your piece rather than rubbing it dry. It is, after all, basically an open wound. Easy does it!
As for lotions or salves, everyone has their own personal secret weapon to fight against the dry itchiness of a new tattoo and to help promote successful healing. Ive been using Dexeryl for years. Jes loves unrefined, cold-pressed coconut oil. Joe prefers Saniderm. Some people swear by A& D. There are a few shops out there that may send you home with a card or a little care package that includes products they stand behind. With your first tattoo, its usually best to stick with what your artist suggests, and as you continue to get more tattoos youll find your own personal favorite.
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Find Your Ideal Tattoo Shop
How can I find the right artist or studio?
You can find a tattoo artist by narrowing down what style you want. First, choose the tattoo style you want and then look for the best-known artists for your style. To get started you can explore the Book-ink website where you will be able to search for any artist you want by typing a specific location or choosing the style you want. You can also search for the best artists based on your tattoo style.
How can you tell if the artist is good?
If you want to know if your artist is good, you need to look at their portfolio and previous artwork. Checking out an artist’s reviews can also help you determine if the artist is good.
How can I make sure that the studio is good?
Review the profile of the studio to find out if it is a good studio. See what other people have to say about their experience! You want to make sure a tattoo studio is clean and respected for the artists who work there.
So now that youve found your ideal artist and tattoo shop, the next thing to do is to book your first appointment. Remember, by scheduling an appointment, you are now taking an artists time, so you should go about it properly and respectfully!
Have A Design In Mind
Feeling unsure about what tattoo to get? Dont get one. Tattoos are permanent artwork on your body. Nows not the time to ask for opinions from your friends, or partner, or your tattoo artist. A tattoo design doesnt need to symbolize a life-changing event, but it should resonate with you and your artist cant determine that for you, nor should you ask them to.
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Should You Know Your Exact Tattoo Design When You Book Your Appointment
You dont have to know your exact tattoo design when booking an appointment. Most artists have no problem working with you in a pre-appointment consultation to come up with a design youll love. You should have a general idea of what you want to get and where on your body you want to get it. This will make it a lot easier on the artist. Most will work with you to come up with a design if you only have an idea of what you want. Having an exact design will make it a lot easier when making an appointment.