As a tattoo customer, you have every right to be informed on what kind of chemicals are introduced to your body. And as you might have noticed, numerous creams, solutions, and liquids are used before, during, and after the tattooing process. The reasons for this are manifold.
First, we must stress that the tattooing process is not only a meditative and fun activity as many of us think; but also, a medical process that creates open wounds, making the body more susceptible to infections. This is why the environment, the equipment, and the tattooed skin need to be sterilized while the skin trauma is minimalized. Most of the products that are used by tattoo artists such as napkins, gloves, cartridges, and ink cups are disposable; however, there are also some other products such as sterile solutions, soaps, ink, stencil cream etc. that come into contact with the tattooed skin and ensure a healthy tattooing process as well as a healthy tattoo. This is why the first product applied to the skin is alcohol. Understandably, this is imperative for the complete sterilization of the tattooed area. Also, any grease or leftover product on the skin is eliminated this way to make room for the stencil cream.
Stencil cream is a sticky product specifically created to infuse into the skin and absorb the blue stencil ink so that even the most delicate parts and lines of the design can be transferred to the skin and stay there throughout the tattooing process. Though it seems like an easy job, the stencil cream’s qualities are very intricate. Stencil cream is a sophisticated product that is easily absorbed by the skin. However, it avoids clogging the skin cells or creating a barrier between the skin and the needle, leaving space for the tattoo ink. Stencil cream is also expected to be strong (which is why we named our stencil cream strong =) which means having a strong grip on the transfer ink as well as the skin so that even the transfers of huge tattoos stay visible until the end and do not get erased as the artist wipes the tattooed area.
Once the transfer is dry the tattooing starts. And as everybody knows, the process -though it requires skill, talent, and technical knowledge- is nothing but a type of ink/paint being injected under the skin. And while tattoo ink is one of the most known products -second one being the tattoo machine- in the tattoo industry, the fact that it was traditionally made by grinding up minerals and coal and is now industrially produced containing metallic salts such as oxides, selenides etc. as well as plant and plastic-based pigments is a less known fact. As far as tattoo inks are concerned, the smaller the pigments are, the better they are absorbed and held in skin cells. And for the needle to move smoothly on the skin and cause as little trauma as possible a new player is introduced to the field; glide.
Glide is a jelly cream that is produced by extracting plants and herbs as well as petrolatum which makes it healthier and more environmentally friendly than solely petroleum-based products. Its main uses are keeping the tattooed skin moist and minimizing the friction between the skin and the needle so that skin trauma is minimized. Minimizing skin trauma is very important because less trauma means less redness so that the artist can work more comfortably and go over the details or fillings more times without causing scars or excessive pain. Glide also protects the stencil by creating a barrier so that as the artist wipes the surplus ink, stencil stays undamaged.
As TattooBull Supply we offer two types of glides: the original and the bubble gum both of which are curated for the artists’ and tattoo lovers’ needs to ensure smooth sessions and healthy tattoos. However, due to their antiseptic and anti-inflammatory qualities they support a healthy healing process. Glide also locks in the moisture creating a barrier on the skin while moisturizing so that the scar tissue is minimalized, and the skin has a protected and suitable environment to heal itself. You will also see tattoo artists using the glide to stick their ink cups on their set up which is a very smart and creative way to use it and is a great help but not actually what it was made for. =)
Another commonly used product during the tattooing session is soap. The antibacterial soap used during and after the tattoo session may come in different shapes such as foam or watered-down liquid. And just like the glide, the tattoo foam or soap is made for the benefit of both the artist and the tattoo lovers by cleaning the surplus ink on the artist’s workspace without irritating the skin as well as creating a feeling of freshness and relief for the tattooed person. Moreover, as they are exclusively for tattoo sessions, they have pain-relieving qualities as well as a disinfectant effect just like our Pain Freeze Foam. Though foams and soaps are most likely the last product your artist puts on your skin during the session; they can also be used during the first days of the tattoo aftercare if the tattoo is not covered by an aftercare product as the fresh tattoo needs to be frequently sterilized before moisturizing but that is the subject of another blog entry probably titled ‘’How to Aftercare Your Tattoo’’ or something more inspirational.
That’s all folks! Stay inked!
Regardless of how much ink is absorbed by the skin, the shade and the brightness of the tattoo’s colors depend firstly on the skin type and secondly on how good the tattoo is healed and protected from the external factors. When we say ‘’skin type’’ we don’t just mean different skin types of different people; but the different type of skin on one individual’s body. This means that the skin on our neck is not the same as the skin on our elbows or palms. That is why these different body areas’ pigment holding/absorbing properties vary. An experienced and professional tattoo artists knows the voltage, cartridge and give they need to use for each area of the body as well as the way the aftercare should be given to the tattoo. This is why when a person gets a tattoo, they should not think that the aftercare they provided to their previous tattoo applies for their new tattoo and receive a briefing from their tattoo artist as to how to care for their fresh tattoo.
There are several ways that can be taken for the aftercare of a fresh tattoo. We will talk about some of them here, however, we will do so in order to introduce the products that are used during the healing process and afterwards and not to give advice on how to care for your tattoo because the only person you should listen to about which products to use and how to heal your tattoo is the artist who did it and no one else. Having said that it is important to understand that while a tattoo is indeed the scarification of the skin and can be treated as a scar; it has more than that to it. In other words, the main thing about tattoo scars is not to heal them as quickly as possible so that there will be no trace; -on the contrary- healing a tattoo is to give the skin the time it needs to heal while making sure the ink stays under the skin and to minimize the pigment loss.
