When can I use sunscreen on my tat?

I got my first tattoo about 4 weeks ago. It's full color.

The two biggest, thickest scabs fell off yesterday, but the tattoo is
still blotchy with scabs.

I still keep it wrapped in the shower.

When can I start putting sunscreen on the tattoo?
I'm still wearing long pants to mow the grass.

"Hoagie@meat.bun" <> wrote:

> When can I start putting sunscreen on the tattoo?

When it's completely healed.

Hoagie@meat.bun wrote:

> I got my first tattoo about 4 weeks ago.

Congratulations! :o)

> It's full color.

Pics? Description? Whadyaget? Whadyaget?

> The two biggest, thickest scabs fell off yesterday, but
> the tattoo is still blotchy with scabs.
>
> I still keep it wrapped in the shower.

What? I don't recall ever wrapping my tattoo before hopping in the
shower.

http://www.geocities.com/curt_james/calvin.html

That was 2001 and, yeah, my memory is notoriously poor, however I'm
almost certain I just showered as usual and let the tattooed parts air
dry until they stopped oozing that new tattoo sweat. At four weeks,
scabs or no scabs, I'm sure I was patting it dry.

> When can I start putting sunscreen on the tattoo?

Queen's advice (elsewhere in this thread) sounds good. When it's
completely healed.

> I'm still wearing long pants to mow the grass.

Iirc, a light shirt provides the equivalent of SPF15. Happy healing,
Hoagie!

Hmmm.

(Googles)

A typical white cotton t-shirt only has the equivalent sun protection
of SPF 7 sunscreen, according to the American Cancer Society.

And, for those - like me - unfamiliar with SPF in general...

http://www.skincancer.org/faq/index.php

--
Curt
http://curtjames.com/

It keeps developing small scabs randomly.
Weird. I always thought it was a 2 week process.

Not a big deal, summer is over. Not much sun to be had.

But I've Googled aftercare, and everything says that "MOISTURE IS BAD!
MOISTURE IS BAD!" That's why I wrap it in the shower.

But either way, I love my tattoo. I will most likely keep it shaved
just so that it will look its best.

I've had many people stop to look at it because it is so detailed and
colorful.

Too bad they can't stay that fresh, huh? :-)

[Dileca]

With all my tats I have always taken off the dressing after a couple of hours of my sitt'n and haven't covered it after that. Kept it out of the sun but never covered it in the shower, then pat it dry and apply vasaline intensive care lotion.
Sunscreen would be OK when it is all healed:)

Hoagie@meat.bun wrote:
> It keeps developing small scabs randomly.
> Weird. I always thought it was a 2 week process.
>
> Not a big deal, summer is over. Not much sun to be had.

Yup. Overcast here today.

(shakes fist at Ernesto)

> But I've Googled aftercare, and everything says that
> "MOISTURE IS BAD! MOISTURE IS BAD!" That's
> why I wrap it in the shower.

Well, you may want to look at a number of aftercare html offerings.
Still, you used the word everything, so...

What I saw when I Googled was that getting it wet during a shower
wasn't the evil but that soaking it - I interpreted that as napping in
the bathtub - was a no go. Ymmv.

> But either way, I love my tattoo.

Excellent. That's what it's all about.

> I will most likely keep it shaved just so that it
> will look its best.

HA! That's why, unlike some of my Navy shipmates, I never got a bikini
girl on my forearm - she'd quickly look more like a bear than a babe.
;o)

> I've had many people stop to look at it because
> it is so detailed and colorful.

Yup again. I've had many people comment on my calf band. The one I
enjoy hearing the most is the variation on, "Oh, I LOVE Tigger!" Hey, a
tiger's a tiger, I guess. :o)

> Too bad they can't stay that fresh, huh? :-)

I suppose I have a bias, but I think mine are holding up well enough.

Congrats on your new tattoo!

--
Curt
http://curtjames.com/

"Hoagie@meat.bun" <> wrote:
Hmb> I've had many people stop to look at it because it is so detailed and
Hmb> colorful.
Hmb> Too bad they can't stay that fresh, huh? :-)

uh, they can.

http://compunction.org/healing.txt

lish "it truly breaks my heart
crank@got.net to see trust like that go unpunished." -st
43.9% / 30 RANA 125 / 68