Sunbathing with your new tattoo | do's and don'ts

How long you should wait before exposing your new tattoo to the sun or a sunbed varies per person. You can only expose your new tattoo to the sun once the top layer of skin has completely healed. This means all flaking and scabs have disappeared, and your tattoo feels completely smooth. The exact timing varies per person; for some, it's after two weeks, for others, it's not until four weeks.

You can only expose your new tattoo to the sun once it has healed. Until then, keep your new tattoo out of the sun as much as possible. When you've just had your tattoo done, it's an open wound that you need to protect not only from dirt but also from the sun. Your skin is then extremely sensitive to UV light and can very easily get sunburned. This can cause blisters, bumps, or even tears in your tattoo. Not only is this very painful, but you also slow down your tattoo's healing process.

You can only expose your tattoo to the sun once it has healed. Even then, you still need to be very careful, as your skin is still very tender. It takes several months before you can truly expose your tattoo to strong sun or a sunbed for extended periods.

For the first few weeks after getting your tattoo, it's wise to stay out of the sun as much as possible. Also, do not use a sunbed with your new tattoo. If you can't avoid being in the sun, cover your tattoo with your clothing or a towel.

☀️TIP: A freshly-inked tattoo can also be protected for the first few days with a Sun protection tattoo film.

Once your tattoo has healed, you can apply sunscreen to it. If you apply it too soon, your tattoo can become quite irritated by the ingredients in the sunscreen. These are usually not suitable for application to an open wound.

☀️ Sunscreen for your healed tattoo

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Are you exposing your tattoo to the sun or do you have tattoos in visible places? Protect them well against fading. At first, it won't be very noticeable, but if you expose your tattoos to daylight or bright sunlight, they are guaranteed to fade. That's why we recommend always protecting your tattoos from UV rays. Even if the sun isn't shining, there's still a lot of UV radiation in the air.

Also check How to keep your tattoo beautiful in the sun? if you want even more useful ☀️ tips.

Also discover our other blogs about tattoo aftercare:

• How to care for your tattoo without complications?
• Tattoo aftercare - all the ins and outs at a glance
• Can you put sunscreen on your new tattoo?
• Help, my tattoo is bleeding!
• How long does a finger tattoo last?
• How to prepare for your first tattoo?
• What to consider for a tattoo cover-up?
• Alcohol and your new tattoo. Do they mix?
• Moisturizing your new tattoo
• When is your tattoo healed?
• How to use tattoo film?
• Tanning with your new tattoo. Do's & don'ts
• How to keep your tattoo beautiful in the sun?
• Swimming with your new tattoo. Do's & don'ts
• Cleaning your tattoo
• Exercising with your new tattoo. Do's & don'ts
• Sleeping with your new tattoo
• What is a tattoo blowout?
• Aging and tattoos