Before you buy a tattoo soap or any soap in general, you should consider a few key pieces of info. Your body soap should be just as important a purchase as your facial soap. This is the skin you’ve got forever!
It’s true, though; you need to take extra precautions in the soap you use when you have a new tattoo. Here are a few things to consider before buying a new soap.
1. What Tattoo Soap Will I Need for My Skin Type?
Before putting anything on your skin, you should always consider how your skin is feeling. What does your skin need? Whether you have a new or old tattoo, consider your skin type when thinking about what kind of soap to buy.
Oily Skin
Oily skin gets greasy pretty fast. If you have oily skin, you can use a soap that keeps you at healthy oil levels, protects your natural oils, and removes any excess buildup. You’ll also want to look for a soap that doesn’t increase the oiliness of your already oil-prone skin.
Oily skin certainly isn’t a bad thing. It means your skin is already hydrated and doesn’t need much help from extra hydrating ingredients. It does mean your skin could use some balancing ingredients, and you’ll want to be careful not to buy a soap that washes away your natural oils.
Some good ingredients for oily skin are castor oil, sweet almond oil, aloe vera, and coconut oil.
Dry Skin
Dry skin leaves you feeling rough and dehydrated. If you have dry skin, you may want a soap that helps boost your hydration and moisture retention levels. It’s best to look for a soap that won’t just slick your skin but will help condition it for the better.
Dry skin can be natural or result from rough water or skin care products drying you out. If you are struggling with dry skin, you’ll want to look at every part of your skincare routine and ensure you’re not using any products that are increasing dehydration.
Some ingredients for dry skin are aloe vera, olive oil, cocoa butter, jojoba, hyaluronic acid, and glycerin.
Combo Skin
Got a bit of both, don’t we? Well, if you’re a combo skin person, you’ll want to look for a middle-of-the-line soap that gets the cleansing job done, provides a bit of hydration, and doesn’t suck you dry.
Combo skin can sometimes best be soothed with soap for sensitive skin. Soaps made for sensitive skin aren’t going to make drastic changes in your skin barrier. They’ll keep it simple and won’t push your skin too far in any one direction.
You’ll probably want to avoid some of these ingredients if you have combo or sensitive skin: fragrances, synthetic dyes, and sodium lauryl sulfate.
2. Is Washing a New Tattoo Different From an Old Tattoo?
What kind of tattoo are we washing here? How you wash a tattoo will differ depending on if your tattoo is fresh off the press or if you’ve had the ink for quite some time.
New Tattoo
If you have a new tattoo and it’s healing, you will want to be especially careful of the suds you’re soaping it up with. Healing tattoos are extra susceptible to the ingredients in soaps.
You don’t want to aggravate a healing tattoo with some irritating ingredients. You’ll just prolong your healing process.
You definitely want a good tattoo soap, though. When your tattoo is healing, it will get flaky and spit out some excess ink, and you won’t be able to scrub it clean. Scrubbing could lead to a badly healed tattoo. You need a soap that’s good at its job.
When there’s a new tattoo in town, make sure you switch over to a soap that is fragrance-free, antibacterial, and loaded with ingredients that help soothe inflammation and lock in moisture.
You can look for green tea extract, plant collagen, panthenol, glycerin, aloe vera, and sweet almond oil.
Old Tattoo
Old tattoos might not be as sensitive, but you’ll still want to treat them with love and respect. Now that they’re a part of your skin, you should treat them and your skin just as well as you treat your facial skin.
You’ll probably want a soap that is without harsh ingredients. If you aren’t treating your skin kindly, you may end up with fading tattoos.
Look for soaps that help lock in moisture and don’t strip your skin of its natural oils. You’ll also want a soap that boosts collagen production and keeps those tattoos vibrant.
Ingredients you can look for: green tea extract, plant collagen, panthenol, glycerin, aloe vera, wasabi, and coconut oil.
3. Should I Use Scented Soap on My New Tattoo?
Consider how your soap smells. With fresh tattoos, the safest route is the fragrance-free route. Fragrance ingredients in soaps go fairly unregulated.
The FDA requires brands to list whether there is fragrance, but not what it’s made of. Fragrance often uses harsh ingredients that could irritate the skin, even if it’s not going through a healing process.
However, should you find a soap you love that is fragranced, take a look at the ingredients list. Some companies will list the ingredients they use to create the fragrance, and if they are non-irritating ingredients, like coconut oil, you might be in the safe zone.
Overall, it’s better to get a fragrance-free soap for new tattoos and save the yummy smells for after they are completely healed.
How Do I Wash a New Tattoo?
Old tattoos can be washed just like the rest of your skin. New tattoos need a little extra TLC. You’ll want to cleanse carefully for the first couple weeks of healing.
Here is a helpful step-by-step tattoo cleaning guide:
- First, wash your hands — no point washing your tattoo with dirty hands. Make sure you have a clean paper towel by your side.
- Turn the tap on and get the lukewarm water flowing. Not too hot and not too cold.
- Grab your Mad Rabbit Tattoo Soap and dollop a bit onto your hand. Lather it up and gently apply the lather to your tattooed area. In small, gentle circles, wash away any excess skin and ink naturally coming off. Don’t scrub or pick. If it doesn’t naturally come off now, it will later.
- Rinse the area with lukewarm water until you’re sure all the soap is out and the area looks properly cleansed.
- Pat it all dry with a clean paper towel. We mean it; pat it dry, do not scrub.
- Grab your Mad Rabbit Soothing Gel and apply a thin layer over the freshly cleansed tattoo.
Wash your tattoos before going to bed and after waking up. Try not to wash your new tattoo too often, or you could dry it out and disturb the natural healing process. Twice a day and after any sweaty or dirty activities is a good place to start.
What Moisturizer Should I Use on My Tattoos?
Soaping and washing your tattoo needs to be followed by moisturizing your tattoo. Keeping your skin exfoliated and fresh with soap will do wonders for your skin and tattoos.
Following that with a hydrating moisturizer will keep your skin and tattoos looking vibrant and young.
New Tattoo
When your tattoo is healing, you’ll want to moisturize with something special instead of a regular lotion or tattoo balm. You can use a Soothing Gel or salve that has healing properties and can shoo the bad bacteria away during the healing process.
Mad Rabbit makes a Soothing Gel just for this sensitive stage. Our relieving gel helps soothe feelings of irritation and itchiness, giving the skin a hydrating boost.
We formulate our Soothing Gel with aloe vera, vitamin C, argan oil, chamomile extract, glycerin, argan oil, sweet almond oil, vitamin A, and plant collagen.
When you apply our Soothing Gel or any healing salve, you want to apply a thin layer. Anything more than that can suffocate the tattoo — it still needs some air to heal properly. Use it after washing your tattoo or anytime it’s feeling itchy.
Healed Tattoo
Once your tattoo is completely healed, you can switch to a tattoo balm: a moisturizer that does a little more than lotion keeps your skin healthy and your ink vibrant. Our Tattoo Balm comes in a can or stick form.
It’s a super hydrating balm made with ingredients to ward off damaging outer effects without a greasy or oily finish. Perfect for use on healed tattoos and anywhere you feel needs a little extra shine.
Just remember, if you choose a stick of healing balm, clean the tip each and every time to ensure there is no cross-contamination.
Keep an eye out for Mad Rabbit’s brand new exfoliating soap, Refresh, for healed tattoos. Exfoliating dead skin from tattooed areas of the body can lead to brighter, more vibrant healed tattoos for years to come.
In Conclusion
Before buying a new soap for your shower, consider yourself! Think about your skin type and the ingredients that are best for it.
Consider if you’re going to be washing new tattoos or healed ones. And ask yourself if you want a scented cleanser. If you do, ensure the fragrance won’t disturb your skin.
Make sure to take care when washing new tattoos and moisturize always.
Sources:
Oily Skin | MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
Dry Skin - Self-Care | MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
Simple Effective Ways to Care for Skin Wounds and Incisions | PMC
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