Clean. Heal. Preserve.

In the first 72 hours, a tattoo is an open wound. The skin has been penetrated thousands of times per minute by a needle delivering pigment into the dermis. The immune system responds immediately: plasma, ink, and blood will weep from the surface, and the skin begins the process of sealing itself. This is normal. Your job during this phase is to keep the area clean without stripping the skin’s emerging healing response.

Wash gently 2-3 times daily with lukewarm water and No.01 Cleansing Wash. The formula’s mild surfactants remove plasma and surface bacteria without disrupting the skin barrier or pulling moisture from the dermis. Do not use hot water — it dilates capillaries and can cause excess plasma weep. Do not scrub, even if the area feels sticky. Pat dry with a clean paper towel and apply a thin layer of No.02 Healing Balm.

For pieces in high-friction areas — elbows, wrists, waistbands, bra lines — No.04 Barrier Film provides a semi-occlusive physical shield without the adhesive of a bandage. Apply after washing and before the Healing Balm in these zones. Avoid submerging the tattoo in any standing water during this phase, including baths, pools, and open water.

Around day three or four, the surface skin begins to peel. This is not damage — it is the outer layer of epidermis, which was disrupted by the tattooing process, shedding naturally. The peeling contains no ink. The pigment is locked in the dermis and will not peel out. Do not pick or peel the flaking skin. It pulls off prematurely, it can take ink with it and leave light patches.

This is when you transition from Healing Balm to No.03 Aftercare Lotion. The lotion is formulated for the peeling and post-peel phase — lighter than the balm, with deep hydration that penetrates the reforming epidermal layer. Where the balm sat on top of the skin to create an occlusive film, the lotion absorbs. Apply 3-4 times per day or whenever the skin feels tight, dry, or itchy. The itch in this phase is normal — it is nerves reforming — but scratching damages the peeling surface.

If the area feels particularly compromised — cracked, unusually dry, slow to peel evenly — introduce No.05 Repair Serum as a targeted treatment. Apply a small amount to specific zones before the lotion, not instead of it. The serum’s active ceramide and peptide complex supports barrier restoration in areas where the skin has had a harder time. Most clients do not need it for every piece, but it is invaluable for dense work, wrist and elbow pieces, and any area that was tattooed over scar tissue.

By week four, the surface epidermis has reformed and the tattoo looks healed. It is not fully healed — the deeper dermis continues remodeling for up to six months — but the visible wound is gone and the ink has settled into its permanent position. This is where most aftercare routines stop. This is a mistake.

UV radiation is the primary cause of tattoo fading, and most fading happens in the first two years of a tattoo’s life, during the summer months, in the absence of sun protection. No.06 SPF Shield is a broad-spectrum SPF 50+ lotion formulated specifically for tattooed skin — it provides UV protection without the white cast of mineral-only formulas and is designed to sit comfortably over ink without altering the appearance of colour or black and grey work.

Apply No.06 every morning that the tattooed area will be exposed to daylight, year-round. SPF protection is necessary even through glass and on overcast days — UVA penetrates both. Continue using No.03 Aftercare Lotion as a daily moisturiser. Hydrated skin holds ink better and ages more gracefully. The work you did in phases one and two is worth protecting long-term.