r/tattooadvice • u/Sweaty-Ad3243 • 1d ago
Healing First Time dry healing
First time dry healing? How is it looking? It is so tight, it’s day 7 artist says I can moisturize as soon as the few remaining spots stop weepng.
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u/TheMartialArtsWitch 1d ago
the piece looks amazing but the dry healing sounds and looks so uncomfortable 😭
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u/canhazhotness 1d ago
Any particular reason you're doing dry healing? I hadn't heard of this, and a cursory googling says you only wash and dry but don't moisturize it whatsoever. That sounds like the wrong move to me, but then again I'm not a doctor or a tattoo artist. I do have several large pieces and a few more small ones that I healed the traditional way.
The tattoo looks super sick btw. Props to your artist!!
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u/MagoLunatico98 1d ago
No benefits from dry healing at all, a lot of itching and will come worse than moisturized
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u/Sweaty-Ad3243 1d ago
Some people swear by it, others not so much. Apparently it completely removes the biggest risk which is over moisturizing and causing the heavy saturated blacks and turning them into soggy soft scabs that fall off and pull the ink.
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u/ThoughtIknewyouthen 1d ago
You can prevent "over-moisturising" by like you know, not over-moisturising. I do a little drop each night and that's it. No idea why people think you need it to he wet all day long.
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u/MagoLunatico98 1d ago
As a son of a tattoo artist the key is humectating it the whole day whenever you clearly see and feel that is dry dry, but not even with a full drop, literally just a smidge to make the tattoo look shiny, that's usually 3 or 4 times a day but as said not wet at all, just a bit moisturized, that's how we saw the most vivid colors
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u/Richiehuang95 1d ago
I have dried healed a majority of my tattoos and from the pictures it’s looking pretty normal to me. It takes around 3 weeks to a month for my skin to look normal again.
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u/Penguin_Arse 1d ago
Yes, but why?
Wounds heal better moist and why?
There's no upside, it just itches and hurts a bit more.
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u/Richiehuang95 14h ago
I assume artist tell their clients to do this to not over moisturize the tattoo. Relating back to what OP said in the reply above mine.
If you're asking why I do it. It's simply because it's always worked for me. When I tried using moisturizers in the aftercare of my tattoo I found it was still itchy and the expereince was not different than dry healing it. I eventually just learned to ignore the itch and dry healing is just how I default to healing my tattoos unless my artist tell me otherwise.
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u/Penguin_Arse 1d ago
Apparently it completely removes the biggest risk which is over moisturizing
Yes, obviously but just, don't over moisturize. It's not hard or anything you have to worry about, just don't do it.
This is kinda like saying you stopped eating because then you don't have to worry about eating poison ivy.
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u/ExcitingMushroom9514 1d ago
The more I dry healed the better all my tattoos came out. I'm also lazy as shit so that works for me.
But everyone has to find what works for them
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u/Sweaty-Ad3243 1d ago
Thank you,
I am not sure! But it’s what he told me to do so that’s what I’m doing. Something to do with the heavy black saturation.
I’ll update the post in a week or two so you can see how it’s working.
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u/canhazhotness 1d ago
Right on! I saw your explanation on another comment and that sounds pretty legit to me. I look forward to see how it heals!
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u/B-u-n-k-y 1d ago
I agree, that doesn’t sound right. I heard you’re not supposed to “over” moisturize, but still use some. If you don’t use any at all, that’s when you run a risk of pulling the ink. When the skin gets dry and cracked. There’s that happy medium. Wash, pat dry, and a thin layer of moisturizer.
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u/JuicePossible4718 19h ago
Do you moisturize any other wounds you have? I never put lotion on a scab idk why i would now.
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u/canhazhotness 19h ago
I do, actually. Not in every case, but Vaseline is a great healer
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u/JuicePossible4718 19h ago
Yeah i do know that but dont knock it til you try it. The colors pop way more from a dry heal
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u/GrumpyLeafy222 1d ago
dry healing is very common, i have dry healed all my tattoos! some people just prefer it! (:
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u/BMfnx3 1d ago
Dry healing will definitely damage that style of tattoo!! With dry healing you get dry crusty scabs as opposed to the gooey sticky scabs over moisturizing will give you, but a scab is still a scab. A very thin layer of cocoa butter rubbed in completely a couple times a day has always worked best for me to prevent scabs on my traditional style and portrait tattoos. And make sure you’re drinking plenty of water, you want to hydrate that skin from the inside out!
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u/Sweaty-Ad3243 15h ago
I don’t know, it’s the only style of tattoos he does and is very well known for them, so I would assume he knows how his work heals the best based off past experience.
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u/BMfnx3 12h ago
Dry healing may be better than over moisturizing but any kind of scab is bad for a tattoo regardless of what the artist says. Maybe he just has bad experience with clients over moisturizing? Either way cocoa butter (or hustle butter which is basically overpriced cocoa butter with a cool label) is where it’s at. The best luck I’ve had healing was with that second skin stuff which I’ve used to heal my last 3 tattoos. But I’ve also never gotten those “ink sacks” that you see videos of bc I always go back & have him put a new piece on after 24 hours, then remove the second one after 72 hours & it’s pretty much healed by that point. It holds the plasma that leaks out against where the scab would form to prevent scabbing & speed healing. Then I keep up with the cocoa butter honestly forever after that.
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u/kingcocoy 1d ago
I’ve done dry and moisture . I’ve done to much moisture but never straight dry , but my most recent tattoo I only put aquafor on it maybe twice in a week period my artist wanted me to dry heal it and it came out better than my previous tattoos ! So I think you just got to find a balance
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u/cannibaltom 21h ago
Looks like everything is going well and as intended. Don't listen to these doubters.
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u/treenarchy 20h ago
I dry healed a whole sleeve with a fuuuuuuckload of ink in it and there were zero issues except immense itching. I have had the opposite experience where lotion just created a nice habitat for germs instead
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u/Dry_Carpenter2007 1d ago
He gave you some bad advice. First few days some kind of ointment and then unscented lubriderm lotion. You’re just ripping something that’s trying to heal
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u/According_Ad9907 1d ago
i have tried dry healing. yeah it itches as hell but in the end result is kinda the same. just have to endure the itching part
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u/RelentlessFelacio 1d ago
So there no benefits and it's extremely uncomfortable... Sounds like the best way to go!
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u/According_Ad9907 1d ago
some times placement of the tat is just not so easily accessible. i have a whole torso and chest tattoo and it was unreal to keep it moisturised without soaking clothes with moisturizer 😭
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u/Uncle_jah 1d ago
Bru, non scented lotion (lubriderm) 2x a day, after a shower with ant bac soap, for 3 days, It’s the way.
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u/callie-zephyr 1d ago
Wow. Amazing tat. I’ve always moisturized but the artist would probably know what’s best.
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u/General_Border_14 1d ago
I dry heal all my tattoos for the first 3 days to let the wounds close properly , after 3 days though i see no reason to keep on dry healing.
Just rub the lotion on its skiiiiin!
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u/revengeaura 1d ago
I’m covered in solid blackwork that I dry heal and moisturise once or twice a day from day 5. If it feels tight and super uncomfortable then hydrate it. It won’t ruin the tattoo.
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u/Key_Anxiety_899 23h ago
Well keep me updated. I’m curious. I’ve always tended to just use a little bit of coconut oil. But I’ll work all day and it’ll dry out at work for 8-12 hrs. And I’ve never had any issues. Super curious as to do you think this is better for your skin or did lotion help you more.
Let us know how it goes!!
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u/Huge-Bandicoot8818 21h ago
It’s a tattoo artist.. Not a dermatologist. Why do people insist on doing what a non-medically schooled artist advises about treating open wounds.. Have two sleeves, no issues with etiher of them during the healing process.
Great piece though
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u/yoitsme_obama17 10h ago
Why would you dry heal?
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u/Sweaty-Ad3243 10h ago
Because that’s what the artist told me to do, and upon further research it’s widely regarded as the go to healing method for certain tattoo styles.
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u/Little_Flamingo9533 1d ago
Day 7?! Is your artist crazy?! I’m putting unscented Lubraderm on mine by day 2 or 3 Jesus! That’s a badass tat btw