Tattoos and Sunscreen

With warmer months coming up, it is important to take good care of your tattoo and protect it from harmful UV rays.  Sunblock is the number one form of protection for your tattoo. Applying sunblock will help prevent skin cancers, wrinkles, blotchy complexions, and other skin-caused damages. Any sunblock is better than no sunblock when it comes to preparing your ink for the sun, but most artists will suggest using a fragrance free sunscreen with 30-50 SPF (try to stick to natural ingredients if possible too like non nano particle zinc oxide). Also make sure the sunscreen or sunblock actually works against UVA rays and not just UVB rays.
New tattoos are crisp, vibrant, and exciting to look at but if you head out into the sun too quickly after getting your new tattoo, you can end up ruining the beauty and the design.  Even a hidden tattoo is susceptible to sun damage and the UV rays, so it’s essential to do your research on how best to care for your tattoo. Too much sun exposure can cause fading, scarring, or color spreading especially in the first few months after getting your tattoo.
If you don’t want to deal with reapplying sunscreen, another good option in to completely keep your new tattoo out of the sun all together. Make sure not to expose a new tattoo to direct sunlight for at least the first month of having it, especially the first two weeks. The sun can cause the tattoo’s colors to fade, but it could also burn your skin and scar the tattoo from sun damage.