I gotta agree completely with KH. Lotion is a good thing and you DEFINATELY want to keep new ink moist and not let it dry out. He’s right, there is no such thing as too much lotion. And I also have to say NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER EVER SCRUB NEW INK….AND NEVER EVER use A WASHCLOTH OR ANY OVER SCRUBING APPARATUS!!! All you should ever use to wash a new tattoo is antibacterial soap (liquid is fine) and your hand…and do it gently. You don’t want to disturb the scab (onion peel) as this is part of the body’s natural healing process. Other BIG NO-NO”S are SCRATCHING THE TATTOO OR PICKING AT IT. The scab (onion peel) will come off naturally in due time.

Every artist I’ve been to has reccomended that you pat (NOT RUB) the tattoo dry with a CLEAN TOWEL after a shower and then also allow 15-20 minutes of air-dry time before putting on lotion to insure that the scab doesn’t get water-logged. Your new ink shoukln’t feel dry/tight/crusty. Those are all signs that it’s time to moisturize again.

I also agree with KH when he says to wait 2 weeks or so and see what it looks like. Your ink is probably fine…but you might take a little longer to heal since your body had to push more lymphatic fliud to the surface to create a new scab. In the meantime, keep your ink moist and BE GENTLE WITH IT. Keep it clean and moist and things should be fine.