Aftercare.

Caring for a tattoo as it's healing and on ward is a subject that varies depending on who you ask about it. Most tattoo artists will tell you to keep the bandage over it and have it covered for the first half a day to 24 hour time period. Also, you should be sure to avoid pools, hot tubs, or just soaking in a hot bath for the first 2 weeks. But in contrast some artists tell you to bath your tattoos in hot water very often.

Other than these contrasting opinions, there are a few things that are almost universal-- Do not pick the scab off your tattoo. And use an oil based product to keep it clean and clean. Using the oil based product in thin layers will keep from over hydrating the skin (which can lead to fading and affect the over all out come of your ink).

Below is a picture of one of the widely used and preferred ointment/salves for tattoo aftercare:

Modern day tattooing

In modern day, tattoos are hip and cool. You can get tattoos of almost anything, and you can get them almost anywhere on your body.
Today tattoos are made by using a tattoo machine-- which is a hand-held device with needles that is used to inject the ink under the skin. There are strict laws regarding the cleanliness and sterilization of tattoo parlors. The law requires these places use sterile, disposable needles in their tattoo machinery.

The designs of modern day tattoos can be your typical stencils that you find everywhere, or you can even have your design hand drawn specifically for you, and if you're really skilled you can make up a stencil of your own-- you just have to find a parlor that doesn't mind drawing up the stencils from your own design.

My favorite modern day tattoos are those that have meaning to the wearer personally. I dislike the generic tattoos that you find everywhere. Here's a few examples of modern tattooing that I absolutely adore:

The History of Ink.

Tattoos have been around for ages. And they have had many different uses and reasons.
Tattoos have been used for identification, rites of passage, religion, torture, and to mark criminals.

Over the ages, the methods used for creating tattoos have advanced as we gained more knowledge of infection, the body, and also recognized the need for sterilization of the equipment.
Originally, people created tattoos in a way that resembled scarification more than anything else. They cut their flush and rubbed ashes and other materials on and in the wound. Other cultures created tattoos by hand-tapping a stick dipped in ink into the flesh to deposit the ink in the correct layer of tissue for tattooing.
Another method that I saw used while watching a documentary on tattooing was sewing. The artist took string of some kind and coated it in the pigment, and sewed little bits of the design in at a time. This must be one of the most painful procedures for tattooing that I've came across in my studying the history of ink.

But what I am most interested in is the present day method of tattooing. I just felt the need to explain some history of tattoos so that you guys know I'm not some random kid who got one little tattoo and thinks they're a know-it-all. I've done research, and I'm fascinated by the history of body modification in general.

So that's all for now. I'll get started discussing modern tattooing in the next entry.