First tattoo.

[Devil]

Yeah, I got given a little tub of something called ProTat which seems to be recommended by a few people. Will take it with me to work tomorrow.

Bepanthen is also good for it. That ProTat stuff may just be a rebranded tub of bepanthen...

[Tank]

Yeah, I got given a little tub of something called ProTat which seems to be recommended by a few people. Will take it with me to work tomorrow.

HTFU - Real men rub in salt - not moisturiser FFS.

[doozy]

Yeah, I got given a little tub of something called ProTat which seems to be recommended by a few people. Will take it with me to work tomorrow.

Get a tube of bepanthen (maybe bepanthan can't remember) from the chemist, half the price and its the same stuff ... essentially its nappy rash cream

[texmo]

Cool. Yeah it hurts all-right, after the last of my sessions with Adam and two sleeves later I finally worked out the tricks to tattoo pain management.

• Plenty of sleep.
• Big breakfast.
• Lots of water.
• No alcohol the night before [ I'm told no drugs as well if your a user].
• For the first sessions on a piece that size [outline, heavy shading] take two nurofen before.
• Accepting the pain, smiling and staying calm and focused on the end result helps a great deal.

Good luck.

And thoughs two sleeves look fucking awesome brother.

I think you should concentrate o nthe pain its a right of passage. Escecially if the tatts have some meaning or your getting a moko.

[Big Dave]

HTFU - Real men rub in salt - not moisturiser FFS.

Well, yes, but there is an argument that says that post inking treatment helps stop feathering on the hard edges and makes it less likely for the ink to bleed over time.

The best bet is go and get matching tats with your girl - you rub the slippery stuff on her - she rubs the slippery stuff on you...

Like Christina said:
Its a fine line between pleasure and pain
You've done it once you can do it again
Whatever you done don't try to explain
Its a fine, fine line between pleasure and pain

[MIXONE]

We have got a real harsh sun for tats so if going outside cover up.

[007XX]

Nice tat

All advice previously given are great, and Bepanthen is definitely the trick, just make sure you apply it very often. The least your tattoo will dry out during the first few days, the least likely you are to have scabs which can leave "scar marks" depending on how well your skin heals.

Oh and against the pain: focus on breathing evenly and calmly. You'll be amazed how much it helps.

[doozy]

I've had a reasonable amount of work done, full sleeve one arm and a couple other little ones, some things I've found help it heal fast and well:

Drink plain coke while getting inked, helps keep your blood sugar up especially if its going to be more than 3 hours (6 hours was my longest stretch )

When you get home, clean it real well and very gently with antibacterial soap, massage in some bepanthan, it will hurt and make you want to throw up but it really helps, re-wrap it in glad wrap and stick a bag of frozen peas on it to help sooth and cool it down. Leave it till the next day (replacing the glad wrap before you sleep on it and re-apply the benpanthan at that point). The key to make sure it heals well and fast for the first week keep it moisturised with the cream all the time, if it dries up it will scab, scabbing is BAD, a scab sucks colour out of the tattoo and gives it a less than perfect finish, anywhere between 3-7 days it should 'peel' like sunburn, its important to let this happen on its own rather than picking/scratching it off, again this affects the colour of the finish.

A weird thing that happened to me alot after id been in is being out in public people want to touch/grab it for some reason, the whole 'gizz alook' deal(especially bad in supermarket queues), remember all these people are filthy! Touching = bacteria!

Ongoing just remember to keep it well sunblocked in the sun to stop it fading

[SixPackBack]

And thoughs two sleeves look fucking awesome brother.

I think you should concentrate o nthe pain its a right of passage. Escecially if the tatts have some meaning or your getting a moko.

Cheers Tex. Waiting for them to heal properly then will post the finished work.

As for the pain, the needle overrides the constant pain I feel in me dodgy neck giving me a plesant relief in a way. But yeah your right bro about right of passage, you have to feel the pain, embrace it, and smile with it.

Someone mentioned HTFU....I think of the Kirwin ad. 'hardening up is not what you need' but guess it works for some.

[The Lone Rider]

Nice stuff.

I get Willy from Black Rose - over 200 awards won by him. And his brother in law is a CK member.

I can't believe all the people who complain tatoos hurt. Pfftt.. whatever!

[Big Dave]

'hardening up is not what you need'

Yes it is - or don't get the fuckin' tattoo. ;-P

[SixPackBack]

Yes it is - or don't get the fuckin' tattoo. ;-P

Okay Dave

I can't believe all the people who complain tatoos hurt. Pfftt.. whatever!

Tough guy huh.

[n0regret5]

hope he didn't charge too much..those guys tend to think they can get away with extortion. beautiful tatt though..can't wait to finish my forearm.

3 1/2 hours is pretty long..was he tattooing the whole time?

[Finn]

Here's my kinda tattoo...

[Gubb]

Yeah, the stuff i've got is Bepanthen, just a different name. Working well so far, applying it 4 times a day at the moment, it seems to dry out really quickly.

hope he didn't charge too much..those guys tend to think they can get away with extortion. beautiful tatt though..can't wait to finish my forearm.

3 1/2 hours is pretty long..was he tattooing the whole time?

$150 an hour, although he did only charge for 3 hours. Got an estimated 4 hours left on it yet. Fortunately, him being fully booked for 2 months gives me time to save.

I had a 5 minute break when he finished the outline, before the shading. Just enough time to get a drink.