Preparing for your Appointment:

1) Hydrate yourself

Before you go to get tattooed, make sure that you are well hydrated. Drink lots of water for the 24 hours before your tattoo and avoid dehydrating yourself.
• How much water you need to drink to be well hydrated will depend on your specific body. While some experts recommend eight glasses a day, your body may need more than that amount.
• Well hydrated skin will be in better condition for getting tattooed. This means that the surface of the skin will take the ink easier, making tattoo application easier than it would be on dehydrated skin.

2) Avoid thinning your blood

In order to limit your bleeding, you should avoid products that thin your blood for 24 hours before getting a tattoo. This means that you should avoid alcohol before getting a tattoo.
• Also, avoid taking aspirin for the 24 hours before a tattoo. Aspirin is a blood thinner, so being on aspirin will make your tattoo bleed more.

3) Wear comfortable clothes

Depending on the size of the tattoo, you may be at the tattoo shop for several hours. You might as well be in a comfortable outfit while you are dealing with the discomfort of the tattoo process.
• In addition, comfortable, loose clothing may be required in order for your tattoo artist to access the area where you are getting tattooed. If you are getting a tattoo in an area of your body that is usually covered up by clothing, make sure that you wear something to your appointment that will give the tattoo artist easy access to the area.
• For example, if you are getting a tattoo on your leg, consider wearing shorts or a skirt, so that the tattooist can easily get to the area. Similarly, if you are getting a tattoo on your upper arm, wear a sleeveless shirt.

4) Eat before your appointment

It is important that you have enough food before your appointment so that you don't get light headed while getting a tattoo. The pain of a tattoo is bad enough, you don't want to add to it with lightheadedness or passing out into the mix.
• Having low blood sugar can increase the physical reaction to a tattoo, making you more likely to pass out from the pain.
• Eating a solid meal before your appointment will give you the energy and stamina to withstand the pain of getting a tattoo. While it does not matter what you eat exactly, as long as it will give the sustenance you need to get through the appointment; eating a meal high in protein instead of sugar will sustain you longer.
• If you are having an extremely long tattoo appointment, bring a quick snack, like a granola bar, with you. Your tattooist will be happy to take a quick break so that you can stay nourished.

5) Prepare your skin

You do not need to do a lot to your skin before a tattoo. Just moisturize with your normal moisturizer for a week beforehand if you have dry skin to make sure that it is in good shape. Also, avoid getting a sunburn on the area you are getting tattooed. This means wearing sunscreen whenever you leave the house.
• While the area you are getting tattooed will need to be shaved, most tattoo artists do not want you to do it ahead of time. Instead, they will do it right before the tattoo to assure that any irritation does not interfere with the tattoo process.

6) Prepare for aftercare

Plan to stay out of the water and keep your tattoo out of the sun for several weeks after it is applied. This means that you should plan when to get the tattoo so that you do not have to rearrange your schedule to accommodate the tattoo's healing. For example, if you have a vacation coming up that will include a lot of swimming, you may not want to get a tattoo right before it.

7) Medications & Surgery

We will NOT tattoo ANYONE if they have an upcoming surgery (2 weeks prior to surgery) or if they are not 30 days past surgery/anesthesia. We will NOT tattoo ANYONE who is currently taking Antibiotics of any kind. Think about it this way; if you are healing an infection and on antibiotics, you will have a prolonged healing for your tattoo and could have complications healing. Acne medications such as Accutane and Retin-A cause skin to be hyper-sensitive. It is very important to be 6 months+ past taking the medication.