Tattoo balm explained

What a balm actually is

Aftercare products fall into three broad classes, and the names get used interchangeably by people who should know better. The difference is water.

A lotion is mostly water, with a small amount of oil emulsified into it. It is light, it sinks in fast, and it does not last long on the skin.

A cream is a heavier emulsion, still water-based, but with enough oil to leave a soft film behind. Most dedicated tattoo aftercare products sold for the first fortnight are creams.

A balm is anhydrous, which is the technical way of saying there is no water in it at all. It is butters, oils and a wax to hold the whole thing together. Because there is no water to evaporate, a balm does not sink in the way a lotion does. It sits there. That is not a flaw, it is the entire point.

What a balm does

Skin loses water constantly, straight out through the surface. Dermatologists call it transepidermal water loss, and freshly tattooed skin does a lot more of it than intact skin does, because the surface has been perforated a few thousand times.

A balm forms an occlusive layer over the top. It does not add water to the skin. It slows the rate at which water leaves. Skin that holds its moisture stays supple, and supple skin is comfortable skin, which is most of what people are actually chasing when they reach for a product.

That is the whole mechanism. A balm is a barrier. Anyone selling you one on the basis that it does something more exciting than that is selling you a story.

When to use one, and when not to

This is where most people get it wrong, and it is the reason balms have a mixed reputation.

Not in the first few days

A fresh tattoo is an open wound. It weeps plasma, ink and a bit of blood, and it needs to breathe and drain. Smothering that under a thick occlusive layer traps fluid and warmth against the skin, which is the opposite of what you want while the surface is still open. Heavy balms in the first days are how people end up with soggy, gummy, over-moisturised tattoos and an unnecessary trip to the doctor.

In the early stage, the skin wants cleaning, and it wants a light layer of something that will not suffocate it. That means a wash, and then a cream, applied thinly. Not a balm.

Once the skin has closed

Somewhere around the end of the first fortnight, depending on you, the placement and the work, the surface closes over. The tattoo stops weeping, the flaking finishes, and you are left with new skin that is tight, dry, and often a bit shiny or dull-looking.

That is the moment a balm becomes the right product. New skin over a tattoo is thirsty and it stays thirsty for months. A balm is the most effective thing you can put on it.

For the rest of the tattoo's life

Here is the part almost nobody does, and it is the part that separates a ten-year-old tattoo that still reads clean from one that has gone muddy. Dry, neglected skin scatters light. Ink viewed through it looks flatter and hazier than it is. Keeping the skin over your tattoos moisturised, ongoing, indefinitely, is not fussiness. It is the single cheapest thing you can do to protect the money you spent.

Once or twice a week is plenty once you are past healing. It takes ten seconds.

What goes in a balm

Turn any balm over and you will find some combination of the following. None of these are exotic, and the good ones are not doing anything clever.

The waxes

Beeswax is the classic. It is what gives a balm its structure and does most of the occlusive work. It is also the reason a lot of balms are not vegan, which catches people out. Candelilla and carnauba are the plant-derived alternatives and they behave similarly, though they tend to make a firmer, waxier balm.

The butters

Shea butter is the workhorse. It is rich, it melts at body temperature, and it is well tolerated by most people. Cocoa butter is harder and more occlusive, and it has a strong smell that some people love and others cannot stand. Mango butter is lighter and less greasy, and shows up in balms aimed at people who hate the heavy feel.

The oils

Jojoba is technically a liquid wax and it is close in structure to the oil your skin already makes, which is why it sits so well. Sweet almond,grapeseed and sunflower are common lighter carriers.Coconut oil is everywhere in this category and it is more divisive than the marketing suggests, because it is comedogenic for a meaningful number of people. If you break out under your tattoos, coconut oil is the first thing to suspect.

The ones worth a closer look

Lanolin is exceptionally good at what it does, and it is also one of the more common contact allergens in this whole category. It is derived from wool, so it is not vegan, and if you have a known wool sensitivity you should approach it carefully.

Petrolatum is the most occlusive substance in common use and it is very cheap, which is why it turns up so often. It is inert and it works. The objection to it on a fresh tattoo is that it is almost too good a seal, and it is heavy enough to be genuinely difficult to remove without scrubbing.

Vitamin E is usually in there as an antioxidant to stop the oils going rancid, not as an active ingredient for your benefit, whatever the label implies.

What to avoid

Fragrance. Listed as parfum, fragrance, or a long tail of essential oils. Fragrance is the leading cause of contact dermatitis in cosmetic products, and a healing tattoo is the last place you want to find that out. A balm does not need to smell of anything. If it smells strongly, ask why.

Heavy essential oil loads. Tea tree, lavender and peppermint get marketed as natural and gentle. They are potent sensitisers at concentration, and "natural" is not a safety claim.

Anything you have not patch tested. Especially if it contains lanolin, coconut oil, or a fragrance blend. Put a small amount on the inside of your forearm and leave it for twenty-four hours before you put it anywhere near fresh work. This costs you a day and saves you a fortnight.

How to actually use it

Thin. Thinner than you think. The most common mistake by a mile is applying far too much, on the theory that if some is good, more is better. It is not. A balm that is sitting in a visible greasy film on top of your skin is not doing anything extra, it is just collecting lint and making a mess of your sheets.

Warm a small amount between your fingers until it melts, then work it into the skin until it is gone. If it still looks wet after a minute, you have used too much. Wash your hands first, every time, and do not dig into the tin with dirty fingers.

So do you need one?

Need is a strong word. Plenty of people heal a tattoo with a wash, a light cream, and nothing else, and their tattoos are fine.

But the honest position is this: a balm is not really a healing product at all, and the industry does itself no favours by selling it as one. It is a maintenance product. Its value shows up in year three, not week one. If you think of it as something you use for a fortnight and then throw in a drawer, you have wasted your money. If you think of it as the thing that keeps the skin over your tattoos in good condition for as long as you have them, it is one of the better twenty dollars you will spend.

Disclosure: Tattoo Standard is published by Penguin Tattoo Co, an Australian brand that makes tattoo aftercare products, including a balm. We have deliberately not named, linked or recommended any product in this article, our own included. Everything above is written to be checkable against the ingredient index, which carries a reference for each entry. If you think we have got something wrong, we would rather hear it than not.