Save Up Your Christmas Cash — Winter is the Best Time to Get Tattooed

You’ve got the itch. And the only way to scratch it is with a new tattoo. Whether you’ve been planning the perfect arm sleeve or you fancy yourself a collector of original flash tattoos, winter offers the best conditions to get tattooed. Save up that Christmas cash and splurge on the lifelong gift to yourself when you decide to get tattooed in the winter.

Why Winter is the Best Time to Get Tattooed

While you may start to feel the desire to get tattooed in the summer when the parade of floaters on the Deschutes starts showing their skin, consider waiting until winter for the best conditions to get a tattoo. From minimal sun exposure to less time spent in lakes, rivers and swimming pools, winter offers the optimal season to get a tattoo. Luck for us in Bend, winter starts early and ends late meaning you have ample time to get your next tattoo.

Sun Exposure

Even though bikini-season may provide the perfect climate to showcase your new ink, the sun exposure can be damaging. Sun exposure can hinder the healing process, as well as increase the rate at which your tattoo fades. After spending all of the time and effort to get tattooed, the last thing you want to do is have it fade immediately. Ultraviolet rays can damage the epidermis, which contains the ink of your tattoo and can cause bumps, scarring and certain areas of the tattoo can become itchy and raised and remain that way long after your tan fades.

Moisture

As we all know, with a new tattoo, you must wait a few weeks before submerging it in water such as a swimming pool, lake or river. Minimizing water exposure is easier in the winter because you won’t be dragging that intertube to the Old Mill to drop in for a float. In colder climates, like Bend, the best time to get tattooed is in the winter because you won’t have to miss out on weeks of summer fun in the water. In the winter, it’s cold and we’re more likely to stay indoors and avoid big bodies of water.

In addition to avoiding water submersion, sweat also factors into why you should get tattooed in the winter. With lower temperatures, we’re not working up a sweat walking from work to the car, which means sweat won’t have damaging effects on your fresh tattoo. As with water, sweat can contain bacteria, which when exposed to the freshly inked skin can cause infections, which you definitely don’t want.

Cool Air

Some people believe the drier climate in the winter helps tattoos heal faster. The faster the tattoo dries out can also mean the faster it heals (This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be adding moisture with lotion as per normal healing protocol).

Best Time to Get Tattooed

All of the elements add up to agree, winter is the best time to get tattooed. Whether protecting your skin from an infection, preventing fast fading or not giving up any of your precious summer, get tattooed in the winter and you’ll be showing off a beautiful, healed tattoo next summer for all to be envious of. With the holidays coming up, there’s no better way to spend those Christmas dollars from grandma than with a brand new tattoo from Monolith Tattoo Studio in Bend, Oregon.