How long after lip tattooing can I wash my face? - Aura Beauty Salon

To keep your lips soft and smooth without drying and cracking, proper lip care is very important, especially after lip tattooing. Daily moisturizing with safe, vitamin-rich products can help your lips recover faster. Additionally, direct exposure to sunlight should be avoided to reduce the risk of discoloration and damage to your lips. In particular, you should limit your lips' contact with water in the initial days after tattooing, helping the tattoo heal quickly and avoid infection. So how long after lip tattooing can you wash your face without causing any effects? Let’s Aura Beauty Salon find the answer to this question!

1. Can you wash your face right after getting lip tattoos?

Lip tattooing is a beauty technique using a tattoo pen with a super fine needle to inject color into the lip layers. This method creates small injuries on the surface of the skin to pave the way for the ink to penetrate underneath the epidermis of the lips. While it ensures it does not penetrate deep into the lower layers, if water touches freshly tattooed lips, it can still easily lead to infections, pus, swelling, and slow recovery.

To achieve the highest effectiveness during the recovery process, in the early days after lip tattooing, you need to avoid contact with water and limit activities like washing hands, oral hygiene, eating... Although these are essential habits in life, this avoidance is necessary to ensure the health and aesthetics of your lips. Keeping your lips from contact with water will help improve results after tattooing, allowing your lips to color beautifully while minimizing the risk of infections and prolonging recovery.  

2. How long after lip tattooing can you wash your face? Can you use face wash?

After getting a lip tattoo, avoiding water contact with your lips is crucial to prevent unwanted infections and inflammation. Therefore, you should not wash your face immediately after getting a lip tattoo. Typically, 5 to 7 days later, your lips will start to shed the old skin and gradually show more natural color, at which point you can wash your face with water. However, if you want to use face wash, you should wait about 10 to 15 days to ensure your lips achieve the beautiful color and minimize the risk of infection. This is because face washes contain many ingredients, some of which can directly affect the newly tattooed lips, such as:

• Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) - a cleanser, thickening agent, and emulsifier widely used in everyday life and a common ingredient in most face washes, known for its effective cleansing ability. However, due to its strong cleansing properties, it can easily cause irritation and strip away the outer layer of skin, making the skin more sensitive, which is not beneficial for the regeneration and recovery of the lips.

• Similarly, alcohol is also a common ingredient in many cosmetic products, helping to lighten the face wash and improve the absorption of vitamin C and retinol. However, alcohol can strip the skin of its natural moisture, leading to dryness and changes in skin structure, which is not good for the lips that need recovery.

• Moreover, other chemical components in face wash when in direct contact with freshly tattooed lips can increase the risk of swelling and inflammation. You absolutely need to stay away from skincare products containing exfoliants or pore-tightening ingredients. Instead, you should use saline solution for gentle cleansing, helping to mildly disinfect and limit infection, peeling skin on the lips.

Although face washes help cleanse the skin more effectively than plain water, after getting a lip tattoo, the answer is you should not wash your face! In particular, you need to avoid using face washes altogether because the chemical ingredients in these products can significantly increase the risk of inflammation and reduce effectiveness after tattooing.

3. Proper hygiene of your face and lips after lip tattooing

To ensure a smooth and safe recovery after lip tattooing, proper hygiene of the face and lips is necessary. Below are some detailed guidelines from Aura to help you care for this sensitive skin area after lip tattooing.

3.1. Skin care for the face and lips

Ensuring adequate hydration each day will help prevent your lips from drying and cracking. To minimize contact of the lips with water, you can use a straw while drinking. Within 4-5 hours after getting lip tattoos, if you feel pain, use ice or a cold cloth to apply gently. Remember to use cotton to apply nourishing oil, but don't forget to wash your hands thoroughly before doing so to avoid bacteria.

Activities such as eating, rinsing your mouth, or washing your face are moments where water can easily contact your lips, so you need to perform these steps very gently and carefully. Try to avoid direct water contact with the lip area, and if possible, use a clean towel or tissue to gently blot and ensure that your lips do not get wet.

3.2. Proper oral hygiene

In the early days after lip tattooing, you need to be cautious and avoid using a toothbrush or any oral hygiene tools that could harm your lips. Toothpaste often contains antibacterial agents and fluoride, which are beneficial for oral health but can negatively affect the healing process of the lips. These chemicals can cause the wounds to swell and hurt more, slowing the recovery process.

Regarding water contact, after getting a lip tattoo, you need to keep your lips dry. Water can wash away the newly formed protective crust on the lips, disrupting the natural shedding process. This not only slows healing but also increases the risk of infection and can lead to uneven lip coloration.

After each meal, you should use dental floss to clean up plaque and food stuck between your teeth. You can also chew sugar-free gum regularly to help prevent bad breath. However, choose sugar-free gum to protect your oral health and avoid cavities that may affect overall health.

Generally, you should avoid brushing your teeth for about 5 to 7 days to ensure the best recovery for your lips. Or you can wait until the peeling has completely happened and the new skin has healed, at which point you can resume brushing your teeth as usual.

3.3. Use cotton pads with saline solution

After getting a lip tattoo, small dots accompanied by blood and plasma will appear on the surface of the lips. To keep your lips clean and prevent infection, use a clean cotton swab or cotton pad to gently dab these areas to remove blood and fluid.

Before going to bed at night and each morning after waking up, gently rinse your mouth with saline solution for oral hygiene. You can also use a gentle mouthwash to avoid irritation.

3.4. Limit rubbing your face and lips

After getting a lip tattoo, instead of washing your face normally, you can use cotton pads soaked in saline solution or cleansing water to gently wipe your skin. In the absence of cotton pads, you can replace them with soft muslin cloths or medical cotton to ensure cleanliness and safety for your skin.

If you use a bath towel, be careful to wring it out very dry and fold it four times before using. This helps to minimize the rubbing of the fabric surface against your skin. Strong rubbing can cause itching, causing the scab in the tattoo area to flake off earlier than expected, affecting the recovery process and making it difficult for the lip color to match correctly.

4. Notes when washing your face after lip tattooing

When washing your face after getting a lip tattoo, you need to pay attention to some important things to protect your newly tattooed lips and avoid unwanted risks. Below are two important notes you should consider to achieve the desired results after lip tattooing.

4.1. It’s advisable to avoid washing your face with water

As mentioned, it is very important to avoid letting your lips come into contact with water after tattooing. During this time, you should cleanse your face and lip area gently with saline solution or cooled boiled water. Only after the crust on your lips has fully peeled off, usually after at least a week, should you begin to use gentle cleansing solutions for your face.

4.2. Avoid using face wash

In particular, you must absolutely avoid using face wash after getting a lip tattoo. The chemical ingredients in face washes, such as strong cleansers or fragrances, not only increase the risk of irritation but may also penetrate the tiny injuries on the lips. These wounds, although small and difficult to see with the naked eye, create ideal conditions for bacteria to flourish if exposed to inappropriate substances. This can lead to infection, slowing the recovery process and severely affecting the results of the lip tattoo, including uneven coloring or difficulty in achieving the desired color.

5. How to care for and protect your lips after tattooing

5.1. The first 2-3 days after tattooing

In the early days, maintaining cleanliness for the lips is a crucial factor for recovery. If not cared for properly, you may risk infection or reduced effectiveness of the tattoo.

How to clean the lips

• Preparation: Medical cotton or clean cotton pads and warm saline solution NaCl 0.9%.

• How to perform: Soak cotton in warm saline, gently wipe the lip area to remove dirt and plasma. Then, use another piece of cotton to dry the lips. Avoid rubbing hard to prevent additional swelling and pain.

• Frequency: Perform approximately 2-3 times a day.

Things to note:

• If you see fluid leaking from the lips, use clean cotton to gently dab.

• Minimize lip contact with water; if necessary, do it very gently.

• Avoid touching lips with your hands to prevent bacterial entry.

• Wear a mask when going outside to protect your lips from dirt and bacteria.

• Apply ice around the lips to reduce swelling and bruising, but remember to use a thin cloth between the ice and the lips to avoid frostbite.

• Avoid eating salty foods, especially fish sauce, as it may increase swelling and pain.

5.2. 5-7 days after tattooing

During this stage, your lips still need careful care to ensure the recovery process runs smoothly.

How to care:

• Continue regular lip cleaning every day.

• If the lips are still swollen, you can continue to apply ice or use a cold cloth.

• Avoid using lipstick, applying makeup to the lip area, or exfoliating.

• Avoid allowing your lips to come into contact with strong detergents, as they may cause damage and reduce the effectiveness of the tattoo.

• Avoid allergic foods that can darken lips like beef, dog meat, seafood, shrimp paste, or spicy foods.

• Opt for soft food, low in fats, to avoid injuring the lips.

• Drink plenty of water, around 2 liters a day, to keep your skin adequately hydrated.

• Use lip balm or specialized ointments to promote the healing process of the skin.

5.3. When the lips start peeling and after peeling

Typically, after about 7 days, the crust on the lips will begin to peel off, and the lip color will gradually stabilize.

How to care:

• Let the crust peel naturally, do not use your hands to scrape or use hard objects to rub.

• You can use gentle exfoliating products, in gel or cream form, avoiding products with beads to prevent damage.

• Continue maintaining your diet and hygiene as in the previous stage.

• Use lip balm or natural oils like coconut oil or almond oil to keep the lips moist and protect the skin.

• If you see signs of infection, use antibiotic ointment as directed by a doctor.

5.4. 1 month after tattooing

After about 30 days, the lips will have stabilized and the color will be distinctly visible. However, to maintain long-lasting results, you still need to pay attention to proper care.

How to care:

• Exfoliate the lips once a week.

• Use lip balm daily to prevent dryness and cracking.

• Limit the use of lipstick, as it can easily cause moisture loss in the lips.

• Observe the lip color, if necessary, you can touch up to achieve the desired results.

• Avoid foods and drinks with dark colors, as they may affect lip color.

• Limit the use of alcohol and stimulants to keep the lip color last.

CONCLUSION

Caring for your lips after tattooing not only helps you achieve beautifully natural lips but also prevents risks such as infections or uneven lip color. Strictly follow the guides, especially for proper hygiene and avoiding unsuitable products. Just be patient and take good care, and you will quickly have soft, long-lasting, and attractive lips as desired. Through this article, Aura Beauty Salon hopes you have found the answer to "How long after lip tattooing can you wash your face?" and hopes this article can help you achieve the desired lip aesthetic.