What to Know Before Your First Tattoo: A Plain Guide

A first tattoo is a decision, not a purchase. Settle the design, the artist, and the placement before you book; expect a consent form, real pain, and roughly two weeks of careful aftercare on the other side of the needle.

What should you decide before booking your first tattoo?

Decide the design, the placement, the rough size, and your budget before you contact an artist. The clearer those four answers are, the better the studio consultation goes — and the less likely you are to walk out with something you did not want.

The single most common first-tattoo regret is not the artwork; it is having decided too little before walking into the studio. Going in with "I want something on my arm" puts the entire creative burden on a stranger who has known you for fifteen minutes. Going in with a reference image, a rough size in centimetres, a specific placement, and a price you can afford turns the consultation into a real collaboration.

Start with the idea. Write it down. If you cannot describe the tattoo in two sentences to a friend, it is not ready. Spend a week or two with the idea before you commit — most regrets come from acting in the first burst of enthusiasm. Use a generated mock-up if you have one, or print and tape a paper cut-out at real size to the body part you are considering. Live with it for a few days. You will notice things you would never have noticed on screen.

Then decide placement and size together — they are not separable. A piece that works at six centimetres on a forearm will not work at three on the same forearm; detail collapses. Some areas heal faster (outer arm, calf), some hurt more (ribs, sternum, inner bicep), some age worse (fingers, palms, the side of the foot). Match the design's level of detail to the placement's ability to hold it.

Finally, the money. A first tattoo is a poor place to economise, but you should still know the number before you walk in. Reputable artists charge by the hour or by the piece; expect a deposit at booking. Read budget for your first session for the math on area, time, and cost. If you want a structured workflow from idea to finished concept, the step-by-step planning workflow covers the full loop. For higher-stakes pieces, you can also pressure-test a design first with a temp — a cheap way to spend a weekend wearing the idea before it goes permanent.

How do you find and vet a tattoo artist?

Look at portfolios in the style you want, not at studios in general. Each artist has a narrow specialty; the right artist for fine-line is rarely the right artist for traditional. Confirm licensing, hygiene, and consultation availability before you book.

Tattoo artists are specialists, even when they do not advertise themselves that way. A studio with five artists usually means five different styles under one roof. Picking the studio first and the artist second is the wrong order — it is how people end up with a traditional artist trying to do single-needle work, or a realism specialist forcing themselves into a neo-traditional brief.

Start with the style you want, then find artists who actually do that style. Search by hashtag, by city, by style name. Look at twenty pieces minimum from each portfolio you consider, not just the top three. Pay attention to healed photos — most artists post fresh work because it looks better, but a healed piece tells you how their lines hold up six months in. If you cannot find healed photos, ask for them.

Vet the practical side too. The studio should be licensed in your jurisdiction (in the United States this is usually a state or county license posted visibly on the wall). Equipment should be single-use and unwrapped in front of you. The artist should wear fresh gloves, set up a sterile field, and use medical-grade barrier film on equipment. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's tattoo safety page at fda.gov/cosmetics/cosmetic-products/tattoos-permanent-makeup-fact-sheet covers the safety baseline you should expect.

Book a consultation before you book the session. A good artist will tell you when an idea will not work — when your reference is too detailed for the size you want, when the placement you picked will age badly, when you should rethink the whole thing. Treat pushback as a green flag, not a red one. The artist who agrees to everything is rarely the artist whose work you actually want.

What happens during a typical first session?

You arrive, sign a consent form, see the final stencil on your skin, and approve placement before any needle work begins. The tattoo itself is preceded by setup and aftercare instructions; total chair time usually runs ninety minutes to four hours for a first piece.

The session has a rhythm, and knowing it makes the experience less intimidating. You will check in, fill out a health history (allergies, blood conditions, medications, pregnancy status), and sign a consent form that confirms you understand the procedure is permanent and carries small but real risks of infection and allergic reaction. The form is a legal document, not a formality — read it.

The artist then prints the stencil and applies it to your skin using transfer solution. This is the most important moment of the entire session. Look in a mirror. Check the placement from multiple angles. Move the body part — flex, twist, raise the arm — and watch how the stencil sits. Ask for it to be moved if anything feels off. Stencil placement is free; needle placement is permanent. Good artists expect a few rounds of repositioning and will not rush you.

The actual tattooing then begins. Expect a sharp, hot scratching sensation that varies by location — bone-adjacent areas (ribs, sternum, ankle) hurt noticeably more than fleshy areas (outer thigh, upper arm). Most people find the first ten minutes the hardest; the body adapts. Breathe steadily. Eat a real meal beforehand and bring water and sugar; lightheadedness is common in the first hour and easy to fix.

When the line work is done, the artist may pause to clean and photograph the piece before moving to shading or colour. At the end, they will wrap the tattoo in protective film (often a brand like Saniderm or Dermalize) and walk you through aftercare. Take notes or photos of the aftercare card — the first forty-eight hours matter more than the next two weeks combined. Tip in cash if you can; fifteen to twenty-five percent of the session price is standard in the U.S.

What does a healthy first-week recovery look like?

Day one to three the tattoo weeps plasma and feels sunburned. Day four to seven it scabs lightly and itches. By day ten the outer layer flakes. Keep it clean, moisturised, out of sun, and out of water for two weeks.

Healing follows a predictable arc, and most problems come from interrupting it. The first night your tattoo will sit under a protective film. If the film is the long-wear medical kind, leave it on for the time the artist specified — usually two to five days. If it is plain cling wrap, remove it after a few hours and wash gently.

Washing is simple and frequent. Twice a day, use lukewarm water and a fragrance-free liquid soap. No washcloths, no scrubbing — fingertips only. Pat dry with a paper towel; cloth towels harbour bacteria and snag on broken skin. Once dry, apply a thin layer of unscented moisturiser. "Thin" is the key word; over-moisturising suffocates the skin and slows healing.

Days three through seven are the itch phase. Resist scratching at all costs — a scratched scab pulls ink out with it and leaves patchy spots that will need a touch-up. Tap the area firmly with a flat palm if the itch becomes unbearable. Sleep on the opposite side from the tattoo. Wear loose clothing that does not rub the area.

What to avoid for the full two weeks: direct sunlight, swimming pools, hot tubs, the ocean, gym equipment that contacts the tattoo, and any soak longer than a quick shower. After about ten days the top layer flakes off in fine, dusty pieces that look alarming but are completely normal. The colour underneath will look duller than the day you got it; deep saturation returns by the end of week three.

For the long version of this — products, troubleshooting, what infection actually looks like — read how to care for it once it is done. Watch for fever, spreading redness past the tattoo line, pus, or warmth — those are infection signs and warrant a doctor, not a forum thread.

Pre-session checklist: T-4 days, T-1 day, day of session, aftercare

consent form — A signed document required before any tattoo procedure in which the client confirms they understand the permanence, risks (infection, allergic reaction, scarring), and aftercare obligations, and that they are of legal age and sober.