(Video) The Beautiful Sun & Your Treasured Tattoos

The sun is incredibly important to our well-being as far as I’m concerned, but it’s also mortal enemies with our precious tattoos if we aren’t careful.  Here are some things to keep in mind regarding the biggest star in the sky and our body art.

1. The correlation between the sun and your tattoos becoming faded is definitely real (not a myth), the sun is often in effect, and it’s definitely not friends with your body art. Think of it as us tattoo collectors’ Kryptonite.
2. It’s sneaky. It exists even when you may be unaware of it, such as when you’re doing things like driving a vehicle.
3. The slight edge theory is very in effect here. Simple habits, whether negative or positive big or small, are always compounding over time and working either for you or against you. Even just 30-60 minutes a day, for months on end, can make all the difference in the world on your tattoos real life appearance.
4. There are no statistics on this matter as far as I know regarding the sun and the extent to which it fades tattoos, but I have witnessed with my own eyes as I’m sure many of you have, what just a few months of blatant sun exposure can do on a nice piece, and it isn’t pretty. UV exposure can cause your body art to lose all kinds of detail and fade into something you’re unhappy with.
5. I personally always use spf50, as sources say that spf100 isn’t different than SPF 50 as it plateaus at around that number. I believe rub on is more effective and reliable than spray on because you can ensure full coverage.
6. Remember that new tattoos should be completely covered until healed, and kept out of the sun by using clothing or just staying indoors.
7. I personally apply sunscreen approximately every hour when I’m in moderate or especially serious heat, though they say it lasts for 80 minutes. I can literally feel the heat beating on my tattoos I’m assuming because the black ink attracts the sun. I’ve just invested so much time, energy, and money into my tattoos and they mean so much to me that it’s just worth it to me to be safer than sorry.
8. If you do happen to get a sunburn, apply Aloe Vera and don’t let it happen again!! If it’s fresh work, it also may be necessary to visit the doctor depending on the magnitude of the burn, you may need antibiotics.
9. There are shirts and clothing on the market that specialize in UV protection if you get annoyed with sunscreen or just don’t have the energy certain days. Google “UV protection clothing”.
10. Remember that although it’s important to keep your tattoos looking fresh, it’s also important to live your life! Tattoos are a huge part of my life but they aren’t the only part of it. Being heavily tattooed and keeping a collection looking immaculate definitely comes at a cost, but it’s all very worth it in my eyes and I wouldn’t trade my collection for anything.