Tattoo Terms That You Should Know Before Getting A Tattoo

Tattoos are a popular form of body art; permanent designs etched on your skin with ink inserted into the skin's top layer, explains Mayo Clinic. But getting a tattoo is usually a painful process, on which may sometimes cause slight bleeding. Once healed, however, you'll be left with a stunning piece of body graffiti that you can bare and flaunt proudly. And that's all well and good, considering that people can especially be attracted to tattoos.

Tattoos, like other forms of body art have a rich history and the culture has grown well over the years. Where they were once viewed as unprofessional, tats have now gone mainstream enough that many celebrities and high profile people now have them, and even more employers are relaxing anti-tattoo rules that were previously stiff. With the growth of the tattoo community, came the evolution of terms and lingo related to tattoos.

If you're thinking about getting your first tattoo, here are a few things to consider and tattoo terms you should totally know about.

Aftercare is the process of caring for a fresh tattoo for the first two to four weeks. It involves cleaning the tattooed skin with unscented soap, avoiding contact with water and sunlight, and using mild lotions to soothe and hydrate your skin, explains Inked Mag.

A tattoo blowout or overworked tattoo is a complication that arises when the tattoo artist causes the needle to go too deep into your skin. The result of a tattoo blowout is that the ink bleeds out, causing the tattoo to appear blurred and smudged. A blowout is common with inexperienced tattoo artists, and can be fixed with corrective tattoos and a laser procedure.

A tattoo infection is a possible complication after getting a new tattoo. It's when bacteria or other microorganisms get into your system during the tattooing process, according to Painful Pleasures. It can be as a result of certain colors in the tattoo, or it can be due to improper pre-tattoo skin prep.

An armband is a tattoo, usually on the upper arm, that forms a band around the arm, per Tattisfaction. Armband tattoos are really popular, Alexandria Shipp is one of many celebrities with armband tattoos. A bodysuit, on the other hand, refers to a collection of full body tattoos, or one tattoo that covers the whole of a person's body, Tattoodo explains.

An Autoclave is a machine tattoo artists use to sterilize their tattooing equipment, with the exception of their needles. In all proper tattoo shops, needles are used only once and thrown out afterwards.