I never knew that there was such a long process for tattoos. Anyone who has a tattoo, please feel free to chime in. At this point, to me they don’t seem like they will be nice as I expected. The first day they looked great. There was some swelling but I was very excited about what I was seeing. On day 8, they were all crusty, itchy, and scabbed over. It was barely able to keep from picking them apart. On day 11, most of the scabbing had come off (naturally), but it doesn’t look too pretty.
My tattoo artist instructed me to keep them clean with an antibacterial soap, and to moisturize them them with a lotion like Lubriderm. I have done so faithfully. I’m still hoping they look better when the skin is completely healed. I would appreciate some input from others who have tattoos.
tltatemakeover.com 
This brings back memories! I remember getting mine, and then getting a “how to take care of your tattoo”-info flyer thingy from the artist, on which he had written: Tip of the week DO NOT SCRATCH IT, YOU IDIOT! Lol!
Yea, it’s like that at first. Your skin needs to heal. And I am not trying to be racist (but hopefully you know me better than to ever think I would), but I’ve binge-watched tons of Ink Master episodes (and Tattoo Nightmares, and… well, a lot of similar shows), and they always say that tattooing a darker skin is harder than tattooing a lighter skin, which has something to do with pigments (if I remember correctly) and soaking up the ink. Anyway, that could be a reason why yours are healing a bit slower than mine did at the time.
Also, everyone’s skin is different anyway, so perhaps yours is more sensitive (or mine is just like elephants’ thick, lol). My sister got a tattoo on her shoulder (not on the blade like me, but on the upper arm part). She’s already had to “repair” it three times, whereas mine is nice and neat after almost 10 years. Personal skin types, sunlight, difference in ink… It all adds up to how the eventual tattoo looks and heals.
Keep moisturising it. Did your tattoo artist also tell you to keep it clean with lukewarm water, twice a day (I think) and to keep it kitchen foiled up for 5 days? (It was so weird taping kitchen foil to my shoulder blade, but apparently that helped… no idea why, don’t shoot me). Reading your post it’s probably too late for the foil, but if I were you I’d wash it gently with lukewarm water twice a day and keep it well moisturised every chance you get. You should be fine in another week or so.
And if I may be honest, I think your tattoos look great! And I absolutely love how you did not just get your children’s names, but also Wisdom and Strength. Really completes it.
Thanks for the compliment. The artist did give me a care sheet. No mention of foil, but washing every 4 hours. That was difficult since I’m in my car at least 8 hours a day. I think they look pretty good now.
You are right about darker skin though. I have seen some of the shows you mentioned. I’m pretty sure that’s why it felt like he was carving my arm with a knife. He was trying to make sure he got good penetration depth.
Anyway, I am sure they will look even better once all the scar tissue is gone.