What many people don’t realize before getting tattooed is that all tattoos have scars. It is not possible for the ink to rest between the layers of the skin and heal properly without scarring. So the tattoo artist’s job is to minimize the necessary scarring while making the design. If you are wondering if your tattoo has too many scars, there are several symptoms.

The easiest sign of a scarred tattoo to identify is a raised, puffy outline. The shading or color can also be raised, but the most common area that will be puffy or raised will be the outline. If the outline of your fully healed tattoo is swollen and red, it’s probably scar tissue. Scars are caused by the tattoo artist going too deep or staying in the area too long and not keeping the tattoo machine moving.

Another sign of tattoo scarring is the itchiness that will follow the swelling. Scar tissue is very itchy and scratching it will cause more of it to rise. Different conditions will cause the scars to lift. For example, working outside and sweating often will inflame the tattoo scar tissue.

A less noticeable sign of a scarred tattoo is that the tattoo area is exceptionally dry after the tattoo has fully healed. A normal healed tattoo will not be any drier than the rest of the skin, if the tattoo you have is healed but the area is very dry, use vitamin E to try to prevent further degradation of the design.