The itch is water leaving your tattoo.
Once a tattoo closes, the job changes. NOOKS is a waterless barrier balm. It slows the water leaving new skin, the part of the itch a tin can change, and keeps the flake thin.
your artist owns the wound.this starts the day it's closed and dry.
no water · no petroleum · no added fragrance
Waterless barrier balm. For the itchy part.
NOOKS is a waterless barrier balm. Fifteen ingredients, no water, no petroleum, no added fragrance. It goes on after each wash from the day the tattoo closes, and on the rest of you once it's healed.
waterless · petroleum-free · no added fragrance · no alcohol · three sizes · fifteen ingredients
Where's your tattoo at?
New skin has an unfinished barrier. Water leaves it fast.
A closed tattoo has a new top layer with its lipids not yet in place, so water leaves it fast. Dermatologists call it transepidermal water loss. Lotion adds water and loses it. NOOKS adds lipids skin already recognises, and slows the loss. Less loss, less itch, thinner flake.
- Squalane
- skin makes it, as squalene
- Jojoba
- a wax ester, the class a quarter of sebum belongs to
- Shea
- triglycerides, the bulk of sebum
- Sunflower
- linoleic acid, which skin can't make
Lotion evaporates.Petroleum sits on top.
Petroleum isn't bad. It stops almost all the water leaving, which is the trick, and has been since 1872. It's also inert. Protection is its ceiling. And a lid over a peeling tattoo softens the flake. A soft flake sticks to clothes and lifts early. A thin one sheds.
Nothing in it that stings.
New skin lets more through, so what stings a face stings a tattoo sooner. No added fragrance. No alcohol. One essential oil, under the scent threshold. Bisabolol as the molecule, not the extract. Bakuchiol at 0.5%, not a retinoid. Built to an intimate-skin spec, where zero tingle was the pass mark. Fifteen ingredients. Each with a job.
Verbatim. Including the punctuation.
"Bonus points for being the best post-tattoo balm ever. Five stars. Chef's kiss. No notes."
"I was looking for a new tattoo balm alternative after my go to did the classic 'brand new formula' move which translated to bargain basement quality and a fragrance dump (why?!) so it was on a hope and a prayer that Nooks would perhaps fill the void. Not only has it delivered on everything I was hoping for, it's even better still for multiple uses."
"As a long-time Vaseline devotee, I'm happily replacing it with Nooks."
Where it's at decides what it needs.
Fresh. Wrapped or weeping.
Follow your artist. Under second skin, leave it alone. Still weeping, still a wound, still theirs. NOOKS starts the day the surface is closed and dry.
Closed. Itching. Peeling.
The itch is water leaving through a barrier that isn't finished. A thin layer after each wash slows it, and the flake stays thin and lifts when it's ready. Don't pick. Thin is the whole technique.
Healed. Gone flat.
Dry skin scatters light, and the ink is under it. A lipid layer fills the surface and the light goes through, the same reason a wet tattoo reads bright. The ink never moved. The view did. Not sunscreen. Once healed, SPF is what slows the fade.
Keeping it bright.
Two things dull a healed tattoo. Dry skin on top, which scatters light before it reaches the ink. And UV, which fades the pigment itself. The tin covers the first. A thin layer keeps the surface filled, so black reads black and colour keeps its contrast. Fine line and colour work show it first, because they have the least contrast to spare.
The second is sunscreen's job. Balm in the morning, SPF over it once it has sunk in.
Less than you think.
Slowing water loss is a film effect. One continuous layer does it. A second layer just sits there.
- 01Scoop.A pea per palm-sized area.
- 02Warm.Between fingertips until it turns to oil.
- 03Press.After each wash. Press in, don't rub. Rubbing lifts flake.
If it sits on top, you used too much. Thick is a petroleum habit.
Earns its spot or we refund you. Use the whole tin if you need to. We've seen what week two looks like.
Take the bet30-day money-back guarantee on your first tin · refund policy
Built for the most sensitive skin first.
I'm Dani. Founder, patient zero. Nothing on the shelf was allowed near the most sensitive skin on the body, so I built something that was. Fourteen testers and three formulas later, a balm that behaves there behaves on a closed tattoo. Fifteen ingredients I'd put anywhere.
Before you ask.
When can I start using it?＋
The day the tattoo is closed and dry, usually day 5 to 7. Before that, follow your artist.
Does it sting?＋
No. Nothing in it stings on new skin. No added fragrance, no alcohol, no essential oils above the scent threshold.
Will it fade my ink?＋
No. Fade comes from UV. NOOKS is not sunscreen. Use SPF over it once it has sunk in.
Is it safe on colour and fine line?＋
Yes. It's what we recommend for both. Dry skin on top dulls colour first. A lipid layer keeps the surface filled and the contrast intact.
How much do I use?＋
A pea per palm-sized area. Warm between fingertips. Press in, don't rub. If it sits on top, you used too much.
How often?＋
After each wash while healing. Once healed, morning and after a shower is plenty.
Can I use it on my face?＋
Yes. Fifteen ingredients, no added fragrance, no alcohol. Built to an intimate-skin spec.
Vegan?＋
Yes.
Made where?＋
Formulated in Melbourne. Made in a small-batch facility in Guangdong, China.
What if my skin reacts?＋
Stop, wash, and email hi@nooksbalm.com. Full refund inside 30 days, no questions.
Will it stain my sheets?＋
No visible stain. Absorbs in about ninety seconds and dries down soft-matte.
How long does a tin last?＋
60 mL, three months or more of daily use for one person. A single tattoo on the arm, a week or two.
One tin outlasts the heal. The rest of you gets it after.
The Everywhere Balm™
A waterless barrier balm. Fifteen ingredients. No water, no petroleum, no added fragrance.
30-day one-tin guarantee. If it doesn't earn a permanent spot in your bathroom, we refund one tin, minus shipping.
Dispatched Mon, Wed, Fri. $9.95 AU shipping, free over $50.
30 days. If it doesn't earn its spot, we refund you.
What's in it＋
Fifteen ingredients, heaviest first.
- Squalane. olive-derived; the same molecule skin makes.
- Shea butter. triglycerides; the bulk of sebum.
- Jojoba oil. a wax ester; the class a quarter of sebum belongs to.
- Sunflower oil. linoleic acid; skin can't make it.
- Meadowfoam seed oil. slows lipid oxidation; keeps the tin stable.
- Rosehip oil. linoleic and linolenic acid; a lightweight top-up.
- Vitamin E. tocopherol; barrier repair and antioxidant.
- Calendula extract. traditional soothing botanical, low reactivity.
- Chamomile extract. bisabolol source; anti-irritant.
- Bakuchiol. 0.5%; the concentration published studies used.
- Bisabolol. isolate, not the extract; zero-tingle spec.
- Sea buckthorn. carotenoids; a warm undertone.
- Rosemary extract. natural preservative for the oils.
- Lavender oil. one essential oil, under the scent threshold.
- Non-GMO tocopherol. stabiliser.
The full count.
Every review, unedited.
