Thread: Tell me about tattoos

I like the anklet one best. You could add to the anklet as you travel more

I'd make sure you can wear flipflops or sandals for awhile if you get anything done to your feet.

Any tattoo placed on the inside of your hand (I'm not sure if your thumb area would count) WILL LIKELY NOT TAKE. There's a lot of natural oils and the tattoo fades within days (I know from personal experience and it SUCKED lol)

Anything right on top of bone will hurt more. A little "padding" is MUCH better lol

Other than that, they sound awesome.

I have six so far and this is what i can tell you:

1. Tattoos on a very shallow surface where the needle is most likely to touch bone will hurt like hell.
2. Tattoos on the hands usually wont last, unless the tattoo is taken care of until it is completely healed, and then anything in an often used area will fade much quicker than other places.
3. Tattoos that have color do NOT hurt more than just black tattoos.
4. Tattoos on places where the skin is tight hurt the least.
5. Tattoos in the center of your back will be extremely painful IF the area covers a vertebrate.
6. Tattoos need to be of something significant because you will most certainly look back in your old age a think either one of two things "why did i do that" or "the memories this carries are of my fondest in this life" or something to those effects.
7. Do not let the tattoo artist coerce you into a different tattoo than the one you want, not all try this but most do, you can attribute their artistic values being brought out in their work.
8. Be prepared to explain anything that's not regular in your culture, language, or the local's ways of life, though you don't have to because it's your tattoo and i'm supposing you're getting it for yourself and not for anyone else.

hope this helps

Originally Posted by Zhaylin

I like the anklet one best. You could add to the anklet as you travel more

I'd make sure you can wear flipflops or sandals for awhile if you get anything done to your feet.

Any tattoo placed on the inside of your hand (I'm not sure if your thumb area would count) WILL LIKELY NOT TAKE. There's a lot of natural oils and the tattoo fades within days (I know from personal experience and it SUCKED lol)

Anything right on top of bone will hurt more. A little "padding" is MUCH better lol

Other than that, they sound awesome.

Mhm that was my idea about the travel one So far I'd probably have around 6 hearts... and a mickey head. Yes. <3 Disney (probably have to decide one for world one for land...), Nashville (Psh. it counts.), Italy, Fiji, New Zealand, Australia. Could probably start the tattoo out with an American flag heart...

I wear flipflops all the time anyway so that's not a problem But yeah how long would the tattoo prevent me from being able to swim or something?

Yeah I was wondering about that. Esp since I wanted the fire one on my right hand... I guess anytime I write or anything it would rub off... hmm.

I've heard that. Unfortunately most of my tattoos are like "Oh look, there's a bone, let's tattoo RIGHT ON IT." Cause I'm brilliant.

Thanks!!

Originally Posted by MementoMori

I have six so far and this is what i can tell you:

1. Tattoos on a very shallow surface where the needle is most likely to touch bone will hurt like hell.
2. Tattoos on the hands usually wont last, unless the tattoo is taken care of until it is completely healed, and then anything in an often used area will fade much quicker than other places.
3. Tattoos that have color do NOT hurt more than just black tattoos.
4. Tattoos on places where the skin is tight hurt the least.
5. Tattoos in the center of your back will be extremely painful IF the area covers a vertebrate.
6. Tattoos need to be of something significant because you will most certainly look back in your old age a think either one of two things "why did i do that" or "the memories this carries are of my fondest in this life" or something to those effects.
7. Do not let the tattoo artist coerce you into a different tattoo than the one you want, not all try this but most do, you can attribute their artistic values being brought out in their work.
8. Be prepared to explain anything that's not regular in your culture, language, or the local's ways of life, though you don't have to because it's your tattoo and i'm supposing you're getting it for yourself and not for anyone else.

hope this helps

2: Ok. I think the area of the hand I want the wing tattoo on probably wouldnt get used much... so that should be safe.
3: I was wondering about that. I heard that lines and circles hurt alot though?
6(I think. I lost track.): Yeah. I'm thinking about a few of my designs. Like the heart with wings one, I want the heart to be orange & moon like because of a band (well, two) so I think that should be one of my later ones so I have more time to think it over. Other than that... the travel one would be ongoing and I'm pretty sure I'll want to travel forever. And music... yeah I can't live without it. <3
7: For sure. I plan on designing everything. I'll probably try to choose an artist that has similar artistic styles so it stays close to my design.
8: I'm totally ready to explain anything in Italian.

Thanks!

welcome, and regarding what shapes hurt more, it's nothing to do with the shape, it's the amount of repetition required to get the shape to look like it's supposed to. So a triangle would probably need six or seven "strokes" to get it right as apposed to a circle may only need four or five. I have Memento Mori tattooed on my left forearm on the inside and it's an abigram, it took four hours to complete and is the equivalent of two tattoos layered together, this is because of the font used and the amount of skin being tattooed.

The wrist and the hands wont hurt at all from what i've experienced, and the ankle wont be too bad though if the artist hits the bone a few times you'll definitely wanna smack him lol. Remember that the longer it takes the less it hurts (usually) because the area becomes numb. So don't do like some and request a lot of breaks while getting the tattoo.

Goodluck

Originally Posted by MementoMori

welcome, and regarding what shapes hurt more, it's nothing to do with the shape, it's the amount of repetition required to get the shape to look like it's supposed to. So a triangle would probably need six or seven "strokes" to get it right as apposed to a circle may only need four or five. I have Memento Mori tattooed on my left forearm on the inside and it's an abigram, it took four hours to complete and is the equivalent of two tattoos layered together, this is because of the font used and the amount of skin being tattooed.

The wrist and the hands wont hurt at all from what i've experienced, and the ankle wont be too bad though if the artist hits the bone a few times you'll definitely wanna smack him lol. Remember that the longer it takes the less it hurts (usually) because the area becomes numb. So don't do like some and request a lot of breaks while getting the tattoo.

Goodluck

Ok that makes sense.

I've heard varying opinions about wrist tattoos... some say it hurts alot others say it doesn't at all. Guess I'll find out lol. Hah Im sure I'll have to make myself remember not to ask for breaks a lot.

When I got my first and only professional tattoo, I wanted a hawk on my back.
I drew it and everything but the tattoo artist said it was too detailed, would have to be larger than my drawing, and would cost more money than I had to spend.
He showed me a book then recommended a blue and white rose with a brown stem and green leaf. I was doubtful at first, but I was determined to get one. I had to get naked and was on my period lmbo, but he said he didn't mind at all- just gave me padding to sit on.
I don't know if my embarrassment kept it from hurting or what, but it hardly hurt at all. The worst part was rawness from repeated wiping away of the ink and blood toward the end.

About 17 years later, the tattoo is as beautiful as ever and I love it.

About ??? 12 years ago someone where I lived was giving tats with a homemade gun and BIC ink. I had a design I wanted on the palm of my hand (well, on the pad of my thumb).
That was some of the worst pain I've ever endured because he had to keep going over it. By the end, it felt like he was carving into me with a straight razor.
The tat completely disappeared after a week.

A friend had the same guy give her a unicorn on her shoulder and she still has it to this day.

Now I give myself my tattoos (X-Acto knife and cigarette ashes- NOT recommended by anyone but me. I've used it for so long I've had no adverse reaction.) I'm just curious how long they'll last. The one on the inside of my wrist seems to be fading but the one on my thigh seems darker if anything.

I've heard, most artists wont work on wrists or vein-y areas because there's more risk involved.
Just try to have excellent communication with the artist you choose.

Ah yeah I probably wouldnt be able to handle that. good thing most of my tattoos are gonna be on my arms and legs lol. That sounds really pretty though

Aww that sucks. :\ I guess its cause you use that part of your hand whereas you dont use your shoulder for much.

interesting. I guess thats similar to how tattoos were done way back without ink and stuff. do you make the askes into ink or just put them on the cut skin? (just curious. i totally dont have the guts to do that. lol)

Ahh yeah. I mean I know some will. I got my amore idea from someone elses wrist tattoo (didn't say Amore though.) I'd have to make sure my artist has worked with wrists before though so hes confident he wont cause any damage.

---

I've been thinking about getting my clef note heart tattoo all day today. don't know why. But yeah. I'm excited. <3

Ahh! I actually figured out the perfect way to connect the clef note heart tattoo and the sheet music tattoo. It's gonna be awesome <3 Designing it now.

I gave myself tattoos on both my left and right hands (on the top) where the thumbs meet the index fingers. I used an exacto knife and india ink. I did this 12 years ago and they are still there.

Mkay. soo, here's a sketch of the kinda thing I'm going for.
If you read music, I'm sorry for the awful mess you are about to see. I promise it's a real song, I just lack the ability to comprehend written music. If you read music and can make this make sense for me, I love you.
Oh and I am aware that it cuts off at a weird spot. It's like *finishes first piece of song* *starts second* *stops*

BTW, this will be wrapped around my ankle. Like the heart part will be on the top of my foot, then the music wll be around my ankle.

Hmmmm. What piece of music is this? DaDA..daDA...daDa...DAaaa...
I can read music some, the drawing and the photo quality make it hard to make out some of the details, but I think I get the idea. It makes sense but I can't see the very first part of the music where the key signature is. You know where it has all the sharps or flats that are in the piece. In this piece it seems like it would only have one sharp on the top line at the beginning of the some, or else two flats. But I can't tell.

I didnt actually put all that in there. I realized that too late. I just started with the first note. I'm drawing it on my arm now though and Im gonna add that. This is just the guitar part btw

Its the beginning of "Til Summer Comes Around" by Keith urban. Well, once you get past the sound effects.

Oh and IDK for sure if I want this song yet or not. So the notes might change. I kinda used this as an example to show kinda what itll look like when theres music in it. It is a good candidate though.

OK, makes sense.

Awesomeee

But may I suggest, if you are going to get a tattoo of a song, to make it the melody or the vocal melody or chorus or something? The melody is more of the essence of the song than the intro guitar riff IMHO

Yeah. I'm gonna think more about this. This was basically just for practice... and the only part of the sheet music I could find online.

Heres what I just drew on my arm to kinda get an idea of what itll look like. I'll probably have it closer together though instead of all the space I have here. Its just not easy to draw all the way around your own arm.

Crap. In order to be readable it should be upside down....

i think i'm in love...

j/k

That is badass! it'll take a while and hurt a bit if you get it just like that but it looks so awesome (&hot). My friend got a similar tat like that same arm but shorter and smaller. He had the inside of the spaces filled in with an ivory color. It looked sweet, as he was a music major and could play any damn thing he picked up.

One question, where are you planning on getting the ink work done? This is the biggest player in the whole planning. Due to cost, quality, and time. I know an artist that has a waiting list that's backed up for 14 months (though i know most aren't that popular) you need to remember to correlate your thoughts with the artist doing the work.

Edit: my tats

The bio-hazard is my first and the tattoo artist talked me into it, the rest are my own art that i had another artist put on me unaltered.

At the top-center of my back


Right Wrist


Left Forearm


Left Shoulder


Right Shoulder


Right Leg

Hah

Mhm I figure itll probably hurt some. Esp since Im actually gonna get it on my ankle/foot (I'd probably get it on my arm if that wasn't a problem in the workplace. I'd never get a job. Also I have other plans for hand tattoos. ) I'll probably keep mine just black and white. Possibly with touches of red. I wish I was like that... unfortunately I can't play anything. I tried to learn guitar til my teacher moved to Florida. I can sing a little... I used to get told that I sang like Jennifer Nettles.

I can't remember the name of the place, but I'm getting it done in Indiana when I visit my friend this summer. She knows someone who's had a lot of tattoos done there and is very happy with the results, so I think that place should be good. I'm thinking about doing it in two parts though. Like starting with the heart then getting the rest done later. Not sure yet.

Ahh awesome! I love the Mementomori one... its like the... cant remember what its called... also cant remember what the name of the movie it made me think of was. Well, that was a pointless statement. but its awesome!

Awesome hand work!! I especially like how it looks along the top of your arm and hand. But I know what you mean about employment

Nice tats MementoMori!

I live in a TINY town. I wish I could find professional ink, but ash (alas) is the only color available to me. I make the incisions then scour the ash into the cuts. I wipe repeatedly with alcohol wipes which I think may have hindered the one one my wrist. For my thigh I would rub the ash in until the wound clotted and then I left it alone for a week, neither bandaging nor washing it (but keeping a close eye on it for infection). I got lazy or too cautious with my wrist.

I tried making ash ink by burnt papers (no ink, perhaps safer than nicotine and lord knows what else from the cig.), but the ink didn't take at all.

I've tried doing some very low key branding to add "pink" to my butterfly tat (on my thigh), but I'm too good a healer and the effect isn't dramatic enough to be worth it.

Much success on finding the right tats! Your sound beautiful.

Thanks! Yeah I wish that wasn't a problem. I mean if I can get employed while wearing a ring that looks like a snake wrapped around an eye.... I don't see the problem. Eh. I'll just start my own business. Yes.

Did the tattoo artist happen to mention that in many gay communities around the world, having a biohazard symbol tattoo is meant to advertise that you are HIV positive?

i learned that afterwards... oh well, society creates stereotypes and "symbols", it has special meaning to me and i could give a shit less what others think of it. That the thing with tattoos, when you get one that's special to you, you don't care what anyones thinks about it, because you did n't get it for them.

Yeah I wouldn't worry about that. I mean unless its like a racist symbol or something whatever. They just happened to decide to use an existing symbol.

While I agree with you in principle, there does exist a line across which simply saying "I don't care what people think, I like the symbol" can cause you more grief than is worth.

eg: One of these is a Tibetan symbol of fortune and good luck, and the other is completely illegal to display in public in a certain European country for obvious reasons.



[pic removed after point being made as to not chance offending anyone~Mori]

Just saying, be careful and do your research carefully before having something etched onto you for the rest of your days

But to actually contribute to the thread, in the next few months when I've got some free time (damn you Christian holidays and your making me work ridiculous hours!) I'll be getting this on my right shoulder-blade:



Pioneer plaque

Long time Carl Sagan fan, amateur astronomer and life long rationalist, I'd like to carry a piece of humanities first act of an attempted peaceful interstellar communication to another species with me where-ever I go. The 15 lines represent the relative direction and frequency of 14 known pulsars in relation to Sol - our star - and the 15th line is in relation to the plane of the galaxy. In short, its our address, how to find humanity. To me, it represents home.

And lucky for me, there is no way this can be misunderstood except as 'why do you have a weird star on your back?'.

Alternatively (or possibly in addition to), I'm giving serious consideration to Darwin's tree of life sketch:



Putting the tattoo on his palm was probably a stupid thing to do, unless he didn't mind the tattoo not being permanent. The amount of wear and tear your hands see, especially your palms, means that tattoo isn't going to last longer than a few years at best and will rapidly deteriorate much earlier than that. I'd probably go with a shoulder or underside arm positioning.