It's all done.
Apr. 28th, 2008 11:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tortoisegirlSo, I have a tattoo now! And I'm going to go into some boring detail here, just to warn you.
I went in and filled out some safety forms then chilled for a bit while Sue set up her stuff. There's art and flash tattoos all over the walls. Another artist was getting ready to tattoo a guy who looked about my age and was getting a koi fish on his forearm. A third artist (I never managed to get the names of anyone except Sue) was wandering around and said he could tell it was my 1st tattoo because I looked so nervous. When I first came in the shop he was burying a dead fish from their fishtank in a potted plant and lit incense and said a little prayer for the fish.
I wore my zip-up hoodie backwards to avoid flashing the whole store. We places the tattoo a bit higher than I had planned, right below my neck, so that it would be easy to work around it if I wanted more stuff on my back later. When I was waiting for her to start I jumped every time she buzzed the needle gun (that's probably not what it's really called) even though she didn't touch me with it.
But then we started for real. And it hurt. I've read other people's tattoo tales who said it felt like being pinched or like being poked hard with a pen. But no, it felt like a needle rapidly moving in and out of skin. The outline wasn't so bad because she stopped every few seconds to wipe away ink. There were certain parts that hurt more, like the area near my neck and a few other random spots. Maybe the skin is more tender in those spots. I didn't look at the clock much but the outline didn't take too long, an hour or so. I didn't chat with Sue because she wasn't talking and I didn't want to distract her.
At one point a girl came in with her boyfriend looking for a tattoo. She picked a tribal design from one of the sheets on the wall and had the artist add a diamond and her name. I felt bad for her. She didn't seem to sure about getting the tattoo and she kept asking her boyfriend what he thought. When she went outside the artists said that being indecisive is the first sign that you shouldn't get tattooed and it was a coverup in the making. So I felt bad that she was getting the tattoo without being sure and that they were talking about her when she wasn't there. The guy who buried the fish tattooed her and at one point he said it was hurting her so much because she didn't really want that tattoo. I thought that was a tactless thing to say when the tattoo is halfway done. But she seemed happy with it, so more power to her.
When Sue started doing the colored shading it hurt a lot more. At this point I was reading a book to keep mind occupied, it I had to close my eyes and bite my tongue to keep from whimpering. Shading involved going back over the outline, where the skin was already raw and tender. Plus she would keep the needle on my skin longer instead of lifting it every few seconds like she did earlier. I remember my dad said this was the part that was hurting the most when he got his tattoo. So that was pretty bad, but I got through it. We took another break when the shading was about 2/3 done, then went in and finished it. Overall it took about three hours.
I took the bandage off a few hours ago and washed it in the shower. Sue said it'll take a month to heal and until then I have to keep it clean and out of the sun and not pick at when the skin scabs over and flakes off. Right now it feels like sunburn. The skin is oddly tight and it aches when I move certain ways. But I love it and I'm so happy I did this. I can't find the camera but I'll post picture when I do.
Other random things:
My dad fed the turtle live worms for the first time. He hunts them down and devours them like a madman. Turtles = vicious hunters. Who knew?
I have to call the Student Records Office because I asked them to send my transcript to Temple two weeks ago and Temple sent a letter saying they don't have it.
Last official day of class is Monday, May 12th and my last final is the 14th. I'm thinking of asking for every other weekend off work during the summer.
That's all I can think of right now. I'll post pictures soon!
I went in and filled out some safety forms then chilled for a bit while Sue set up her stuff. There's art and flash tattoos all over the walls. Another artist was getting ready to tattoo a guy who looked about my age and was getting a koi fish on his forearm. A third artist (I never managed to get the names of anyone except Sue) was wandering around and said he could tell it was my 1st tattoo because I looked so nervous. When I first came in the shop he was burying a dead fish from their fishtank in a potted plant and lit incense and said a little prayer for the fish.
I wore my zip-up hoodie backwards to avoid flashing the whole store. We places the tattoo a bit higher than I had planned, right below my neck, so that it would be easy to work around it if I wanted more stuff on my back later. When I was waiting for her to start I jumped every time she buzzed the needle gun (that's probably not what it's really called) even though she didn't touch me with it.
But then we started for real. And it hurt. I've read other people's tattoo tales who said it felt like being pinched or like being poked hard with a pen. But no, it felt like a needle rapidly moving in and out of skin. The outline wasn't so bad because she stopped every few seconds to wipe away ink. There were certain parts that hurt more, like the area near my neck and a few other random spots. Maybe the skin is more tender in those spots. I didn't look at the clock much but the outline didn't take too long, an hour or so. I didn't chat with Sue because she wasn't talking and I didn't want to distract her.
At one point a girl came in with her boyfriend looking for a tattoo. She picked a tribal design from one of the sheets on the wall and had the artist add a diamond and her name. I felt bad for her. She didn't seem to sure about getting the tattoo and she kept asking her boyfriend what he thought. When she went outside the artists said that being indecisive is the first sign that you shouldn't get tattooed and it was a coverup in the making. So I felt bad that she was getting the tattoo without being sure and that they were talking about her when she wasn't there. The guy who buried the fish tattooed her and at one point he said it was hurting her so much because she didn't really want that tattoo. I thought that was a tactless thing to say when the tattoo is halfway done. But she seemed happy with it, so more power to her.
When Sue started doing the colored shading it hurt a lot more. At this point I was reading a book to keep mind occupied, it I had to close my eyes and bite my tongue to keep from whimpering. Shading involved going back over the outline, where the skin was already raw and tender. Plus she would keep the needle on my skin longer instead of lifting it every few seconds like she did earlier. I remember my dad said this was the part that was hurting the most when he got his tattoo. So that was pretty bad, but I got through it. We took another break when the shading was about 2/3 done, then went in and finished it. Overall it took about three hours.
I took the bandage off a few hours ago and washed it in the shower. Sue said it'll take a month to heal and until then I have to keep it clean and out of the sun and not pick at when the skin scabs over and flakes off. Right now it feels like sunburn. The skin is oddly tight and it aches when I move certain ways. But I love it and I'm so happy I did this. I can't find the camera but I'll post picture when I do.
Other random things:
My dad fed the turtle live worms for the first time. He hunts them down and devours them like a madman. Turtles = vicious hunters. Who knew?
I have to call the Student Records Office because I asked them to send my transcript to Temple two weeks ago and Temple sent a letter saying they don't have it.
Last official day of class is Monday, May 12th and my last final is the 14th. I'm thinking of asking for every other weekend off work during the summer.
That's all I can think of right now. I'll post pictures soon!
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no subject
Date: 2008-04-29 03:16 pm (UTC)I have the same schedule as you...last day of class the 12 and last final the 14thish.
Boo O'Hara needs to send your transcripts! Or Temple might have lost them...thats a pretty strong possibility. lol.
no subject
Date: 2008-04-30 01:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-04-30 09:02 am (UTC)