I've Just spent all last night and this morning reading this thread. There are some Awesome Tattoo's and Piercings, Dam, I'd of joined QC forums earlier if I knew there were so many cute Americanesses online. Some of the blokes tats and piercings are well cute too, but I don't swing that was, and I can't marry them for a green card
I got my First Tattoo on Friday last week, It's a Wild Boar, Based on an early Celtic/Pictish Carving.
I'm an Archer, and Last year I was Sponsored to go Bowhunting in Texas. I had a Blast, and my First Big Game Kill was a Wild Boar, so thats the motivation behind the design. I first had the idea of a hunting tattoo implanted about 8 months before I went on the trip, and when I cam back, I looked for designs.
I was Intially gonna get it done in plain black (the original image has typical celtic spiral work defining the muscles), which would of been cool, but I went and talked to every tattoo shop in Norwich (Local City), and talked to them about the design. Of the four I went too, all were clean and sanitary, which was good. At Custom Art, while the Lady/Bloke running it was very nice, and did lovely art work, she was a bit pushy about discussing the design without me getting an appointment to get tattooed. The Two Big ones in Norwich, Styx and Indigo, were alright, and I'd of been perfectly happy to get tattooed there. But the One right down the road from my parents house,
http://www.sithtattoo.co.uk/, the first time I went into, I was all nervous about the reality of getting a tattoo, and so asked lots of questions about, spreading, fading, removal, and coverups. Sith's lovely receptionist told me that if I was that worried, I shouldn't get a tattoo.
I think that is one of the best recommendations for a Tattoo shop.
Second time I went in, I got to talk to Rytch, the shops owner and Main Tattoo Artist (he has an Apprentice, Trud, and a New Guy, Chit), I explained the Tattoo, and why I was getting it, and He was brilliant, He took the design, and came up with a brilliant Idea, namely doing it as a Cave Painting. Initially I was a bit reluctant, but the more I thought About the idea, the More I came round to it, it fits so perfectly with the concept and idea behind the design.
I got Booked in, and had a Long wait. But, my best mate, wanted to get a tattoo as well, so he got booked in as well.
On Friday, we pampled along to the shop, and I was getting tattooed before I really knew what was going on
My mate was gonna get tattooed after me, but the other artist had a cancellation (Some one bought their sister a surprise Tattoo for their birthday, first the sister heard about it, was when she walked upto the door. She didn't want a Tattoo), so we got to shed blood together
.
I have recently found I am a bit of a Masochist, I've cycled down to my mates house in Cambridge 3 times now, and I absolutely loved getting my tattoo done, my biggest problem was craning my head round and looking too close to the tattoo gun, getting in Rytch's way. The Endorphins were Kick Arse.
So, enough of me rambling (more of that later) Here's piccies:
Here is the transfer design and positioning, on my bow arm it looks so good. Please Excuse the Scrawney git behind the tattoo. I'm really glad I went to a professional, I didn't realise about the importance of correct placement, but he has got it exactly over my deltiod muscle, it's awesome.
The Black Lining looks great, and works really well with the design, and will be part of the main shading, rather than an outline.
The Black Shading is great, working from the lines, it'll be all the shading beneath the colour, and looks awesome. I really love the tusk.
The Brown is something I love as well. It looks really good to me, watching it done was amazing, fascinating, and I need to have my next one where I can look even closer.
The Finished tattoo, with a palette of 3 colour's, Black Brown and Red. When healed, the colours will be a little more subdued, but it is utterly awesome and I love it. Only problem is right now, it's healing, and is flaking and itchy as hell.
What do you think?
I had a really great experiance with my first tattoo, I was high for about 36 hours off the tattoo, and now I'm hooked. I plan to get a new tattoo every time I kill a new species, and I'll continue the Cave painting style. It'd be Awesome to have a Half Sleeve Shoulder and Right Chest covered in Wild Boar, Deer of all Kinds (Whitetail, Roe, Red, Fallow, Elk, Muntjac, Chinese Water Deer), Moose, Bision, Bear, Cougar and some African Big Game (though for Bear, I've considered going for just a Paw). Of Course, this would be a sleeve built up very slowly, as I'd only get each one after sucessfully bowhunting it.
I've also started to consider a sleeve, I like the Look of Japanese Dragons, but other than them looking cool, I have no connection to them. An Idea that Sprang to mind would be the Classic Western Dragon, done as a sleeve. Maybe even have Smaug, with Bard as the sleeve. Bard Just about to Fire the last Arrow would be pretty cool, Give him a Proper Warbow and make everything dandy. mMy Artist is also really good at Biomechanical stuff, and it looks really good, Maybe if after I run my First marathon or Complete an Iron Man, I might get a Knee Joint done.
If I ever have kids, maybe a Red hand, another prehistoric design, where the artist took a mouth full of red paint, and sprayed it over his hand, leaving a negative image, of theirs would be nice.
When it comes to other Body Mods, I really dig chicks with Tat's and Piercings but I'm not so sure about getting piercings myself, If I was gonna, then I'd do my Nose or my Ears. I once considered my eyebrow, because my now ex-Gf thought it would be Hot, but I'm now glad I didn't get it. Maybe someday in the furture I'll get a Verticle Bar, but at the moment, I like doing rough physical activities too much too get a piercing I couldn't remove (plus, I wanna get professional jobs, and though I hate the prejudice, I'm not gonna miss out because of it). A Horizontal Bar (I think It's called a Scaffold or Industrial?) in my ear would be quite cool. I'd just worry about it getting infected so much if it wasn't in a place where it would heal over permenantly. My Mum, who is quite a conservative person, and dead against tattoo's (she dosn't know about mine) and most body mods, surprised me one day when she said she had almost got her nose peirced, and would let my little sister (who is 16) get her nose pierced, if she really wanted (and got her ears pierced first). She was in India, and all the People she stayed with said it was a shame to have such a pretty nose and not have it pierced.
When it comes to Scarification/Branding, I really quite like the idea. What Got me from thinking about the design I'd like for a Tattoo, if I ever got one, too thinking about where and when I was getting the design I liked, was a Burn, from when I was cooking pizza's, it's just an inch long on my right thumb, but I really like it. I really do. My Best friend (the one who got tattooed with me) has a Smiley Face Scar on his Arm, from when his sister decided to put out a ciggarette on his arm. He then put out another because he was drunk, and then did the whole face.
I had to Bandage it a few times, and disinfect it once or twice, and As Scarification goes, I don't think it looks good, but he likes it, and it suits him, which is what makes it cool. When it comes to what I'd get, maybe an arrow head, something simple, about something I love.
Implants and such are less appealing to me, while I think they are cool, I would never get something like that. I'd worry about what would happen if something went wrong, and again, I like doing to many rough and tumble things where they might be a liability.