First Tattoo!!

Hello All!

I'm super geeked! I'm getting my first tattoo on Oct. 1st on my forearm. I have no idea what to expect! I designed the tattoo myself, so it means alot to me! What was your first tattoo and did it hurt!?

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Mamadoc on August 25, 2011 at 2:19pm

That's really nice!

My 1st tattoo was about 25 yrs ago now. I'm a musician who kinda hated the fact that while I was aurally creative, I never was visually creative. One day I just happened to draw this cool (at least to me) symbol of a treble clef combined with an ankh and a sun. For me it meant long life & happiness with music. Carried the drawing around in my wallet for about 2 yrs when I began thinking about it getting lost. Next, I decided to get it tattooed. It was done on the inside of my right ankle and hurt to no end. I sat there in that chair thinking that my mother was right about all the things she said about my craziness. LOL! I kept thinking it felt like the guy was carving me up.

Who knew that would be my 1st & last. LOL!

Permalink Reply by Carly Zuniga on August 25, 2011 at 2:22pm

My first Tattoo was a butterfly on my right angle. I was 18 years old and it didn't hurt at all. Now I have 7 tattoos so you might become addictive lol. Hopefully around November my sleeve tattoo will be finish. I like your tattoo and Good luck

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 25, 2011 at 2:30pm

That soundds awesome! I would love to see a picture ofit. My mom has always called me her "flowerchild" that I shouldve been born in the seventies because of my whimsical free spirit. I'd have to agree! Ive always contemplated getting a tattoo, but never wanted it to be of just any old thing, or something that someone else had! i put alot of thought into this tattoo before I designed it. If you look closely the eys on the koi fish are actually ankhs. The tattoo it self represents life, rebirth, beauty, strength and its infinite cycle. There are words around the arches of the infinity sign that say "to infinity and beyond" which represent my love for Buzz Light year (a.k.a space and the universe), LOL! And on the other side its a bit more serious "from here to eternity" which expresses the love I have for my family members and loved ones, dead and living. I chose anks for the koi fishes eyes to represent the strength and the gift of life and spiritual rebirth.

Mamadoc said:

That's really nice!

My 1st tattoo was about 25 yrs ago now. I'm a musician who kinda hated the fact that while I was aurally creative, I never was visually creative. One day I just happened to draw this cool (at least to me) symbol of a treble clef combined with an ankh and a sun. For me it meant long life & happiness with music. Carried the drawing around in my wallet for about 2 yrs when I began thinking about it getting lost. Next, I decided to get it tattooed. It was done on the inside of my right ankle and hurt to no end. I sat there in that chair thinking that my mother was right about all the things she said about my craziness. LOL! I kept thinking it felt like the guy was carving me up.

Who knew that would be my 1st & last. LOL!

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 25, 2011 at 2:33pm

Lol, yeah! I have an addictive attitude towards certain things, especially if they have an artistic outlet! Its possible I might get addicted to tattoos! I own my own business so it really wouldnt hinder me to have a full sleeve or anything like that! Id probably get alot of flack from church family or my mother, but who cares! Lol!

Carly Zuniga said:

My first Tattoo was a butterfly on my right angle. I was 18 years old and it didn't hurt at all. Now I have 7 tattoos so you might become addictive lol. Hopefully around November my sleeve tattoo will be finish. I like your tattoo and Good luck

Permalink Reply by miss_scarlett on August 25, 2011 at 2:40pm

that design is absolutely beautiful..... i love koi fish and hope to get the nerve for tattoo #8 on my left hip, up to my lower stomach area. somehow i see koi in places on the body that allows the eloquence, flow and balance of this rendering....like somewhere where it lays on an axis. maybe between the shoulder blades (yes this will hurt). my first was on my ankle 2 akoma (the heart) when i was 15. not too painful. the ones on my back and abdomen hurt like a mutha*(**@9r!!!! but the are the most attractive not only because of the designs, but of the proper placement. your body is a canvas, treat it like so :0)

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 25, 2011 at 2:47pm

Thanks for that insight about the koi fish! I never thought about that! I originally wanted the design on my side, but wasnt ready to lay for that amount of time. Ive had artists suggest other areas, but they were mostly guys and I felt they were just trying to get me naked. Lol! But I wanted to get the tattoo somewhere I could see it at anytime! Seeing this tattoo design helps to keep me centered and focused.

miss_scarlett said:

that design is absolutely beautiful..... i love koi fish and hope to get the nerve for tattoo #8 on my left hip, up to my lower stomach area. somehow i see koi in places on the body that allows the eloquence, flow and balance of this rendering....like somewhere where it lays on an axis. maybe between the shoulder blades (yes this will hurt). my first was on my ankle 2 akoma (the heart) when i was 15. not too painful. the ones on my back and abdomen hurt like a mutha*(**@9r!!!! but the are the most attractive not only because of the designs, but of the proper placement. your body is a canvas, treat it like so :0)

Permalink Reply by Mamadoc on August 25, 2011 at 3:07pm

I'll try to take a decent pic of it tonight so you can see it. Don't worry about the family & church people either. There will be those who will ask and say all kinds of stoopid stuff everywhere you go, but I've noticed over the years how most people (or maybe the ones that matter) really & truly just see me. Before I decided to take my sleeve past my elbow, I took a couple of weeks to seriously think about it because this would have been my first to be so out in the open for others to see. Some days I'm still annoyed with the questions & especially the touching, but for the most part I prepared myself for basic curiousity.

You've mos definitely got an interesting story to go with yours as well.

Permalink Reply by Carly Zuniga on August 25, 2011 at 3:09pm

My friends used to always say, " how are you going to get a job with that sleeve tattoo?" My response was, " I can always cover it up with sweaters and long shirts". The funny part is that my coworkers and my boss don't even know I have a sleeve tattoo only when I'm wearing short sleeve shirt or a bathing suits. Sometimes I wonder why people can be ignorant and say dumb shit but like you say Who cares...

TranquilBeauty said:

Lol, yeah! I have an addictive attitude towards certain things, especially if they have an artistic outlet! Its possible I might get addicted to tattoos! I own my own business so it really wouldnt hinder me to have a full sleeve or anything like that! Id probably get alot of flack from church family or my mother, but who cares! Lol!

Carly Zuniga said:
My first Tattoo was a butterfly on my right angle. I was 18 years old and it didn't hurt at all. Now I have 7 tattoos so you might become addictive lol. Hopefully around November my sleeve tattoo will be finish. I like your tattoo and Good luck

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 25, 2011 at 3:25pm

Thanks! Yeah I realize that the people who really care dont mind at all. Most if not all, are really supportive of me getting the tattoo (half already have tattoos), lol. The ones who have something to say will do one of two things: continue to have something to say or shut up about it, cause its not a big deal. Everyone always asks well what about when you get older..."I'll be the hippest, tattooed granny ever!" is my response. If anything it will still represent who I am and who I have grown into! I could see if it was a silly tattoo that was a whim and didnt rep anything. But this tattoo represents who I am! Sorry, I went into a rant! Lol!

Mamadoc said:

I'll try to take a decent pic of it tonight so you can see it. Don't worry about the family & church people either. There will be those who will ask and say all kinds of stoopid stuff everywhere you go, but I've noticed over the years how most people (or maybe the ones that matter) really & truly just see me. Before I decided to take my sleeve past my elbow, I took a couple of weeks to seriously think about it because this would have been my first to be so out in the open for others to see. Some days I'm still annoyed with the questions & especially the touching, but for the most part I prepared myself for basic curiousity.

You've mos definitely got an interesting story to go with yours as well.

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 25, 2011 at 4:39pm

Thanks Frappe! Yeah I have a fairly high tolerance for "normal" pain. Im just not sure how I will takethe agitation of a needle dragginf across my skin (thats how someone explained it to me) I planned on having a friend come with me. I dont talk much. So if a third person was there it would make me talk a little more than normal :P I hope that plan works! Lol!

Permalink Reply by Jaime Quinn on August 26, 2011 at 11:01am

Technically the needle isn’t dragging, but I guess it could feel that way. Personally, I think they feel more like if someone is trying to write on you with a dead pen. Fattier areas have a duller wide spread pain, while bonier areas tend to be more sharp and focused. Also, I’m not sure if you have spoke with an artist yet, but I would be concerned about losing some details in your design. I am afraid that at that size and on your forearm, that the ankhs in the eyes will be lost as well as some of the detail on the lettering. Look for someone with more than just a few years experience and perhaps someone who specializes in a Japanese style (dragons, tigers, swirl clouds, Koi fish). Always check out their portfolio. Also it couldn’t hurt to ask around for some one with a "light hand" vs. "heavy hand". They will know what your talking about. :)

Permalink Reply by TranquilBeauty on August 26, 2011 at 11:16am

Yeah the person who described it as such, was very small and skinny, and was getting the tattoo on her lower back.. So that could be understandable as to why she explained it that way! Lol! But I did quite a bit of research about who was going to tattoo me. The artist I decided on specializes in small detailing. I pointed out to her as well that the eyes on the koi fishes are ankhs. So shes able to do a pretty decent job at containing all the right elements of my tattoo! I cant wait to go in to get it done! Her portfolio was phenomenal when I checked it out online and in the store. I got goosebumps! Of course it was a bit pricier than most others, but you get what you pay for! I had other artists suggesting to make it bigger so that they could do it, some telling me to take out certain elements of my tattoo,and others trying to get me to rearrange the elements of the tattoo. I was beginning to get disgusted with the tattoo artists in C-Bus (Columbus, Ohio), until I found Katrina! She's friggin awesome!

Jaime Quinn said:

Technically the needle isn’t dragging, but I guess it could feel that way. Personally, I think they feel more like if someone is trying to write on you with a dead pen. Fattier areas have a duller wide spread pain, while bonier areas tend to be more sharp and focused. Also, I’m not sure if you have spoke with an artist yet, but I would be concerned about losing some details in your design. I am afraid that at that size and on your forearm, that the ankhs in the eyes will be lost as well as some of the detail on the lettering. Look for someone with more than just a few years experience and perhaps someone who specializes in a Japanese style (dragons, tigers, swirl clouds, Koi fish). Always check out their portfolio. Also it couldn’t hurt to ask around for some one with a "light hand" vs. "heavy hand". They will know what your talking about. :)