I wasn't sure if I had shared this information before, but yes I have a tattoo. It got me to thinking if any of my other blogger friends out there have a tattoo or not? What are their thoughts on the whole tattoo thing? If you do have one (or several) I'd love for you to share it as a post on your own blog so I can read your scoop as well. I think tattoos seem to be a fun creative outlet for folks, or a way to share something meaningful.
I found it interesting that at the time I decided to get a tattoo (I was 30 years old) it was becoming the big new "thing" for folks about my age to get them. Professionals and non-professionals alike.I was a working professional at that time as a social worker. I had a new son about a year old. But for some reason I really had a hard time with the number "30" and felt I needed to do something rebellious! Let me tell you, this is about as far from who I am as it goes. My little brother is the rebel. He's the military man and has tattoos and piercings. He's jumped out of air planes and dove off of cliffs. He's the adrenaline junkie and I have a SANE mind. But when I had a hard time with the big 3-0 I thought I needed to do something my brother would do. So I decided to get a tattoo (I was definitely NOT going to jump out of a perfectly good airplane).
So then I had to think about what kind of tattoo and where?? I decided I wanted something small (I didn't want my boss unhappy) and I wanted it to mean something. So I came up with a jewelry plan....a ring to be exact...that would be small and yet meaningful to me.
So I described to the tattoo artist that I wanted a heart in red (my favorite color) but I wanted the "bands" of the ring to make the letters "A" for the initial of my son and husband's first names.
Can you make out the sideways "A" there?
And here's the sideways "A" on the other side. As you can see the outline of the heart and bands are in black. There's a little light blue shading behind the heart for contrast.
I would like to share that getting the top part of the tattoo did not hurt too badly, however the sides on that sensitive part between the fingers was, let's say, not enjoyable. I channeled my inner baby brother and I was tough through it all and didn't cry (although I would have liked to a few times!) Also, the very reputable tattoo artist (I did my research) was very good and I liked his work. He did inform me they guarantee their work but not on hands or feet. There is so much regular wear and tear on those parts, and constant shedding of skin, it's impossible to guarantee. And as you can see there is some fading on the inner parts. He also had a hard time getting his tattoo tools in between my fingers and had to bend them in crazy positions...which also didn't help with the pain factor.
Now 14 years later, would I do it again? When I look back I think "why did I think I needed to do this?" and feel I would not do it again. However, at the time it did serve it's purpose in my mind and the crazy feelings I had about turning 30. I mostly don't even notice I have it anymore or think about it until at Target the check out girl says, "OOooh cool tattoo!" when I'm running my card. And then of course, there was the fact that my daughter came along about 5 years later and when we decided to name her after my Gram she ended up with an "A" name too. So I now say that the 2 "A"s in the band stand for my kiddos' initials. After all, my wedding band symbolizes my hubby.
So what is your tattoo story or thoughts??
