[starshine]

Thanks everyone! I am definitely going to get it. I stumbled across an artist online last night in Vancouver who looks really good, turns out I think my biggest hesitation was the artist here in town, not that he's not good, he's actually done one of my tat's, but he isn't the artist for this one. So I think I'll check her out next time I'm in town.

ginger_kitty, Atchkinson's work looks great. Good luck getting on the show! I have to agree about the weirdness of tat shop's being made into reality tv, I mean really, how mainstream can you get but I think it's great to have so many women on the show! I'm really excited about it. Of course, it helps that I have a bit of a crush on kat, I mean, she has so much talent, but that's a whole other story!

[ginger_kitty]

Yeah, I agree go for it it, starshine.

princess_dander, I hope to get work done by H Aitchison someday...she is awesome! Did you know she relocated to LA to be on that new TLC show, LA INk ? Personally, I'm not fond of tv shows about shops, but I am happy to see her get the recognition.

[ananke]

It isn't that rare. Or that dangerous. I say go for it, particularly if you're not rocking the shorn head look, or the scraped into a bun look (the only ones I can think of that really reveal that part of your head)

[knorl05]

starshine: that's a unique location... i'd look into the safety of it first. but i say get it. you cant let this temporary condition determine the choices you want to make with your life. if they dont get it, that's almost kind of the point. imo anyway.

[starshine]

Hey, does anyone have a tattoo behind their ear? I've been thinking recently of getting a star - black outline with blue shading, leaving the inside the colour of skin - and I'm wondering just how visible it will be. Which may seem like a silly question, but I recently moved to a rather conservative town and for some reason I'm starting to care about these things. But I'll only be here for a few more months. And it's my 3rd tattoo.

Thanks! I should probably just jump in and do it, but it symbolizes a lot of change and a commitment to walking down the path I've been wanting to for years, but haven't been ready to/have been too scared to. Isn't it funny that a little bit of ink can have so much meaning!!!

[knorl05]

LustfullyPink: my very first tat was right below my navel. my fourth one was right below my first one. people have asked me whether or not i'm worried about it getting stretched out if i get pregnant. i said no. for a few reasons. one i dont plan on getting pregnant, two if i do it will be worth it, and third the only people who are gonna see me down there are people who dont give a fuck whether or not it's stretched. but then again i dont really know what's gonna happen because i've never had kids.. so for me it's not really an issue.

[princess_dander]

I think most skin has the potential to stretch in the belly/hip area. I don't know because I have never been preganant.

I am working on a three quarter length sleeve, but my tattoo lady (the famous Hanna A) is still not back in town and I really want to get more work done on it. It looks like I might have to wait until late fall or winter to get her to finish my sleeve.

I want to start work on another idea for my arm with the mother heart with my cat's name on it, but have been stuck in trying to get a theme that I love as much as my other arm.

[LustfullyPink]

Question! Would a tattoo on your hip flexer/panty line just above where the string of a low rise panty would go, stretch out if one got pregnant? I can't really decide...

If it would, they're going on my back *laughs*

[laurenann]

word. i have two tattoos, one i got when i was 15 (yikes!) and one i got for my 19th birthday. i don't exactly regret the one i got when i was 15 - it's a good conversation starter - but it's a pretty awful tattoo, and the one i got when i was 19 is small and demure. i think if i were to get another one now (i'm 24) i'd go for something beautiful, creative, and meaningful. i can't think of a design that fits those criteria, so no more tattoos for now.

snarky, my boss has a ring of flowers around her big toe and it looks nice.

while i'm talking about tattoos, i was chatting with this cute guy about tattoos the other weekend. i was saying i always thought a skull with wings would be a great tattoo, like the ones on the gravestones at the burial ground in boston. the puritans put that symbol on the gravestones in that burial ground because they were not allowed to be buried in the kings burial ground down the street. the skull with wings is meant to represent, like, people from all different faiths or something. and it looks cool, really simple lines and all. anyway, the guy says "you're not gonna believe this!" and rolled up his sleeve and had that tattoo! soul mates? haha.

[snarky7]

i wanted a tat at age 16 - waited til i was 29 to get the actual done. let me tell you - COMPLETELY different tat than what i envisioned at 16, but definitely BETTER. was going to be high on my inner thigh...ended up on my foot.

anyway, i was contemplating a design for a tat toe-ring - anyone had that done? does it hurt worse than the top of the foot? did it actually LOOK like anything after it was done?

[nickclick]

yeah, the pain is so momentary, and minimal, compared to say, childbirth, and although i haven't done that one, women have been for years, because the pain involved in getting it is not enough to deter the lifetime you'll enjoy it. yes, i just compared tattoos to babies.

i agree with ava about making sure you really know what you want. even if it means waiting to get it. decide what you want and then wait like 6 months. if you still want it than go for it.

[Moonpieluv]

Oh I have many ideas that I have ran by my tattoo artist of choice. And I'm totally getting custom because there is so much, seemingly random, things I like that he will have to sit down and draw it out. thistles and scandinavian psychedelic birds and La Vie Parisienne poster art and banjos. whew. All of which correlates to me.

Thanks for sharing your experience! I knew it was probably really painful seeing as it's so near bone. It's not so much the pain that freaks me out... it's the price and making the decision.

I've heard of the annoying sensation thing. yeah.

Thanks for the input all!!!

[avaadore]

I just recently got a tattoo done on my upper rib cage. The top of it just barely touches the bottom of my bra strap. And I'm not going to lie, it was painful.

But it's a tolerable kind of pain. My tattoo was relatively simple so it didn't take very long either. The part that I didn't like the most was the fact that I was completely paranoid to so much as breath while she was doing it. So that was tricky.

Let me put it this way: it sucked while it was being done, but as soon as it was over the pain was gone. (except some pain during the healing process) and I am probably going to go very soon and get a second one done on the other side. (symmetry rocks!)

That being said, make totally sure of what you want on your body before you get it. It's going to be there for a very long time. I recommend getting something custom made, something that's meaningful to you.

[erinjane]

I don't have one there, but I think the pain factor really depends on the person.

I have tattoo at the top of my spine, and I didn't find it too painful. Towards the end of my 50 minute session I felt more annoyed, like I wanted to swat the needle away, but I've heard of people saying it was much worse in the same location. I don't think you can really tell before hand.

I wasn't really scared of the pain before I had mine done because I had literally nothing to compare it to. I had no idea what it would feel like so i was pretty relaxed, unlike when I get my vertical labret done. I was so nervous I couldn't stop making fists.

[Moonpieluv]

I don't have any tattoos, but have always wanted one... just have had a hard time deciding what to get.

Does anyone have any tattoos on the side of their ribcage... say a bit under the armpit? I would imagine this to have a fairly high pain factor.......

I just figure it may be the only place that won't be subjected to my stretchmarks or stretching in general when I (i hope) to have kids one day.

[kiss_the_fiddler]

Right-ee-o. Thanks, treehugger. I'll read up.

[treehugger]

*bump* for "kiss the fiddler"

[Amber80]

I'd hold off a little longer. I had work done in January and was advised to continue moisturizing about twice a day for a full 2 weeks. I'd think you should prob wait 2 weeks or until it's absolutely completely done flaking (since you said "pretty much").

[mornington]

*bump*

ok, question... i had a tattoo drawn on my calf over a week ago. It looks pretty healed, it peeled a bit over the weekend when I washed/moisturised, but has pretty much stopped doing that. When's it safe to shave my legs again? I'm still slapping on the moisturiser, but I've got dry skin anyway.

[beetlegrl]

the Atchison's rock....I love their work....I am waiting to get some work by tim beidron...I LOVE his stuff!! I just hope I have a good spot left...I'm running out of room!