My New Tattoo!

Hi Friends!  Today is the big day.  I'm revealing my tattoo.  I wanted to wait until it was finished and fairly well healed before I showed it off.  I got it colored a week ago today.  It's only 7 days old.  I am thrilled with it and love it! 

Hope you enjoy the picture overload!  I just kept snapping and posting. 
  



To Answer Some Questions I Know I Will Be Asked...


Why did I get a woman on my arm?
Women make the world go round.  Women give life, nurture the young, care for the old; women are the caretakers of humanity and women should be celebrated.  I wanted to celebrate women, to honor women.  I got this woman as a sign of empowerment and strength.  And, there's nothing wrong with carrying a hot chick around on my arm, either...haha!

Please see This Post for more of my thoughts about Why I Wanted another Tattoo

Tattoos are highly personal and subjective, as is anything.  The artwork, hairstyle, color of paint for your living room, or style of font you choose to write with are all highly so individual, personal, and subjective.  What one person thinks looks amazing, another person thinks is less than amazing.  That's the beauty of art; there's something for everyone and everyone's eye and aura is drawn to something different. 


Why did I choose the woman I did?
I saw her on the Victoria's Secret website and thought she was obviously attractive but I also liked her coy, mysterious, vibe.  I liked that she is happy without having a cheesy smile, and that her eyes and expression have depth.  There is more than meets the eye with her.  And what can I say, I just liked her.  

Similar to when I chose a new name for myself as I've mentioned in my legal name change post, one could debate what name to choose for one's self or what person or image to tattoo on your body forever.  I saw her, it was getting close to my appointment and my tattoo artist needed an image, and so I chose her.  The resulting tattoo is not a carbon copy replica of her because there were tweaks made to her eyes and hair.


Why did I choose flowers?
I love brightly colored flowers and the purple lotus flower is symbolic because Skylar's middle name is Lotus.  It was important to me that my tattoo be bright, vibrant, colorful, did I mention bright! 


Did it hurt?
Yes, but I had a natural childbirth.  Pain is relative.  I'd prefer a tattoo to a brazilian bikini wax, any day.


How long did it take?
4-5 hours of active tattooing for the outline in Session 1

6 hours of tattooing for the shading in Session 2

A few hours of "down time" each session to get everything set up, ready, traced, placed on my arm, etc.
I also have a third session coming up in a few weeks to touch up any small details after I am healed and Aaron can put the final magic brushstrokes on me.


Was it expensive?
Yes, but I look at it as a piece of artwork that I will carry with me forever.  Most reputable tattoo artists charge a minimum of $150 per hour.  I was not paying the minimum.   Multiplied by 10+ hours.  There is a time and place to be on a budget and shop for deals.  Getting a tattoo, in my opinion, is not one of them.


Will you get more tattoos?
Yes, probably!  I may add on to this one, add more flowers, or other design elements that I am drawn to or that are meaningful for me and incorporate them into the design.
 

Who was your tattoo artist?
Aaron Della Vedova, the owner of Guru Tattoo in Pacific Beach in San Diego, CA

See This Post for more pictures of the shop

I love the brightness of Aaron's workspace.  I can feel creativity just happening in here.

While he was working on me, I saw the drawings hanging on his wall of other tattoos.   I laid in the tattoo chair for 10+ hours so it's nice to have good scenery.

This is what it is all based from

From This Post
My Left Arm used to look like this

Here is the morning of Session 1
The ink is put on me before tattooing begins

And here is the black and gray outline.  I had this outline for 18 days while I healed before the color was put on.

You may remember this picture from This Post.  I blurred it out then.  But here it's unblurred.

And here I was in the Mexican Food Out Post.  Unblurred now.

And here were pictures after an 8 hour day of tattooing last Monday. 


Dessert: Vegan Bananas Foster 
After a big tattoo, I think alcohol + dessert is in order.  An alcoholic dessert recipe, perfect.

 Serve over Vegan Vanilla Softserve with Bourbon Vanilla Extract for maximum delish factor

Thanks for chiming in on yesterday's post about Being the Change and for letting me know what you are trying to change.  And what you're wise enough to know is un-changeable.    Some deep thoughts in that post, I hope you ponder it.  Is the world ready to change?  Are you?

Something not as deep, but good, was my Hearty Vegan Southwestern Sweet and Spicy Soup 



Questions
1. Best Thing You've Ate or Done all Weekend?
Revealing my tattoo to everyone feels great! 

2. Do you have Colombus Day off from work or school?
Sorry, Christopher, but I had totally spaced out that we were celebrating your holiday until about noon on Sunday.  Whoops.  But it makes no bearing for me.  I am off from my paid employment on Monday anyway, but never off from the unpaid work of mother and domestic engineer, i.e. I scrub the toilets and change the sheets and cook the meals no matter what the legal holiday may be.

3. Any plans to get a tattoo?  If so, what?  When?  Do you have your tattoo artist selected or one in mind?
As I said, I have a third appointment for final touches but may also add to my design either then, or in the future.  Who knows!

I know that tattoos are not everyone's thing, and I've mentioned this here, but please, no nasty comments.  Thanks everyone.   Don't get one if you don't want one, or click off the page if you don't like mine, but I hope I don't have to weed through nastygrams or snarky comments.   Good thing I know where the delete key is and am not afraid to use it.  My blog is an online diary of my life of sorts and I am just sharing what I've been up to lately.

Have a great day everyone!