If you’ve been
following me for a while, you’ll know that I love tattoos and I love my own
tattoos. I do, however, come from a very
conservative Christian family, so there were a lot hurdles I encountered when I
began my body art journey (and still do).
This post is just a little summary of my experience thus far and the
important lessons I’ve learnt along the way.
Lesson #1:
Don’t jump the gun
I was 19 when I
got my first tattoo. Yes, I got a
butterfly, yes, it was a rash decision, no, I did not intend for it to have a
tribal vibe, and no, I do not regret it entirely. I got my next two tattoos only 8 years later,
when I was 27, and my most recent this year.
Tattoos are
expensive and painful, but tattoo removal is even more expensive and even more
painful. You need to be 100% certain
that what you are having done is something you will love as much in 60 years
time as you do the day you have it done.
My personal
advice to anyone who asks is “never get a tattoo in your teens or early
20’s”. This obviously would not apply to
every person, but I personally feel that my best decisions have been made since
I turned 27. Like I said, I don’t regret
getting my butterfly when I was 19, but I also wish that I’d waited a little
longer and given the design more thought.
Lesson #2: Do
your research
This, again, is
a lesson from my first tattoo. I
basically waltzed into a tattoo shop, picked a butterfly from a flip file on
the counter and waited for my tattoo artist to finish eating her pie before she
worked on me.
I’m not saying
you won’t get the design you want from a sample book in a tattoo shop, but
realistically, whatever you have in your head is always going to be quite
different to something else on paper (unless you saw it somewhere else).
If you have a
specific idea in mind, spend some time online.
If there are plenty ideas that are similar, don’t be afraid to ask your
artist to tweak the designs to make it perfect.
Also, research
your artists. Don’t expect a tattoo
artist who specialises in Japanese designs to be able to pull off a life-like
portrait of your grandmother on your arm (I’m not saying that they can’t do it
– I’m just saying you should check that they can).
More
importantly, be aware of the price. When
it comes to tattoos, you get what you pay for.
Tattoo artists spend hundreds of hours as apprentices, practising their
craft before they bring a needle anywhere near human skin. They are within their rights to charge
upwards of R3500 for large pieces, because of the amount of time and effort
they have invested in their career.
Don’t be a cheap ass.
Lesson #3:
Trust your artist
Like I said,
your tattoo artist has (ideally) spent hundreds of hours practising, so he/she
knows a lot more than you do. If you ask
for a design and they tell you that certain elements cannot be done, it’s
because it won’t work. Arguing with them
is kind of like you telling your doctor what medication you require. You are not qualified. Either adapt to the compromise that any
decent artist will offer you or ask your second cousin to tattoo you in your
garage and be sorry in a month.
Lesson #4:
Aftercare is everything
It’s no good
finding a tattoo artist who can give you the most amazing art on skin and then
you don’t follow the aftercare instructions.
My artist
recently told me about a guy who had work done on his forearm and walked out of
the shop, took off his wrap and went straight to a bar, where he spent the
night leaning on the bar and had the tattoo slapped twice. Needless to say, he got a bacterial infection
and now the tattoo is ruined.
Aftercare
instructions differ slightly between tattoo artists but there are some golden
rules:
- Keep your tattoo wrap on for the first few hours after. You have just had your skin repeatedly pierced with a needle. Any unnecessary exposure to unsterile conditions is risky and dumb.
- Keep your tattoo clean. Like I said, you’ve just stabbed yourself with a needle a million times. Wash the area thoroughly with soap and hot water to prevent any infection. I use a face cloth that I don’t use for any other purpose and wash my tattoo with soapy fingers, dabbing the area with the face cloth to rinse it. Just make sure your hands are clean.
- Keep your tattoo moisturised. Your tattoo is only going to look as good as the skin it’s on. Also, dry skin can result in your new tattoo scabbing and cracking, which can damage the quality of the tattoo if they are picked off before they’re ready, and it’s going to be very difficult to not scratch them off because dry skin is itchy. You can use any fragrance-free cream or special tattoo aftercare cream. I personally prefer Bennett’s Baby Bum Creme because it’s fragrance-free, ultra-moisturising and contains zinc oxide, which promotes skin healing.
Lesson #5:
It’s your body
Like I said, I
come from a very conservative home so making the choice to celebrate art on my
body was heavily frowned upon (but my cousin has his ex-girlfriend’s initial on
his neck, so at least I’m not that bad).
At the end of the day, though, it’s my body and I think what I’ve put on
it is absolutely beautiful. I really
don’t care what anyone else thinks of it (though it’s always nice for it to be
appreciated).
At the same
time, you do need to be mindful of placement.
As much as society is warming up to free expression of individuals in
the workplace, you’re probably not going to be hired with a face tattoo (unless
you’re a tattoo artist, maybe). I work
in HR and enforce policy, including dress code, so even though I love my art, I
need to wear sleeves to work and tuck my septum piercing up before
meetings. The line between
professionalism and creativity is very thin, however, in recent times but I’m
not sure corporate is ready for septum rings and neck tattoos.
If you’re
looking to get a tattoo, I really hope this article helped you in your
decision. Tattoos require a large amount
of thought and consideration, as well as objective information.
On a subjective note, I would recommend my tattoo artist, Mike, at Cyberskin in Randpark Ridge, if you are keen to get some work done and you live in the Johannesburg area. I trust Mike entirely (not only because he went to school with my mom and knows she'll break his knees) with my skin and have never been disappointed by any of his work.
Wishing you love
and light until next time ♡♡♡
PS. Not all of these images are my own. I've used photos from Google image search. If any of these photos are yours, please send me a private message on my socials and I'll credit you.