Saturday Snippets

As I’m writing this little installment of Saturday Snippets, I’m a bit in denial that July is now tipping into the “it just started and is now wildly speeding out of control ” zone.

Holy hello, where has the month gone??

Besides pondering that deep question, I thought I’d share with you what I was up to this week.

I’ve kept athletic things low key ’cause I went and got this done on Tuesday…..

And when you have that much open skin…well….the idea of sweating alot into it wasn’t appealing 🤣

I’ve had ideas for quite awhile to pull together some pieces I already had. I got with our local artist for a consult and set things in motion.

This is what my arm previously looked like.

It was so exciting to pull the ideas out of my head, hand them over to her and let her weave them together.

To say I’m in love with how it’s shaping up is an understatement. This piece is about 90% done now.

In two weeks I’ll go back to touch up any areas and also to have some lace added around my wrist.

Since I’m writing a post on my most recent tattoo shenanigans, I thought I’d share questions/comments etc that I’ve gotten. I have many people in my life who understand what goes into it all and mostly there’s a whole lot who don’t.

So here’s my favorite question.

Did it hurt? The first time someone ever asked me that ( I resisted the urge to roll my eyes)

I said, just think of a sewing machine needle stitching thread into the fabric…Haha the look on their face. 😝

Seriously though, of course there’s pain.

There is a level you just get comfortable with and then there are areas that you definitely take yourself to another zone and just breathe through it. Weirdly, there are times I look forward to the pain.

I’d have to say with this piece, being about 4 hours in the chair, the shading of black was the most intense.

This literally feels like someone using little razor blades to dig into my skin…over and over..

Yeah the arm starts feeling a little raw. It’s especially fun when the hot sun hits it.

How long does it take to heal?

After finishing my arm got wrapped in something akin to plastic wrap. I’m wondering why this stuff can’t be used for my kitchen bowls 😝

This keeps it clean and protected. I’m supposed to wear it 3-6 days.

Here it is at day three. I’m ready to take it off.

No my art work hasn’t smeared, it’s just extra ink oozing under plastic. Can you see the tiny lace details though? It amazes me she could do such tiny work.

Once plastic comes off it’s washed and cleaned several times a day. Washing it feels.. delightful.

Raw open skin with dial soap on it 😱

It will begin to heal as it dries and then it goes through the awesome itchy phase in which you attempt to not scratch. A few weeks out it’s 100% again

What made you do it?

Why not? The pieces on my arm were specific, intentional, and have meaning to me. I wanted to fill between them with the end result looking like a vintage type lacey sleeve. I have a small area on the back of my arm yet to do that will complete it.

Beside all that, it’s been a wonderful way to wear creative art that belongs to just me.

I think that’s uber cool and I’m privileged to wear someone’s art.

What about when you get old?

Uh. I am old. Next question.

Seriously, I am way old enough to know what I want, what I like, and do what I wanna do.

Have you regretted it?

No.

Do you want more?

Is the Pope Catholic?

When I got my first one it was a flower bracelet with the word strength in it. This was such an important life word for me that I wanted it on me in a visual way. I had thought to get that and I’d be done. (Fyi, the wrist is one of the most painful places…)

Not true. Less than a day later I was plotting my next.

I still have creative ideas in my head 😉😉

I was warned by those who had gone before me…”you’ll want more”…. I didn’t believe them…now I know better.

What if your kids got them?

Ha. My kids encouraged me and own quite a few of their own. My son jokingly gave me a list of “girl tattoos” that I should not ever get lest I lose cool status. These included standard quo things like a flower or dolphin on my ankle or inside my wrist, anything tribal (as if!) Or any tattoo in a shop where you select them by numbers.

A final thought

Spending hours in a chair gave me plenty of time to chat with the young artist working on me. She discussed her struggles at trying to open her business in our town and how she had been told at one city meeting by someone that they didn’t want “those kind of people” around. Ha like wow.

I forget, or rather I’m surprised, at the harsh and judgmental attitudes people still carry in regards to this topic. But those personal opinions are there and firmly in place even though I find them a bit dated.

To each their own.

I’ve just learned you can’t or shouldn’t judge a book by its cover and some of the most authentic,interesting, creative people I’ve ever met have had tattoos.

Your turn. Do you have any? If so, any stories with them? If not, do you want one but haven’t? Or are you in the “thanks but no thanks” camp? It’s cool if you are 😉