I was on a post piercing high when I came out of the piercing room with my freshly pierced eyebrow. I began to look around at the tattoos, knowing that there was no turning back after I set my mind on what I wanted.
At A Glance Author Dawn Contact Dawn@bme.anon IAM Dawnie When A year ago Artist Chris Hudson Studio Lambadi City Tattoo Location Fairfield, Ohio I glanced through the tattoo artists portfolios, I gazed at the flash that then covered the walls. I all ready knew that I wanted a large butterfly and tribal on my lower back, but had it somewhere set in my mind that it would be too large for a first piece, because I "wanted to know what it felt like" before I ventured into a five hour tattooing experience.
So, regretfully, I decided upon a kanji symbol. I remembered back to a few years earlier when I had a henna tattoo of kanji, that represented friendship. Well, I thought, hey, why not get some sort of kanji symbol. Something simple, and I'll see what it is like, to see if I could endure the future tattoo I was awaiting.
I decided upon the kanji symbol that represented to love passionately. I talked to one of the tattoo artists there at Lambadi, about the price and to see if they could fit me in that evening. I now regret that spur of the moment decision of mine. The artist I talked with was a great guy. His name was Chris Hudson. He looked at what it was I was wanting, looked it up in a kanji dictionary, to make sure that the definition matched up, he sketched it out, and then gave me a price estimate. And told me that he could fit me in that evening.
So, I didn't think much about the tattoo that would be inked into my skin for the rest of my life, but instead on what getting a tattoo would be like. I had heard many different accounts on what others experiences were like, but I knew that I had to experience it for myself.
So, Hudson set up everything, then he had me fill out a paper and he copied my ID on the copy machine. Then I went back to his tattooing station with him. At this point in time I was not really nervous, but more curious.
He applied the outlining on my skin for me, and then he had me go and check out the placement in the mirror. I was okay with the placement, and ready to embark on my first experience with tattooing. I sat down in the tattooing chair, and he made his final preparations for the task at hand.
He then asked me if I was ready to begin, and I told him that I was indeed ready. There was no turning back as the needles began to penetrate my skin. I surprisingly began to enjoy the needles as they penetrated into my skin. It was a feeling that I can not describe in words, yet it was unforgettable, and not able to be duplicated by any other means.
Since the tattoo I was receiving was not very large, and only consisted of black ink, the process of tattooing did not take an especially long time. As soon as the experience began it soon ended. He remarked that it was done and wiped it up and told me to go to the mirror and check it out.
I was not remarkably thrilled with the tattoo itself, but found the experience to be quite enjoyable on a whole other level. I thanked Hudson for the work and paid and tipped him. I then left the studio to go home, feeling quite mesmerized by the experience. I had known that I enjoyed piercing and the experience and feeling I received from it, but I could never have imagined the enjoyment I would gain from being tattooed.
I had a wonderful first experience with tattooing, despite my poor judgment on what I would get tattooed on my body. Although I do regret my choice of the design of the tattoo, I do not regret getting the tattoo, because it was the key that unlocked my hidden desire of being tattooed.
I would also like to let it be known that it wasn't that Hudson did not do a great job with the tattoo that lead to my final disappointment in the tattoo itself, it was merely that I had not carefully selected the design for this tattoo, which would eventually lead my fourth experience in tattoos to become a cover-up experience!
I have a word of advice to tattoo virgins and anyone else who may be reading this experience out of curiosity or entertainment. Choose your tattoo design very carefully, and if there is a piece of work you really want done, and you are afraid of the size of it, I advise against getting something done just to see what it would be like first.
Happy tattooing!