Who would've guessed...
On Tuesday, the 20th of December, I received my very first tattoo. This is its story.
I've been thinking of getting tattooed for years. It always seemed like something I wanted to experience. I've seen many beautiful tattoos which inspired me to want to go through this ancient human experience.
Of course, when you are going to turn a section of your skin into a piece of art, or adorn it with a meaningful symbol, there are so many things to think about. What will it be? Will it still be true in so many years? Where? What style/design? How do I start?
I thought of all these questions and more, and came up with plenty of answers and even more questions. Of course the ideas I came up with ranged from a small, simple traditional symbol on the shoulder all the way up to plans for a full back piece. Neither seemed a particularly appropriate place to start. A large piece would obviously be a lot to take on for the first time, especially considering how much the ideas changed throughout. It would have so much inertia it would never get going. A small, simple piece didn't seem to have the potential for as much uniqueness or artistry as a larger work. It would also leave the possibility of ending up yet another guy with just a celtic knot on the arm and that's it.
I thought of all these questions and more, and came up with plenty of answers and even more questions. Of course the ideas I came up with ranged from a small, simple traditional symbol on the shoulder all the way up to plans for a full back piece. Neither seemed a particularly appropriate place to start. A large piece would obviously be a lot to take on for the first time, especially considering how much the ideas changed throughout. It would have so much inertia it would never get going. A small, simple piece didn't seem to have the potential for as much uniqueness or artistry as a larger work. Did I really want to end up just another guy with a celtic knot on the shoulder, or did I want to really go for it?
There was, of course, the financial issue as well. While a student, I couldn't very well afford what amounts to a luxury or beauty item. I think there were times when that was all that was stopping me from getting... something. But now, Now I'm out of school, have a job, so much has changed in the last year or so, it seemed like a good time to do it. So, after graduation I started planning more earnestly than ever. I did the research about the process, and eventually started looking for artists and studios. Even still I had so many ideas, none of which I could put above the rest. Indecision held me back now.
Then I decided it didn't really matter if the first tattoo was particularly inspired. If it wasn't, that just took the pressure off any future works, or even gave more reason to get something else, "better". So, I decided to go for something which I could easily provide an artist with working materials for. No more planning on photographing flying birds until I got just the right silhouette or finding the branch with just the shape I wanted. Instead I would go with something common yet interesting. That's how I came to the bicycle chain.
So simple, yet so many little pieces all working together. A rigid basic shape repeated over and again making a flexible chain which can take its own shape. The original idea was to have a length of chain wrap around my lower leg, near where the real chain runs while cycling. To create a more interesting effect, the chain would twist along its length and connect up on the other side creating a Moebius strip with its two sides. With this in mind, I set out to get it done.
My preferred studio was Slave to the Needle, here in Seattle. From their website, and talking with people who had been there, I found them to have a good reputation. Clean work, professional artists, and a lot more pieces being created which were more artistic than the classic american biker tattoos. You know the kind, a heart with a dagger sticking through it, dripping blood on a rose which says your girlfriend's name. Anyway, they looked a bit classier than that.
So, I went in to look at the artist portfolios. Amazing stuff. Unfortunately the artist I liked the most from the portfolios was going to be out of town until late January. But I figured I had already gotten myself over there, and getting a chain wasn't that big of a deal, so I agreed to talk with Ben who was on hand to talk with me about it, right then and there. He liked the idea, and I brought him a small section of chain to work from for his sketch. We made an appointment for the following Saturday.
Saturday I came in, and had gotten myself all psyched up and ready to go. Ben was running a bit behind, so I sat around and read while I waited. After a while, Ben comes by and tells me how he tried putting in the twist to make a Moebius strip from the chain, but it just wouldn't work. Too much twist for the length available around my leg. Obviously I was disappointed, after getting myself all excited for this. I asked him if he could draw me up what he thought it would look like. So he went over, came back, and sure enough with the maximum plausible twist he only got about a quarter of the way there before he ran out of length.
So I suggested an alternative. Instead of joining up on the outside, the two ends could cross over each other, turn back and cross again the other way. It made more sense as I sketched it out on the paper, too. Ben figured he could do that, but would need time to draw up a new design, and we were already running out of time that eve, so we rescheduled for the following Tuesday.
Next Tuesday I got off work, came home and found a message asking me to be in early because the 2 hour block we scheduled might not be long enough. So, I scarfed down a quick snack and biked on over as quick as I could. Got there only 15 minutes early, and we started right away. Or at least as right away as it seems possible in a tattoo place, which isn't really that quick. Nonetheless, I was soon lying on a table with my newly shaven leg out, fresh pattern of ink on the surface, and Ben asked if I was ready.
What can I say, it felt like getting poked with a needle. Only it buzzed more, and the part that was getting poked moved around all the time. Of course, it didn't always feel the same, from moment to moment it felt different. Sometimes like a slow cut, sometimes it didn't feel like it was penetrating, just something buzzing, pounding against your the skin and especially the close bone of the shin. I can't say it was ever pleasant, but it wasn't particularly painful ever. And when an area was done, it didn't continue to hurt, the sensation just followed the needle and left a sort of numb feeling behind.
Of course, after 2 and a half hours, it does get old. I started getting kinda ansy and squirmy towards the end, looking up more often to see how much was left. I think Ben understood, I'm sure his hands and his concentration were also feeling the effects of the time. Of course, he has more clients after I left, though I was far from done upon leaving.
Leaving was interesting. My leg was wrapped in plastic wrap to keep the moisture in, the germs out, and not get blood and ink all over everything. I hopped on my bike and pedalled with just my left foot, using the power of clipless pedals to pull through the whole stroke on just the one side. I coasted down the hill and caught the bus back home. The housemates wanted a look, so I showed off for a bit, then got them to take a couple preliminary pictures for curious friends. Time for sleep.
It's only 2 days old now, but it's already healing significantly. Washing up the first morning was exciting, because a fair amount of blood and excess ink has accumulated under the plastic wrap and rinsed off in the shower. Since then it hasn't bled and on anything. It has been a bit tender, especially when my pants rub against it. Luckily it's cold out, so I usually have long-johns which protect it some against the viscious attacks of the pants. I by tomorrow I'll probably be able to walk around with just the pants and not have any worries about irritating it too much. They say that later on it'll start itching and doing other fun things, but I haven't gotten there yet.
Now, for the pictures. There are two from the first night. They show the inside, basic part of the chain, and the outside, crossing part of the chain.
Then there are pictures from today. There is one of the inside, and two of the
outside.
