Tattoos aren’t for everyone. And it seems that everyone has an opinion about them. There are those who are completely covered, those who have sleeves, those who have a few and you wouldn’t know it, those who don’t care but don’t have any, and there are those who are adamantly against them.
Personally, up until I got my first tattoo I fell into the second to last camp. I didn’t really care about them. If you had them, you had them – it wasn’t my money spent on them, so I didn’t really care. To me, as long as they weren’t of an offensive symbol, I thought they were mostly nice to look at and hear the stories behind them.
Now that I e gone through my first tattoo experience my opinion hasn’t changed all that much. As a first time tattooed individual, I wanted to share about my experience and thought process behind what I got, and I especially wanted to share it for those who might be thinking about getting one and just ha ent done it yet.
Think About What You Want
A tattoo is a permanent fixture on your body, so it would be wise to think through what you want. I only ce spoke to someone who had multiple tattoos and they said if they thought about it for three weeks and still wanted it, that was when they moved forward with it.
Of course there are those who get tattoos and regret it, or they get something without thinking it through. I would recommend getting something that means something to you. And I would also say here that you don’t need to justify it to anyone either. I’m going to share mine, but that doesn’t mean you have to.
I have the Nordic Rune for grace on my right shoulder blade. I’ve known for years that I wanted to get a tattoo and where I wanted it. The anticipation more than anything is why I waited so long. I chose the rune for grace for three reasons:
- I wanted it to relate to a Bible verse that means a great deal to me, Ephesians 2:8-9. This was the first verse I memorized after coming to faith in Christ when I was nine years old.
- I wanted something that would cause a conversation when someone saw it, since it is just the rune.
- I’ve always been interested in my history and where I came from. My people come from the Scandinavian countries and if you see my family, it’s pretty obvious that we come from Norsemen. Our head colors, eye color, stature, and physical builds are all indicators of our family coming from the Sweden and other scandi countries.
Think About Where You Want It
Time for a basic physiology lesson: some areas of the body are more sensitive e than others. Obviously, you can get basically any part if your body tattooed. I’ve met a few women who have their eyeliner tattooed on (you know, whatever gets you out the door on time), and you can even get the inside of your lips tattooed. I don’t know why, but you could.
You are welcome to get whatever, wherever tattooed but for a first go at it, maybe try an area that isn’t going to make you cry – like the top of the foot. As I’ve said, mine is on my shoulder blade. My tattoo artist said that was a good place for a first tattoo since it’s a less sensitive area. He also said the shoulders are good, too, as they also aren’t as sensitive.
Here is a piece of advice I would give as someone who works in a professional office for my day job: think long term about your career choices. There are some professions where a tattoo on the forearm isn’t a big deal, and some where ot is. I was in seminary when it became common for many millennial pastors to have sleeves or other tattoos that were visible below a t-shirt sleeve. I didn’t particularly care, but for some churches it would affect their ability to be hired. That was ten years ago, so the social acceptance has changed a bit, but you get my point. Think about where the tattoo is going.
Find a Reputable Shop
I cannot stress enough the importance of going somewhere that will both do a good job, but is also clean. Tattooi g involves needles, ink, blood, and multiple people sitting in the same chair throughout the day. As a world this is post 2020, we know how important keeping an area clean is.
I would recommend looking to see what is close to you, or where you are willing to travel. Make sure it is somewhere you feel comfortable going to.
Check online and look at their website and social media. A good business nowadays will ha e a social media presence and a website – look at them. Tattoo artists are often independent. If the shop itself doesn’t have a social account, look at the artists’ accounts to see what is being said about their art and customer satisfaction.
Be Prepared to Pay
It’s an old adage, but a true one: you get what you pay for.
Since you are looking online at websites and socials anyway, look to see if they have e their prices published. Of course, price will vary depending on what you want done and the size, but you can probably find a base price and make some estimates from there to plan out cost. If your tattooist requires a consultation beforehand, they should be able to give you a projected cost.
I did all this, minus the consultation since my tattoo shop took walk-ins, and I checked online for base cost. I ended up having a great experience. I felt safe in a clean environment, I knew approximately what I would be paying, and because I had looked at the website I knew that no matter who the artist was they would do a good job.
If you are near the St. Louis area, and are in the market for a tattoo I highly recommend Sin in Skin in House Springs, Missouri. Excellent service, a short wait, fair price, and I left completely satisfied with my first tattooing experience.
Road Trippin With Rachael 
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