What You Need To Consider When Getting A Tattoo

What do you need to consider when getting a tattoo? First and foremost, do you really want a permanent marking on your skin? This won’t ‘grow back over’, as a piercing location would. This will be a lifelong alteration to the look of your body. While tattoos can be surgically removed, there is a great deal of scarring and potentially, skin grafting to remove the remnants of a tattoo.

At the moment, tattoos have gained a kind of fad status. It seems as everyone wants one, or at least knows someone who has one. It is important to know as much as you can before you commit to getting one – as we said, even removal techniques can leave scars worse than the original ink.

Why do you want a tattoo? Is it to be part of a popular crowd? Think of how a dolphin on your breast today will look after you’ve had children, and body parts aren’t what they used to be. A sprawling tribal design across your shoulders won’t look so attractive at the local high school reunions, 15 years later. Or, maybe that's what you want. In any case, a tattoo is not something to rush out and get just to keep up with the rest of your peers.

Secondly, where is the tattoo to be located? Is it to be a location that will be visible, no matter what type of clothing you are wearing, or will it be in a location that is often concealed. Is it a private or a public thing?

Sometimes tattoos have significance to the bearer. Mothers who have lost children sometimes get a tattoo to remember them by. Lovers have their partner’s name (or names!), even children have tattoos of parents’ names. People with specific ancestries get tattoos to reflect their heritage. If you are choosing a design for its significance, make sure it moves you. If you are getting a tattoo simply because you like a particular design, great! Just make sure you’ll be happy with it after it’s done.

Remember, trendy sayings or images go out of style as quickly as fashions or any other pop culture item. In a highly visible spot, a tattoo may go from cool to embarrassing in a very short period of time. Also, if working in a high visibility occupation, will a tattoo help or hurt your image? This may determine how readily visible you would like your body art.

The third consideration is how does the tattoo look on yourself. Pictures may look great on the wall, but how is something going to look on you, on your skin color, and is this artist truly capable of replicating the design that you choose? Ask to see some pictures of the tattoos already applied or, if possible, someone who has had a tattoo from this artist. Alternatively, test out the tattoo design as a temporary tattoo first.

As for the tattoo parlor, make sure they’re safe and sterile. Above all, make sure that the artist has proper sanitation techniques; disposable needles and ink cups, proper cleaning of the tattoo area and some credentials to back it up. Needles are to be single use, anything else must be sterilized in an autoclave (uses steam to sterilize). The artist must be licensed, and they must adhere to a strict code of ethics. If you feel unsure about anything, it’s best to find somewhere you are completely comfortable.

Tattoos are basically made by a tiny needle, or several of them, inserting ink into the layer under the top layer of skin. Because this involves two factors – blood, and the breaking of skin – health is of prime importance.