As Luck Would Have It...

Well, as my luck (in this case not to much luck, but whatever) would have it, my moving to England has been very much delayed, and not in a good way.  Long story short, there were some visa issues and I got sent back here.  Yes, you read correctly; I was all the way to London and in the airport and I got sent back to the States.  It was a dreadful experience and I plan to write about it, but elsewhere, as this is a blog dedicated to my journey of self portrayal through the art of body ink.

Since my move to England is going to be delayed for quite a bit, this will give me a bit more time to get some more work done on my extensive thigh piece.  My only hurdle now is the fact that since I left my home in Omaha, and sold off most of my possessions in an effort to move to England, I am now stuck living back home with my father in Kearney temporarily.  I know, I know, it's really pathetic to be living with my father at 25, but when you're in transition to moving to another country and will only be in your current spot for less than a year, your options are quite limited.  Not to mention the short notice on needing somewhere to house your being... I digress.  That means that I am a 3 hour drive away from my tattoo artist.  So, tattoo appointments will take much more planning, and a bit more money.  I think the only upside is that I will have to have much more money available for each session to make the drive worth my while.  I'm already saving up for my next session.  I've only got $100.00 available right now, which won't get me much, but my goal is to be back under the needle in at least a couple of months.  I want to have enough for 3 or more hours of work this visit.

I'm hoping to at least get the TARDIS some color.  I'm not really sure how much time that will take.  I'd also really love to get the storm clouds around the Phoenix begun.  Hell, I just want to get this epic tattoo finished.  I already have some ideas that I'd like to add on to my Japanese Cherry Blossom Tree, as well as some other tattoos I want to get done.  However, I do believe that since I'm planning on moving out of the country, I'll wait on all those other tattoo ventures.  I think it's time to step away from having all my work done by one artist (as much as I love his work and desire to remain loyal to people).  It's simply time to get some varying views from different artists.  I've learned a lot from being inked by Spike, and I think I'm very much ready to seek out other artists to help me complete my journey of decorating the greatest canvas of all - the human body.

The Last ... For Quite Some Time...

The plans have changed.  The tables have turned.  The cosmos have smiled upon me.  However you want to look at it, my last session with the TARDIS will be the last session in a while.  Out of nowhere, I am able to move now.  That's the military for you, though.  I do feel rather disappointed that I will not be able to get anymore work done on my tattoo before I leave and that it will have to remain to unfinished.  If I could, I would get at least one more session in, but I can't.  It's going to be hard enough ensuring I have enough funds to make all of the moving expenses.  So, I sigh heavily and move forward.

Until next time...

Wibbly, Wobbly, Timey, Wimey...

I have finally gotten myself back into the shop for a little more work on this seemingly never ending thigh piece I've been working on since well... it's been close to a year an a half.  We're still no where near done yet.  This session was merely the outlining of the next addition to this piece to make it complete.  This thigh piece is truly a hodgepodge of a bunch of things I love.  Without further adieu - I'll merge into the description of the latest addition (but I'm sure many of you already know what it is by the title).

April 12, 2014 - Authentic Ink Tattoo (Omaha, NE)

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* Location: Middle of right thigh

* Tattoo: TARDIS flying through space (outlining)

Story: Well, I had a friend that absolutely loved Doctor Who.  The ironic thing was that I had tried to start watching Doctor Who, but couldn't get into right away.  When I finally really sat down to watch it, I fell in love with it - with the Doctor and his companions.  I know it's silly to bond with fictional characters, but I loved the personalities of the Doctor and the connections he formed with his companions.  Everything was always so witty and exciting.  Anyway - when I was trying to think of what to add to this ever expanding thigh piece, the TARDIS called out to me.  What better than to have the TARDIS flying through space colliding with everything else?!  Exactly!  It was perfect.  Well, to me anyway.  Unfortunately the TARDIS part doesn't have a huge meaning like everything else, but it still symbolizes something for me.  I have a friend, a very close friend, that I talk to about Doctor Who and we are both huge fans.  We have both laughed and we have both cried watching this show.  To me, Doctor Who is something to bond over with a good friend, and the TARDIS will take you there.  When I finally got my boyfriend to give it a try (hey, he's living in the freaking UK; he had to watch it), he loved it too.  Well, maybe "love" is a strong word to use for his affinity towards Doctor Who, but he still really likes it, and it's something we watch together.  He has a lot of catching up to do, though!

So, what you see here is merely the outlining of the TARDIS and some of the bursts that will turn into the TARDIS flying through space - You know, like in the intro of the show *nods* You know what I'm talking about.  It doesn't look like much now, but it will.  There was quite a bit of time put into the outline of the TARDIS and he used a special needle to accomplish the fine lines for this detail.  I think that by having it at an angle like that on the curve of my thigh gives it the illusion of flying though space even more, which I love.  I'm very excited to see how everything starts to blend together.

The next session will start the coloring of the TARDIS and making it look more like space.  I'm sure that one will have a lengthy healing process.  This one doesn't feel so bad, but I will tell you, getting inked that close to your lady parts is both painful and....well, not so painful ;)

Until next time!  Cheers! 

Best Friends and Sisters

This post is a bit delayed, as I got this tattoo almost a month ago, but frankly I was waiting for it to heal to get a better photo.  It's crazy how a tattoo so small has been one of the most irritating.  This coming from a woman who LOVES getting tattoos, but not this one.  The healing process for this tattoo was awful.  It also bled A LOT!  It also peeled and itched much more than any of my other tattoos.  It still feels a bit dry almost a month later.

Anyway....

March 1, 2014 - Authentic Ink Tattoo (Omaha, NE)
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* Location: Right ankle

* Tattoo: Red watercolor Lotus  with Infinity symbol

Story:  Well, as I've mentioned in some previous posts, I will be moving to the UK (this has been delayed to this November).  With this move, I will inevitably be leaving my friends and family behind here.  I have also mentioned my friend Kimber at least once throughout this blog, as well.  She was there for the Triforce tattoo, which was the beginning of my journey of tattoos with my tattoo artist, Spike.  Kimber and I have known each other since we were about 6 years old.  She is my sister, and I'm hers.  We wanted to get a tattoo that symbolized our relationship to each other, and that we'd always be by each other's side.  We had thought about getting a Batman and Robin tattoo (as that is something we happened to cling to - She's my Robin and I'm her Batman), but that never happened.  With my impending move, we wanted to get something done before that happened.  She is a Buddhist (I'm actually not religious at all) and I have been practicing yoga for quite a few years.  I've recently discovered the ideals of Buddhism and like most of the principals behind it.  I don't know that I can completely get behind all of it, or become a Buddhist, but I believe in their base ideals.  The red Lotus flower symbolizes love and passion, so for our friendship/sisterhood, we landed on the Lotus flower.  Mine is on my right ankle and hers is on her left, so that we are always by each other's side.

As you can see, we wanted it to have a watercolor look to it.  Though, honestly I've seen a lot of watercolor tattoos and most of them appear like a small child drew on you and it happened to be permanent (that was a mild exaggeration, because that would be a rather talented small child, but...still).  I just don't think those are meant to be tattoos, but that's just my opinion.  I think my artist feels the same way about that.  I only say this because he had some trouble not "drawing in the lines."  It required effort on his part to do it this way.  

This tattoo, however, just has a bit of casualness to it in lieu of being completely deliberate, or all over the place.  I liked this for our tattoo because our relationship has always been quite whimsical.  We're always getting in to trouble with each other, but at the same time keep each other on the straight and narrow when needed.  We know that no matter what the circumstances, the other will be there to lend support in anyway that it's needed.

Number 7 - "Night is Purer than Day..."

I must confess that though I knew who the author of the quote I chose to get permanently inked on my body was, I did not actually know its origin.  I don't know why I never looked.  Maybe it's because I believed this quote was a piece of beautiful mysterious poetry, so I looked no further.  The quote (or the poem I believed it was) simply grabbed me in a way I couldn't quite describe.  I loved the side by side of night and day and when I found the photo of the skeleton trees, it just came together for me.  Well, a few nights ago, my boyfriend and I were discussing tattoos, how you've come up with what you wanted and what it actually means to you (if anything, because many people don't have a deeper meaning behind their tattoo choices - hence the conversation) and he asked me about the quote I had.  So, I told him the author, Elie Weisel, and read him the full quote, as what I have tattooed is not the full quote (that would be quite wordy).  Anyway, he asked where it came from (not the author, but where it came from) and I realized that I had absolutely no idea.  Oddly enough it took me quite a few Google attempts to come up with the originating source of this quote, which as it turns out, is not poetry.  It is actually an excerpt from a book he wrote.  This book is part of a trilogy...  Finding out the true origination (and meaning for the author) gave my tattoo a whole new perspective.  Don't get me wrong, it still means the same thing to me, but.... I have a new appreciation.

Elie wrote three books: Night, Dawn and Day

"Night is one of the masterpieces of Holocaust literature. First published in 1958, it is the autobiographical account of an adolescent boy and his father in Auschwitz. Elie Wiesel writes of their battle for survival and of his battle with God for a way to understand the wanton cruelty he witnesses each day. In the short novel Dawn (1960), a young man who has survived World War II and settled in Palestine joins a Jewish underground movement and is commanded to execute a British officer who has been taken hostage. In Day(previously titled The Accident, 1961), Wiesel questions the limits of conscience: Can Holocaust survivors forge a new life despite their memories? Wiesel’s trilogy offers insights on mankind’s attraction to violence and on the temptation of self-destruction."

http://www.amazon.com/The-Night-Trilogy-Dawn-Day/dp/0809073641

This quote comes from a piece of literature based on his true experiences through the Holocaust.  Now, you don't know me, so you obviously won't know that I have had an innate interest in the Holocaust since I was a kid.  Finding out that this quote comes from the words of someone who endured such struggle simply brings a whole new meaning to my tattoo for me.  My tattoo for me symbolized my poetic successes and struggles, as well as some of my life's struggles.  I liked the idea of night and day over the skeleton trees, because people normally associate skeletons simply with darkness and death, but in my tattoo, I believe it symbolizes not the end, but the beginning of something new.  Things have not come to an end simply because the sun has set, the moon comes out and shines a new light.  Everything is reborn and nothing simply ends.  Things merely change.

I have not read the books yet, but fully intend to.  Everything appears to happen for a reason, yes?

Epiphany and Another Tattoo...

Hello again,

My tattoo has been ever so prevalent on my mind lately, especially after my last session.  My tattoo clearly doesn't look done right now and that bothers me quite a lot.  It wasn't so bad when it at least appeared to be finished (even though it wasn't), but now it's quite obvious that it isn't done.  So, I kept racking my brain about what to do about the middle section between the Phoenix and the Dragon.  Then it came to me!  I had an Ah-Ha moment - my tattoo epiphany!  I decided that since none of this tattoo REALLY goes together, because let's be honest, it doesn't; it just happens to blend well.

Anyway, I decided that a TARDIS was in order.  Yes, you heard me right - a TARDIS.  I absolutely love, love, love Doctor Who, but never could imagine having a large tattoo dedicated just to that.  I'm a huge fangirl of a lot of things, but I'm also not a fan of having tattoos of just something I'm a fan of (like Doctor Who, Star Wars, ext.).  Don't ask me why, I just don't.  So.... my idea is that the yellow and orange rays will continue to blend over, as well as the water, then the purplish storm looking clouds that are going to be around the Phoenix on the back will begin to swirl in with the water and rays on the front.  In the middle of all this magical blended beautifulness will be the TARDIS in all its glory.  I think it will be a wonderful juxtaposition.  I'm sure I won't be able to have this completely finished before leaving, but I'm hoping that with a complete end look in mind, he'll be able to do something that will make it look mostly done.  That was really the only hangup... not knowing what the end result was going to be.  Well, I finally have one and it's an exciting feeling to have.


NEW TATTOO....

My best friend (but in all reality she's more like my sister) Kimber and I have been wanting to get matching tattoos.  We were going to do a Batman and Robin thing, because 3 years ago we bought Batman and Robin shirts for Halloween and it kind of took off from there, but I found something better......and a bit more meaningful.  We're going to get Lotus flowers with stems curling into the infinity symbol.  The Lotus flowers will be red symbolizing love, compassion and the qualities of the heart.  We will each get the tattoo on our ankles; her's will be on her right ankle and mine will be on my left.  This way, we're always by each other's side.  We plan to get this done the first weekend in March.


I'm still uncertain as to when I'll be able to get back in to get more done on my thigh piece as of right now (financially).  All I know is that I need at least one more session before leaving... It needs to look somewhat done.

I have also been contemplating the continuation of my ink and whether I really want more.  I have at least one more large piece I have in mind that I KNOW I want, and one other one that it just a good idea, but I'm not in love with it.  I do think that since I'm leaving that I might decide to get the last one done with another artist, just to have gotten another one done by someone else.  I love Spike's work, and if I were staying in Omaha, he'd be the one to do anything I wanted done, but.....


To be continued...

The Thigh Piece Continues...

I'm so glad that I got the opportunity to get back into the shop an get some more work done on my thigh piece so quickly.  I have my grandfather to thank for sending me a very generous Christmas gift.  Because of that I was able to get 3 and a half more hours under the needle. 

December 21, 2013 - Authentic Ink Tattoo (Omaha, NE)

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* Location: Back/front of right thigh

* Tattoo: A continuation on the Dragon/Butterfly/Orchids/Phoenix Tattoo

 Here is a photo of the finished Phoenix.  This took up the bulk of the time.  He spent approximately 2 hours on finishing up this guy.  He first went through with a darker red, then with the yellow.  He looks fantastic - don't you think?!  I certainly do.  I'm very happy with how he turned out.  Next will be some clouds with purplish hues.  I have to say - this one was quite painful.  It's still causing me quite a bit of pain.  I foresee a long healing process on this one.  I'm sure it's due to the same area getting a twice over.

And here's a little collage of all the work that was done during this session.  I now notice that the filter I put on this one makes the Phoenix look darker than it really is (I guess that's Instagram for you - oh well).  It may not look like much was done on the front, but he started extending the orange and yellow rays over in the areas surrounding the dragon and the water in the area surrounding the orchids.  He also added some white in the black/grey orchids, which make them stand out quite well.  He also did a little touch-up on the butterflies, which had a few light spots on them.  He would have continued and kept moving out towards the butterflies, but I haven't quite figured out what I plan to do in the middle... So, he didn't want to blend over too far without knowing what we were going to do there.  

Here's to hoping I manage to have an epiphany on what to do with that open space!