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I've finally plucked up the courage, at the ripe old age of 53 & 3/4, to enhance/permanently scar (delete according to taste) my body with a tattoo on my calf - booked in for next Friday, should only take an hour or so.
Anyone any advice or tips on what to expect?
pain... lots of pain.
Make sure you've chosen a design that'll still look good as your mighty cycling calves shrivel with age.
Liberal application of coconut oil. That's all.
Get a native chinese speaker to confirm what it actually says
Get a native chinese speaker to confirm what it actually says
But I love mushroom fried rice!
Make sure you review the template position and orientation before they ink you. Nobody wants a wonky tat off centre.
At the comparively sprightly (compared to you) age of 51 1/2 I'm still deliberating.
I have an irrational(?) dislike for calf tatoos though, would be an arm jobbie for me
Make sure you review the template position and orientation before they ink you. Nobody wants a wonky tat off centre.
Good point.
I have an irrational(?) dislike for calf tatoos though, would be an arm jobbie for me
It's cycling related, so calf seemed the obvious choice - and no, it's not another ****ing piston!
Make sure you review the template position and orientation before they ink you. Nobody wants a wonky tat off centre.
And if it's on your calf, get the artist to take a photo of the stencil on you, it'll be a little twisted if you're turning round to check it in a mirror.
No alcohol before hand (thins the blood) plenty of water and take a snack with you too. Headphones with whatever music/podcasts etc you like to help you relax. It's easier to say than do, but you really have to relax, tensing makes it way more painful (I speak from experience here, I really struggled when getting my chest piece tattooed)
Find a tatooist who doesn't mind you taking a bag of charlie with you 😉
My 18yo daughter got a line drawing tattoo on the inside of her arm at Christmas. About the size of a smartphone, possibly a bit larger. It took about 50-60 mins of actual tattooing, longer of course because the artist refined the drawing once she saw the size and placement before starting.
She said it felt like someone scratching her - uncomfortable but not painful apart from the bit by her elbow.
TL:DR - it hurts but not enough to put a girl off 😉
Enjoy - If its on the calf it won't really hurt despite what others may say. Tats can hurt like hell in some places where the skin is thin (shin, breast bone etc) but on your calf it will feel like someone just lightly scratching at your skin with a school compass.
FYI - I have the Black Flag logo tattooed on mine. That may not come as a surprise.
I took the plunge and like giving up smoking / having kids wish I'd done it much sooner and now wonder what all the fuss is about 'making sure its something meaningful' yadda yadda yah yah.
The best description is probably that of a mild, large nettle sting which gets worse as bed-time approaches, but dies down over the coming days. Some parts will be more sensitive than others but you can get in to a bit of a zen like space.
The hardest bit is the aftercare - my first one scabbed quite badly but I think that was due to a lack of care, or a bad reaction to cocoa oil / tattoo aftercare cream.
After my last one I had a shower after taking off the cling film (4 or so hours after the work), then put Bepanthen tattoo cream on thinly, then covered with Dermalize Pro (like second skin). This stuff can be left on until it peels off naturally, but you'll probably want to change it the first morning - clean it with weak soapy water, pat dry with kitchen towel then a thin layer of whatever healing cream works for you, then a fresh layer of Dermalize.
For me the Dermalise works really well, it allows you to do whatever you normally do as it protects the tattoo from rough clothing, and you can shower etc and keeps the wound moist / clean. I've found that it is pretty much healed after a week of doing this.
Find a tatooist who doesn’t mind you taking a bag of charlie with you 😉
So, all of them then?
would be an arm jobbie for me
Strong look
Couple of paracetamol before you go is the recommendation of my kids who all have tats.
Slightly OT. My daughter is an aspiring tatoo artist. This is one of her own designs
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52666540976_8c95a7ca27_h.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52666540976_8c95a7ca27_h.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://www.flickr.com/gp/85252658@N05/EdXV531945 ]Screenshot_20230203_135702_Instagram~2[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/85252658@N05/ ]davetheblade[/url], on Flickr
So, all of them then?
Was pretty much my first though lol
Och see you MCTD! I just cancelled 16 hours of pre booked tattoo time this morning! Something more urgent has come up and the money is going to go to that. I last got a tat in 1995, on my calf. It wasn't too painful as I remember, Paul, aged 51 and 11/12's.
Pain is very dependent on where you get the tattoo. Fleshy parts are a mild scratch, my elbow was quite tender however.
Don't go overboard with lotions, potions and bepanthen etc. Keeping it clean is the most important thing. Many advocate dry healing.
I've never taken music. There is normally good tunes on and we get a good chat.
Eat before you go and stay hydrated.
Get a native chinese speaker to confirm what it actually says
Exactly. These are the characters for a horse and a deer, it'll show you are a caring person who likes animals. Ask an expert if you don't believe me.
The bit behind and just below the back of the knee is the most uncomfortable.
Calf tattoo at 40 years and 0 days old.
Around 6 hrs start to finish.
I've a japanese bodysuit and all I will say is saniderm, game changer for healing
then put Bepanthen tattoo cream on thinly
My Niece is a tattoo artist - the studios she works from do not recommend this any more. It's all about Palmers Coconut Hydrate nowadays...
This is her
https://www.hoperosemary.co.uk/
I'm still trying to stop my art deco design from looking like a nazi eagle
@sc-xc its a tattoo specific bepanthen, my brother is a tattoo artist and recommends coconut oil, as do most other artists, however for me the bepanthen works, and after getting some bad scabbing on my first tattoo I'm going to stick with the bepanthen, i know it works for me, but might not be for everyone.
And on that noter everyones skin heals differently, so there's no guarantee that it'll look the same in a years time!
I've got a half sleeve round to shoulder, one on my ribs, wrist, single tattoo on my other arm and one on my calf... can you guess which hurt the most? Good Luck!
Google image translate says RED DEER???
馬 = horse
鹿 = deer
馬鹿 = fool (too stupid to distinguish a horse from a deer)
I didn't find the calf to be too bad. I've had tattoos on calf, upper arms (inside and outside inc into elbow ditch), inner forearm, wrist and pectoral and all of them have been pretty similar - general scratchy sensation with the odd patch which is a bit worse. Once you settle into it after a minute or two it's fine. I do understand that there are worse places to be done though.
Couple of paracetamol before you go is the recommendation of my kids who all have tats.
I try to remember to do this, not sure whether it actually has any bearing on the pain or not.
In terms of aftercare, what the tattoo is covered in is up to the artist. My last one used the Dermalize Pro type covering, this was much better than clingfilm and I think the tattoo healed quicker and better with less risk of mess on the bedsheets.
Wanders off to ponder next one...
relax, enjoy the process, make sure you are happy with the tattoo position, if its got lots of black expect some seepage over night, so use old sheets ( I looked like a super tanker disaster after some of my torso work)
don't play with it when it becomes and itchy blighter around day 3.
expect some swelling around the tattoo, but it should go pretty quickly, if it suddenly starts to feel hot to touch or inflamed after the tattoo or you get a bumpy rash off to the GP as it is possible to get an allergic response to the ink
oh and expect some random strangers to tell you why you are the source of all of the worlds ills for having inkwork (although that has got a lot better over the last 30 years or so)
its a tattoo specific bepanthen
Ah, gotcha. Smart move by them jumping on the fact that people are using their cream...
Its probably just the same stuff re-packaged mind
fool (too stupid to distinguish a horse from a deer)
Ah!!
DrP
Mine was wonky when it was done.
Interestingly it still is.
I was too young, drunk and nervous to complain that the delicate design I'd spent ages drawing up was copied in biro by a child, slapped slap-dash completely out of place on my arm and inked in.
It looked shit when I was 18. It still does now I'm 49 😅
Don't have anything you think is deep.
It's unlikely to be.
It’s a fair bit more nippy when your 50 than 22 speaking from experience 😂
( 2 x calf tattoos and a full sleeve in last year)
make sure you are fed and hydrated
if by any chance it does turn out to be tough going for you, feeling weak from lack of food and water isn't going to help, don't go getting pissed up the night before either
Also, take in snacks, not just for you, but for the staff, great way to have a good atmosphere when you have someone up in your personal space for that long..
Haven't listened to this episode but the rest of the podcast is good so might be worth a listen:
Beneath the Skin - how to get a tattoo
馬鹿 = fool (too stupid to distinguish a horse from a deer)
That's the Japanese style of writing where they shorten the sentence to two Kanji (Chinese characters) with the meaning of a fool in writing. In conversation they just say "baka".
The Chinese Mandarin way of writing or the long form is 指鹿為馬 (assume deer as horse). However, in Chinese Mandarin it can be seen as both a fool or a deliberate attempt to deceive or show power. The former is the normal usage of the term but the latter can be seen as a sinister or deliberate attempt to coerce even though it is blatantly obvious. i.e. like pointing a gun at someone's head and tell them to acknowledge the deer as a horse, which is normally associated with abuse of power in politics.
Kanji or Chinese Mandarin characters have multiple meanings on their own, but when you combine them the meaning multiply even more. Once combined even when the character(s) has positive meaning it can turn into something totally negative or foolish.
You will feel the outline more than the colouring in. Something to do with needle sizes etc. Although as others have said you should be fine on a fleshy part like the calf. Watch out though - they can become addictive
Watch out though – they can become addictive
I can vouch for that! Booked for yet another in a few weeks. I think the pain level can also depend on the artist. I had some bands done on my forearm where I swear the tattooist was attempting to tattoo bone…
Had one that went over my funny bone, could realy feel that! Felt like the needle was hitting bone. Watch out for how it moves/distorts when the muscle moves it may not end up how you think so make sure the leg is in a natural relaxed position when they first draw it on. I had one on my inner forearm and had my arm laid flat across a table while they did the transfer. I should have checked before the inking started because it is almost always distorted in any other arm position.
Had my calf done years ago - felt like being scratched with a bramble for few hrs.
Seem to recall 1st couple mornings nipped a bit when threw leg our of bed and went to stand up.
Really must get round to booking some more.
Weirdly I quite like the pain! It’s part of the process.
If you’ve got a good tattoo artist who you like and can chat to then it’s absolutely fine.
I’ve got sleeves on both arm
Booked in for chest piece on Monday coincidentally so will be interesting to see how that feels!
Macc yes ive read about him before, I wish he'd have paid for mine lol
I love that a suitcase full of them got lost and have never turned up again - that’s going to be a surprise for someone one day.
It’s cycling related, so calf seemed the obvious choice – and no, it’s not another **** piston!
You can get theses for nothing 😉
So, a question has occurred - I'm no Chewbacca but is it worth shaving the area first, start with a fresh canvas, so to speak.
No trim with a set of clippers if it's a bit long but leave it for the artist to shave as it's best done immediately prior to starting
Macc yeah I can imagine that little find 🤣
She said it felt like someone scratching her – uncomfortable but not painful apart from the bit by her elbow.
Exactly how it feels to me. I’ve got seventeen tattoos and counting - I should have had two more done yesterday, but my tattooist now lives in Bristol, and she doesn’t drive, and there’s a three-day train strike… ☹️
Rescheduled for March now. She recommended using Palmers Cocoa Butter skin therapy, which I now use whenever I’ve got dry skin on my hands as well.
My most recent ones:
two ravens, representing Hugin and Munin - Thought and Memory - for my late partner.
Two here, in Sōsho style Japanese calligraphy - a Zen circle, and the character Kan, meaning Barrier, from a Buddhist perspective meaning no barriers at all. Original calligraphy by Steve Weiss.
Also from an original piece by Steve Weiss, in Sōsho style, Mu Nen Mu Sō - No Thoughts No Desires - an old martial arts saying, a highly developed state of mind where thinking about your opponent or technique has been transcended.
Origami unicorn - while I was at the National Gallery on Wednesday, someone spotted it and correctly identified the source idea.
Origami crane, and Ursa Major and Polaris
Bugger, one got deleted by accident - the Zen circle and Kan calligraphy:
