What would you think of this as a tattoo?

[pegkerr]

It's something I've been thinking about for awhile. For years, I thought, "No way." Then, I thought, "Well, maybe. If I found the right design, something that summons up a powerful idea for me, and if it was something I could see living with for the rest of my life." Lately, I've been thinking that it would be the Tree of Life, the Holy Tree. This would evoke Yeat's poem, "The Two Trees," and of course Tolkien's tree mythology. This, of course, also all ties in to the hearts of stone and flesh, too. See my entry here.

Yesterday, I finally found a design that made me think, "Wow. Maybe."



I'm not sure I'm going to do it yet, but for the first time, I'm really seriously thinking about it. What do you think?

Edited to add: Of course, friends list, you must accept that I may still like the idea, and you may all think it's beautiful, but I may still NOT get it. As kijjohnson and I say all the time, "You can make different decisions than I do." This would be a huge thing for me, and I'm not quite sure I have the courage to do it.

But I must admit, the idea is looking more and more attractive. For the first time, I can actually imagine myself doing it.

As for WHERE I would put it, well, that is a problem that requires some thinking. How big do you think it should be? I think I would really like it centered. The back is one option, except I would like to be able to SEE it. I think I would like it to be covered much of the time, making it private for me, but somewhere I could also show it if I like.

The poem speaks of the holy tree growing within the heart, so over the heart makes sense, and it feels like the most right position to me. Kij tells me, however, that since there is little fat over the breastbone, it can be a very painful location. I think if I did it, I would do it right, getting it with colors instead of black and white.

Here is an article about the artist. I like the fact that his art has a Christian emphasis. I found the design on a cover of a quarterly devotions guide handed out by our church.

Rob, by the way, is rather appalled at the whole idea.

Edited to add again: rarelytame, who should know, tells me that the flowers are a bit too small and fiddly and would have to be adapted to something else that is simpler, which doesn't surprise me. I would be willing to see what an artist could do to simplify it but still keep it lovely. redbird warns me that perhaps these specific colors wouldn't be best; paler ones don't show up as well. I would be willing to consider other colors.

Comments

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

No, no, this is extremely helpful, and I really appreciate your comment. I has already suspected the flowers would be the most difficult part of the design, and that it would have to be adapted to be useable.

And actually, I think that I would like to see how a tattoo artist would adapt it, because that would give me a better idea of the artist's skill.

I live in Minneapolis, and I understand that there are a number of talented artists here. I have lots of friends who have tattoos, so I think I would be able to find someone with some of their recommendations.

And I'm glad that you think it is beautiful--since you speak as someone who has probably seen many many designs, your opinion is reassuring.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Oh, but if you would have a recommendation for a very good Minneapolis artist, do let me know, thanks!

[weaselmom.livejournal.com]

Very pretty! If you can resolve the technical issues rarelytame brought up and decide on the location and work out the financial aspect of it (they're expensive little buggers), and if it resonates in your heart, do it and to hell with what anybody else thinks. At worst, many years from now you will look at it and say, "This marks a time in my life when I was courageous and did something I wanted to do and carried a beautiful, meaningful symbol in the very cells of my being." As for the pain, I got mine on the fleshy part of my back where there was lots of padding, and it just felt like a kitten was digging in with its tiny claw over and over and over. I wanted to smack the artist out of sheer irritation, but it wasn't painful per se - and I'm a pain weenie. Shawn had four hours of work done in one sitting, but he's a viking, so that doesn't help.

Here's something funny - I've been looking at your three "Tolkien Tree" user icons and thinking how much I'd like to have one of *them* as a tattoo!

[handworn.livejournal.com]

I would imagine that the Tree of Life would look as untidy and asymmetrical as life itself is, but it's a pretty design.

On your upper arm, maybe? That would be coverable and uncoverable as desired, and visible to you.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Which one? I've thought of using one of them, too, but I could never decide which one.

[weaselmom.livejournal.com]

That is precisely the problem. I could narrow it down to the long branches or the one without the bird. Without having the original art in front of me, it's hard to decide. The one without the bird seems most "Tree of Life"-ish to me. Ooh ooh! rarelytame needs to weigh in here again on the green ink issue. It seems to me that green fades quite a bit with time - is that correct? *Mine* certainly did.

[kijjohnson.livejournal.com]

Peg, it's beautiful. I agree with everyone: let it sit on your monitor for a few months (my most recent tattoo was on the bulletin board in my office for four months; I have another one there now, waiting to see if I want it); try it in henna if you can; get it simplified (a good tattoo artist can do this for you).

My friend Lorelei, who has many many tattoos, says: Don't get it where your skin is going to sag (neck) and don't get it where your skin will be fragile when you're older (back of hands). As if you would! Those are pretty edgy places for tattoos, anyway.

Lorelei also says everything doen the fron along your center line hurts like crazy. Breastbone sucks, but so does the belly -- she got a huge black orchid on her belly to cover her C scar, and she said it worse than having the baby. So I would think about either aligning it along a meridian, or putting it on an arm. Or the back. You wouldn't see it every day, but you would have it embracing you.

[kijjohnson.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry, that post was completely illiterate. Something's wrong with my brain today.

[aelfsciene.livejournal.com]

That's a really lovely design, and the most important thing is that it resonates with you. My first piece, over 10 years old now, a lovely little knotted Celtic dragon that I'd fallen for immediately,I did almost on a whim, which wasn't the brightest idea. I still love it, but wish I'd talked to an artist beforehand, because it's faded and mushy after a decade, since there's so much detail, and I'm not sure how to fix it. rarelytame's advice is worth gold, and hopefully you can find a local artist you could talk to and work with before having anything permanent done.

Placement, it would be a beautiful back piece, but that does set it apart from you somewhat; I wouldn't put my Great Wave anywhere but my lower back, but I sometimes wish I could see it directly, and up close. A friend with a small piece over her heart says it looks fairly different depending on whether she's wearing a bra or not, and oh, do the breasts sag as we age, so take that into account, too.

I second the idea of a trial run--if you have an artistic friend, have them draw the design on you with washable markers, in a variety of places. That's what I did both for the wave and the kelp on my foot I'm having done in a week (a week and an hour, in fact!), and it's a great way to get a feeling for the whole thing.

Best of luck with it, whatever you decide!

[aelfsciene.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm a dork, and forgot to say this:

The way I'm getting my tattoos is that friends have donated money to my perpetual ink fund for birthday and Christmas and the like. It's made the work even more meaningful to me, in that it's a physical (and permanent!) representation that there are people who love me, even if I feel alone a lot of the time. It's the gift that keeps on giving! o.O

I also did a "reward" thing to sock a bit away myself, where I'd put a virtual dollar in my Hello Kitty bank if I put down some nifty thing I wanted to buy, or accomplished something I'd been dreading. Not expensive, but good motivation, and it's the sort of thing you can start now but wait until the money situation's a little brighter ("Oh, I just sold that thing for $20 on eBay? $5 of it's for my last few reward-points!") to actually take the cash anywhere.

[nmalfoy.livejournal.com]

I love it! What about on your shoulder? On the back? Or on your upper arm, up near the top, so that you could wear sleeves that hid it if you wanted.

Here's a tip: get the outline done first. Then go back and get the colors done.

[lilisonna.livejournal.com]

That is utterly beautiful, and I think it would make a lovely tattoo should you choose to go for it.

I liked the suggestion of putting it on your bathroom mirror and looking at it for six months, and really echo the henna suggestion.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Another question: weaselmom wondered here whether green ink is more likely to fade. Which colors are more stable?

[misia.livejournal.com]

It's a gorgeous design, and perfect for use in tattooing -- clean lines, clear shapes, excellent white space.

In general, bigger tattoos look better than small ones, thicker lines age better than thinner ones, less fine detail means fewer details to be lost to age and changes of skin tone and such.

If you're seriously thinking about a tattoo, don't let the pain of getting tattooed be your primary motivator as far as where you place the image. Tattooing can hurt pretty badly sometimes, I won't lie, but it is temporary pain, whereas the image you have tattooed into your skin is permanent... as tattoo hounds say, "short is the pain, long is the ornament." Since you're not going to get out of it with a painless tattoo *anyhow*, no matter where you have it placed, you may as well put it where it pleases you best.

Tattoos over major energetic centres of the body -- the spine, the solar plexus, the sacrum, the breastbone, etc. -- are often very interesting experiences. Not necessarily more painful, but more prone to do interesting things to your head. I had a fascinating out-of-body experience while being tattooed over my spine, and I have other friends who've reported visions, spiritual epiphanies, etc. while being tattooed in those sorts of places. Just something to think about as you consider, since the "heart" side of this appears to be significant to you.

[mamculuna.livejournal.com]

Wonderful! I used to keep that picture in my kitchen, and it always made me feel so good.

I've been planning a tattoo also, and glad someone else over 20 is thinking about it. I want tattoos on the arches of my feet which I know will hurt but is the one place on my body that still looks OK at 65. The tats will be Sanskrit words for Patience and Determination (which I need at every step)Also a tiny bird on my shoulder, but haven't seen a design I like, yet.

Please post a photo if you get it.

[cheshyre]

Wow.
Gorgeous design.

I can offer no advice on this, but it's beautiful.

[redbird]

Another technical note: pale colors can be more difficult (you're fairly light-skinned, so they're possible for you, but they won't stand out as much, and that sort of gray-green may be hard to get right), and fading is more noticeable. Of course, my monitor's colors may not match what you have, or want.

Somewhat private locations, depending on size: thigh, upper arms, abdomen (or back, but as you say, that would be hard for you to see).

[naomikritzer]

What tattoos do you have these days, Angie? I remember years ago you having all sorts of elaborate ideas, like a mermaid perched on your ankle, and no money. What did you wind up getting done (so far)?

[aelfsciene.livejournal.com]

Right now, just the old dragon, along with the gorgeous Hokusai's wave on my lower back (last year's birthday/Xmas gift). Someday, I plan to take the edges of the wave to curve up over my hips and swirl around my bellybutton, which will itself be surrounded with concentric circles of earth, air and fire before being subsumed by the water. That'll wait until I'm a bit lighter, though, because the belly, she's rather padded.

Next Thursday, however, I'll be getting my third piece, in the form of a piece of giant kelp twining around my ankle and down my foot, to symbolize every step I take towards my dream of working with the ocean (cheesy, but hey).

After that, I'm planning on a giant red octopus on my shoulder, tentacles trailing down and partially around my arm (which may end up being the start of a sleeve, I dunno yet); a couple of friends are working on a design for me which I cannot wait to see. If there's anything left in the fund after those two, I may do a small water symbol on my right wrist or the San Jose Sharks symbol on my lower hip (hip check!).

All watery, so far, and more or less easily hidden, but I'll probably branch out before long; money's the only limiting factor now, as I've definitely caught the bug, and have a good dozen concrete ideas.

And I'm sure to post pics of the kelp on my LJ in a couple of weeks!

[baka-kit.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's gorgeous!

It seems like everybody's already given you all of the advice, except for this one warning: tattoos can be addictive. I only intended to get the one. Ten tattoos later ...

[elessidil.livejournal.com]

It is a beautiful design.

This is completely off topic but I thought you would enjoy, since you turned me on to his music. Its not code monkey but its still hilarious.

http://www.zefrank.com/theshow/archives/2007/03/030808.html

[pariyal.livejournal.com]

I'll probably like it too. And at least two of my three daughters. Thanks, filed in recipe bookmarks!

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

That was . . . bizarre!

But you're right, very funny!

[lydy.livejournal.com]

It's a lovely design, truly.

My tatoo is on my breastbone, for most of the reasons that you're thinking of placing yours there. I would have to say that it didn't hurt as much as people warned me it would. Ask the tatoo artist about analgesics. It would probably increase the blood flow a little bit, but it might help w/the pain.

Mine didn't hurt worse than bad menstrual cramps. It was tender for about two weeks. I used an artist who had been in the buisiness for forever, and I think he had a lighter touch with the needle than most. My tat didn't scab over, it just had a few little scabs here and there.

Speaking of all this, I really want to get my own tat renewed. It's fifteen years old, it could use some maintenance.

[adrian-turtle.livejournal.com]

This is an analogy many people would probably find appalling, but I'm going to make it anyhow. When orthodox Jews bind tefillin, they put them on the forehead and the left arm, as a symbol of keeping the divine words in your mind and in your heart. It's called "hand tefillin," but the box is actually put on the upper left arm, the side next to the body.

The skin there is fairly sensitive. (I don't know about tattooing, but mine is quite sensitive to other stuff.) However, it's not over bone, so it might not be as bad as breastbone or back. It would be visible to you and anyone you wanted to share it with, but you could cover it easily with sleeves, even in summer. I don't know how much of an issue this is...but it seems like it could feel like more of a private place for you. You say Rob is appalled at the whole idea--is he reacting to you getting a tattoo at all? to you getting that design? or to you getting a tattoo on your chest? Position can make a difference.