If you know me IRL, sometimes I get an idea in my head and obsess about it for literal years before I take action. This is true in my move to Dallas (ask anyone I went to college with), buying a Honda Civic and now true of tattoos.
I think I started wanting a tattoo when I was seventeen, but thank god I didn’t get one back then because surely any idea I had back then was total hot garbage. (AHEM, LITTLE SISTER RUDY. I’M TALKING TO YOU.) Anyway, I’d been bouncing ideas off of my mom the illustrator and bugging her for months to draw me something. I told them leading up to my birthday in September that all I wanted was tattoo money. One day my mom randomly texted me and asked how much people tip for tattoos. And because I’m as dense as a fruitcake I was completely oblivious. ADOY. On my birthday, they gave me all the money I’d need for my tattoo AND AN ORIGINAL DRAWING OF THE DALLAS SKYLINE IN MY MOM’S SIGNATURE STYLE. I think I died.
I already knew which tattoo artist I was using so I made an appointment for mid October. My appointment was on a Friday and I lucked out that my sister could come up from Waco and go with me! I hate going places alone and having someone there relaxed me.
Oh, did I mention I made the appointment at historic Elm Street Tattoo that just happens to be seven minutes from me? Because I did.
Josh Arseneau was my artist of choice and he did not disappoint! He was kind, patient and talented. This was obviously my first tattoo and he indulged in all the photos I wanted and snapchats and video. Good thing the shop was pretty empty that day. THANK YOU, JOSH. You rule.
All healed up. I couldn’t love it more and I’ve already commissioned my mom for several more tattoos. Let’s just hope it doesn’t take six months like the last time. >.<
A couple months later Elm Street was having an anniversary tattoo event and I decided to randomly get this awesome rose piece on my arm. This also happened to be my third date with Paden. He was a good sport and came to the shop with me and even bought me tacos after while we looked at my arm wrapped in plastic slowly turn into what looked like a pack of bloody meat.
One of my other favorite artists from Portland, Tyson Arndt, just happened to be doing some appointments at Elm Street that week. When he introduced himself to me I said, “I know. I love your work.” He should’ve been completely freaked out and rolled away from me on his stool, but instead he said, “Oh cool! Thank you.” And then I got another cool tattoo.
So THANK YOU to Josh and Tyson for putting up with me and all my videos and photos and flinching, because now I have some permanent art on my body.
Do you have any tattoos? Where’d you get them? Who are some of your favorite artists? I’ve listed some of my faves that I follow on social media!
- JENNIFER TROK TATTOOS
- WONDERLAND TATTOO IN PORTLAND
- TEA TATTOOS IN BROOKLYN
- BLACK MEDICINE TATTOO
- BRITE IDEA TATTOO
List some of your faves below because I am now tattoo obsessed. <3
xx
Very awesome! One artist I follow, along with my sisters, step mother, and sister in law(Abby) is Jared Tallant. He works at garage art in Longview. We met him at asylum ink (no longer open) which was also located in Longview aside from him going to the same charter school as my sister in Marshall/Carthage area. I like to try and draw out my own stuff and he tweaks and comes out with the perfect piece.
Whoa! Your sisters and step-mother are tattoo artists?! Where do they work?
I’ll look up Jared! There’s a really awesome guy in Tyler that tattoos the Eisley girls and their spouses. He’s good at all kinds of styles! Joshua Whitten!
Gurl. I did not know that you had more than one. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH! ???????????
I have 5:
– “I’m happy” with a small heart that resembles Demi Lovato’s on her “Stay Strong” tattoos. It’s on my wrist. I got it after going to therapy and overcoming a lot of anxiety and depression and almost dropping out of college. Around the same time, Demi, who I’ve loved since day one basically, was just getting out of rehab and getting her life on track. Her next two albums were life changing for me. My second.
– I have a pixelated princess peach on my shoulders. She was my first one. She matches my husband’s pixel Mario.
– I have “amazing love” on my forearm. It’s a song title. It was my mother’s solo in church. She taught me how to love dearly and completely, and she taught me what it means to love Christ. She died when I was 16 to a tumor on her brain stem.
– I have a hummingbird and two peach blossoms on the inside of my left bicep. It’s for Georgia – I got it on my honeymoon right before we moved out to Washington together. It’s all representative of Georgia, but the hummingbird also has another meaning. When I was in college – and around the time I got it – I was obsessed with an essay by Brian Doyle called “Joyas Voladores.” It means the flying jewels. I’d recommend googling it and reading it when you can. It used to bring me to tears, and it’s the kind of writing I’ve always wanted to accomplish.
– the most recent one is “Lumos” on the back of my next. The Harry Potter spell of light. I got it one week after the shooting in Orlando happened. I’ve always wanted to be a conduit for love and light, and that week that I got it we were going to Orlando to the wizarding world of Harry Potter. The few days following the shooting, visitors held a vigil at Hogwarts castle, and held up their wands – like they do for Dumbledore – in remembrance of the lives that were lost. I couldn’t stop crying. When we came into Orlando, it was raining, and among all the billboards and buildings covered in rainbows to show their unity for the LGBTQ community, a double rainbow lit up the sky. It was in that moment I knew what I wanted.
http://herestothegoldendays.blogspot.com
uh, yeah. I’m like so hardcore now.
WHAT ARE THEY?! I want to be covered some day, haha.
I listed them above but they may be formatted weird, did it from my phone, haha.
DUDE. I just read all of those tattoos. For some reason it didn’t update me that you commented that.
THOSE ARE AMAZING. I love that every single one of them means something really personal. I think that’s what tattoos should be. Reminders of people and moments in our lives. My sister used to say that she wants her tattoos to be like a timeline of her life. Pieces of art representing different times in her life. <3