Hello, you gorgeous bunch! You heard it right. I, Jordan Lampe, have gotten a tattoo. On May 18th, my parents and I drove to Michigan for a family tattoo session. Today I'm going to tell you all about it!
Check out the YouTube video of us getting tatted!
Before you continue on with this post, I ask that you go into it with an open mind. I know that tattoos aren't for everyone, but I stand by my choices and I am absolutely in love with my gorgeous piece of artwork. I hope you are too!
THE 'COMING ABOUTS'
About 3 months ago, I spontaneously came up with the idea of getting a tattoo for my 17th birthday. (Yes, my 17th birthday. My parents were cool enough to let me get tattooed a year early!) That night, I spent hours and hours scouring the Internet for tattoo inspiration. I had a specific style in mind, but I wasn't seeing anything that matched the style or sparked my interest. Then the idea came to me. On the toilet, actually.
A HOT AIR BALLOON!
I have no clue where the idea came from, but the more I thought about it, the more I loved it.
Brief Interjection:
I'm not a person that thinks every tattoo a person gets has to have a meaning. I believe that as long as the person loves it, it's a good piece of art, and they want it on their body forever, they should go for it. However, I believe having a meaning behind a tattoo makes it a lot easier to be accepted by society.
When I started thinking about possible meanings for the hot air balloon, I was overwhelmed by how well the balloon correlated with my life. I'll get more into its symbolism farther along in the post!
I'm not a person that thinks every tattoo a person gets has to have a meaning. I believe that as long as the person loves it, it's a good piece of art, and they want it on their body forever, they should go for it. However, I believe having a meaning behind a tattoo makes it a lot easier to be accepted by society.
When I started thinking about possible meanings for the hot air balloon, I was overwhelmed by how well the balloon correlated with my life. I'll get more into its symbolism farther along in the post!
It was then that I started sketching my future tattoo.
THE PROCESS
Getting tattooed as a minor is harder than one would think, which is probably a good thing for most people! In the state where I live, it is illegal for minors to get inked, despite their parents' consent or approval. For this reason, we had to travel to the nearest legal state of Michigan.
I spent days searching for the closest (and best) tattoo shops in Michigan and was recommended to check out the Love Tattoo shop. The shop had rave reviews on every website and app imaginable, so I knew I had to check it out! Upon looking through their incredible artists' portfolios, I took a particular liking to an artist by the name of Tony Putt. Out of all the artists at this shop, it looked like the work Tony specialized in would be best suited for my style of tattoo.
I reached out to Tony via email. Usually tattoo artists do face-to-face consultations with their clients before tattooing them, but seeing how I live in a different state, this was not a very feasible option. For this reason, we ended up using emails as our consultations. We talked about the size of the tattoo, the detailing, the placement, etc. He was extremely lovely throughout the whole process!
We set up a session for Wednesday, May 18th at 3:00pm.
We set up a session for Wednesday, May 18th at 3:00pm.
BEFORE
I made sure I was very informed on what goes into a tattoo before getting one myself. I watched numerous videos of people getting tattooed, artists talking about tattooing people, how to take care of your tattoo afterwards, etc. I was very educated going into it! The only thing I was unsure about was the amount of pain I'd be in.
After watching countless YouTube videos and talking to several people about the pain of getting their tattoos, I had no idea what to expect. Some people said the pain feels like an itch, while other stories I heard involved people passing out because of the pain. What was I supposed to do with that information?! Because of these mixed experiences, I had no way of preparing for the pain. I just prepped for the worst and made sure to practice deep breathing and selective attention!
Physically, I made sure to stay fed and hydrated in order to avoid any potential faintage. The leading causes of fainting are lack of food and lack of water, so I loaded up on both! I also made sure to avoid blood-thinning medication within the 24 hours before getting the tattoo. I did this because taking blood thinners could cause someone to bleed more during the tattoo. No one wants that!
Also, I made sure to put on lots of deodorant.
DURING
Let me start by saying that the tattooing process didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would. If I had to give the pain an overall rating, I would say it was about a 6.8 out of 10. The inner half of my thigh and the lower half of the tattoo (going towards my knee) hurt the most. In order to push through the pain, I simply took deep breaths!
Talking to Tony helped distract me from the pain. I learned that we have a lot of mutual interests! It also helped that the walls of his tattoo room were decorated with gorgeous artwork that Tony created himself!
Talking to Tony helped distract me from the pain. I learned that we have a lot of mutual interests! It also helped that the walls of his tattoo room were decorated with gorgeous artwork that Tony created himself!
The tattoo took a little over an hour to complete.
AFTER
Tattoos require some serious care after you get them. For the first 2 days after my 'inking', I had to wash my tattoo 3 times a day with an antibacterial soap and follow it up with a healing ointment. As of today, I only have to wash the tattoo twice a day (morning and night) and follow it up with a regular ol' lotion. It's important for people with new tattoos to switch from an ointment to a lotion because tattoos need oxygen to heal. Continuing to use ointment would deprive your tattoo of too much oxygen.
MEANING
As I mentioned earlier in this post, this tattoo has a lot of meaning(s) to me. The first 'lesson' I found within this piece is that if you can float across the sky, in a basket, attached to a balloon, you can do anything. Not only does it represent endless possibilities, but it also represents my love for travel, my sense of adventure, wanderlust, freedom (both physically and mentally), and hopefully my creativity. When I look at this tattoo, it gives me the motivation I need to go out and achieve my freakin' dreams! To do something with my life! To explore! To get out of my comfort zone!
ADVICE
- Make sure you love the piece before you get it on you for eternity.
- Find an artist that specializes in the style of tattoo you want. Yes, tattoo artists do different types of work!
- Avoid blood-thinning medication the day before getting your tattoo.
- Eat something beforehand.
- Drink water!
- Bring/create distractions, whether that'd be talking to your tattoo artist, listening to music, watching Netflix, reading a book, etc.
- Just relax. Seriously. The more you think about being tattooed, the scarier it is. Just remember to breathe! You're going to be okay!
- Find an artist that specializes in the style of tattoo you want. Yes, tattoo artists do different types of work!
- Avoid blood-thinning medication the day before getting your tattoo.
- Eat something beforehand.
- Drink water!
- Bring/create distractions, whether that'd be talking to your tattoo artist, listening to music, watching Netflix, reading a book, etc.
- Just relax. Seriously. The more you think about being tattooed, the scarier it is. Just remember to breathe! You're going to be okay!
This is my tattoo! I'd like to thank Tony Putt from the Love Tattoo shop for giving me such a wonderful piece of art. It was a great experience that I will remember for the rest of my life! I'd highly recommend Tony and the shop in general.
If you have any further questions about my tattoo, you can leave a comments section below or find me on social media through my Contact tab at the top of this blog!
If you would like to contact Tony Putt, you can reach him via email or Instagram:
tonyputttattoos@gmail.com
IG: @sharktoothtony
I hope you like my tattoo!
Until next time,
Jordan x
If you have any further questions about my tattoo, you can leave a comments section below or find me on social media through my Contact tab at the top of this blog!
If you would like to contact Tony Putt, you can reach him via email or Instagram:
tonyputttattoos@gmail.com
IG: @sharktoothtony
I hope you like my tattoo!
Until next time,
Jordan x