a lot of people struggle to choose their very first tattoo, or get anxious at the thought of choosing wrong. with that in mind i wanted to write a checklist of do’s and don’ts that could help put those people at ease/give them confidence in their decision. it’s easy to say “just do it” but much harder to actually get it done.
BUT the checklist is long and i know my opinion is one of many.
this is specifically for the very first tattoo, so of course a lot don’t apply afterwards, and obvious disclaimer, none of this is law and people can do whatever they want.
are there any points on the following list that you agree, disagree with, strongly dislike ? is there any advice you think would be more helpful ? is it TOO DAMN LONG ?
here’s the list ! i’d love to hear your thoughts !
- dont go for something enormous for your first choice. something small and simple is less of a commitment, less of a risk. also helps you understand the pain involved for the future.
- choose something you have always loved and will likely always love, not something you’re on and off about. don’t choose a guilty pleasure or something you’re afraid to love or feel you have to make excuses for.
- if you’re going for something extravagant like a colourful piece, do your research ! it’d be a waste if it doesn’t heal the way you wanted it to or fades quickly
- don’t put it somewhere super visible i.e. hands or neck. that isn’t to say it NEEDS to be well hidden but dont let it affect your career prospects basically
- don’t rush into a choice/put a time limit on yourself. if possible, have a consultation and drawing session in advance, sit on it, take like a week to think and distract yourself with other things, rather than immediately jumping from drawing to finishing. look at it more than once. it’s the same with clothes. if you’re undecided on it, take a picture of it, see if you’re still thinking about it in a week or so.
- anything you’d rather have on a t-shirt, i.e. something you’d rather be able to take on and off, put it on a tshirt first and see how you feel about it.
- there was something a lego youtuber said about a blank canvas, or in his case, a new sheet of cardboard. sometimes you gotta put a few dents in it so you’re not extra worried about not causing any damage to it. once you have a tattoo, it’ll be much easier getting a second one. if you work yourself up over it you’ll just never get one. there’s nothing wrong with easing into it.
- get a good artist ! if you don’t like the artist’s work, you probably won’t like the tattoo they do for you. and yeah, go for someone who specialises in the style you want.
- a bit confusing to put into words, but if you go for something with a “deep meaning” then make it something with value other than that, even if its just a series you’ve loved all your life. you know, like choosing a character you kin. better to think of it as “this is how i feel at this time of my life, so this tattoo is to commemorate that” rather than “this tattoo represents my crucial core believes that will never change” - you’ll probably look back at the latter with a bit of embarrassment.
- if you’re REALLY anxious about it, choose something that wouldn’t be hard to cover up with something cooler.
accept that tattoos fade and the lineart won’t stay that dark forever.
- don’t go for a generic style that’s currently fashionable, it’s gonna be the same as fast fashion. it’ll take up the most important spots and you’ll want to swap it out for something else later. if you do, at least try it out with makeup pens first.
- don’t get a tattoo for someone else’s sake. either because they told you to or to represent them. if that relationship changes it might just be a reminder of trauma. by all means, listen if your closest people tell you that what you want looks stupid (and please, do share it around with the people you trust beforehand) but in the end its your choice and your body.
- don’t worry about the bigger picture or how every single one of your planned tattoos fits together, and don’t get a tattoo PURELY because it would compliment another, different tattoo. you’re only going to get one at a time, so plan them like individual investments, not group projects.
- finally, DO get your first tattoo, make that leap of faith. even if you regret it in the end, it’s a valuable learning experience !
(once again, sorry for being so verbose; congrats on reading to the end if you made it 😭 )