Tattoo Talk Thursday: Danny's Dinky Dino
I wanted to get inked while in Norway, but I didn't have the time in Oslo, so I settled on getting inked in Bergen. I'm so glad that I did. Originally, I wanted to get a Sherlock tattoo, but after the tattoo in Linköping fell through I was like 'what the fuck?' I get the Ghost cover-up in Bergen. I contacted the shop and they told me it would be no problem. On the day of the tattoo, I realised that I would be under a time crunch again and wouldn't have the time to get the cover-up done properly. I explained that to the artist who I was set to work with, Sofia and she agreed; She'd rather take her time on the piece and just go wild with it. I've not been tattooed by many female artists, just three I think, but out of them she was one of the nicest. She was engaging, funny and lively. A real joy to work with and I can't wait to be tattooed by her again. It's also a shop that I recommend. It's clean, friendly and a wonderful place to be tattooed in.
She didn't mind that I'd changed my mind about the cover-up and we made plans to meet up and have her do the tattoo when I have the time. I told her that we'd be doing another cover-up, but on my hand! For a second she was bewildered, then I told her we'd be getting rid of the leftover letter 't' on my thumb that I couldn't cover up with the blackwork that I'd had done almost two years ago. Actually, I'd thought about doing a little black patch there, but it didn't really seem artistically pleasing. I didn't know what I'd cover it with or if I ever would. After spending the past two weeks in and out of museums filled with dinosaurs and spending some time at the Bergen port, I know just want I wanted. I wanted a plesiosaur. They've always been my favourite dinosaur of the lot; I'm not sure why. Maybe it's the adorable little flippers or how it swims through the waves. There's also the whole sea "monster" fascination. I don't know why they'd call it a monster if the animals in lakes looked like dinosaurs which some of them do, or even reptiles. Wouldn't it be a lake or sea reptile?
She set up a cute little drawing in about a minute and I told her it was perfect. It was a little tricky getting it to completely hide the letter but Sofia managed. "We'll just have to make him a little bit chubby." "That's alright with me." The chubbier they are, the cuter they are, really. Of course, I kept that bit to myself. She set up while I watched. "I might have to readjust once we put the stencil on to make sure it fits." "That's no problem, do what you have to do. It's okay if his tail wraps down around my thumb, I'm not worried about that. And if it has to, his little flipper can go toward the crease of my hand. I don't mind."She applied the stencil, making one tiny adjustment. "Good?" "It's amazing." I hopped into the chair, joy spreading through me. ((Honestly, I have no idea why I was so gleeful over this little tattoo.))
"I don't need to say this is going to hurt." "Oh, that's okay. I got both of my hands and lower knuckles done on the same day, I can hold still for you." "You're crazy!" We giggle at that as she starts the tail of the plesiosaur. I can feel the vibration of the need throughout my entire thumbnail and bone. I'd forgotten just how shit the thumb is. Sharp pain fills the molecules between my bone and the needle. Thankfully, it doesn't take long. I hold still, poker face in place as she works upwards outlining the tattoo. It's more or less painless until she gets to his little flipper that stars into the crevice of my hand. It hurts more to the side than in the actual spot that she's tattooing. Pain sneaks into the side of my palm. Now I'm rethinking ever getting palm tattoos. It's like the older I get the less I want to sit and have ink done. Maybe I'm bored with the process in a way? It doesn't take long for her to outline my little chubbo dinosauro.
She tells me that the spot may be difficult to heal, most people have problems with it, but I'm not worried. I knew a touch up would probably be required given its location on my hand, but thankfully, I've never needed touch ups on my other hand pieces with the exception of the blackwork, which is a bit different...speaking of, I should get ready to do another touch up on it...Wait until the other two pieces heal before I start jumping on that. It's sore now as I type, but it's not uncomfortable. It's just a little sensation that reminds me that I have a fresh tattoo down my thumb.
While I'm being tattooed we make small talk, talking about travel and how we both love the beauty of Bergen; She's originally from Madrid, a place where I'm wanting to go soon. It's been a while since I had some good conversation with another artist, especially one who's as into things as I am. It was refreshing.She starts shading him in with a single needle. She could have done the entire thing with a single needle, but instead switched to the smallest shader I've ever seen to do the body of the plesiosaur. She was careful with each area, making sure that she'd gotten the ink in there perfectly before moving on to the next tiny section. She gave him a full wipe down and a once-over to ensure the letter was hidden and the silhouette was as black as it could be. I almost burst with joy when she pulls her gloves off and pronounces him finished.
She bandages me up (and it holds throughout the entire day) and I head out of the shop, into the wind and wet of the day. It was a great little Valentine's Day treat for myself. Usually, I don't do anything, but this year I had a bit of incentive and time to do so. It was honestly the best v-day I've ever had so far, apart from being away from Chubb, but I'll be back to him soon, so no worries.
It's a bit hard to get a good pic cause of the angle he's at, but I can't get over how cute this little fucker is. I think it might be a new favourite piece.
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