Seri Sunshine: My Tattoo: Owlfred!

Hi Bloggies!

I hope all of you are having a wonderful day! It is a wonderful, spring day here in Denver! The sun is shining, it's 70 degrees with a slight breeze and super lovely. I am out sitting next the pool in my little apartment area and was staring at my feet ( my toes are in desperate need of a pedicure) and was looking at my tattoo and went *lightbulb* I'LL DO A TATTOO BLOG POST!!! *ding* *ding* *ding*

So for those of you who follow me in twitter, tumblr, or instagram you know that I have gotten my little tattoo on my foot almost 2 years ago. It's the only one that I have. This is due to me being too scared to get another one and also if I ever wanted to get another one I'd want to be done by the same guy and he is located in Washington! So, quick background story on my tattoo: My best friend, Allie, lives in Washington and I went to visit her almost do years ago around this time of year. She had already planned on getting a tattoo while I was there and I was looking forward to it because I really wanted to see the process of getting one and what a tattoo parlor looked like and all that stuff. I did want to get my tattoo while I was in Washington but in the back of my mind I kept thinking I would just chicken out and wouldn't do it, but to my surprise, I did! I brought the artists some pictures of what I wanted and he actually decided to sketch up a little cartoon looking owl for my foot and I just LOVED it!

The process of getting a tattoo is actually quite easier then what I had expected. I went in when they told me the appointment time would be . Then when it was time to take me back for my appointment they had me sign a little consent form and gave me instructions on how to take care of my fresh tattoo. After that I was seated in the little tattoo chair. Since I was getting one on the top of my foot I had to be up pretty high so I was sitting on what looked like a leather massage table. Everything was insanely clean (one of the most important things in my opinion) and the artist wore gloves and everything was wrapped to keep blood born pathogens from getting onto anything.

The next thing the artist did was press the sketch he did onto my foot for his outline.

He did the outline so, obviously, he could see what he needs to draw but to also make sure it's the size that I was happy with and the placement that I was happy with. I have him the go ahead and he started drawing. He kindly talked me through it, I think he could tell I was very nervous, and tried to explain what I was going to be feeling. He said it was like a pinch feeling but I honestly thought it felt like someone was slapping the top of my foot with a rubber band over and over and over. But, instead of that slap feeling lingering, the second he would lift the needle the pain would be gone. I'm sure the sensation is different for everyone and other areas of the body but that's how I can best describe how it felt on my foot. Also, before he really got going he did a quick little line to kind of prepare me for the feeling so I wouldn't jump and cause him to tattoo a scribble. :P

I would say, with my experience, the outlining was the most painful part. Especially when he got close to my pinky toe! Ouch! Although, the pain was never enough to cause me to cry or anything, just wince a few times. Once he got the shading it felt so much better. There will still bits that caused some wincing but not near as much. I just loved watching him do the shading because it brought all the life into the little owl.

Once he was done with the shading he did a little highlighting in the eyes and the feathers. I'm so happy he did that. It really looks like my little owl has a twinkle in his eyes!

And there is my finished owl! The whole process, start to finish, took about an hour and 20 minutes. I have since named him Owlfred. I thought that suited him perfectly! I could not be happier with how Owlfred turned out and almost cried because I was so happy. I was so worried that I was going to be one of those unlucky persons that get a horribly done tattoo, but I think it's far from horrible! It's perfect!

Taking care of a fresh tattoo is not a hard task. Before I left the artist put what he called a finishing cream all over and wrapped my foot in plastic to protect Owlfred from my flip-flops. To prevent super quick fading I was instructed to not wear any shoes besides sandals for at least 2 weeks and to not completely submerge my foot into water, especially chlorinated water for at least a week. Also, to help the healing process I was instructed to get some unscented, un-tinted lotion and to apply it to my foot at least twice a day. My tattoo is now happy, looking good, and still twinkling back to me every day!

If you have any questions about the process that I didn't already address please leave them in the comments below and I would love to answer you to the best of my abilities! Honestly, my best friend Allie would be better to ask since she has more tattoos than I do and is more wise! She has more tattoos in other areas of her body as well and I am sure she would love to answer any questions. You can find her on Tumblr and I will leave her info down below along with mine! I'm going to end this with some random pictures I took on my Washington trip and a picture of my bestie and I!

Byeeee!!!