Well, here’s the story behind my tattoo.
I know some people from a very young age have always wanted tattoos. I really think the law of having to be 18 to get one, unless you have parental consent, is a great idea. Too many younger people get tattoos because it seems to be the thing to do at that age, and then they have a lot of regrets later. Not just from design, but I think placement. Whether it’s fair or not, tattoos in the work place are still considered taboo. I’m not really understanding the popularity of the wrist tattoo, but to each his own.
I never even really thought about getting a tattoo, and I’ll admit, when I was younger and growing up in an extremely strict religious environment, I probably judged those who had them. We’ll save what my religious views are now for another post!
I first time I had the thought put in my head, was when my friend was turning 40. She said she had always thought about having a tattoo on her ankle but never had the guts to do it. It really got me to thinking. At the time I was 37. I really tried to talk her into it but that never panned out. The following summer, when I was 38, I got my first tattoo.
I started out with the bird on my shoulder. 
I’ll admit, not terribly original, but I wouldn’t change it. As you can tell, I’m not exactly a girlie girl. Cutesy stuff is not my thing - I’ve got a pretty dark personality. But my second tattoo is about as “girlie” as it will ever get. It’s the one across the bottom of my back. I went with the dragonfly. No butterflies for me!
So now the tree….unusual tattoo I realize. I thought a very long time how I wanted to have something that would eventually connect all the tattoos on my back. Felt like the bird was just “there”. I love the beauty of trees in the winter - dead looking but still alive. You truly see their form without all the leaves. 
I was also inspired by the background pictures on a website (ok, yes a band’s I’ll admit) of trees in winter. All this just got me thinking and planning. I took the ideas into my artist and he drew something up. I love how he ended up having the bird coming out of the tree. The outline was a two hour sitting, the fill in 3 hours.
The healing did not go exactly all that well with the tree tattoo. The artist, I believe, was very heavy handed. Also, the sheer size made it difficult to take care of on my own - my husband had to go out of town on business. I ended up having pretty heavy scabbing which resulted in the ink being pulled out in some places - mainly the trunk of the tree. I knew I would need touch up. When I went back to the shop, my original artist was no longer there. I’ll admit, the shop would have had the other artist do the touch up for free, but I did not like anyone else in that shop. I also didn’t feel they would necessarily do it right as they had no vested interest in it any longer.
So I put it off and put it off, but I was pretty self conscious about it. Finally, this last February, I went in to two different places to get a second opinion. Both said the same thing - the whole thing would need to be re touched.
I was ready for the worst since touch up is supposed to be much more painful than getting it done the first time. But then….
It wasn’t so bad. Dare I say, it kinda felt, well, good. It went rather quickly as well - 2 hours and that included the bird. My new artist had the lightest touch.
And the healing went great. I did something different. Used A&D ointment for the first 3 days and then switched to the lotion. Just flaking but no huge scabs. It’s been like night and day.
I’ve already discussed with Rhaul (the new artist), the plans for adding to the tattoo, and he’s drawn some things up. Looking forward to going in soon to get things started. Things might be turning a little Edgar Allen Poeish…..like I said, I’m a little dark.
To be continued……
The beautiful photo above was taken by Kim Balsman of Balsman Photography in Longmont, Colorado. Please check her out if you live on the Front Range and need professional portraits!
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