I’ve wanted a tattoo for a very, very long time and it has taken me literally years to find exactly what I want and now I have it! I was nervous about booking a tattoo artist and had been researching for a while for someone who can do very fine line work and hadn’t really found anyone – tattoos, I’ve discovered, range as much in style as any other art. I mean, I am sure, for the tiny thing that I wanted, almost anyone qualified could have done it but given that it’s permanent I needed to be certain. In the way that these things often happen, I mentioned it to Max who is home from Sweden and he has a friend very nearby who has a studio – I loved her work (@babysnaketattoo and @dogandbonetattoo on Instagram) so I booked for the next day which is something of a miracle in itself (although I think she might have fitted me in because of Max). Wait lists for artists are very common.
Because mine is such a simple thing – a North Star (which symbolises a guide towards a purposeful destination) – and so small, Emma had printed off a transfer of her design so that we could get it exactly straight and she could follow the lines as well as possible. It also gave me the first glimpse of what it would look like on my own skin.
I was expecting it to hurt more than it did – which, by the way, was hardly at all – I had some weird misconception that perhaps it might smell of burning, but of course, it didn’t. The entire thing was less than ten minutes, start to finish, and I was very distracted by someone on another table having a much more ambitious and adventurous piece than mine being done. That someone found me on Instagram to say hello afterwards which was so lovely.
So, here it is… my tiny North Star, as absolutely perfect as it could be. It’s on the inside of my forefinger on my right hand and actually, it’s only me that can really see it – unless I pointed it out, I doubt anyone would notice (nobody ever notices my nose piercing which is weird because I have a big nose!) and that suits me just fine. It’s a little bit for my dogs, a little bit for hope for the future and a bit for just carrying on – that I’ve kept on going and can keep on going even when it’s difficult. We’ve been tested these past couple of years and yet here we still are – although I swear that everyone is bruised from the pandemic no matter how well they glided through it. So, it’s my last post til after Christmas and I’ll dip in and out when I can – I will have itchy fingers in no time at all I feel sure, particularly when the sales start. But in the meantime, wishing you a wonderful time, a restful time, a peaceful time, a chaotic time, a boozy time or whatever it is that makes you most content :-).
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