I’ve been planning to get a tattoo for a ridiculously long time, so I can’t believe it’s finally happening today. My partner is so excited for me; he’s taken some time off work later this afternoon to cheer me on. It’s super sweet of him, as I doubt I will be in a state that enables me to even acknowledge his presence. I have a really low pain tolerance, so I’m expecting to cry a lot as I get the tattoo. But it’ll all be worth it.
The studio I’m going to get my tattoo from is known as the best tattoo shop local to Brisbane. They’ve received hundreds of prestigious awards in hundreds of different categories over the past decade, and after working with them on my design for a few months, I can see why. The interior of the shop is minimalistic and modern, yet the warm light and plush furniture makes it feel cozy, which definitely helped me feel at ease when I first walked in. I was afraid the tattooists would be really condescending to someone like me, who was nervous and knew nothing about how tattoos actually work, but they couldn’t have been more inviting. My artist is one of the most friendly and professional men I have ever met. He gently guided me through the entire process so that we could work to create a design that I am happy to wear and show off to other people.
My artist is someone you would call an American traditional tattooist. This was what he decided to specialise in when he started his apprenticeship as a teenager. However, it has been more than a decade since then, and he now knows everything about virtually every style and type of tattoo. He is also able to do glow-in-the-dark tattoos, which I thought was pretty cool. It’s taken months to find an opening with him since he is so popular and seems to be virtually always booked out.