The first time I walked into Poking You Tattoo, about three years ago, I was impressed with how clean it was. Today that was reinforced. While I should be raving about the skill of the artist, Derek (and he really is an exceptional artist and easy to work with), the thing that blew me away was how much care he took with cleanliness. I’m serious–the use of gloves, everything wrapped in plastic, disinfectant, the sink with the foot-pedals so you don’t have to touch the faucets. Some might think that’s a weird thing to notice, or even that it doesn’t go with the sleazy tradition of tattoo shops, but to a noob like me, it was remarkably reassuring.
As for the rest of the experience, well, it hurt a lot, but only because I’m a wimp. As I said, Derek is really easy to work with. My original idea was to have him on my shoulder, but Derek seemed to think he’d look better on my back, and I felt inclined to put myself in the hands of the artist. One advantage to this location is that by moving my shoulders I can make his wings flap. Hee hee.
The results? I’m totally geeked. Here are our first photos — click on them to see. The redness will fade when they aren’t quite so, ah, fresh; and we’ll post a couple more taken in sunlight and when fully healed.
