Tattoos 30.07.2018

My mum found a photo of me recently from when I was about 7, I am covered in facepaint and have musical notes painted on the tops of my arms so I think I was always destined to have tattoos…

I always wanted one throughout my teens and admired those who did have them. It took me until my mid twenties to finally have the courage to get one. My newly single lifestyle led me to get my first tattoo, a bumble bee on the top of my foot. I remember my dad saying it was a celebration of my new found single life as an independent woman. And that made me feel great.

I remember not being quite sure of what I wanted tattooed on me, I doodled something on the morning of my appointment and now it is on me forever but I couldn’t be happier with it. I went to the dodgiest part of Reading to get it done with my best friend holding my hand. We have never returned since… You always remember your first tattoo, much like a first love. It holds great purpose and reminds me exactly how far I have come in a short space of time. It was the start of many more tattoos, all designed by myself. My body, physically and mentally is a constant work in progress, and so are my tattoos. I have some on my arm, shoulder and collar bone. Some on my legs and of course on my foot. I will be adding to these in the future, I have so many ideas of what I want on my skin. The thought of adding to what I have already just seems right.

Now I understand this topic wont be to everyones taste. I respect that. Everyone is not going to love everything you do, that’s just a part of life. As long as it makes you happy and you’re not hurting anyone, what else matters? I love the fact that my artwork will live on me forever. I want to be a walking illustration. I draw the line at tattooing the whites of your eyes…I think that might be too far.

My top tattoo studio of choice at the moment is ‘The Black Rabbit Collective’ in Newbury. I happened to come across it on instagram one day as I was scrolling through. I can highly recommend this place. I feel it will now be my first choice for when I want to be tattooed. To have a look at their work follow the link below. I will also link Lee Rose who has tattooed my last five pieces. She is boss. You will find her link below also. I find her very sympathetic towards my illustrations – wanting to position them perfectly and taking the time to do so. What she does is a real art, and I admire it. I feel, like a lot of other topics nowadays, tattoos are becoming more accepted, even in the workplace. Something about the present day with everyone sharing more and talking more about everything can leave me feeling very uplifted. With all the bad in the world we need to hold on to that.

So heres to the next tattoo (or three which I have already designed!) I am looking forward to covering more of my skin…sorry Mumma!

Wigmore out.

The Black Rabbit Collective – click here
Lee Rose tattooist – click here