Always been interested in tattoos...but still a tattoo virgin looking to get my first

[blueblur1997]

Hi, I'm Ron. I've always loved looking at tattoos on others. I don't have any yet but would like to get one some day.

[SStu]

welcome, Ron. Lots of good newbie education here. Hang out a while!

[bongsau]

hey welcome aboard Ron @blueblur1997

at some point in their lives, everyone here didn't have any tattoos and got their first. best of luck with yours!

cheers 

[marley mission]

ron where you living?

 

[blueblur1997]

Just now, marley mission said:

ron where you living?

 

Lewistown, PA

[marley mission]

6 minutes ago, blueblur1997 said:

Lewistown, PA

got some good tattoo options for you coming east (philly jersey, NYC, maryland, dc) - not so sure anybody really local to you - though some others might have some ideas

Edited June 10, 2016 by marley mission

[blueblur1997]

11 minutes ago, marley mission said:

got some good tattoo options for you coming east (philly jersey, NYC, maryland, dc) - not so sure anybody really local to you - though some others might have some ideas

I know there are three shops just in my town. Moonlite Tattoo, Rondo Tattoo and All In Ink Tattoo. I know Moonlite comes as the most recommended and is the oldest. 

[marley mission]

5 minutes ago, blueblur1997 said:

I know there are three shops just in my town. Moonlite Tattoo, Rondo Tattoo and All In Ink Tattoo. I know Moonlite comes as the most recommended and is the oldest. 

do your research carefully

[blueblur1997]

10 minutes ago, marley mission said:

do your research carefully

I've spoken with my friends that are tattooed and they tell me that each of the shops are good...but they don't really specialize in one kind of tattoo.

[Devious6]

Welcome to the forum! I am a newbie both to the forum and tattoos - just got my first about 3 months ago. Tons of great advice, support and fellowship here.

[blueblur1997]

17 minutes ago, Devious6 said:

Welcome to the forum! I am a newbie both to the forum and tattoos - just got my first about 3 months ago. Tons of great advice, support and fellowship here.

Thank you for the welcome.

[Synesthesia]

Hey, I'm from York, about an hour and a half from you. I don't know what kind of styles you like, but here's a few good local artists to get you started:

Rob Diamond in Harrisburg - https://www.instagram.com/_diamondtattoos_/?hl=en
Paul Acker in Philly - https://www.instagram.com/paulackertattoo/?hl=en
Bryan Merck also in Philly and at the same shop as Paul Acker - https://www.instagram.com/bmerck_ink/?hl=en
Pat Haney, again in Philly - https://www.instagram.com/easy_tiger/?hl=en
Michael Kelly in Lancaster - https://www.instagram.com/michaeljtattoos/

Once you figure out what styles you're most into, we could probably give you some more specific recommendations, but those guys are just the first few off the top of my head that do really nice work.

[blueblur1997]

8 hours ago, Synesthesia said:

Hey, I'm from York, about an hour and a half from you. I don't know what kind of styles you like, but here's a few good local artists to get you started:

Rob Diamond in Harrisburg - https://www.instagram.com/_diamondtattoos_/?hl=en
Paul Acker in Philly - https://www.instagram.com/paulackertattoo/?hl=en
Bryan Merck also in Philly and at the same shop as Paul Acker - https://www.instagram.com/bmerck_ink/?hl=en
Pat Haney, again in Philly - https://www.instagram.com/easy_tiger/?hl=en
Michael Kelly in Lancaster - https://www.instagram.com/michaeljtattoos/

Once you figure out what styles you're most into, we could probably give you some more specific recommendations, but those guys are just the first few off the top of my head that do really nice work.

Thank you for a listing of artists in the area. I'm thinking about maybe going small for my first tattoo because it don't know about the pain or anything like that. I have a couple of other tattoos in mind...but I'm not sure if they would make great first tattoo material. Like someday I'd like to get sleeves. But I'm undecided if I want something with a Japanese Flair to it since I love Japanese culture or if I want koi in a pond. My other idea is a piece to memorialize my grandfather. I want it to say something like In Memory of... his name then below his birthday and the day he died. In the middle have 2 M-1 Garands crossed and firing.  

I'm almost thinking for my first, I'd like to get something like a demon animeish samurai with red eyes carrying a katana at the ready with blood dripping from the end.  

Edited June 11, 2016 by blueblur1997
Just thought of something to add

[Devious6]

Once you've found an artist you are comfortable with, he/she will help you solidify your ideas. I think that finding the right artist is critical if you think you want your first to ultimately be part of a sleeve. Starting with something that will thematically fit into a larger piece - or not, if you opt not to go further - seems smart. Even the memorial could be part of a larger piece - something along the lines of a WWII tribute, etc.

You will find lots of discussion material about pain and pain management techniques here and around the internet. There are certainly parts of the body that are generally more sensitive than others...but everyone senses pain differently. I will let those with much more experience guide you here but in my case my first is a fairly large piece on my upper arm/shoulder - which is noted as one of the least painful areas. For me, I felt nothing I would call pain - more like scratching and irritation. But again, we all have different pain tolerance levels.

I loved your reference to M1 Garands. My dad was a Marine who enlisted at the end of WWI and later served in Korea. I have a great picture of him at Parris Island holding his Garand. I collect and shoot military surplus weapons - have a small collection - and have two Garands. Here's a picture of me shooting on my range. You can see the last shell casing ejecting to the upper front and the 8 round en bloc ejecting to the rear just in front of my head. The infamous M1 Garand "ping!" 

 

Good luck in your quest!!

Edited June 11, 2016 by Devious6

[marley mission]

@Synesthesia offering some nice choices

definetly like Pat Haney's work

True Hand seems like a pretty solid shop

and if you are going to Philly

consider Olde City Tattoo

lots of talent there as well

anyway @blueblur1997

nothing wrong with staying local local

just that sometimes there is

again - do that research - ask questions

good luck

[blueblur1997]

5 hours ago, Devious6 said:           ,        ,.

I loved your reference to M1 Garands. My dad was a Marine who enlisted at the end of WWI and later served in Korea. I have a great picture of him at Parris Island holding his Garand. I collect and shoot military surplus weapons - have a small collection - and have two Garands. Here's a picture of me shooting on my range. You can see the last shell casing ejecting to the upper front and the 8 round en bloc ejecting to the rear just in front of my head. The infamous M1 Garand "ping!"  

My grandfather entered the military right around the end of the conflict with Korea. He never seen any action there or anything like that but heard he could have gone to officers school. I think he was in the army. He was stationed in Germany during the Korean conflict and I guess for a while after. He met my grandmother while he was stationed there. The M1 Garand was his favorite gun along with his muzzleloaders. I know he owned a few but I forget what calibers he had. But that's why I chose that weapon. 

[DJDeepFried]

Maybe go for a leg tattoo (calf or thigh) if you're considering sleeves in the future. Easily concealed and will leave prime real estate open on arms and back.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[blueblur1997]

6 hours ago, DJDeepFried said:

Maybe go for a leg tattoo (calf or thigh) if you're considering sleeves in the future. Easily concealed and will leave prime real estate open on arms and back.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've thought about getting that tattoo on my calf. I am considering some additions to the tattoo as well. I'm thinking maybe deer antlers on top and maybe a fish at the bottom since he liked fishing as well. What do you guys think? Do you have other ideas?  

[Gingerninja]

Here's another option - August 5-7 is the Pagoda City Tattoo Fest in Reading, PA. I think that's fairly close to you and would be a great way to see great artists doing what they do. You'd be able to get a sense of different styles. It's a small convention and pretty intimate (as far as conventions go). Check it out!

[blueblur1997]

4 hours ago, Gingerninja said:

Here's another option - August 5-7 is the Pagoda City Tattoo Fest in Reading, PA. I think that's fairly close to you and would be a great way to see great artists doing what they do. You'd be able to get a sense of different styles. It's a small convention and pretty intimate (as far as conventions go). Check it out!

I might just go and check it out. I have an idea of what I want to get for my first tattoo...but nothing concrete yet. If I can get off work one of those days, I'll definitely swing by. Reading is only like a two hour drive for me. Who knows...maybe I'll walk away from there with my first tattoo ?.

[marley mission]

On 6/11/2016 at 9:13 PM, blueblur1997 said:

I've thought about getting that tattoo on my calf. I am considering some additions to the tattoo as well. I'm thinking maybe deer antlers on top and maybe a fish at the bottom since he liked fishing as well. What do you guys think? Do you have other ideas?  

find the right tattooer first - the wrong tattooer will let you put 10lbs of shit into a 5lb bag

then you'll find yourself searching coverup threads

a good tattooer can save you from yourself

establish that

then discuss what you are looking for 

then let them design a good looking tattoo

[blueblur1997]

2 hours ago, marley mission said:

find the right tattooer first - the wrong tattooer will let you put 10lbs of shit into a 5lb bag

then you'll find yourself searching coverup threads

a good tattooer can save you from yourself

establish that

then discuss what you are looking for 

then let them design a good looking tattoo

I went into Moonlight Tattoo in my town kinda to investigate the shop and talk to the artist about my ideas. We discussed things and I showed him my preliminary design. He liked it and thought he could maybe add and tweak some things from the designn. I go back to him in a week or so to see the final design and talk price. But from looking at it...he's thinking like 250 dollars plus. I don't know if that is too high or not. Sounds it to me.

[Gingerninja]

18 hours ago, blueblur1997 said:

I might just go and check it out. I have an idea of what I want to get for my first tattoo...but nothing concrete yet. If I can get off work one of those days, I'll definitely swing by. Reading is only like a two hour drive for me. Who knows...maybe I'll walk away from there with my first tattoo ?.

It's an unique opportunity to see some of the great artists, get a vibe and just check out the scene in general. Most of the folks are booked in advance and only a few are doing walk ups. If you are on Instagram, check out their feed. pagodacitytattoofest. I think that you're perspective may shift after seeing some of these folks. Go slow and choose the right artist.

[blueblur1997]

I went to a local tattoo shop with a friend of mine. She's offering to pay for me to get my first tattoo while she's getting hers. The shop seems to be nice and clean and the artists seem to be pretty nice. Should I take the plunge and get one spur of the moment? Or wait until I investigate other shops? 

[Synesthesia]

Where did you go? Any Facebook or Instagram links to a portfolio or pictures of the shop?