annamageddon

Have you thought about just finding an artist that you love and letting them come up with something for you? It sounds like your pretty open and maybe that would be a great way to get a meaningful piece.

Annie

This thread has been very interesting. It makes me wonder if I should bother telling my dad that I have a tattoo. I'm totally independent so I don't feel that he'd have an issue there. He is older though so I know initially he'd have a negative or concerned reaction. However he's also reasonable, totally loves me, knows how hard I work and is very proud of that. Part of me just wants to tell him because he's not only my dad but one of my very best friends. The other part thinks that it's not worth the initial concern that he might have.

Just throwing in my personal experience.

I met a 92 year old vet yesterday who got these in Norfolk and Hawaii in 1940 during ww2.

Wow! Thank you so much for posting and for your service. It is so great to see. This really made my day.

I think tattoos with no outline are generally considered to not hold as well as tattoos with a strong outline.

I personally think it fits perfect with your complexion

Thank you ToxicBarrels. The more I've been on the forum the more I think I should leave it as is for right now. I am wondering if maybe some white highlights on the especially dark areas would make me feel better but I am also thinking about what my next tattoo should be. Maybe I should just sit on these thoughts for a while. I really appreciate your and everyone's input. It means a lot to me.

I second SStu and want pics!! Also tell us more about the meanings, how you found the artist, etc.

Welcome!

I think it's a great piece. Personally I think you should stick with the black and grey for this style. It's timeless, beautiful and will be easier to match with other tattoos in the future. Regarding adding a background, I think you could look at the work of Tamara Santibanez, Kane Trubenbacher, Spider Sinclair and Ruby Quilter for inspiration. They all create fineline black and grey work and they have work which is made up of several elements (like a back) similar to the style of yours. They also often add background detail which is very soft and beautiful. I also have a pale complexion and I have several tattoos which came out a little darker than expected and initially wasn't happy with but love them now. Yours already looks like it has softened a lot and will only soften more with time. Take care and enjoy your lovely piece.

Thank you so much for your input! I'm already feeling so much better about the tattoo after the overwhelming support that I've received on this forum. I'm very much looking forward to looking into the artists that you've mentioned. Thank you so much for providing them. I really appreciate it. Thank you again, it really does mean a lot!

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I second what @polliwog said. I think if you were to add to or modify your tattoo, you risk ruining it and then you'll really be unhappy with it. Take some time to draw breath. Relax. When you're ready, get another tattoo. Only then should you revisit this one and reassess. I think in time you'll learn to love it.

Thanks David! I think you and the others stating similar opinions are right. I should probably stick put for now or start planning my next tattoo. Thank you so much for your input! It really means a lot. I'm starting to feel a lot better about the tattoo after all the positive feedback that I've received on this forum.

@annamageddon I briefly considered getting a buddha but quickly dismissed the idea, just doesn't feel right to me to get any spiritual figure tattooed, doesn't align so much with my beliefs. I am Pakistani actually, raised in a Muslim household, though I don't identify as Muslim myself, so unfortunately that wouldn't be an option. I've considered adding things like a hamsa hand, the eightfold path symbol, chakra symbols, but just don't have a clue where to start, other things I could consider getting on, formatting it all, stuff like that.

Thanks so much for your input!

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@66pens87 thank you!! :D

Farah,

I absolutely love the Hamsa hand. It's my favorite I think it could make a totally awesome tattoo!! That's my vote but obviously you have to find your own favorite :) Best of luck and please post what you end up getting! I think you'll end up with an amazing sleeve as you clearly have a great background.

Hi TC! Welcome. What will your first tattoo be?

I like it a lot! Have you thought about doing a Buddha? Are you Indian? Maybe some idea from your childhood would be great to play off of.

It did work! Very cool and a neat concept!

This is gorgeous! Congratulations!

Lol if you make an Imgur account you can do it easily. You'll just upload the photo to Imgur and Imgur provides you with a link that you can share anywhere. It looks like there's also an "insert image" button right above this quick reply section as well (it looks like a little picture). That might work!

Hi Farah! Welcome. What is the theme of your sleeve?

Congrats! Pics would be great :)

This was really neat to read. Congratulations on your new work!

Welcome! What theme is your sleeve going to be?

Can you post a picture?

Would I be able to add color to it if I wanted to? Or would it just be really dark? Also would anyone know of an artist in Minnesota who does work similar to Jenn Small?

Thanks!

It is "stark" though I wouldn't say it's harsh. Obviously it's your call but since you're asking for opinions, I think it's very feminine and quite pretty. I was a bit iffy about some of the details of my first (and only) tattoo but I've learned to love it and its imperfections. You will too! Do you have a healed picture?

http://imgur.com/RxZA90D

Here's the best I could get fumbling around with my cameras self timer function right now. Thank you I appreciate your input!

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I don't usually feel it's my place to offer advice on here, but I also got kinda spooked after my first tattoo and would like to suggest that you don't hurry to change or add to this one...you might find that you feel very differently about it in a couple months. Maybe getting an unrelated tattoo that you feel really good about might give you some perspective on how to add to your rose later on. It's just that getting tattooed is way too much fun to focus on compensating for one you don't like right at the start. Hope this isn't condescending or out of line.

This is really great advice. Thank you I appreciate it. I think you're right that I should try to hold off. I got this tattoo in May so it's been a little while but not too long.

Hey welcome! As everyone said already, it's a good tattoo! You don't mention in which way it's different from what you envisioned, so I guess you're not quite sure yourself. Maybe it's the fact that it's quite straight and not very...curvy?

In any case, I wouldn't try to change this one but rather add more around it. Something along the lines of vines, butterflies, birds, or even just more flowers perhaps.

If you're not happy with the communication with your tattooer, don't go back. People on this board will be more than happy to recommend someone in your area. And remember, there is no rush!

Thank you so much! I'm so happy I decided to post on this forum. It's made me feel so much better to hear so many people tell me that it really is a good tattoo. I did quite a bit of research and I do think that the artist I went to is very good. I wanted a delicate, feminine tattoo and I feel like the black and grey is kind of harsh. I'm wondering now if adding some sort of color behind it could look cool. I'm not sure. Now after posting I'm thinking of other tattoo ideas as well :P

Thank you again.

Annie

I think it looks nice as well, but like people have said previously, your opinion is the only one that matters. Did you like the look when it was stenciled and just didn't like how it transferred to your skin? I'm sure you could go to an artist and explain what you were looking for and they could draw up some addition to the piece that would hopefully make you happy!

Unfortunately I offended the artist by coming in with my list of critiques for the tattoo. He made a small touch up but it was insignificant and didn't help. Yes I looked at the stencil and I didn't like it. He made a few changes to it and I (and sorry to be redundantly negative here) but I think they made it even worse. After seeing the overwhelmingly positive feedback here on this forum I'm trying to change my mind about the tattoo. Maybe I do just need to get another one or get over it. It seems weird to me now to have one big tattoo on my back and nothing else.

I'm sorry for being sort of negative about the tattoo. I like tattoos so much on everyone else but for some reason I don't like this one on myself.

I appreciate the feedback!

Annie

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I like it too.

Where did you get it? Lot's of choices in Minnesota these days.

Thanks! I got it from John Von Glahn while he was working at Broken Hearts Tattoo Club, as far as I know he is still located there. I think he's a great artist and I followed him for a long time before I got the appointment.

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I have to add my voice to the chorus - I also think this is a pretty great tattoo that works very nicely.

Thank you Mark! It's good to know that other people like the way it looks.

Jeez from the intro I was expecting something terrible. I like it a lot. It will lighten up and settle in naturally over time. What you need to do is get more good tattoos!Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks I appreciate the input. It's good to know that everyone thinks it's well executed. That does help but in my opinion it's still not what I wanted. I wanted something delicate and feminine and this just isn't that. I think the fact that it's my first tattoo and I've critiqued the crap out of it isn't helping though.

I do, too. It's a nicely executed black and gray rose--one of the most iconic tattoos around. And I think that your complexion is perfect for it.

Thank you! I'm seeing a running theme here. Thanks guys :)

I think its beautiful.

Thanks! That makes me feel better. I'm wondering now if I could do something colorful behind it? Or maybe I just need another tattoo.

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Awesome tattoo! I have a black and grey back tattoo also and although I kinda know what you mean feeling like it is less feminine, I try to think of it as classic.

As for adding to it and adding color, only you can truly know what you want.

Thanks! I appreciate the input. I'm just white as a ghost and it doesn't feel wispy and girly the way I had hoped. Would it be possible to lighten it up a lot or make it really colorful?

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I think that looks great as is, but obviously your opinion is the one that matters most. Don't really see how you could add color to it, aside from maybe adding flowers or something around it.

I like your idea about adding something behind it! I wonder what would look cool.