Tattoo Coomments: 2010-01-03

Celebrity Tattoos

The beautiful Transformers star is a avid tattoo lover and has several of her own. A lot of people may not understand her tattoos and I've read a lot of people think they are tacky. But people don't get tattoos for other people they get them for themselves and I'm sure every tattoo that Megan has, has a special meaning to her.

Megan tattoos include:

A portrait of Marilyn Monroe on her right forearm, star and crescent moon on her right leg, symbol for strength on the back of her neck, a Shakespeare quote on her back, some tribal symbols, and a "Brian" on her stomach, as well as a poem she wrote that's on her ribcage.

Megan does have some regrets about one of her tattoos.

"She regrets the "tribal" tat. She said, "The guy was smoking weed while he tattooed me and he didn't do it correctly. Now it's nothing and I'm gonna get it removed. I was told he was a really amazing tattoo artist but he wasn't on his game that night. He was distracted."

This is what Megan had to say about getting tattoos in general.

"Every time I get a tattoo, it's a little f-you to anyone who tells me not to. It's weird to be part of Hollywood, which tries to control every aspect of people, from what they say to the color of their hair. And I like the way getting a tattoo feels. If I'm depressed, it's nice to get one and deal with the pain. I have one all the way down to my ribs. It hurt, but it felt good-like twisting a loose tooth. I'm not kidding when I say that if I ever lose a role because of my tattoos, I'll quit Hollywood and go to work at Costco."

Tattoo Studio

Look for the following items. If you don’t see them, ask the artist about them. If the artist tells you they are unnecessary or “overkill,” leave immediately and go look for another studio. Your health is more important than the risk of using a tattoo artist that is less than totally dedicated to the safest practices in his or her studio.

1. Autoclave - an autoclave is used in hospitals to sterilize equipment. It uses heat, steam, and pressure to kill every organism on the equipment. It usually takes about an hour for an autoclave to run a cycle from a cold start to effectively kill all organisms. You can even ask to see the autoclave and sterilization certificate. The tattoo artist should first clean the equipment and then place it in a special pouch before placing it in the autoclave. There is a strip on the outside of the pouch that indicates when the equipment is sterile. The needle bar and tube are reusable pieces of equipment that must be sterilized before each use.

2. Single Use Items

Single use items should be used only once so that the chances of cross contamination are eliminated. The single use items include:

Ink

Ink cups

Gloves

Needles

Most of these items are purchased in sterile packaging that should be opened in front of you just before the artist begins work.

Tattoo Studio
3. Sharps/Biohazard Container

Used needles and objects that have come into contact with blood or bodily fluids should be disposed of in a sharps/biohazard container.

4. A universal container for any ointment, ink, water, etc. should not be used especially if any of these items have been removed from the container to be used on a client.

5. Some studios are required by law to have a sink in the work area supplied with both hot and cold water. Even if it isn’t required by law in your area, it only makes sense to have one for the cleanliness of the studio.

Old School Tattoos

Why The Popularity?

Why the rise in popularity? How did they start and who are the original tattoo artists that brought these bold, bright tattoo designs to us?

If you follow tattooing back to the first part of the century, you will find a few incredibly talented, wonderfully colorful characters. Top among these fine characters is "Sailor Jerry". Story goes, Sailor Jerry began his career traveling around the country on freight trains and tattooing the drifters. He joined the Navy at 19 and sailed the Pacific. If you look at Sailor Jerry's artwork, you can see the influence of Southeast Asia. Sailor Jerry's images have bold deep outlines, bold blocks of color, and large, oversized images.

Old School Tattoo Designs include imagery of stars, hearts and daggers. There are anchors, and nautical themes. What we now would say is "pirate imagery" are all found in Old School Tattoos. Beautiful, busty pin-up girls, suggestive women, skeletons, and skulls. Hearts with daggers through them and roses with massive thorns and ribbons, in bold bright colors with deep outlining. Everything that we now would consider "vintage" is included in the imagery of Old School Tattoos. They have almost a whimsical and animated quality.

Two of Sailor Jerry's students, Ed Hardy and Mike Malone have been extremely influential in keeping interest in, and reviving the Old School Tattoo Designs. Ed Hardy and Mike Malone both use the bold patterns and the bright colors typical in Old School Tattoos. Images are outlined and you can see the Asian influence in the design.

When Sailor Jerry died, he left instructions that one of his students, Ed Hardy or Mike Malone, could buy his tattoo shop in Hawaii. Mike Malone took the offer and with the purchase of the shop, he also got all of Sailor Jerry's artwork. That artwork, or "flash" can now be seen on tattoo shop walls all across America.

Don Ed Hardy, on the other hand, exploded his popularity and brought Old School Tattoo designs to the main stream by licensing his artwork to Christian Audigier. Ed Hardy Designs was formed and Christian Audigier began incorporating the artwork into fashion. This was the first time tattoo design and tattoo artwork has made it to the runways of Paris, New York and Italy. Ed Hardy artwork and tattoo design could now be seen on Rock Stars and Celebrities alike. The Beautiful Old School Tattoo Designs were now part of mainstream culture and highly sought after.

Maybe another reason for the rise in popularity of Old School Tattoos is the simple fact that we have a fascination with "vintage" What's old is new. This happens in fashion all the time. How many times have you heard people say, "I had those gym shoes in 7th grade", or "That blouse is in my moms attic". From brands like Puma, Nike, P.F. Flyers to Levi, there is always a vintage look or design just around the corner. Old School Tattoos are the "vintage" of the tattoo world. They are also the brightest, most colorful, quirky, kitschy and whimsical tattoo designs. If you are looking for a "vintage" look in your tattoo design, beautiful busty pin-up girls, colorful funky skulls, pierced hearts, fat roses with ribbon sayings, check out the Old School Tattoos. And here is a piece of advice from the infamous Lyle Tuttle: "Don't put anyone's name on your tattoo. They are not going to be around forever. Just put "Sweetheart" and call them ALL "Sweetheart"."

Small Tattoos

There is a lot to be said for the small tattoo. If you are really interested in getting a tattoo, but maybe work in a business that would frown on the full on sleeve tattoo, maybe a beautiful little tattoo is the answer for you.

Powerful

Just because a tattoo is small, does not mean that it is any less significant. Small tattoo designs can be just as detailed and colorful as a large tattoo. Sometimes if can actually convey your message better.

Name Tattoos

If you are thinking about tattooing your significant others name on yourself, you might consider a small tattoo design. I know you think that person will be important to you forever, but realistically, probably not. Look instead for a small tattoo design or symbol that holds significance to you both. This is a lot easier to explain to your new boyfriend "Dave" than a huge "Richard" tattooed across the back of your neck. Also, if you just are lusting after that tribal tattoo, but don't really have the nerve or circumstances to put it on you shoulder, consider a small tribal tattoo design on your foot or ankle. Maybe your wrist or upper shoulder. There are so many places on the body that are perfect for the small tattoo, you could easily have many and no one would know. That is, of course, if you don't want anyone to know.

Less Is More

The small tattoo design follows that age old principle, Less Is More. A beautiful little heart, a small set of angel wings, a tiny tribal, butterfly, Celtic cross, dolphin, whatever, can make a bolder statement than a full back tattoo. Well, I suppose that isn't really true. A full back tattoo makes a huge statement, but if you are looking into small tattoo designs, I don't think that is the statement you are looking to make.

Your Secret Tattoo

Your small tattoo is like a secret you hold. It may not be immediately noticeable at first, but as you get to know someone, that secret is revealed. They don't call you" that guy or girl with the fried eggs tattooed on his or her head or back, whatever. They remember you, and then remember your tattoo. Your small tattoo is not who you are, but rather something you have.

Get The Best Design

Since 35% of people that get a tattoo regret it, it is really important to choose your tattoo design wisely. You can search all over on line and you will find millions to "free" tattoos, but is that what you really want? Spend a few bucks on the design itself. You are going to spend a small fortune on the tattoo, why not get the best design you can afford.

Where To Get The Best Design

Where do you get the best design" You could seek out an artist and have them draw what you are looking for. You could hire the tattoo artist to design your tattoo.(Most times you pay a drawing fee), Or you could go to one of the tattoo membership sites and check out what they have. This is a great option for most people because you can browse through thousands of artist drawn tattoos. Instead of paying one artist for one drawing, you pay a small membership fee to have access to more good designs than you will ever need. The designs are updated regularly with new artist submissions.

Be Your Own Boss

Once you have your design, take the time to find the best tattoo artist you can afford. Take a good look around the shop. Is it clean? Are the employees happy? Are the customers happy? Does the artist take the time to tell you about how your tattoo will be applied? Do they tell you how to care for your tattoo when they are finished? If not, leave! There are plenty of really professional tattoo artists out there. Do not settle for a shop or artist you are uncomfortable with.

It is your body, it is your tattoo. You make the choices. Enjoy that small tattoo. It probably won't be your last. When someone gets one tattoo, they usually end up with three.

Ricky Martin Tattoos

Ricky Martin is the Grammy Award winning Puerto Rican pop star, who got everyone's attention with his smash hit song, Livin' La Vida Loca, among other chart topping singles.

Ricky Martin has five tattoo designs, mainly on his upper arms and shoulder area.

On his upper left arm is a naked woman, decorated in the four elements of nature, air, earth, fire and water. He also has a tattoo of a lovely lotus flower on the inside portion of his left bicep.

The tattoos on his right arm include, a beautiful script design written in the Aramaic language, of the sacred Lord's Prayer, the design has a wonderful spiral style to it.

On his pelvis is a rather small rose wrapped around a sword, which was his very first tattoo design.

His most recent tattoo is of the "Om symbol", which is a scared symbol in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism cultures, representing "Brahman" (to grow).

Enjoy these pictures of Ricky Martin and his interesting tattoos.