Using the Body as a Canvas

I have seen many, many people that have tattoos that cover a good chunk of their body or they have turned their body into a canvas. To me, the body is a canvas and being able to express yourself in that way is great, and having the confidence and willingness to do it is amazing! There are many people who get a couple of tattoos and they are satisfied and there are others that simply get tattoos and they become addicted to them, ultimately they end up getting one after another and they end up covering their whole body.

Favorite Find of the Day

These were some tattoos that I found that I really like and I thought were interesting, beautiful or a good use of space on the body.

Tattoo of the Day

This is a lovely tattoo and I think that there is detail to it but still with the simplicity, that it makes it very feminine and straight edged (without all of the "fluff" and shadowing to soften it). What softens it is the filigree that is at the end of the stems of the lilies, that is what gives it it's feminine touch.

Bazaar News Story

Girl has 56 stars tattooed on face after 'falling asleep'

A furious Belgian father has gone to the police after his teenage daughter ended up with 56 stars tattooed on her face after allegedly asking the tattooist for "some points of colour".

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/belgium/5551636/Girl-has-56-stars-tattooed-on-face-after-falling-asleep.html

* This story to me in beyond bazaar! Supposedly the young women feel asleep...for me it is hard to believe that someone fell asleep while getting their face tattooed!! For some yes it may be a stress reliever and not bother some, but it should never satisfy a person to the point that they are able to fall asleep during the process.

My Story

This is my second tattoo. It is an original, all mine, design. I went into Mr. Adam's Tattoo's with my design and told them where I wanted it, they tweaked some areas that needed to be and I let her have free reign on the colors that she used on within it, I have her a few colors that I like and she went from there.

The lotus flower has many meanings behind it, but the one that caught my eye and also had a personal connection to me. The meaning that I found was remarkable and I could not find a flower to better represent me and my life:

"The lotus flower starts as a small flower down at the bottom of a pond in the mud and muck. It slowly grows up towards the waters surface continually moving towards the light. Once it come to the surface of the water the lotus flower begins to blossom and turn into a beautiful flower...Lotus flower tattoos are also popular for people who have gone through a hard time and are now coming out of it. Like the flower they have been at the bottom in the muddy, yucky dirty bottom of the pond but have risen above this to display an object of beauty or a life of beauty as the case might be. Thus a lotus flower tattoo or blossom can also represent a hard time in life that has been overcome."

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Meaning-and-Symbolism-Behind-the-Lotus-Flower-Tattoo&id=95396

The nautical star also had a close personal connection to my life, most of my family are fisherman and I have a love for the ocean that goes way beyond it's essense and smell. Also my brother was in Navy. I also found a meaning behind the nautical star that connected to me and my family:
"Early on sailors navigated by the stars at night and the north star became the symbol for finding ones way home. Once you know where the north star is you can point your ship in the right direction to get home. So the star became a symbol for finding ones way home or more symbolically even finding ones path in life."
http://ezinearticles.com/?Nautical-Star-Tattoos-The-History,-Meaning-And-Symbolism---What-A-Strange-Mix!&id=67116

Overall the tattoo turned out just how I had envisioned it and knowing the meaning behind it, knowing my story...I decided to put it in a place where I could wear it and hold it strong, on my back.

Telling a Story...

I believe that a tattoo can tell a story, even without words. It may not be clear for one that it is looking at it but there is always a story behind it, a meaning. You can look at it and have an idea what the story could be, but you never know you can only make an assumption and to me that is the great thing about a tattoo, it's personal. Just because a tattoo is viewable does not mean that you know what it means to that person, so even though it's not personal and private it's still personal.

But telling a story with words can be even more interesting...It may not even be the story but it has meaning and leading to the story.