February 01, 2010

weekended! or, I HAZ A TATTOOO!

so my friends came this weekend! we tromped through the absolutely miserable blizzardy storm on saturday to see eastern market, went to the newseum, stopped for tea, then had more (wonderful!) food at indique. we went skating on sunday then gorged ourselves on (omg delicious) cupcakes.

and then they had to go back to nyc. and so i went and got a tattoo.

i've been wanting a tattoo since i was about 18, but never went for it because i couldn't think of anything that i wanted permanently imprinted on my body forever. and ever. and EVER and omg maybe i just shouldn't get a tattoo? ok.

but then last year i realized i had been having that conversation with myself for a full decade. and i STILL wanted a tattoo. after ten years of *wishing* i had a tattoo, i was pretttty sure i wasn't going to regret the decision if i went ahead and got one; i just had to bite the bullet and come up with something i liked.

i started sketching designs shortly after that. i was pretty sure i wanted some sort of celtic knot, and maybe another icon in the center of it that had personal meaning to me? one of the symbols i considered for the middle of the knot was a fleur de lis, since i've spent time in france - 10 weeks living with a family when i was in highschool, and a full year at a french university for my junior year of college. i still speak french (although, admittedly, not as well as when i lived there!) and identify strongly as a francophile.

anyway, it became apparent that the fleur de lis didn't look right AT ALL with the knot design, but i was having a hard time discarding it entirely. and then all of a sudden i decided it would look TOTALLY PERFECT on the inside of my left wrist, and i've been completely determined to do it ever since.

(rachel - after our gchat last night, i realized i probably have you to thank for that inspiration! at the time i didn't know why i was all LEFT WRIST IS PERFECT AND WHERE IT MUST BE FULL STOP, but i bet it was from the first time i saw yours at lucky bar and fell in love with it.)


so! i did NOT get this tattoo to honor the new orleans saints' first superbowl appearance, as impressive as that accomplishment is for them, go saints, rah rah rah etc. although i realize it sort of looks that way, what with the timing. but nope! it's to honor the big dorky francophile part of myself, and as a reminder that i want to keep that part of me alive and active. which maybe means more trips back to france to keep my french up, OH DARN.

i'm still planning on the knot tattoo, incidentally. that design is almost done and i'll probably bring it into jinxproof soon for some help in making it purdy. i totally loved them there, by the way - super friendly, made me feel really relaxed about the whole situation (eg First! Tattoo! Eek!), and the place was clean and lovely and my tattoo artist was phenomenal. i didn't have the wee sketch i'd done of the style of fleur de lis i wanted on me, so i looked through a page of fleur de lis designs they had on hand, and i just... didn't like any of them. so i sketched what i wanted right there on some scrap paper, and my dude took the design and made it perfect. like, perfectly symmetrical and awesome.

so: i am now inked. and i LOVE IT SO MUCH. i get these occasional pangs of "OH MY GOD I JUST PUT THAT THERE FOR! EVER! AND! EVER! AM I INSANE??" but they are overshadowed with downright adoration for the tattoo. i literally keep stopping to gaze at my wrist, smitten. i think it was the right choice. :-)

37 comments:

  1. That's so exciting for you! I got my first tattoo at Jinxproof (inside of my hip) and loved it. And I actually got my second one on the inside of my left wrist, up in Adams Morgan. Both places were great, but I will say that AM was cheaper, for just as good (if not better) quality. Just fyi.

    So glad you love it!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's beautiful tattoo. Congratulations. Makes me ponder getting another one. Hmmmm.

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a fun weekend! Georgetown Cupcake - OMG YUM. And major congrats on the tattoo! Awesome choice!!! :) I too need to brush up on my French. It's the strangest thing - I sometimes dream in French. Like fluent, perfect dialogues. Then I wake up and I'm back to piecing it together. Haven't been back to France since 2000 but I am dying to go.

    How did you like the Newseum? I have a friend who works there and have been wanting to go for a while. Would love to know what you thought!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Glad you like it! Very nice!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've been having the same conversation with myself for, I don't know, twelve years? Yours looks amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  6. In college, my brother decided he wanted a tattoo. A friend told him to wait a year. If he still wanted the tattoo, then he wouldn't regret it in the long-term. He did wait that year and eventually got a tattoo.

    I'd say your decade is a bit of overkill... but, good thing you waited a little while. =) Have you thought about putting the celtic knot on the inside of your other wrist? Might be very complimentary!

    ReplyDelete
  7. 1) I love it! (but I already told you that)

    2) My wrist tattoo is on my left wrist also! :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I love the fleur de lis!

    ReplyDelete
  9. It looks great! I'm so glad you love it so much.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You know my thoughts on this...LOVE IT!!!

    And you took them to the Newseum! There really wasn't much to do this Saturday was there? Apparently we are to expect snow this weekend. WTF weather??

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think it looks great!

    I have been wanting one for a long time as well, I just can't settle on a place or design... So I keep waiting.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Congratulations! Be warned... once you get one, it's very easy to become addicted... :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. it turned out beautifully! i have one on my left wrist too, and i love it -- since it's small, it will be super easy to cover up in "professional" situations too.

    ReplyDelete
  14. LOVE IT!!!! and of course, left wrist is the best place! tattoos FTW!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Very classy! I love it.

    ReplyDelete
  16. félicitations ! j'aime ton tatouage, très fabuleux

    ReplyDelete
  17. In the words of Mac, TOTALLY and COMPLETELY BAD ASS.

    Loves it!

    ReplyDelete
  18. That looks like a hurty place to get a tat.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Ooo, I love the tattoo! It is a sweet and sexy little surprise under your sleeve!

    ReplyDelete
  20. CONGRATS! New ink is the best ink. Enjoy. M<3

    ReplyDelete
  21. Looks awesome! And, to make it even betterer, YOU designed it!!! That always makes it feel so much more specialer, I think.
    Makes me want more :D

    ReplyDelete
  22. I also have a tattoo on the inside of my left wrist. I got it 2 years ago and I still love it. usually it's hidden under my watch or by long sleeves. honestly, i kind of forget it's there but every time I see my tattoo it makes me happy!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Oh wow. That spot HAD TO HURT!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Ha! I love this tat. And of course I love the location. I need to get mine touched up, perhaps JinxProof is the place to go. Although I'm afraid that once I go in for a touch up, I'll want to get another piece entirely. So happy that I gave you that inspiration for the location. It's really a great spot.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Excellent tat! I love it!

    You a very cool lady!

    ReplyDelete
  26. That looks great! And makes me want another tattoo.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Really, really like it. Feeling a bit inspired, too; like it's time to finally jump onto this bandwagon.

    ReplyDelete
  28. OMG! as a saints fan & former lousiana resident, i LOVE your tatoo! i say let me learn french so we can speak to each other and practice :)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Hey there, just found your blog through RE's. I have to say, I LOVE your tattoo. I'd never been attracted to tattoos at all until a few years ago I went on a cruise and got an airbrushed one of a fairy on my left ankle. I got off the boat with the idea of getting the real thing inked and a week later went and did it. Four years later, I still love my fairy! And I like the fact that I can show it off/cover it when I want to. I've had a dormant idea of getting a second one (and coincidentally, the wrist is one of my first options) but I haven't found anything that I totally drool over and just. must. have.

    Now you've made me start thinking about tattoos! :P

    ReplyDelete
  30. It looks awesome! I think this is the year for my tattoo as well. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  31. Nice tatoo! is that the cupcake place that has a line around the block to get into? Are they lacing the cupcakes with crack or something?

    ReplyDelete
  32. Why don't you get a better placed tattoo? It is hard to admire one that is on your wrist.

    Why don't you ever put pics of your male friends. You have some that admire you from afar.

    Hope the snow is not too much.

    Russ

    ReplyDelete
  33. i LOVE IT.

    i have one there too - we have excellent taste.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Very cool. I spent a semester in Scotland, and lots of people got thistle tattoos while we were there. (The thistle is the national flower of Scotland, and a prominent symbol everywhere there.) At the time, I thought there was no way that would be meaningful to me forever, so I didn't get one, but if I had one now, you know, I wouldn't regret it. Cool that you went through with yours.

    ReplyDelete