Giving myself a tattoo

Where to start?

- yeah, cool idea, but do you want a "gag" tattoo on the palm of your hand for the REST OF YOUR LIFE?

- in too obvious a spot; believe it or not, some day, you may have/want a respectable job, and explaining the cross on your paw...well, let's just say ANOTHER reason it's not a good idea.

- um, are you sure you can tat a cross yourself? Maybe you can, maybe you can't, but if you can't, your stuck with the mistake for quite a while

I have no problem with tats; if you want one, get one, but I'd recommend start with a PROFESSIONAL and get it somewhere easily concealable for 2 reasons: 1)no freaked out parents; 2)if you decide in a week or two it was a bad idea, no one needs to know about it

Well, it's cool that you put some thought into your tattoo...but you might want to reconsider it. Especially if you're doing it yourself. I've seen way too many shitty tattoos by people who thought they could do their own- if you're gonna go for it, you might as well go get it done by someone who knows what they're doing.

It is my opinion that any permanent body modification should be done by, or at least under the supervision of, a professional. Take a day or two to consider this, as generally speaking, doing anything drastic on a whim is a bad idea. And just so you know, I am speaking from experience as I pierced my own nose as a youth. I ended up having to have it redone later by a professional as there are proper ways of doing such things to minimize scarring, infection and the risk of nerve damage. Let us know how it turns out.

Man, all my scars, pain, and bodily holes came from ACCIDENTS.

You kids these days, I tell ya....

I am contemplating piercing my nose and/or lip and/or getting a tattoo.

Not giving them to myself, though.

Just to let you know dude, getting a tattoo isn't considered different anymore....everyone and their mother has one.

To paraphrase Dave Wyndorf from Monster Magnet - "People get all these tattoos and piercings to be an 'individual' and it pretty much results in them looking like every other fuck with a tattoo or nose ring." (note: not my personal opinion, but an interesting point)

Do what you gotta, but remember that body altering is a hoppin' trend right now. Individuality is getting harder to come by.

Hey actually if you really want to be different, you might want to look into that tounge splitting thing- there's only a few hundred people who have that, I think...

Well, so far at least.

He could always go for an "Angry Inch" operation (see Hedwig and the Angry Inch if you need an explanation)

If that's anything like being "sodomized" I wouldn't want it to happen for 15 years, either.

I have given myself about 15 tattoos or so, but here's the thing: I learned from professionals. Don't EVER go out and do the india ink/needle thing. It doesn't make you look cool, tough, or like an individual. You look like a schmuck with a crappy tattoo. I have had to cover up several crappy tattoos done by guys in their bedrooms and it's not cool. The guy is sitting there saying "Yeah, I was drunk and..." or, "I had a cool idea...", or even worse try to explain to you the deep meaning behind the lopsided mushroom man smoking a joint on their upper arm. It gains you absolutely no cred or respect from the professional who has to cover up your shit work someday, or the laser professional who you pay thousands of dollars to remove your "whim". And get a tattoo because you love it, not because you think it's "cool", "neat", or even worse "funny".

If you are serious about learning to tattoo, start hanging around shops, ask questions, and do research. I suggest the book
Tattooing A to Z
A Guide To Successful Tattooing
2nd Edition available <a href="http://www.spaulding-rogers.com" target="_blank">here</a> . I read it before I ever picked up a tattoo machine.

Oh, and on the piercing thing- Proper piercing needles are hollow, actually removing a 'plug' of tissue, rather than ramming a hole into it. This helps prevent tearing and is less likely to scar badly. Another reason these things are best left to people who know what they're doing.

Just a few words of advice.

straight to the point, you wanna be different? you'll never be different, do whatever the fuck you want, i'm sure mom and pops preppy private school will gladly pay to cover up your "mistakes" so go nuts, 'cause shouldn't every day be fucking christmas? just drive it like you stole it kid...

Giving yourself a tatoo is a BAD idea.