Conference turris::womannotes-v3

Tattooing is illegal is Massachusetts.  D!-the-moderator says: if you do
know of tatooists in MA, please keep recommendations to mail.

D!-the-noter says: way cool, if you find any, let me know!! :-)  There are
a lot of good ones in NYC if you are willing to travel.  I would - after
all, a tatoo is forever (as you have discovered the hard way) and it is
worth time and money to have it done right the first (or in this case, the
second) time.

D!

I've seen a tatoo place just over the NH border on Rte 38 in Pelham.  Don't 
know any more than that.

Ron

    And on that note who in here has tatoos, what are they of and
    where are the body are they?
    
    Gads, but I'm nosy!  ;^)
    
    
    
                                  L.J.

    Huh? Illegal? I'm not tattoo fan, but why is it illegal?
    
    manisha

    try "Gaunlet" in San Francisco
    
    \D/

Daniel, I don't think the Gauntlet does Tattooing - they do piercing 
primarily, as far as I know.  Nearby Body Manipulations does scarring and
branding, too, but I think you have to go to a bona fide tatooist for
tattoos.

Anyway, there is no dearth of great tattooists out west. The trick is
finding one around here.

D!

    In Seabrook, I frequently ride south on 1A, east on 286 and north on Rt
    1 and somewhere I pass a tattooer [some word!], I think it's on 1A but
    I couldn't swear to that.
    
    ed

    Huh? Illegal? I'm not tattoo fan, but why is it illegal?

You want me to defend what I consider a stupid law???

I think it is because of health regulations - tattooing *can* be
dangerous if not done hygenically.  Of course, the obvious solution
would be to regulate, rather than illegalize, tattoo parlors, but
that would make too much sense...

D!

    
    I just re-read my last attempt at this note...ugh.  Let me try again...
    
    I also have a little green heart on my left shoulder blade.  I'm going
    to keep that and just have my cross covered now.
    
    Eventually, I'd like to get an anklet, bracelet and possibly a "belt"
    done around my hips.  Tattoo's just do it for me.  I'd like to have
    something done on my back and possibly my whole torso, but I think I'd
    like to get something that will all blend together like maybe fairies,
    nymphs, trolls and wizzards in a garden or something like that.  I'm
    really not sure yet.  I know that I don't want my face or hands done. 
    I have experienced some prejudices from people who don't understand or
    think that tattoos are only for druggies, hoods, etc. 
    
    I once went on a double date with a couple and the woman also had a tattoo. 
    The guy (jerk) sat right there next to her and said that he would
    **never** marry a woman that had tattoos cuz he thought they were
    cheap.  Needless to say, I nearly lost it and she found another ride
    home.  Der, how shallow can you be?
    
    I think of it like some women really feel feminine in silk
    undergarments & I think tattoos are very feminine. If you have them
    in a place that only you and people very close to you can experience
    them, then it's just as sexy.
    
    Donna

    ah, hell's bells...you're right, D!
    
    rack up a goof on me...

    There's a great place in Newport, RI called Tattoos by Ruby.
    
    Several friends, including myself, have had their tats done there.
    
    I highly recommend this place.
    
    Sheri

    I HATE tattoo's ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
    
    I have one that I will live regret the rest of my
    life..................  My friend told me not to get it there
    (my boob) but i was to drunk to listen.  The next day when
    i discovered what I had done I tried to scrub it off but It
    did not come off..........thank god it is small and one color
    it is blackk playboy bunny.............how cheap and tacky can
    you get..................
    
    
    oh the lessons in life we have to learn the hard way.........
    
    RLE

    
    I have a blue/white/gold phoenix on my right shoulder blade.  The
    tattoo artist was Chris at Jim's in Seabrook on Rt1.  The woman Donna
    is looking for is also at Jim's (although I can't recall her name). 
    She did some exquisite work for my friend Jennifer (who I spoke of in
    another note - the woman who is doing the Living Tarot) - a vine of ivy
    and flowers coiling up her right leg, and an elegant, delicate
    dragonfly (the artist's specialty) on her left upper arm.  There is
    also an artist at Jim's that specializes in Celtic knotwork -
    bracelets, anklets, etc.
    
    Each customer gets:
    
    			1) New needles
    			2) New inks (disease can be transmitted through
    			   contaminated ink as well as contaminated
    			   needles!)
    			3) Autoclaved tattoo guns
    
    All artists wear surgical gloves.  While all the artists will do the
    "standard stuff", they are lots happier if they can design original
    work for you.  Prices are reasonable - about $70 for a 4" square area.
    
    
    						/Rita
    

    
    A good friend of mine got a tatoo that she loves back in November.  The
    experience was positive for several reasons:  1) the place is very
    clean and relaxed and everyone definately gets their own needles.  2)
    The tatooist is definately an original artist - so you may pay more,
    but you get your own beautiful creation.  3) She says to make sure and
    check out the selection of bright, vegetable dyes.
    
    Here's the info on where:
    
    The artist is Tony Marchese and the name of the parlor is Tattoo Fantasy.
    The phone number is (914) 236-3451, appointments (with deposits of $25) are
    necessary for the weekdays, weekends are walk-in service (at least that is 
    the way it was in November).  The address is: 1320 Rt 9W
						  PO BOX 60
						  Marlboro, NY 12524-0060
    Marlboro is close to Newburgh, NY.
    
    

I've been toying with the idea of getting one...but can someone first
tell me how much it hurts (is it similar to an electrolysis treatment?).
That I could take.   And, how long does the process take, for say, a very
small tattoo (1.5" by 1.5")??   Thanks.

    My tatoo is on my upper left thigh---a bathing suit shows it, but
    not shorts.
    
    It's the male/female sign linked in their cirlces.  You know, the
    circle with the + or arrow attached to it.  Like Jovan Musk perfume
    bottles.
    
    I like it and am seriously considering getting another on my tummy
    above my right hipbone.  I have a dagger scar there and I think it'd
    be neat to have a small dagger incorporated into it.  Does anyone
    know if they can tatoo scar tissue.  It's not too thick.
    
    My male/female sign is only 1"---about the length I'd want my dagger.
    
    
    
                                  L.J.
    
    p.s. No snide remarks on only 1" daggers! ;^)

    It does hurt---quite a bit.  I suggest you go to the parlor and
    decide what you want, show the artist, pay for it, and tell the
    person you'll be back in a few hours.
    
    Then go get either drunk, or take some vikadin or something so
    that you won't feel it too much or won't care.
    
    Have a friend bring you back and you'll wake up with a new tattoo
    and a hangover---only one of which will go away.
    
    Mine was small, but it hurt the whole 5 minutes to have it done.
    Felt like he was hitting the same spot over and over again when it
    was obvious he wasn't.
    
    And pay attention to take care of it afterwards.  Do what the artist
    tells you to to keep it clean.
    
    Good luck and choose well.
    
    
                                     L.J.

    
    >Then go get either drunk, or take some vikadin or something so
    >that you won't feel it too much or won't care.
    
    Not a good idea.  I'm not sure about the painkillers, but alcohol
    in the bloodstream will cause you to bleed MUCH more.  Jim's will
    not tattoo anyone who has been drinking/drugging - you'll be asked
    to come back some other time.  
    
    RE: Pain.  Yup, it hurts.  It feels alot like bee stings - over and
    over again.  The outlines, any blackwork, and any part over bone
    hurts most, along with anything on the face, insides of wrists and
    insides of elbows.  Tattoos done on relatively fleshy parts of the 
    the body - breasts, buttocks, thighs, abdomen, upper arm - hurt
    somewhat less.
    
    My 4"x4" took about an hour and 15 minutes.  Time depends both on
    the seize and the complexity of the design.
    
    I didn't mind the pain when it was being done.  I HATED the itch
    as it was healing - and scratching will damage the ink.
    
    						/Rita
    

    I didn't know that about alcohol.  I was sober for mine.  
    
    And I HATED the itchies!
    
    
    
                                    L.J.

    ooh!  My favorite subject 8-).
    
    I have... a few tattoos %-)... my upper arms and back are covered
    now.  My work in progress is a traditional Japanese dragon,
    single needle, fine line all in black that covers my back
    and wraps around my waist.  So far I have about 60 hours of 
    work on me 8-).  
    
    My best friend is a tattooist and has become quite famous,
    I am so happy for him!  Look for him in the Sept issue
    of Vogue, they interviewed him last month.  He is teaching
    me to tattoo now.. if you'd like to make an appointment %-).
    
    with love,
    cheyenne              
    

    re:.20  
    
       What?  No lab rats...uh...I mean volunteers?  ;^)
    
    
    
                                  L.J.

Mine is a 4 color butterfly on my hip. I just bought a one piece bathing suit
with high cut legs and I can make it show. It hasn't seen the light of day
since hip huggers went out of style. Course, the suit is so high I'm not sure
I'll have the nerve to wear it! ;*)

Yup, it hurts. The black hurts worst. The itch is major. I still think about
getting another though. liesl

    Most tattoo places I know of won't work on you if you are drunk or
    high.
    
    Mine is a long-stemmed red rose on my left shoulder blade. If I
    remember correctly, the black outline hurt the most. The whole tattoo
    took about 1.5 hours. Sure, there was some pain, but it wasn't
    unbearable. I'd rather get a tattoo than go to the dentist!
    
    Sheri

    itching??? *PAIN*????
    
    naw, I think I'll just stick with ear piercings ;-) (I have two so
    far...a lobe and an upper ear...will probably get a third in the fall)
    
    daniel

    There is a tatto parlor in Nashua, NHm, on Canal Street.  I know
    nothing more about the place than that it's been in business for a
    goodly number of years.
    
    -d

    Re: .12 and anyone else who wishes not to have a tattoo.
    
    There is now a recognized medical procedure for removing tattoos.  It
    involves the use of a red laser, and I would imagine that it is not at
    all cheap.  Nominally, Digital's health insurance will not pay for it
    because it is considered a cosmetic procedure.
    
    -d

    Question: after getting a tattoo, is part of the healing process
    running around saying things like "Boss! Boss! Da plane! Da plane!"?

    Paul, you did *not* have to ask.  Your choice to ask was not forced
    upon you; nor, in fact, was it even encouraged by anything I've seen in
    this string.
    
    It was, however...
    
    ...lovely.
    
    -d

    The Nashua phone book lists places in Laconia, Old Orchard Beach,
    Nashua (Canal St), Seabrook (Rt 286, must be the one I've seen so
    often -- never see their Nashua branch, though I go right by it
    weekly), Derry and Portsmouth.
    
    Send mail if you want a phone no.
    
    ed

When I was in the Navy many long years ago in Norfolk, Va., I wanted to get
tattooed. There were lots of tattoo parlors around, and lots of tattooed 
sailors. (Some of the old timers were literally covered with tattoos, including 
some on the more sensitive areas of their anatomy. How they could stand the
tattooing on those areas I never did understand.)

So one night I went out with a buddy, had several drinks, and headed for the
friendly neighborhood tatto parlor. When we got there there was a sign on the 
wall which said, "If you have to get drunk to get tattooed, don't get tattoed." 
The artist would not tattoo me. I never went back. 

Bruce

    Over the Body Modifications shop is a window with TATTOO painted on it,
    so Haight & Fillmore can indeed be your one-stop shopping paradise.
    
    I've heard that Nashua NH is the tattoo capital of the USA, though. 
    
    Don't have any copies with me, but one of the tattoo magazines or the
    RE/Search book should have lots of ink-dipped pointers.
    
    Ray (still unaltered except for scars and nailbiting)

    I can't even bring myself to get my ears pierced, because
    I'm such a coward! :-)
    
    But, once, I did have someone who could draw use ink pens
    and put a flower on my arm when we were in high school...
    
    HRH

    I knew someone in Mass. who went to a tattoo parlor in Newport, R.I.,
    and I could swear it was run by a woman - Rosie, or something like
    that?
    
    Anyway, this woman is supposed to be one of the best around. Maybe do
    some research in the Newport area...
    
    Dawn-who-is-still-fascinated-by-the-idea-but-doesn't-have-the-tubes�
    
    � tubes - female equivalent of b*lls
    

    Re: .33
    
    	And all this time I thought it was "eggs"!
    
    ;-}
    Richard

    Saw one yesterday in Fremont, NH, on 11A near Brentwood "Tattoos by Friar."
    The name on the mailbox is "Tuck."  [:-)] Apparently works at home.
    
    ed