Getting the tattoo
The photos are in reverse order. The bottom ones are at the beginning, with the stencil.

On November 8th I got the tattoo. It's been so busy since then that I haven't had a minute to tell you about it.

Trevor, the tattoo artist, copied the photo of the parrot that I had given him into a "realistic" style instead of traditional tattoo style. I'm glad.

I had to sign a paper that said things such as I am in good health, have no diseases, that I will not hold the studio or the artist responsible for any problems that might arise. It also says that if I misbehave at the studio that they can throw me out!

I've attached a couple photos of how he did the work. Unfortunately these aren't particularly perfect shots because I didn't want to disturb him; plus, since the tattoo was going onto my left hand, I was holding the camera with my right hand. Don't be concerned about the red stains on the paper towel in one of the photos. That's mainly the red ink when he wipes away the excess from where he's been working.

You can see the photo that shows the culmination of Trevor's handiwork. And a photo of the artist. I was thrilled with his work!

It took a little over an hour from sign-in to payment time. At its widest point the parrot is only an inch across and about 3-1/2" long.

The area around the tattoo was tender and swollen for a couple of days, decreasing as time passed. The instructions said to gently wash it twice a day (morning and night) with an anti-bacterial non-fragrance soap. Trevor mentioned Dial. And three times a day put a moisturizer on it. He mentioned Curel. The instructions say not to put the tattoo in a body of water, such as a tub, bowl, sink, pool, or the ocean. Also, one shouldn't let the "pounding" of a shower or other water source hit it directly.

If he said it once, he said it 1/2 a dozen times: Let the scab come off by itself. Pulling at it prematurely, he said, will cause it to take longer to heal, and may interfere with the design. My scab came off by last week. My daughter said that hers came off pretty quickly, in tiny, little pieces, like flakes. She thinks it was because her tattoos are where clothing rests and that putting a blouse on and off caused the pieces to come off.

It will be 4 weeks this Wednesday since I had it done and it is beautiful. I love it!