Finger Tattoos: Worth vs. Cost

 Lately it has been more and more trendy to get finger tattoos. People have been becoming less shy about tattooing almost every part of their bodies and that is including the fingers. Whether it's something small and hidden on the sides, or a band instead of wearing a ring, there are a bunch of ways to make your style with a finger tattoo. But it is important to look at all the pros and cons with finger tattoos. 

In the most practical sense finger tattoos may not be the best idea if you are aiming for longevity. Your hands are constantly being used in everyday life, exposed to sun and water and other elements that can affect the healing of your tattoo. Tattoos on your fingers can be the most difficult to maintain. Finger tattoos don't usually hold ink as well as other spots which can make them fade faster or need to get them redone or touched up frequently. 

Another thing to consider is the time length of healing. Due to the fact that you are using your hands and fingers daily it can take a long time to heal a finger tattoo. It can be hard to place a bandage over and around your finger to let it heal fast and that can be hard to avoid soap and products coming in contact with it delaying a healing time. 

It's common knowledge that fingers are small. Hence finger tattoos will be small. This can be limiting in the design of tattoo that you are wanting. It is hard to fit a lot of detail into a small space. Finger tattoos can often also be at risk for blow outs or blurred ink. With the skin on your fingers being so thin the needle can accidentally go too deep and cause lines to become blurred as the ink spreads too much. 

One last thing to consider is that while tattoos are becoming more common place and more largely accepted it is not always a guarantee that potential work places will accept them. It may be a better idea to place a tattoo in an area that is not as visible or can be easily hidden. Unless you are going to be wearing gloves it can be hard to hide a finger tattoo.

All in all finger tattoos can be a fun trendy type of tattoo to get done. Keep in mind that even though it seems little and easy, one should definitely consider all the pros and cons to getting a finger tattoo. 

Tattoos and Pain

 

Getting a tattoo involves a machine piercing your skin with tiny needles hundreds of thousands of times in a single session. That is going to involve a level of pain. For some the pain is minimal. For others it could be a lot worse. 

Some of those more generally agreed upon painful spots include:

The head: This is generally agreed to be one of the most sensitive spots to tattoo.

The Ribcage and Chest: The skin is typically thinner and immediately over bones that can cause some pain.

The stomach: This area can be painful because the skin is highly elastic and stretches easily. This spot has been said to be very painful to some, and very mild to others. 

Nipples and Breasts: There are lots of nerve endings that can cause some serious discomfort.

Hands, Feet, Fingers, and Toes: The skin is relatively thin and there are various nerve endings that can cause pain. 

Neck and Spine: In the neck the movement of the needle might stimulate nerves on the back and sides causing pain. And the spine is not as padded with muscle or fat with numerous nerves. 

Armpits: This is a spot that most tattoo artists warn is a very painful spot. The axillary nerve travels through the armpit and this nerve can be very painful to get tattooed on or around. 

While these areas have been said to be painful it is hard to judge personally how painful the tattoo will be. Getting a tattoo will always involve a level of pain and because everyone has different levels of  thresholds it is hard to claim one spot is more painful than another. 

It is very important to keep in mind that even if the area might be more sensitive than others it is up to you individually to manage that pain. You are in control of your body and mindset. If you go into a tattoo and psych yourself out imagining loads of pain it is very likely that your tattoo experience will be unpleasant. The saying "Mind Over Matter" truly does apply when it comes to managing your expectations of pain and the experience that you will have. The more you focus on the pain, the more uncomfortable you will be during the appointment. Keeping yourself calm and focused on something else will help in the duration of the tattoo. If you can distract yourself with music or watching something on your phone that can help with pain management. If it is acceptable you might bring a friend to talk to and distract you. If you can find a way to distract from the needles piercing your skin you will find the entire experience much more enjoyable. 

At the end of the day tattoos hurt and it is all up to your individual mindset that you bring in to the appointment. If you can make it through then you can end up with some incredible art displayed on your body. 

The Importance of a Follow-up Appointment

  Some of the common questions we get here at Lucky Bamboo Tattoo when scheduling is what the follow up appointment is and why is it a recommended appointment. A follow-up appointment is an appointment that follows the initial tattoo. It is typically scheduled 2-3 weeks after the tattoo so that the artist can go back over and finalize any details or touchups that are necessary. 

Something to remember is that the human skin is the largest organ of the human body. It grows, moves, stretches, and can heal differently compared to someone else due to a large amount of factors. Once you get a tattoo you want to make sure that you let it heal correctly. One of the biggest factors in healing is your lifestyle. What you eat or drink, if you exercise or not, your sleep habits. All of those things can factor into how your tattoo will turn out. 

Details can take a good tattoo to an extraordinary tattoo very quickly. Some extra definition or a few more spots of color can keep a tattoo from looking flat or washed out.  A good tattoo should have full saturation of blacks, color and shading. There shouldn't be gaps or blotches. The lines of a tattoo should be crisp, straight and consistent throughout the tattoo. Immediately finishing a tattoo the skin is going to be tender, red, and potentially swollen. It can be difficult to make sure that all of the little details were added or if more is needed. The way to see any of those deficiencies is waiting until the tattoo has healed. 

This is why the follow-up appointment is important. Once the tattoo has healed the artist can then clearly see if there is anything that needs to be tweaked  or added to take your tattoo from good to great! A follow up appointment may not seem like it is the most important thing after your tattoo is finished and you might feel like you have a great tattoo. But it is highly recommended so that the artist can truly make it fantastic with a little bit of extra detail and time! 

Why A Deposit is Required

 

It shouldn't come as any surprise when you are ready to schedule your tattoo appointment that you will be required to place a deposit. A deposit is a way to financially ensure that you are committing to your appointment. Without some sort of monetary protection the tattoo artist and the shop would be losing significant amounts of money due to cancellations without any repercussions. Deposits allow a tattoo studio to run more efficiently even when there are unforeseen cancellations or reschedules. 

Different tattoo shops can have different polices in place when scheduling an appointment. Most places require a deposit of some form when scheduling. Lucky Bamboo requires a deposit in the amount of the first or longest appointment at the time of scheduling. This may seem daunting when you are scheduling a full day of tattooing but overall the amount you are putting down initially may not even cover the full amount of time and effort that was put into preparing your tattoo.

Something to remember is that tattoo artists are not paid hourly or based on a salary. They get paid when they tattoo. When you schedule your tattoo, the tattoo artist is expecting you to show up. If you don't, for whatever reason, they may not get paid if they cannot fill your allotted time with another client. This is the reason for the deposit. You are paying for an artists time and effort to tattoo you. 

The deposit for a tattoo is no different than putting a deposit down for work done around your house, buying a car, or making a doctors appointment. You are putting money down for a service. It may seem different because a tattoo is not a necessary or required service but it is a service nonetheless. You wouldn't want to go into work and not get paid for the work you do and the same goes for a tattoo artist. 

When planning your tattoo be prepared to pay for your artists time and work. If you have concerns before scheduling be sure to ask and have a clear understanding of what the deposit policy is before you schedule your tattoo. 

Glow in the Dark and UV Tattoos

 

Lately it has been trendy to want glow in the dark tattoos. You see all the photos online and think that a glow in the dark tattoo is the tattoo you want. This is a style that became popular in the 90's and people are still interested in it today. There are some serious considerations that you need to take if you think this is the type of tattoo that you want. 

Glow in the dark, or UV tattoos are made with bright fluorescent colors that can be difficult to see in daylight. But truth be told these types of tattoos do not truly glow in the dark. Most require a blacklight in order to get the effect of glowing. One of the questions you need to ask yourself is if you will under a black light enough to have it be worth it to get this kind of tattoo. If you don't plan on carrying a black light in your back pocket you might want to reconsider this as a tattoo as the ink is usually not as visible under normal light. 

Other considerations are the safety of UV ink. When this style first became popular some tattooers were using ink solutions that contained phosphorous. Phosphorous in some forms is toxic and the side effects can be many including blistering, burning sensations, and painful skin rashes. This technique of using ink solutions was deemed dangers and since then there has been a change in inks that can still create that glow that reacts to UV light. It has to be noted that the FDA has not approved the use of phosphorous based inks or the use of UV ink being safe for humans. There have been no reliable studies done to fully conclude on the safety for tattooing humans. 

While there has been a change to non phosphorous inks and the risks associated are low, it is still extremely important to do your research and find a reliable tattooer that can do this type of tattoo safely. As mentioned before The FDA does not regulate tattoo inks so there is always a possibility of artists still using unsafe inks. Furthermore not every tattooer wants to create glow in the dark tattoos because they feel the risks are too high to create a safe tattoo. Here at Lucky Bamboo we do not offer that type of tattoo because we have not found a safe ink to use and do not want to take that chance. If you do find a reliable shop that offers that type of tattoo, make sure to ask if the ink that they are using is safe.

Overall this trend of glow in the dark or UV tattoos seems fun, but the risks might not be worth it.