Our blog content manager Rosie shares her thoughts on tattoo placement and explores the niggling voice in the back of her head, asking the question- why didn’t I put that tattoo somewhere else?
When I first started getting tattooed I never thought I would ever be covered in tattoos, or have as many as I do now (still not enough!). At the time I had only really seen people with a few pieces dotted around their bodies, my auntie had a Winnie the Pooh tattoo, and I hadn’t met anyone who collected different work from numerous artists.
This post isn’t about tattoo regret or any kind of unhappiness connected to a tattoo. It is just a post to share a thought that I’m sure many readers have- why didn’t I get that design tattooed on another part of my body?!
While I was a uni I started to get tattooed, I had always liked them and with my new found freedom I began to decorate my body. Like many tattoo virgins, I never thought they would suit me – how wrong I was!
I absolutely love the watercolour style magpies, that I have on my left shoulder, done by the lovely Jessi James, while she worked in Plymouth. I love the colours, the fact that there are two for joy and the delicate blossoms. I also love them because now that she has specialised in dot work/ black work, and rarely does colour tattoos, they are almost like a limited edition piece of art. Even more beautiful and special to me.
I wouldn’t change them in any way, but I would change where they are. They take up a good part of my back, stretching towards my spine. I only wish that I had chosen to put them somewhere else. That I had left my back empty. I have a niggling feeling that Jessi may have talked to me about the placement and even said all that I am saying now! The back is such a prime piece of tattoo real estate, a huge expanse of skin open to an all encompassing design.
I think they were my third or fourth tattoo. At that time I had no plans for my body and no ideas for future tattoos. I didn’t have Instagram so didn’t follow the some 600 tattooists that I do now from all over the world. I didn’t have a tattoo artist wish list and I didn’t spend all my time thinking of subjects and things that I want to get tattooed.
However I have seen lots of people with many smaller pieces on their backs and an artists even created a version of the design I am thinking about around an existing tattoo. I don’t want to cover up my birds, I just wish there was a way of moving them to free up my back for a bigger design.
Have you had the same placement doubts as Rosie? Do you wish you could move your tattoos around?
