If you have ever considered getting a tattoo, you should probably listen to advice from professionals before getting too far ahead of yourself. There are the age old cliche warnings like, “That will be on your body for the rest of your life!” or “Would you want your future employer to see that?”
There are, however some things that your tattoo artists want you to consider before you make the decision to get inked.
Redemption Tattoo studio manager Jordyn Dorrough is not a tattoo artist but has been in the industry for about six years. In all her years of experience, she has gathered a few pieces of advice for any college student who is looking to get a tattoo.
Dorrough says the studio probably sees about ten college students a week, and only about half of them put real thought into what they want on their bodies.
“It’s a lot of, 'Oh I want something small and dainty,’” Dorrough said. “They don’t really want the commitment of a tattoo, but they want the aesthetic.”
Being the manager, Jordyn deals with all the clients in terms of setting up their appointments, figuring out what they want and if the artists would be able to do it. She advises everyone who wants something small to think about sizing up to help make the tattoo last longer.
“A lot of those Pinterest tattoos are not actually tattoos,” Jordyn said. “Day one, [the tattoo] will probably look great, and year one they’ll look okay, but being young college kids, you have the rest of your life for that tattoo to settle in your skin.”
Researching your options plays a huge role in getting your tattoo. Not all artists are the same and you should never assume they can recreate an Instagram tattoo that you thought looked cool. Jordyn mentioned that clients should always look at the portfolio of an artist before booking with them and finding reviews.
“Not all tattoo artists are the same,” Jordyn said. “They will take your money, and they will give you a tattoo that you’re not happy with. If you’re not happy with it, don’t be scared to say something. Your artist is there to work with you, not against you.”
Freshmen Jaidan Bergeron and Emma Ostrander both got matching tattoos within a few weeks of the school year. They each already had tattoos, but after a few weeks of being roommates, they decided to get lip tattoos of their Plunkett Hall room number, 217.
“It started as a joke,” Bergeron said.
“One Sunday, we decided we wanted to take a break from homework, so we looked up the closest tattoo shop that was open and went,” Ostrander said.
Though this one was a little spur of the moment, they each have tattoos that hold a lot of sentiment to them. They both agreed that you should get something that means a lot to you and take a while to think about it.
“If it’s your first one, don’t get something stupid like ‘217,'” Ostrander said. “My tattoos started off by being directly meaningful, but now I’ll get something because I like it, and I find meaning in the after.”
With all that being said, it's important to take your time to do your research. Go forth and get tatted!
