I have been interested in tattooing for as long as I can remember. A favorite uncle had a beautiful sunrise tattoo on his bicep and a snake around his wrist, and my grandfather had his initials tattooed on his forearm while in the army as a young man. This was about all I saw of tattooing as a child, but my parents never discouraged my interest in them, they only encouraged me to learn all I could and wait until I was of legal age.
At A Glance Author URIVampire Contact URIVampire@bme.anon When Five years ago Artist Eric Merrill Studio Dark Side Tattoo Location East Haven, CT I saw the design I wanted for my first tattoo when I was fifteen. It was a celtic knot on a necklace with a green stone in the middle, for the patron saint of musicians. I fell in love with the image instantly and the necklace became my "lucky" charm. Well, I wore that necklace nonstop, without ever taking it off, for four years, and the image still held just as much meaning for me as it did the day I bought it. I have always believed that a tattoo should really mean something to the person who gets it and that's why I waited a full extra year longer than I had to (until I was 19)to get my first tattoo.
So...I started researching tattoo studios in CT, I figured, if I was going to have something that meant so much to me put on my body, I had better find the right person for the job. My search led me to DARKSIDE TATTOO in East Haven, CT. Darkside is about an hour from my house, and two friends were going with me. They both whined and complained because we had to drive so far and wanted me to go somewhere closer to home. They also had heard that Darkside was on the pricey side, five years later...they both bargain shopped and have botched tattoos. Not I!!! When I went there, I was content to have anyone do the tattoo because I was confident in all of their ability, and the owner told me that ERIC MERRILL would be doing my tattoo.
After waiting for Eric to finish the tattoo he was working on, he drew up my design from the necklace, made the stencil and told me all about the aftercare, etc... I was really nervous and scared about the pain, but Eric gave me the best piece of advice anyone could have...it's going to hurt, but it's definitely worth it. He told me that I would be a stronger person for having gone through with it and that nothing could compare with the new pride I would feel.
That sealed the deal, I was completely confident in Eric, and I must admit that I then had a little crush on him too! I wanted the tattoo between my shoulder blades, and really small...only about 1 1/2 inches square. Eric convinced me to get it about twice that size and a little higher up. He brought out individual ink cups so that the ink wasn't coming from a community container, new packaged needles, etc...
He cleaned off the area and applied the stencil, which he had me check in a few different mirrors (just to be sure). The placement was perfect. I should add that DARKSIDE is very clean and that Eric went through more glove changes than I thought humanly possible at the time.
When I first heard the hummmm of the tattoo machine all I could think of was a dentist's drill and in my head...that's how this tattoo was going to feel, however, to my surprise...there was very little pain at all! It felt similar to having a needle dragged across the skin...not bad at all! I wondered what all the fuss was about and was glad that Eric had given me the courage to go through with it. I was pretty embarrassed that I got so scared about it too!
The whole tattoo only took about 30 minutes and came out incredible! Eric bandaged it up, went over the aftercare again and sent me on my way. Ever since, I have been talking up DARKSIDE TATTOO and ERIC MERRILL (who by the way, I still have a little crush on!) who is now at his own studio HOPE GALLERY, where I got my next tattoo.
For aftercare, I used A&D ointment for the first few days and then just some unscented/no lanolin/sensitive skin lotion. It healed in about a week and looks as good now as the day I got it. It's been almost five years since I got my tattoo, nine since I saw the original design, and I still love it, so I know I made the right decision. I will have my good luck charm with me forever, so I was able to give the necklace to someone who needed it!
Thanks for reading!
URIVampire