May 31st, 2011
Great Grey
Last month I had a tattoo appointment to work on the great grey owl on my inner bicep. I was a little nervous because the owl is big- very big! When I first saw the stencil I had to ask Rich if he thought that I could sit through it- he was really encouraging, and I knew that I would be able to make it if I tried hard or gave myself more that one session.
Leigh-Ann came for my moral support (thank goodness!!!) and took some beautiful photos of my appointment.
I have a half hour left on it and then one appointment for the background and touch up in July, and it will be done! This has been a crazy journey, and I’m really excited that the next tattoo update I share with you will be the finished product :)
Thanks to Leigh-Ann for the photos & Rich at Kapala Tattoo for the beautiful work!
I’m finding myself scrolling through your tattoo posts, as I start to really form the idea and outline (mentally) for mine :) How long has this whole process been? I’d like to find an artist and start concepting everything by September… is it realistic to think it’d be done by Christmas, or does that just depend on me and how much I want done at a time? How many total hours have you put in so far? AH!
I started the original shoulder piece in July of last year, and had two appointments for it- one in July and one in September. Then the actual 3/4 sleeve was started in January and I’ve had…four appointments (I think) between January and now, and I have one more in mid-July. I’m at 30 hours of tattoo time so far and have 6-8 left to complete it :)
The timeline is a combination of things- how big your piece is, how hard it is to book appointments with your artist and how far in advance they’re booking, as well as how long you want to sit in each session. You have to do the outline in one sitting, but that’s the only part that has to be done all at one time, so after that there’s flexibility- but you have to wait 3-4 weeks between appointments to heal properly which can contribute to the timeline. I would say just be up front with your artist and they’ll give you a realistic idea of what you’re in for!
Oh, and one more thing: what are you getting, what are you getting, what are you getting??? :)
WOW! you are so brave! i nearly died of pain when i had my tattoo done and it’s SUCH a baby small one compared to that! it looks gorgeous! :)
Ack! The near-armpit… I am wincing just thinking about it. It looks beautiful though! <3
Your tattoo looks great. I can’t wait to see it as a whole. What made me squirm though was seeing the pain in your face. You poor thing. I love how you torture yourself of the love of tattoos.
Oh my god your tattoo is beautiful! And… are those the earrings I sent you??!! So cute!
SO PRETTY! I’m looking for a good artist (in Seattle) to work on my next tattoo. PS I will return your e-mail today I’ve been -laptop :( So sorry!
Aaah, it looks lovely!! :) It’s sooo worth that pain, isn’t it?? he he.
Kyla! The tattoo is gorgeous! I’m excited to see the finished piece! Also, really excited to be sponsoring you this month!!
xo Shannon
I love the owl! I cannot imagine getting a tattoo in that spot on my body – it has to hurt! I’m such a weenie… seriously, I’m a total weenie. My little sister has more tattoos than me… ok, fine. I have none. She has like… five? I think. And more on the way. She teases me endlessly. ;)
Wow, great photos! They really seem to capture how brave you have to be to sit there for one of these sessions. Can’t wait to see the finished product :)
That is one gorgeous tattoo, Kyla! I’m still waiting to get my first tattoo but first I need to decide what it’s going to be!
It looks great! The pain is worth it in the end plus heck yes for owls!
oh myyyy, so beautiful!
I totally feel your pain, the inner arm is the worst! Actually wait, in my opinion the inside of the elbow hurts more… don’t you? gah.
So worth it though, can’t wait to see it once it’s all done! :)
Lovely owl, Kyla! The facial expressions you have in some of your photos are why I haven’t taken the plunge and gotten the tattoo I want yet! Can’t wait to see the finished product :)
It looks SO GOOD! :) Every single one of your tattoo updates make me want to finally get mine.
You’re so brave!! I heard that part of your arm is so painful. In college, people would say that a REAL MAN would have a full arm tattoo that didn’t cut off in the inside. You have a lot of guys beat Kyla!
Ouch! Looks awesome, but dang, that had to hurt! Glad you had someone there for moral support, though!! I think I would pass out from the pain as I have a pretty low pain tolerance. :P
seriously kyla, i’m not a huge tattoo person but yours is absolutely beautiful. i love how intricate it is and cannot wait to see the finished product.
it’s gorgeous. i’ve enjoyed following the process so much. can’t wait to see it complete!
Killer. It looks good!
You are so brave. I could never do that. Ever.
It looks great! Definitely can’t wait to see the final piece :)
This is just so beautiful, you’re the most bad ass.
it’s looking really lovely. i do appreciate the scrunchy face photo. some photos make tattooing look too easy, but this looks about spot on.
It was really funny, Leigh-Ann kept trying to take photos and I had to help her time it so I wasn’t making faces in all of them! :)
wow! this looks amazing!
It’s coming along really nice! It looks like a bit of a painful process, but well worth it.
That’s absolutely stunning! I love seeing the process of it all — sharing the progress of your tatto has even given me some moral support, as I go in to start my most intricate tattoo on Monday ._. eep!
Oh, Kyla! Your tattoo is just stunning. I love that you’ve kept us updated throughout the process. I’m always so in awe of people who have colorful and complicated tattoos…I want to compliment them, but I never know if they’d look at me funny because I’m obviously not tattooed (not where people can see, anyway).
In any case, thanks for sharing! I can’t imagine the inner arm can be a fun place to be tattooed. Yikes!
Yea I think for some people it’s a sensitive thing. One of my friends is young and has a full sleeve but got it when she was 19- I started gushing about tattoos when I met her… only to find out it was done seven years ago after asking a few questions! I can see how that would be annoying after a while lol
It’s beautiful! And what great pictures! You’re so brave – I’m sure that was hard, but the end is in sight! So excited to see it all complete!
It’s beautiful. I look forward to seeing it in all it’s finished glory.
That. Is. BEAUTIFUL.
Gorgeous! You are one tough lady!
I have heard that the underside of the upper arm is really painful to get tattooed. Do you agree? I’ve wanted to get mine there but was dissuaded by the though of it being super painful. I have a tattoo already and know it hurts. . . but what’s your take on it?
I’ve found that being tattooed in general is very uncomfortable, but the worst spots for me have been my elbow, then my collar bone, and then my inner bicep. But they’re all extremely painful to sit through. I’m actually really thankful that my tattoo is so large, because most of my sessions have focused on a range of different areas all over my arm instead of having all the pain focused on one small area.
If there’s something that you want it’s totally worth it- and the only part you have to do in one sitting is the outline. Being tattooed sucks for everyone, so if making a few shorter appointments makes it less of an intimidating experience? Go for it! You can just ask your artist if you can have your outline done and then your shading and colour. :)
The owl looks amazing!! Its such a stunning piece of work.
I hear that the inner arm is one of the most painful spots, along with ribs. You seemed to handle yourself really well! It honestly looks so gorgeous, I bet it feels worth it now that the pain is more or less done :)
Oh man, the third photo of you grimacing is almost like putting me back in the hot seat! That part of the arm hurts SO BAD but its so worth it, look at your beautiful owl! Ahhh I can’t wait to finish mine!
I can’t wait to see yours finished, it’s going to be so beautiful! It’s really unpleasant, but I’m happy that it’s almost done! Going back to another session on Thursday? I can SO do a half hour. :)
it’s so important to have someone there for moral support. when i had my arm done, the inner part was the most painful, so i can only imagine how much it hurt. it looks awesome though! and i really love all of the pink and blue in the branches and flowers surrounding it.
I love love love your tattoo updates. I want more so bad. Can’t wait to see the finished piece.