Name and blog name: Amanda Johnson at Here's Looking at Me, Kid
Age: 26
Occupation: photographer and graphic designer
Age of first tattoo: 24
Favorite tattoo: inside of my right arm
Featured tattoo/location: Floral engraving on the inside of my right arm
Artist/shop/location of feature tattoo: Jesse of Good Life Tattoos and Piercings in Akron, Ohio
1) Tell us about your featured tattoo- is there a background story about why you chose it, or maybe a special meaning?
This tattoo doesn't have any meaning, and doesn't signify any special time in my life. A year before getting this piece done on my inner arm, I had found an antique floral engraving that I really liked, and re-pieced parts of it in Photoshop to trail along my arm how I wanted. I brought it in to Jesse to take a look at, and we sized it up to fit just right on my shoulder. The next year I decided that I wanted more of the engraving added further down on my arm, so I cut out and pieced together more of the engraving on Photoshop again, and Jesse did the rest.
2) Do you have any other tattoos? If so, what do you have and where?
My tattoos might look like all one piece, but the part across my shoulder and upper arm was the first piece I ever had done, and a year later I had a coordinating piece done on the inside of my arm, not quite touching the original piece. I really like the antique engraving style, and plan on maintaining this look for my future tattoos- though I'm not sure if I'll be getting any more floral pieces done.
3) Do you plan on getting more?
For sure! Right now I'm pregnant, but am planning and saving for my next piece. It will probably be something on my left forearm, and I'll probably get it in another year- assuming my tattoo funds stay put.
4) How do your family and friends feel about your tattoo(s)? Have you run into any adversity or negativity because of them? Do you have a significant other? Does he/she have tattoos?
My husband doesn't have a tattoo, but he's talked about maybe getting something on the inside of his upper arm. He's a teacher and a coach, so he spends time professionally in both long sleeves and sleeveless shirts. He would probably never get anything visible. As for me? You can tell I don't really care too much about tattoo visibility, considering how high my first tattoo sits on my chest. And I pay for that when I'm photographing Summer weddings. Most of the brides and grooms' families get really uncomfortable about a tattooed photographer traipsing about during their son or daughter's wedding ceremony. :) I did work for a while in a corporate office where they said they didn't mind if my tattoos showed, but I was pretty uncomfortable with the way people would stare at them in meetings or the hallways, so I decided on my own that I would be taken more seriously if I covered them up. Since those days, I'm very happy to be working for myself with nobody to gawk at me during meetings.
My family is very accepting of my tattoos, but my mom was depressed for probably a month when she first saw them. She is one of my best friends, and I knew it would be a big deal for her- even though it is my body. We had talked about them before I got the work done, and she said she was okay with it as long as I had thought it through, and that in the end it was my decision. Different story when it actually happened! But in the past two years, she has gotten used to them and isn't embarrassed so much by other people's reactions. I think it helps that when we are out together people usually tell me how they "don't normally like tattoos, but yours is so tasteful!" After dealing with my mom's horrible reaction, I was pretty nervous about how my grandpa would react too, so I spend a year covering up my tattoos around him. Finally, one Fourth of July, it was so hot I decided to just show up to our family picnic in a tank top. Grandpa walked up to me and started talking, while I held my breath waiting for his reaction. There never was one! I guess he doesn't really care about tattoos after all.
5) What's the most interesting experience you've ever had in regards to your tattoos?
The funniest experience was when I was rummaging through some old linens at the thrift store. I was wearing a pretty 1950's sundress and looked very put-together that day. An older lady, around 70 years old, joined me at the linens table and we began chatting about thrift stores and garage sales as we looked through doilies and tablecloths. When I turned around, and she got a look at my right shoulder and arm, she audibly gasped and put her hand to her mouth. I was confused at first, but then I saw her staring at my tattoo as she said, "Oooh! I had no idea.... Well!" And then she quickly waddled away. Oh to think that I had actually fooled her into thinking I was a nice girl! Good thing she saw my tattoos in time. ;)
6) Any advice for those interested in getting tattooed but haven't gotten one yet?
Something I didn't think too much about when I got my first tattoo was how it would look under clothing. This might not be important to you, but for me, since the majority of my life is spent with clothes on, I want the parts of my tattoos that peak out from under a shirt or dress to looks pretty and purposeful, and not like bizarre alien extremities that live underneath my clothes. I've ruled out a couple of ideas for my forearm because I know the ends of them will look silly sticking out of my sleeves. So I'm saving those ideas for somewhere else on my body.
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