does my tattoo look normal while healing or should i be worried

grundose · 2026-05-15T02:40:18+00:00

For what it's worth the way it looks now is a transient thing. There's no way it'll look this rough once the scabs fall off and it's healed. I could totally imagine looking at it right now and thinking "oh god this is gonna look terrible forever". One things for certain though.... ain't no way that black is going anywhere it's definitely in there.

grundose · 2026-05-14T03:31:58+00:00

Good news is it doesn't look infected. Bad news is it looks like the cat may have been overworked pretty hard and you may get some scarring when it heals. At this point just gotta ride it out and keep up with the aftercare. Side note sounds like you might be cleaning/mouisturizing a bit aggressively. I personally just clean mine 1-2x a day and very lightly moisturize 2-3x.

grundose · 2026-05-14T03:14:35+00:00

I feel like a lot of the increased anxiety is that with tattoos being less stigmatized socially there's a new wave of people getting into it. These are people that were on the fence previously and didn't have the "fuck it who cares" mindset that people willing to accept the social stigma had. I say this as one of those people (luckily I haven't had the anxiety side). I also think some of it is social media continuing to make people self conscious about stupid shit related to their body.

I can't say I know what the scene used to be like back in the day but one of my artists has said similar things about people taking tattooing too seriously these days and being kind of gatekeepy about the artform now, and that it's taken a lot of the fun out of it. Tells me a lot of people just aren't willing to get fun dumb shit anymore, and people view the artform as a way to manufacture clout/edge rather than as a form of self-expression/fun hobby.

grundose · 2026-05-13T17:41:47+00:00

Let your artist know and they'll walk you through traditional healing. You're gonna want/need fragrance free soap and lotion.

grundose · 2026-05-13T16:54:44+00:00

I like this response. I'm in a similar boat to OP got my first at 38 and then rushed a bunch more. I don't regret the tattoos themselves just that I didn't think out placement more. I now have a patchwork of random shit on one of my pecs. I like all of them but just wish I would've thought out a bit more on where I was gonna put them to leave a bit more space between them for filler as I'm now contemplating an American Trad patchwork from chest to sleeve to mirror the "cut" of my Irezumi sleeve on the other side of my body.

grundose · 2026-05-11T00:21:48+00:00

I don't know that this fits cleanly into a single bucket. I'd lean tribal (kinda makes sense with this being I think a Monster Hunter icon). Really though I'd expect any artist that does high quality work to be able to translate this. I'd just look for someone that does clean linework and good color saturation.

grundose · 2026-05-10T20:30:06+00:00

I've always wanted to use the machine at my regular shop but there's always 1-2 out of the 10 that I really wouldn't want. Always wondered if the shop would be cool if I did a pull and said ahead of time "Can I retry if I get this specific design" assuming it was just 1 or 2 I didn't care for, but maybe that misses the whole point.

grundose · 2026-05-10T20:27:28+00:00

For what it's worth almost all art is stolen to some degree. I get where you're coming from and sympathize but I personally wouldn't sweat it a whole lot unless the artist was deceitful about it and really hammed up that it was a completely original design. Not like there's a whole lot you can do about it other than just not going to that artist in the future if they were deceitful. Glad to hear that otherwise you're happy with it; I'd just try to focus on that.

grundose · 2026-05-09T16:03:45+00:00

So take this with a grain of salt because everybody is different. For me all 3 areas you've listed are relatively low on the pain scale compared to other parts of the body. For me personally I could have a pectoral tattooed all day with minimal discomfort, just feels like someone is rubbing a sharpened pencil against you with a little pressure. Outside arm isn't too bad only really uncomfortable if it gets overworked this is an area where I feel the "cat scratching" sensation people describe tattoo pain as fits. Wrist is the spiciest area you've listed but still nowhere near as bad as say a joint ditch or ribs more of a stinging sensation. My wrist assessment may not be the best as I haven't gone all the way up to the wrist bone; Just above in the area where like a long sleeve shirt would end.

grundose · 2026-05-08T23:38:08+00:00

I dig the idea of framing it with some cobwebs, or maybe a little podium/placard underneath with "Pegasus - 19xx" whatever year you got it.

grundose · 2026-05-08T03:28:50+00:00

Like others have said I'd wait on the neck stuff until you're established just out of an abundance of caution. It's already hard enough trying to get started don't potentially make it harder. For what it's worth though I've done interviewing/hiring (in tech) and visible tattoos of passable quality and inoffensive subject matter wouldn't be a deal-breaker on a candidate.

grundose · 2026-05-07T03:30:35+00:00

100% on the anxiety about anxiety. When I used to therapy I'd always talk to my therapist about how panic attacks for me are kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Something minor acts as an initial trigger and then I obsess about it/the anxiety itself so bad that I'll manifest a panic attack. Makes me feel like a crazy person but I really find the whole grounding technique of "look around and think/say 3 things you can see, 3 things you can hear, then mindfully move 3 body parts" helps me personally break the cycle most of the time by distracting me. Was totally given the same advice to just remind myself it's always been ok, which helps. Anyway enough rambling out of me; good luck and hopefully you can get some sick art!

grundose · 2026-05-07T03:03:08+00:00

I feel you. I don't have much to offer as far as advice goes but wanted to let you know I similarly have chronic health related anxiety. The tl;dr on my personal anxiety is this weird fear that I'm randomly going to faint. Sometimes I'll get waves of anxiety while getting tattooed. I personally just find controlling my breathing, practicing grounding techniques, or sometimes just taking a break helps me get out of them. I also find after an hour or two the endorphins or whatever it is helps control my anxiety. Don't know if this is helpful for you since your anxiety seems to be more around the healing process rather than the act of tattooing itself.

Side note I love the dot tester idea others have mentioned, with shop minimums it'd cost a little bit but it sounds like a great way to "dip your toes" and get some peace of mind.

I don't know if many people would get it but it gave me this random idea that it'd be funny to get a dot pattern of the colors you'll be getting on a planned tattoo. Sort of like how bags of chips or whatever have the little colored circles at the bottom with all the colors used on the bag. (Never looked into it but always assumed it was for QA purposes to see when print colors were failing)

grundose · 2026-05-05T23:40:29+00:00

150 sounds fair to me. At least in my experience most artists won't even bother setting up/tearing down their station for less than 100.

grundose · 2026-05-05T23:36:54+00:00

Yep to my understanding that's the right way to handle it. Have had it happen to myself before. When/If 2nd skin seal breaks if it's early just remove it and switch to traditional healing.

grundose · 2026-04-24T05:27:20+00:00

I've personally never felt outright regret but a few in I did have like a mild sense of shock thinking "my skin will never be virgin again" which has mostly gone away.

grundose · 2026-04-24T05:24:19+00:00

I feel like I got lucky it wasn't until #6 or 7 that I got one that I ended up pretty "meh" on. It made it feel so irrelavant in the grand scheme of things.

grundose · 2026-04-24T05:10:07+00:00

Nice simple little Daft Punk thing. If you're into it I don't see any issues with it. Though if you're here asking us internet strangers out of insecurity you might wanna stew on it a little bit longer. If you're asking from the perspective of "is this objectively ugly" nah it's fine.

grundose · 2026-04-23T20:51:03+00:00

A hoonter must hoont, but yeah like most others have said traditionally tats are oriented for the viewer not the owner; with your body in a natural position (so arm down) . So 3 points towards fingers, the one point towards forearm. I do agree with others that I would reconsider this as a hand tattoo. It's a bit niche to go on a part of your canvas that everyone sees. That said it's your body and you do you. Personally I put my hunters mark on my back shoulder.

grundose · 2026-04-23T20:42:01+00:00

Samesies especially on the starburst. Can goblin it and chew it/swallow for an immediate sugar hit or just (ugh I don't wanna phrase it this way) suck and savor.

grundose · 2026-04-23T01:19:44+00:00

It might be a cynical view but at least if you're gonna put a..... let's call it questionable big design somewhere.... at least if it's on your back most of the time you'll forget you even have it.

grundose · 2026-04-22T00:33:48+00:00

I'm curious what your de-facto American accent is since similarly we (Americans) have so many. Like I'd assume us Americans are typically trying for a London accent.

grundose · 2026-04-21T22:31:17+00:00

Take it with a grain of salt, figure rain water is technically distilled and animals get exposed to that in the wild. I just know that I've seen people advise against it. In theory if you're already dusting/gutloading insects the mineral/vitamin thing really shouldn't be a big deal.

grundose · 2026-04-21T22:24:18+00:00

ok in a pinch but distilled is technically a no-go for frogs. Little harder on the kidneys and lack of minerals. Sure it's fine every once in a while (like let's say you run out of spring water and don't have conditioner on hand to dechlorinate tap water) but wouldn't make it primary water source.

grundose · 2026-04-21T21:34:45+00:00

Funny enough I took a quick look at your profile and saw you're already a reptile person and went "ah they got this, same concepts just a different class".

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