Look through yourself by tattoos

It seems like everyone has a tattoo these days. What used to be the property of sailors, outlaws, and biker gangs is now a popular body decoration for many people. And it's not just anchors, skulls, and battleships anymore — from school emblems to Celtic designs to personalized symbols, people have found many ways to express themselves with their tattoos.

Cover-up or the naked truth?

“A tattoo is a permanent marking made by inserting ink into the layers of skin. It is my permanent makeup.” says Jo Gardner, a tattoo lover.

A tattoo is a puncture wound, made deep in your skin, that's filled with ink. It is made by penetrating people’s skin with a needle and by injecting ink into the area with a special design.

“Besides your physical appearance, there are still a lot of things worth trying. Like a tattoo!” Jo unbuttoned her shirt, showing me her tattoo at her lower waist.
“For me, a tattoo is a way of regaining power, of remembering pain, tears, happiness and bitterness in life. “

For some people, tattoos represent safety and protection. It is like wearing clothes rather than going naked. You can spend a sunny afternoon narrating your story to a tattoo designer. And by sunset it's there for anyone to see. Your story. Your tattoo.

Every tattoo tells a story
Brian Richards opened a tattoo parlour on at West End of London, a most famous Soho area. As a tattoo enthusiast, he calls himself 'ink', 'tats', 'artist' or 'worker'.
He told me, “Tattoos are still associated with criminality. In the United States many prisoners and criminal gangs use distinctive tattoos to indicate facts about their criminal behaviours, prison sentences, and organizational affiliation. But it is not common to see tattoos used for that purpose here in the UK.”

Sentimental stories are always inspirational to tattoo artists. 'Love' is an endless muse. When emotions need to be expressed a tattoo can do the job.
“Every tattoo has a secret behind it." Brian says. "As a tattoo designer, you have to understand, explore and express that secret.” Getting a tattoo done can take several hours, days or even months but he never minds.

Tattoos used to be done manually — that is, the tattoo artist would puncture the skin with a needle and inject the ink by hand. Though this process is still used in some parts of the world, most tattoo shops use a tattoo machine these days.
But Brian knows how deep to drive the needle into the skin by his brilliant hands.
“We do not offer temporary tattoos. A temporary tattoo is not a tattoo.”
There is a motto on the wall of his Soho shop, says, "look through yourself by your own tattoos".

Before I said goodbye to Brian, he asked me if I would like a tattoo. I declined. For one thing I am so scared of pain and needles. Plus I'm paranoid about infections and allergic reactions. But don't let my fears put you off. Actually, getting a tattoo can hurt, but the level of pain can vary, which depends on your pain threshold, how good the person wielding the tattoo machine is, and where exactly on your body you're getting the tattoo.