How to Get a Great Tattoo Design

Choosing a tattoo should be a thorough process. They are intended to be forever, and removal is expensive. The more planning that goes into your design of choice, the more likely that you will enjoy your tattoo later in life.

Steps

• Be happy with what design you have on your body. As long as you like it, that's the most important thing. That being said, there are factors that can make you love or hate your tattoo.
• Find a design that has meaning for you. Even if you cannot draw, a little practice and patience can get you a good outline, at least. Most tattoo artists will help you redraw and redesign a tattoo.
• Find an artist or designer and ask them to make you a custom design for you. Many tattoo artists are also convential artists, or can at least reproduce a traditional drawing, sketch or painting onto your skin.
• Find a style that you especially like, and an artist that works in that style. Most artists will do what you want, but also excel in certain "looks." Check portfolios, and compare old school, new school, naturalistic, asian, B&W, etc.
• Writing, in any form or language, should be thought over twice as long. Check and recheck the meanings of any words or idiograms of a language you aren't fluent in. Choose quotes carefully. Search for a font you like, or create your own.
• Consider carefully what body part you want your tattoo on. Some places you'll look at it every day, some almost never. Consider how likely it will be that you will need to cover it with clothing or otherwise at some point.
• Try to get a printout of the design, and see how the design will fit against your skin.
  Use henna to get a temporary version of the design. You won't be able to see different colors, or certain looks, but you will be able to judge the feeling of a tattoo. Henna lasts a week to a month.
• Think about it alot. When you are certain, wait some more time. Just to make sure.
  

Tips

• Think back to 10 years ago. If you had gotten a tattoo back then, what would it most likely have been? If you don't like the idea of having that on your body, don't get a tattoo now. Chances are, in 10 years, you'll regret getting it.
• The number one tattoos that artists are asked to cover up, after homemade tattoos, are NAMES. If the person is not dead, or your child, names are usually not the best idea.
  Asian characters are a popular choice, as it is a way to get a meaning in a design. The tattoo studio walls are not the place to trust when looking for a character. Many have double meanings, nuances, things that may give an impression that wasn't intended.
  Often members of a family will get matching or complimentary tattoos. Often, younger generations will incorporate elements of older family members tattoos in their own designs.
• A band, TV show, or comic book character you love today may not be something you want to carry around forever on your skin.
• Don't be afraid to get a tattoo that doesn't have a deep meaning if you love the design. If you love Winnie the Pooh enough to look at him forever, get that pooh bear.
• Feet, hands, and faces need more touch-ups, and more attention to heal properly. Expect to pay more for these areas. Some artists refuse to do facial or hand tattoos on a person that doesn't already have visible tattoos.
• If you feel hesitant, either about the design or the artist, don't go through with it.
  

Warnings

• Some people are against cultural appropriation, where someone takes a meaningful aspect of another's culture and uses it for fashionable reasons. If you are getting a tattoo of a traditional symbol, you should know the meaning and history of that symbol.
• Laser tattoo removal is very expensive, painful, and time consuming. In most cases it can completely remove tattoos. Tattoo cover-ups are cheaper, but find an artist that specializes in them. It's best to be certain about your design. Think about it. Dwell on it.
  Tattoos can get infected, and should be washed and treated as wounds. Follow your artists aftercare instructions.
• Most tattoos will need touch-ups through your life. Using sunscreen and moisturising daily will help your tattoo look new for years. After 10-30 years, expect to need touch-ups to combat blurring.
• Be extremely careful when getting Kanji characters as tattoos if you've found the design on the internet or tattoo parlour wall. You may think it means "Peace, love, harmony" but for all you know the characters could be straight off a soy sauce packet, or worse.