the world premiere: my tattoo revealed

OH. EM. GEE!!!
You guys, I have a tattoo.
A very large, but amazingly beautiful tattoo.
I vlogged my experience, in case you really really wanted to be a part of it.
I know how some of you desperately wanted to be there with me holding my hand, and believe me, I bet Jimmy wishes you could have taken his place.
Because he may need a few weeks before his fingers reform their shape.
The Tattoo Diaries:
And le pictures….
Immediately After:
tree of life, flowers for the kids, birds for my grandparents & dad....words for my soul.
{praising Jesus it’s done!}
DSC04239
{raw, baby, raw}
the next day….
DSC04240
{heading to church}
DSC04241
{le tree of life, birds for my grandparents & my dad who passed, flowers for my babies, and words for my soul}
DSC04242
{love the symbolism of the balance of life and death}
~~~~~~~
Okay, I know some of you guys can’t watch videos
(um, like you sweet Stephanie of mine),
so here’s the rundown.

It hurt.
Oh yes it did, and I’m not EVEN gonna pretend like it didn’t.
I keep it real here, not trying to pretend to be something I’m not.
And while, yes, I am a tough chick….
Apparently sometimes it takes a good 20 minutes before my body catches on….
As was the case with this tattoo.
So, about 10 minutes in as I was sitting up feeling what felt as though I was being SLICED open with a razor blade,
I felt my body begin to get all hot and my eyesight suddenly fade to dark…
I knew what was about to happen.
I quickly slumped forward, placing my head between my legs (doing my best to still look cute while doing it)
and simply focused on regaining my eyesight….er…and composure.
Annnnnd, what little bit of dignity I had left.
A couple of long deep slow breaths, a few shots of water, and an extra large bite of Snickers, and I was back in business.
At least for the next five more minutes, when suddenly my body decided it needed yet another freaking break.
And I was like, WHAT THE???
Back between my knees I went, this time not caring the slightest about being cute and focused only on doing my best not to pass gas as my body was seeming to want to
SHUT IT ALL DOWN…
and not in the good Rachel Zoe way.
{I’ll never be the play it cool kind of girl, dang it.}
More long deep breaths, more water, and a few more bites of the beloved Snickers….
along with a good dose of kicking myself in the mental A*@….
and I was good to go.
2 hours later (he, praise Jesus, worked FAST!),
I walked out the door a new woman.
I mean, I was no longer just a woman,
I was, like, a WOAHman.
You know wudimasayin?
Ya, so I was all fine and dandy until I got home and began to realize it’s permanence.
And so I texted back and forth with a few wise friends, and decided it was all normal and okay to feel wishy washy….and that I needed to just CHILLAX
(i.e. eat more chocolate)
and just give it time.
And then came THE SHOWER.
Dear God, the shower.
It was like getting under water with THE worst sunburn of your life.
And then when Jimmy put the soap on, I swear he replaced the soap with salt and was having a GRAND ol time rubbing it all deep within my fleshly OPEN WOUNDS.
THE AGONY.
Once the episode was over and all was washed clean, I dropped to the floor of the shower with as much dramatic expression as I could muster and tried to recover what eyesight I may have had left.
Jimmy must have been so proud of me while I lay rocking back and forth naked in the fetal position with a hard core tat on my back.
{beauty from pain, beauty from pain…}
I’m hot stuff, I tell you.
Hard to the freakin’ core.
Anyway, at least it’s all well and good now.
It’s feeling MUCH better today, still like a sunburn or a bad bruise, but nothing like yesterday.
And as each day passes, I love it more and more…..
because now,
this is yet another part of me.
Another “limb” to my story.
Plus, you don’t even know how amazing it was to have been able to share it all with you guys!
And now….I’m already planning out what to do next….so stay tuned!!!
***all work done by South Bay Mike at Fine Iron Tattoos***
~~~~~~~
{With all the excitement, I didn’t have a chance to pick a winner yet for the skin care giveaway, in case you want to enter still! I’ll draw a name tomorrow and reveal the winner on Wednesday’s post.}
Β© 2009 “Le Musings of Moi”
SHARE THIS POSTShare on FacebookTweet about this on TwitterPin on PinterestGoogle+Email to someone
It means so much that you are here! I know life gets busy though, so if you don't want to miss a thing, I invite you to subscribe to my blog through email!

Comments

  1. It’s absolutely gorgeous. I have one in the same area, but much smaller. It hurt SO FREAKIN BAD!! Much more than my other two, which are on my calves.

  2. That is beautiful! I love all the symbolism! I can’t wait to get another tattoo.

  3. WHOAMAN! it looks amazing…the artist did a very good and very detailed job! it’s always that way isn’t it…you get it done and then after think…weeeeellll wait it doesn’t wash off does it…but it looks fabulous and no need to worry about taking it off as it has very good meanings for you and your family!! love it!

  4. I love it! It’s GORGEOUS and it totally looks like it was supposed to be there! Isn’t it crazy how you go through all of that and then all you can think about is what you are going to get for your next one? Congrats!

  5. Looks totally amazing!!! I just have one tiny tattoo but I want something more meaningful and I have yet to work up the guts!

  6. AMAZING! freaking AMAZING! you are definitely a hard core chick, fetal position crying and all. i would never have the balls to do that. it’s such a beautiful tattoo. so poetic. i love it. i’m proud of you and very impressed. holy cow!

    ps the first pic…very zexy πŸ™‚

  7. Woohoooooo! Welcome to the bad ass chicks with tats club. Yes i’m the president but i’m also a proud member. Ha!!! Congrats hun! You did it! And now you forever have your love, faith and family with you always. Awwww!

  8. Yay for getting it done! I love the symbolism of your tattoo. Love the flowers for your children. Talented artist. Can’t believe it only took 2 hours! Wow. I have a heart tattoo on my lower right side, so can see it when I’m wearing a bikini, and it hurt, but not too bad… of course, it’s not too big, so that’s probably why I did so well during the process. HOWEVER when I got my belly button pierced, I passed out, and had to have the guy put wet towels on my forehead!!! Congrats, Summer. πŸ™‚

  9. B-R-A-V-E….

    It looks fan-Fucking-tabulous!!! Beautiful. Very Unique and Large! Haha…it’s gorgeous! I’m sure your loving showing it off! Muahhh….xoxo

  10. THAT IS GORGEOUS!!!! Like making me type in all caps amazing. I love it!!!

  11. WOW! That’s intense! I have no tolerance for pain so I can’t even imagine what that was like. Congrats for making it through though. It’s really beautiful.

  12. Summer! It is absolutely breathtaking. In so many ways. I have tears in my eyes.

    You are blooming before us.

  13. A-FRIGGIN-MAZING! you know i loved it before, but its even more impressive now!! it’s beautiful… everything about it…the meaning, the illustration….perfect! and yes, you are HARD CORE lady!!! lol…. breathe in, breathe out…

  14. I’m sure your next one won’t be as bad because it won’t be as big. And don’t worry, you’re not the only one who gets the nervous poops lol. It’s beautiful and you’ve made me want to get another one even that much more!!

  15. Wow! that is amazing!!!!!! I am so impressed and wickedly jealous of your ability to sit through that!

  16. You are definitely hardcore now. The tat is beautiful. It totally suits you. Yay!

  17. Holy crap Summer – Go big or go home, eh?! It looks AWESOME! It’s beautiful!!

  18. I LOVE IT! LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

    I’m a huge tattoo fanatic. The 3 that I have aren’t enough. I’m I have a huge peacock on my side and I still want more.

    Yours is amazing!

  19. It looks great though!
    I love tattoos and can’t wait to get the rest of mine done (I have three planned and Baby’s name needs to be added to one).

  20. It looks great! I love all the symbolism!

  21. Nice!!! I was thinking like a small one, but you went big!!! Yes hard you are:-) I love how it has meaning behind it, great job girly!!!

  22. dude, that rocks. it is gorgeous. i can’t imagine how badly it must have hurt. my TINY peace sign, which took all of 10 seconds hurt like heck.

    you really are a badass.

  23. LOL!! I totally love your video….especially the whole “dropped the kids off. The real ones and not the poo”. LMAO!! You are like the 2nd person I have ever heard say that. The other one is one of my friends and when she said it I had no idea what the heck she was talking about. You’re cute, Summer! And DANG! Big tattoo. You don’t play around, do you?! Very nice though. Love the words too. :O)

  24. I love it.

    I love it.

    I love it, I love it, I love it!

    Oh, and did I mention how much I love it??!?!?!?!?!

  25. It’s beautiful and you are BRAVE. My insides squinched up when I saw how red your back was and then when I read your description of the pain….I was almost on the floor in the fetal position….but it is gorgeous!

  26. girl i LOVE it!! you are so brave to do it that big and on your back. i’m jealous.

    love it and love you! hope you had a good weekend m’dear.

  27. It’s beautiful!!!! I think i’m going to get one done tomorrow.. *cross my fingers*!!!

  28. OMG. Dude you are HARD core!!! Owwwwwww. It looks amazing!

  29. I love that. It’s beautiful. I just got number 13! It was a tribute tattoo for my brother. It’s my lasy blog post. Go check it out.

  30. I love it! I have birds on my shoulder in about the same place you do and i told my parents and friends that I was getting a tree on my back a while back and they all thought i was crazy. It is so cute and I think i might just follow through with my plan one day! πŸ™‚ I also want a side piece and one on my foot!

  31. My birds were for my granny..i found that interesting! They also symbolized me flying away from the bad things back in highschool that were holding me down πŸ™‚

  32. I LOVE IT, it is so unique and different! I’ve never seen one like that before. The pain SUCKS but it’s always worth it and it’ll probably be two weeks before you want another one!!

  33. Oh my gosh girl. You just reminded me why I DON’T have a tattoo.

  34. OH EM GEE!!!! LOL. First of all, I CAN see the video today!! WOO HOO!! But I’m not watching… πŸ™‚ The tattoo is amazing and you are amazing for doing that. I would pass out and only end up with half a bird. LOL

    AND… the scroll bar is gone at the bottom! YAY!

  35. hardcore!!!! looks amazing!!!!!

  36. Looks gorgeous love! Your video was great too! I have two tattoos, and they are both small so thankfully they didn’t hurt much.

  37. Wow, that is gorgeous!!! Totally worth the nervous poops and the almost fainting. I looooove it.

  38. Wow. You got a tattoo with some MEANING. I love it. It looks beautiful and you’re so happy with it, which is even more beautiful.

  39. dude! you are hard core!!! it looks rad! and it felt like a knife slicing through your skin?! HORRORS!! there is nO WAY i could handle that!

  40. OMG!! I love it! I love the design and the meaning behind it all! Good job girl

    I’m giving away a little sumthin’-sumthin’ on my blog, come see me!

  41. ohmygosh, that is an intense tattoo for your first!! I LOVE it. It is absolutely gorgeous and i am LOVING the symbolism behind it all Summer!
    Amazing, seriously.

  42. p.s. you’ve now got me wanting more ink and my last one was just in November! lol!
    <3 tattoos

  43. Looks Absolutely GORGEOUS! Love it. (Uh, here is my safety sally moment, keep the a and d on it, and dont let it get sunburned. Look how lame I am.)
    Great job sittin still, I have no clue if I could ever sit through a long tat session!

  44. Check you out, brave girl!! I totally thought you were doing that monogram thingy you showed me, but this is gorgeous, too! Yay for you!! I am still being a chicken … I am thinkin’ something very little for my b-day this year … although I would have to beg the hubby cuz he doesn’t want me getting any. He say if I get one, then he is going to stop getting them … boo!! So we will see, but yours is beautiful!!

  45. Props to you, Summer! I could never do it. My reaction would be the same as yours and I would call it quits mid-tat. I get that way when they draw blood, so I wouldn’t even get to the mid-tat point. I can barely walk by a shop! Kat Von D makes me nauseous. So, I admire you!

    That said, I think it is beautiful! I love tattoos that have such deep, personal meaning. They tell a story. Beautiful choice!

  46. I freakin LOVE IT GIRL!! I was going to do a tree similar to this baby nursery- Congrats on the tattoo!!!! Have a great night!

    ~ Kelly Ann ~
    ❧❀❧

  47. Hey girl- sorry I forgot to ask you this in my prior comment- What the fabulous lipstick color you were wearing in the youtube video?(When u going to get your tattoo)– just send me an email when you have a chance– thxs

    Hope your back feels better soon- just keep putting on vaseline stuff they give you after you have a tattoo done-

  48. dude!! i had no idea it would be so big….! it’s magnifique!! i love it.i couldn;t wait to see the result and WOW!!!
    it makes me all emotional (the thoughts behind every details) and make me want to get my half sleeve!!
    no..no.. i said i’d do it only if i marry a tattoo artist or a professional skate border!

    love it love it love it!!!
    muah!

  49. Summer, I think it looks awesome! It makes you even more beautiful.

  50. Breathtaking!!!!!!

    Looks painful though!

  51. It’s beautiful! I totally understand the pain. I chose a large back piece for a first time, Angel wings going from the top of my shoulders down to my lower back. It was something that I wanted and planned for years and I was wishy washy afterwards. In the end, I’m happy with it. It has meaning, and that was the reason for it. It’s also an attention getter which I wasn’t prepared for.

    Chin up!
    mindi

  52. That is so beautiful!!! I am in the process of designing one for myself for my boys…but Holy Jeeze you are one strong mama to go through that!!

  53. Wowzers. I’m in pain just looking at it. Mad props to you, girl. It looks awesome, and I love the symbolism. Congrats!

  54. I love it. No, I LOVE it. I loved it on Saturday and I still love it today.

    And yes, I totally prayed for you on Saturday. That’s why it only took the dude 2 hours. PRAYER, baby. Awesomeness.
    xoxo

  55. Oh my gosh…that is amazing! Although, I am totally busting a gut here because I have 2 tatoos. But compared to your ONE tatoo mine look soooooooooooooo tiny and here I was giving you advice like I had it all figured out…I thought you were going in for like a flower on your ankle or maybe something small like that…I had NO IDEA that you were getting the holy grail on your back….YOU ARE MY NEW ROCK STAR! I can’t even imagine how long you sat there for!!! πŸ˜‰

  56. Oh my gosh…that is amazing! Although, I am totally busting a gut here because I have 2 tatoos. But compared to your ONE tatoo mine look soooooooooooooo tiny and here I was giving you advice like I had it all figured out…I thought you were going in for like a flower on your ankle or maybe something small like that…I had NO IDEA that you were getting the holy grail on your back….YOU ARE MY NEW ROCK STAR! I can’t even imagine how long you sat there for!!! πŸ˜‰

  57. Oh my gosh…that is amazing! Although, I am totally busting a gut here because I have 2 tatoos. But compared to your ONE tatoo mine look soooooooooooooo tiny and here I was giving you advice like I had it all figured out…I thought you were going in for like a flower on your ankle or maybe something small like that…I had NO IDEA that you were getting the holy grail on your back….YOU ARE MY NEW ROCK STAR! I can’t even imagine how long you sat there for!!! πŸ˜‰

  58. amazing tattoo. not sure I could sit through the whole thing but guess that’s where the snickers came in handy? πŸ™‚

  59. that is one of the most beauitful tatto’s i have ever seen…

    and with so much beauty and reason…

    *sighs*

  60. I’ve always wanted a tree of life tatt. Yours came out stunning. The symbolism makes it all worth while, doesn’t it? Post pictures after it’s fully healed, k?

  61. Gorgeous, amazing, unbelievably stunning! and Ouch, ouch, ouch! I am still a big chicken. Glad it is feeling much better.

  62. summer! i’ve been away from le musings for waaay too long (again!). i loved your post, and your vlog. i can’t wait to see your piece in real life! it’s gorgeous. absolutely gorgeous. you’re a rock star. i totally want to get another tattoo too, but i don’t think i’ll be ready by next month. hmmm.
    love you!
    mb

  63. Oh my gosh. It’s one of the most beautiful tattoos I’ve ever seen in my life! And the meaning behind it is just incredible. Absolutely GORGEOUS, SUMMER!

  64. oh my goodness, summer!!! it looks AMAZING!! i LOVE it!!! it looks so great on your back and i love the next day picture going to church – looks great with the top!!! i love the meaning behind it all. and did i read that right?? – it only took two hours?? i guess the term “only” is relative when you’re in pain! but that’s great work in 2 hours! i’m since less detailed tats take longer than that!

    (sorry, that’s lots of exclamation points, but it seriously looks so damn good.)

    and i also love your hair!!

  65. I LOVE your tattoo and I LOVE your vlog to tell us all about it!!! SO AMAZING!!!
    Gorgeous Summer…and I love you as always πŸ™‚

  66. Your tattoo is amazing! Wow!

  67. I don’t know if you want to hang an apron on one of those branches or something to symbolize…cough…I don’t know….cough…just sayin.

  68. What an amazing and inspiring tattoo – love your outfit that you chose to reveal the tattoo with. Go you!!

  69. OMG!! WOW!! totally impressive….but the meaning…so beautiful!!

  70. Sa-weet tattoo!

    Heidi had me curious to see the rocking awesome tat. So I stopped on over.

  71. Summer, it is AMAZING!!!!!!
    I love every single thing about it. Especially the part where it all happened to you because I don’t think I’d make it past 1 tiny bird.

    you are brave, you are beautiful.

  72. Love the new blog look!

    Omg that tattoo is amazing. I so appreciate all the symbolism- it’s gorgeous and so special. You are BEYOND brave. I cannot go near needles, never mind get a tat. πŸ™‚

  73. You are hardcore! Nice work!

  74. Wow, I love it. OK, I’m thinking passing out would have been a good thing! Let him do it while you are out cold? That’s what I’d want, if I was not such a chicken!

  75. I LOVE it! I have a couple (one on my hip bone and one of my foot) but they are no where near that size! I cant imagine how long that must have taken—but so worth it because its gorgeous!

  76. Summer that’s awesome! They do freakin hurt, but you forget about all that pain and start planning your next one-it’s crazy how that works. Gorgeous girly!

  77. LOVE IT… LOVE IT… LOVE IT!!!!

  78. oh you poor thing with your nervous poops!!! I would have NEVER left after that …like ever! …Nice job …the tattoo is AMAZING…love the tree!!!

  79. I missed this post! Sweet tattoo – crazy lady for getting it. Ouch ouch ouch.

  80. Ur so ADORABLE in your video! Love your tatoo .. it turned out amazing!

  81. That is the most lovely tattoo, a beautiful reminder for everyone.

  82. Wow, that is insane! It’s gorgeous!
    Thanks for sharing.

    Maria xx
    http://www.cheekypinktulip.blogspot.com