Monday, February 3, 2014

The Latest Round of Body Art

Back in late October, I visited my tattoo artist, Liaa Walter of Cirque Du Rouge, for new tattoos and touch-ups.  As soon as I completed payment at the end of our session, I made an appointment for early January for more-touch ups and additions to current pieces.  (Liaa currently has a 3 month wait).

http://liaawalter.com/home.html

In October, Liaa was going to add snowflakes to the cherry tree on my back but she wanted to plan them out as stencils instead of drawing them directly on my skin.

My January 10th appointment involved a lot of additions, touch-ups, and of course the snowflakes. Normally, I just have one area done at a time. However, this visit we did multiple sections.  Let me tell you, sleeping for the first few days afterwards was very difficult!

Nevertheless, at the end of our session (2.5 hours), everything was done and looked amazing!

Here are the photos!

Liaa touched up the yellow in the center of my Colorado Columbine and intensified the lavender tones in the white section.


Here are the new snowflakes. Liaa also added the small, pale blue dots throughout.


On my left arm, a cherry blossom was added on the end (closer to where my arm bends).  More small blue dots were placed and some of the blooms were intensified with color.


This blue purple lotus was added to my lower right arm. It is just stunning! The colors are incredible!

Of all the work I had done that day, the red-pink cherry blossom touch-ups on my upper back hurt the most.  I thought my lower right arm (near my elbow) would be more painful but alas, it was my upper back.  I asked Liaa why the same areas she tattooed in October seemed easier to tolerate the first time around and she said, "I think the body remembers. And we just did those areas recently."

Further, during my aftercare, I noticed the lower areas on my arms seemed to heal slower.  I asked a good friend of mine (who happens to have an impressive body of work) and she said those spots were slower to heal on her as well. Maybe the closer to the elbow is more sensitive?

When it comes to getting new pieces, I think I am done for a while. However, I do want the rosy paintbrush flower on my lower left leg/ankle touched up. The colors are light pink and I would like them to be more of a vivid magenta, like the real flowers.

In the end, I am loving my body art more and more!



8 comments:

  1. The touch ups and new additions look great! I have pear blossoms on my Lucky Cat tattoo.

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    1. Thank you!! I am happy with my new art! Liaa is amazing! A lucky cat or maneki-neko sounds like a cool design to have! I used to collect them! And as a cat mom, I think that would be a fun piece!

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    2. It took me over 4 years to find the right design. He graces my outer left thigh. I would love to add more to him but don't trust any tattoo artist in Nevada. My tattoo artist is in So Cal and I'd love go back to him.

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    3. My beloved artist who lived in Denver (she died in 2008) was friends with a great artist, Krystof, who now works in Vegas. His portfolio is awesome and he is super nice.

      However, I understand about artist loyalty. Once you find the one, you do not want to stray! I was loyal to Kauri and after she passed, I did not get any tattoos for over 4 years.

      I found my artist, Liaa in 2012, and she is now my one and only artist.

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  2. They all look beautiful! My last work was done just above the elbow area and it swelled so much which took some time to disappear. The swelling even moved to below my elbow which was not too pretty but it did go away ;)

    You are making want to get more work done now! ;)

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    1. So the funky elbow thing is not just me! Wow! I wonder what it is about that spot that gets weird?

      If I ever see good tattoos on others or even on a tattoo show (if I catch a program on tv while channel surfing), I find myself looking on in envy and thinking about another! Tattoos are addicting!

      When was the last time you had work done?

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  3. My other half had to a whole tattoo re-done (for free as it hadn't been done right in the first place!) He has an incredibly high pain threshold but he said it was agonizing the tattooist said it is always more painful to go over work. The snowflakes and blossom are a very unusual combination, is there a story behind it?

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    1. I agree that touch-ups hurt more than "virgin" skin! I learned that this time around for sure! I was in bloody agony near the end when my artist was touching up my cherry blossoms. Ouch!!

      As for the meaning behind the cherry blossoms and snow, I love winter. I especially love snowy winters. I am an avid skier too. My dad is from a winter climate and he taught me how to ski. I am especially close with my dad too. Snow always reminds me of him. As for the cherry blossoms, in traditional Japanese tattooing/symbology, the blossoms represent how life is beautiful and fast-moving. Cherry blossoms in real life are delicate. They bloom and shed quickly. Thus, "Life is fast so do not take it for granted."

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