A small betta fish (also commonly known as Japanese fighting fish) outline, with an odd little star scribbled right in the center.
I'm normally someone who thinking for months before getting a modification, especially a permanent one. I agonize over the pros and cons, and research the aftercare making sure I understand as many of the possible issues I might have. But this time I didn't even come close to that. The day after my friend handed me the paper I was at Marked for Life in Warren talking to the owner/tattoo artist Chris about having this piece turned into a scarification. Chris had pierced my nape a few months prior so I had been in his shop and seen a good deal of his work previous to this time. We decided quickly on the idea of tattoo-machine scarification, also known as etching. I was unsure how I wanted the final scar to look, but at the time my goal was a light white scar...somewhat because I was well aware of the fact I wasn't thinking the procedure through and am more than capable of the dreaded emotion of regret. Since Chris was working on a customer at the time I was in his shop I did my best to be quick, make the appointment and let him get back to work. The appointment was made for a week later.
The week before getting the procedure I buckled down and learned as much as I could about etching in the short amount of time I had. Problems arose when I realized that even on BME there wasn't very much information, and not all that many images. I found a person on IAM who had gotten work at Rings of Desire but the procedure he went through was different from what I knew Chris was going to do. The etching experiences on BME at the time were almost non-existent, or contained little information on the procedure. Luckily I was able to get information on aftercare options from other scarification stories and I ended up using many of those options.
The day of the scarification I went to class as always (oh the joys of being a college student) and then made the 35 minute drive to Warren. Immediately when I walked in Chris got to work. The design was smoothed out (remember, it was drawn by someone who had a bit too much to drink) and made much more symmetrical. Soon after we had it placed right in front of my hip facing inwards towards my stomach, the back fins almost on my hip. When I looked into the mirror I remember seeing it there and feeling strangely perfect...a feeling very odd to me. I knew that if I could handle the procedure I would be getting a matching fish on the other side, so I made sure the placement allowed that option to be open.
Chris explained the procedure to me sometime during all of this (somewhere after he began smoothing out the design and before he started the piece). He would be using a mix of water, lubrication, and a tiny amount of red ink in the etching. When I asked what it would feel like he responded "oh don't worry you'll be fine, I promise" (which I found comforting although I knew it was a good way to avoid the question...). He suggested keeping it clean but told me there were "other ways" of helping it scar but he couldn't go into them thanks to the legalities of telling people to hurt themselves. He also told me if I noticed it hurting or swelling oddly, or green discharge to come in immediately. To begin the scarification he would be first doing the outline of everything, and then go through the center between the outline and "tear it up". I would likely need one more session to make it scar well, but all touchups and further work on the piece was included in the initial price of it.
Before we began Chris showed me his needle in the autoclave bag and his other supplies and then had everything set up very quickly thereafter. If there's one thing I adore about Chris's shop more than anything it's the incredibly high standard of cleanliness he keeps everything too.