Tinkerbell was my first tattoo at the ripe age of 19. I knew I wanted a fairy, but what? I absolutely loved Disney, still do. A friend suggested I consider Tink. Turns out, she was perfect. I researched drawings, and original sketches and discovered that Walt Disney modeled her after Marilyn Monroe - my then idol. Her body shape is not what we see as standard beauty now, but she is classic. As a petite blonde, with my hair in a top knot, my nickname was often Tink by many unknowingly. Her sassy, intelligent attitude drew me to her, and thus Tinkerbell. I didn't get my next tattoo until I was 30 years old after my first marathon - The Boston Marathon, and then it became an addiction. I am a lover of literature and I have taken many paths in life that seem disconnected to some but have been very deliberate on my part. Thus the quote by Tolkien, on my right shoulder, Not all who wander are lost. This sparked the idea to bring back Disney in Peter Pan, a lost boy who knew exactly where he wanted to be - the second star to the right and straight on till morning. I may add more there, stay tuned. The compass on my arm was inspired by the SeaWheeze half marathon in Vancouver, a favorite city of mine. @cthulhuisgod captured my vision (as well as my next tattoo). I lived in Seattle for a year as a new nurse and fell in love with the PNW - I am a New Englander at heart. The compass shows that truly not all who wander are lost, Seattle and I were meant to be at the time and so the Space Needle represents the PNW. Wherever I go, I will always find my way home, so the dial points to the NE, a Maine lighthouse. Even though I am from Mass, my heart belongs to Maine. Along my rib cage and sternum was my bravest tattoo, the most painful location. it depicts my change, my metamorphosis over my lifetime. Sometimes it was painful, but it was always beautiful. I have a thing for birds so it made sense to have the feather, tinted with my favorite color blue - the same blue as the lighthouse. It is blowing in the wind turning into birds flying free. The quote is in Latin, I am. I was. I will be. which describes what we all go through, who I am, and who I've yet to become. At the core, there is always I, set free into what always was and is yet to be. That change comes from within, which is why this tattoo is for me, not readily visible to others. My most recent is along my right arm. Most of it is towards the inside, because again it is intended for me, yet it wraps around the forearm to give a peek into what's inside but not yet shared. Originally, I just wanted a few flowers, mostly because they were pretty, but also to continue the theme of blossoming into life. The hummingbird is my favorite, draped with the color blue, which I added for extra beauty and personalization. @wickedgoodink crafted a simple idea into something so elegant.
