Progress Isn't Linear

It often feels like two steps forward, one step back. In our minds, we expect to get better with each task or project and when it doesn't go that way, we feel like a failure. But, each mistake is a lesson and it is those lessons that help us grow.

The past month has been crazy! As determined as I am, I have to be realistic. Life is still happening! My little (taller) sister got married, I badly injured my hand (my own clumsy fault) and it was my birthday! All of this while being Mum and dealing with chronic physical and mental illnesses.

It is important we give ourselves grace. If the passion and determination is there, the results will come.

My partner very kindly offered up his skin for practice. Seeing the tattoos together, I could see improvement in each one and my confidence grew. However, I was soon humbled!

My first mistake was deciding to tattoo the bottom of my shin. I had to bend and stretch in the most awkward ways. My second mistake was not allowing the stencil to dry properly. I lost the stencil and impatiently carried on. I was guessing where the stencil was and reapplied it incorrectly. I could feel myself getting frustrated. What resulted was this mess.

I allowed it to heal and went in for a second time. I was limited on time but I do think it is an improvement. I will allow it to heal again, take my time and complete it eventually. It has certainly been a learning curve!

After that disaster, I went back to the drawing board (literally) and worked away on fake skin. I was fairly pleased with how these turned out. In the match design, it was the first time I had tried a smooth gradient with shading. This type of shading is what I enjoy on paper. I really enjoyed it on the fake skin too and am happy with the result!

I was given great advice from Sarah who works out of Studio 15 in Oban. She told me: "It takes as long as it takes." She was talking about the creating an actual tattoo, but this really stuck with me. I draw and paint fast. I'm busy and impatient and on the go. Tattooing is a SLOW process. You cannot rush to make it go quicker. It takes as long as it takes.

You can check out Sarah's work here:

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The Internet and Social Media are inundated with the besy of our work and "perfect" moments. I think it's important to show the failures as well as the successes. I am still learning. (Tattooing AND patience.) And that is okay!

Naomi x