My First Tattoo

This is a nostalgia post.  This is about the tattoo that launched me on my tattoo journey.  And if you are reading about my tattoo journey I suggest going to the Tattoo Me Project Page as that pulls it all together in sequence as opposed to the blog that is all out of sequence!

My first, the Amsterdam tattoo, was inked by a chap called TattooMolly who operated in a shop called 'Hanky Panky' located under a bar called 'The Other Place'.  This all took place sometime in the mid 90s, but I am not sure when.  Maybe 95 or 96 perhaps?

It does not look like this now but the bar & shop are still there.

The tat that I got was a piece of flash, and as I recall, it took about 3.5 hours to complete.  Part way through Molly handed me a can of Heineken (I think) and I think I remember him having one as well.

My First!

I was very happy with the result and to be honest, I still am very happy with this tattoo.  it's a good tattoo and Molly did some nice shade work on it. I remember at the time asking for color and (this is where having a good artist is key) he said no and indicated that this would be a lot better just shaded,  He was right of course.

its now Cafe Old Town (2019)

I recently revisited Amsterdam and found the bar and shop again.  it looks a little different now sadly.