Tattoo artists

In the late 1960s Tattoo artists, current on the history of their skill, made the leap from beefy-biceped sailors and hairy-chested marines to the general public. And now everyone, from the sullen teenaged supermarket checker (with blood-sucking dragon emblazoned on his forearm) to your friendly, van-driving, neighborhood, seems to be sporting one.

But if history serves as any model, this latter should not be so surprising. An ancient art form harking back at least to the Golden Age of Egypt and probably further, tattooing has figured largely in the ceremonies and traditions of countless cultures.

In Borneo, women bore markings to indicate their marriageable skill; in western Asia, the Ainu peoples used body art to indicate social status and then introduced the practice to the Japanese who used it in their religious and ceremonial rites. And even today, Hindu brides, in a prenuptial ceremony called the Mehndi, will have their hands and feet painted with intricate, tattoo-like designs that last one to three weeks.

Clearly, it was only a matter of time before American brides and grooms took a good look around them, globally and historically speaking, and started getting tattooed to commemorate the big day. "It's something that symbolizes your togetherness," says Stacey Sharp tattoo artist of Alternative Ink in Ronkonkoma..

Or just plain suffer. These tend to be the couples that insist upon having the name of their loved one engraved forever on their skin. Only be a matter of time before they're back asking to have it covered up. since they look exactly like a photograph and require true talent on the part of the tattoo artist. Still, one has to wonder how a portrait of the partner-to-be would be any wiser a choice than the name.

Anything they can offer the artist beyond a blank stare and a shrug could go a long way toward gaining them a romantic tattoo they can live with. The customer we hate to see is the one who wants you to pick out the tattoo. Some people are very specific about what they want, while you have to lead others in a certain direction, and sometimes it's because they are open and see tattooing as a form of personal expression

It best be clean, a fact which may not always be so obvious. We suggests that a prospective client watch the artist at work to see how she works with the latex gloves and how she handles the needles. And, finally, clients should be certain they are going under a licensed tattoo artist's needle.