This post is about tattoos.
Just so we are clear, I am not a alchemist or a magician or even really all that great at practicing magick of any kind. I have an altar and I’ve read extensively on the subject yet I go through cycles of actively practicing. I think everyone experiences this when they are searching for a spiritual practice that fits them. I grew up Catholic and began at an early age to consume written material on all different types of religions. From ancient to modern, I have tried to understand why I need to have a spiritual practice in my life.
This has taken on many forms. I went into Buddhism and new age, I learned about Egyptian magic and definitely fell down the Hermetic rabbit hole for a while. I gained all this knowledge and incorporated a lot of those concepts in my fictional writings. It’s a large part of my published book, Lord Mecha. That book is littered with references to the spiritual Alchemical journey but it is a journey that Nick experiences.
My Journey
I have a basic alchemical sigil tattooed on my back. I got this done years ago by one of the few tattoo artists that I have gone back to over the years. His name is Jonathan and his instagram is here. I even drove up the coast of California to Oregon just to get my one and only actual Navy tattoo from him. I also got my Dark Crystal tattoo done by him.
So now that I recently went through a pretty bad break up with a man that I was with for two years, I wanted to take this time to come back to myself. I wanted to get another alchemical tattoo but I wanted this one to be more along the style you would normally see sacred geometry tattoos have. That dot artwork with the flower of life is really popular but I only have so much space left on my back and I don’t want to get the flower of life tattooed on me.
The concept of a good tattoo
I have some very well thought out, amazing work tattooed one me. I also have some not so thought out work done by tattoo artists that were early in their career and also sometimes a tattoo just doesn’t come out well or as well as it could have. I have a girl tattooed on my back that I’m glad I don’t see every day. I also have my own tattoo that I did myself. Eventually I want to get it covered up but yeah, I’m a lot more cautious about getting tattoos than I used to be.
I walked into a tattoo studio here in the Springs and almost immediately wanted to walk back out. It reminded me of this place down in Mississippi that I hated but everyone really wanted to get tattoos there so I would go just because they were there. I walked into another shop and immediately liked the vibe. I found myself talking to the apprentice there about my concept and she was chill. I felt like this would be a good shop to spend some money in and yes as cheesy as it is to get an alchemy sigil tattoo next to a bar called Alchemy, I kinda think it’s fitting as well.
The Sketch
So now that I have a pretty solid idea in my head and a good shop that I can talk to an artist about my idea, I usually try to draw what I want because it allows me a better understanding of how I might want to incorporate certain things into the tattoo.
I want a lotus at the center and it’s in a tear drop sort of shape or maybe that one shape you see a Christmas ornament take. I want a couple of different Alchemical symbols in the petals of the lotus that combine to make a spell to remind me of what I want to change in my life. I lost myself these last couple of years and now I have a chance to start over again. I have a chance to go back to school and build a knowledge base around what I actually want to do with the rest of my life.
So I have my crappy little sketch that I know is not going to be anything like the finished product but it’s something to take to the artist and it’s something that means something to me. All my tattoos mean something to me, even the not as good ones. And that is why I cover my body in artwork, they’re reminders of my past and an expression of what I am.
Bella Phoenix 