When one makes their first visit to a good tattoo parlor, they’re likely to run into at least one individual who is there having work done on a large project. Oftentimes, these projects will be tattoos which are sleeves that will entirely encompass a good part of the arm and, in many cases, which will cover the entire arm. These tattoos are among the most artistically demanding tattoos for the artists and among the largest possible commitments made on the part of those who indulge themselves in a bit of body art.
Getting one or both arms sleeved is oftentimes a decision that evolves after one gets their first tattoo applied. There’s some understandable trepidation involved in one’s first tattoo. After all, one is committing to enduring literally thousands of jabs from a needle! Of course, the pain is usually far less than people envision at first and, once the barrier of fear is down, many people find themselves thrilled to have learned that they’re the sort of person who is not only able to overcome this fear but that they are the sort of person who has a love of decorating their body with art.
One should not get hung up on making decisions regarding their sleeves before they’re applied. Oftentimes, a sleeve evolves out of several separate tattoos. If one sticks with their tastes and makes good choices, they’ll often find that their individual tattoos naturally lend themselves to being linked together in one regard or another and that a sleeve can be built around the pieces that already adorn their arms. There is usually a linking theme involved such as vines, flames or other art which can be used to draw the viewer’s eye effortlessly up or down the arm and the tattoos.
Some sleeves have a definite termination point, such as an arm band, at the top of the design. Other sleeves actually continue on to the chest and back and, in the case of those individuals who truly love transforming their body into a canvas, continue on over the entire body. In these cases, the sleeve is oftentimes a preview of what lies on the rest of the body and, if it’s done right, the sleeve will draw the viewer’s eye and attention to the entirety of their tattoos much as the first chapter of a novel will draw a reader to read the rest of the work.
Remember that some areas of the arm have thin skin over bone and the sensations will be more intense when these areas are subjected to the tattoo gun. This sensation is usually more of an initial shock than anything else, though, as people tend to quickly adapt and to make themselves ignore the feeling. Most sleeves feature the boldest artwork on the most visible areas of the arms with the connecting art wrapping around those areas of the arms which are the least visible but which still benefit from the art nonetheless.
