Why I Decided to Get a Tattoo
I went to Hello Kitty Con and they were doing free flash tattoos. I’m a huge Hello Kitty fan, which is obvious considering I attended Hello Kitty Con 2014 in Koreatown, Los Angeles. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get one. It was a first-come, first-served situation, and I wasn’t about to stand in line all day when there were other things to see. Also, a certain celebrity showed up, which slowed everything to a crawl. Because, you know, celebrities are apparently more deserving of a Hello Kitty face tattoo on their middle finger at the expense of everyone else’s time.
Missing that opportunity stuck with me more than I expected. When I got home, I realized I wanted that tattoo badly. Hello Kitty is the one thing I can honestly say I would never regret having on my body forever. The flash tattoo I wanted was Hello Kitty as a Lucky Cat, about two inches big, with no room for modifications.
Since I was now on my own timeline, I had a custom design created. I looked at it every day for a few months. It was going to be larger and include elements that were specific to me. I also decided I was really going to do this, and I wanted it on my ribs. At that point, I was ready to turn my failed Hello Kitty Con experience into an actual moment in my life.
I’m writing this post because I wanted to share my firsthand experience getting a rib tattoo. You can get whatever you want tattooed on your body. I don’t pay your bills. When I was researching rib tattoos, all I really found were vague warnings like “It hurts,” “Don’t do ribs for your first tattoo,” or YouTube videos of men screaming during outlines. Pain wasn’t going to stop me, but I wanted a realistic heads-up. This is that heads-up.
Why I Chose the Rib Placement
Despite the internet rating rib tattoos at an 8/9 out of 10 on the pain scale, I chose my ribs because I wanted control over who sees my tattoo. This is my art. From a practical standpoint, as a dancer, it’s also easier to have something that can be hidden by a leotard. The design I had in mind flowed naturally with the contour of my ribs, so it felt right.
I chose my left side because I was technically supposed to be left-handed. My parents encouraged me to write with my right hand instead, and nuns actually forced my mom to switch her dominant hand when she was younger. Different times. As a dancer, my left side is still my dominant side, so this placement felt personal.
Another regret I kept seeing online was people wishing they had gone bigger with their first tattoo. The ribs allowed for that. I wanted to get it right the first time. If you’re here for the pain details, keep reading.
Design Choice and Meaning
We already know why I chose Hello Kitty. I love her. But I wanted to add some Filipino flair. I didn’t want her floating on my ribs with no context, so I added Sampaguita flowers, the national flower of the Philippines, around her.
I do have one regret. I asked for the flowers to be red, but they ended up white. When I get a touch-up, I’m planning to ask if they can be adjusted slightly.
I chose to have her left paw raised, which symbolizes business prosperity. My parents were extremely successful. I, on the other hand, love to hustle and have never been a true 9-to-5 person. I don’t want to be one either.
The kanji translates to “perfect score,” which I only learned while writing this post. I assume it carried over from the original flash design that inspired my tattoo.
I used a now-defunct website, createmytattoo.com, to commission the design. This was before AI was a thing. You could describe what you wanted, set a price, and artists would bid on your project with a set number of revisions. I felt very in control of the process, and the feedback was genuinely helpful. I wasn’t aiming for realism. I mean, how realistic can a cartoon be?
Choosing the Artist and Studio
I did what any millennial would do. I searched Instagram. I needed someone local with experience tattooing cartoons, ideally Hello Kitty. Unfortunately, it looks like my artist has since deactivated her profile, which makes me sad because she was perfect for my first tattoo.
Her page was full of bright, animated cartoon tattoos, and the energy felt right. I asked if she had ever tattooed Hello Kitty before, and she said no, but that she wanted to. That was all I needed to hear. The last thing I wanted was someone who thought my tattoo was stupid and was just there to push the needle for some coin.
I booked the appointment at Chroma Tattoo in West Bloomfield, Michigan, where she was working at the time. My advice is to find the artist first, then book where they work. A clean shop matters, but the artist matters more. Most bad tattoo stories start with someone choosing a shop instead of a specific artist.
The Actual Tattoo Experience
I ate before my appointment. Please eat before getting tattooed. You’re asking for trouble if you don’t. I brought a friend with me to my appointment and asked ahead of time, just in case.
We didn’t finalize placement until I arrived. When I said ribs, she asked if I had a backup location. I suggested the top of my left foot. She made a face and said that might actually be worse. I told her I wasn’t worried about pain, I just wanted to do it right. That seemed to seal the deal.
She had stencils ready. When I mentioned I didn’t want to regret going too small, she smiled, scaled it up, and placed it on my ribs. She asked if I was sure several times. I twisted around, checked it in the mirror, and it was exactly what I imagined.
There was some light shaving of the area, prep work, and then the moment everyone asks about. Did it hurt? Honestly, not really. It felt like someone took a mechanical pencil, with .05mm lead, that’s been clicked twice, and dragged across my skin for longer than I’d like. Firm, but manageable. I kept waiting for the pain spike everyone warned me about, and it never came.
The only moment I asked her to stop was when she was outlining flowers near my underboob area. It didn’t hurt. It tickled in a deeply uncomfortable way. At that moment it felt like she was tattooing my belly button. Probably a nerve thing. It was funny once we figured it out.
The whole tattoo took about three hours. When it was done, I felt like a total badass. I wasn’t offered a numbing agent, and I would have declined anyway. At the time, I’d read that it could affect color, and I didn’t want to risk it.
Aftercare and Healing
I treated my tattoo like what it was: a large abrasion I paid for. I followed the shop’s instructions, bought unscented soap and Aquaphor, and resisted the urge to overdo anything. The itching phase was real. Because of the placement, I went braless for a couple of weeks. It was winter, so I layered sweaters and called it a win.
Watching it heal was fascinating. At one point, a thin piece of peeling skin came off in the shape of Hello Kitty. I wish I was exaggerating. Follow your artist’s instructions and don’t rush the process.
How It Feels Now
It’s been over ten years and my rib tattoo is simply part of me now. I plan on refreshing it eventually. I use tattoo balm when I remember, which could be more often, but it still brings me joy every time I see it.
Final Thoughts
Don’t let fear of pain dictate where you place your tattoo. Pain is temporary. Regret lasts much longer. If ribs are where you want it, trust yourself. Your tolerance might surprise you. It sure as hell surprised me! Even if your pain tolerance doesn’t surprise you, you’ll get through it.
If you’ve been debating your first tattoo or rib placement specifically, I hope this gave you a clearer picture of what to expect. If you have questions, leave a comment or reach out. I’ll also be sharing this experience on YouTube soon, so feel free to follow along if that’s more your speed.
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