When appointment day arrives and you’re psyching yourself up for a 6-hour long session, it can be easy to forget to bring essential supplies with you because your mind is so focused on the gravity of the situation. If you’re serious about doing it right, it might help to have a checklist of things that you should bring with you. Here are three things that should be on that checklist.
Number one is a pair of headphones. One reason these are a great thing to bring is that you can choose your own music and blast it at a pretty good volume without disturbing others around you, which can help quite a bit in dealing with the pain of being tattooed. Also, if you’ve never been tattooed by this artist before, it’s difficult to tell how they prefer to work. Some tattooers will make conversation the entire time, while others like to be totally focused on what they are doing and aren’t very chatty. If your artist is the latter, then having some form of entertainment that won’t distract him or her is a smart move. Pair your headphones up with music on your phone or a tablet that you can watch movies on.
Number two is an external charger for your aforementioned mobile devices. There aren’t many situations that will put the battery life of your phone or tablet to the test quite like a long tattoo session. You’ll be scrolling and swiping like crazy both to pass the time and to distract yourself from the pain. Make sure you don’t get stuck in a situation where you have to stare at a wall for a few hours straight by bringing this essential item.
Number three is sustenance in the form of food and drink. One of the biggest factors in how much discomfort a client will experience during a tattoo session is whether or not they are well hydrated and properly fed. If you don’t have basic homeostasis throughout the endeavor, you will have a much harder time than you would if your belly were full. Sometimes getting a bite to eat can be difficult and take up unnecessary amounts of time during the session, so it’s best to bring some hardy snacks or a prepacked meal so you can be sure to have enough gas in the tank to make it through the whole day. This may also reduce the chance of having a vasovagal response where you might feel light headed or pass out as a result of the tattoo process. Better safe than sorry.