On Tattoos & Being A "Natural" Model

Anybody who has seen me naked (which is probably everyone reading this) knows I don't have any tattoos. I also don't have any piercings other than standard single ear piercings which I very, very rarely (like once a year) wear earrings in. But I'm not sure how many people actually know why. Or how many of you know about one type of tattoos that I have a not so secret, but kind of secret, obsession with.

One of my secret tattoo love photos ^_~
Photographer: Joshua Winstead, Henna by Magic Monkey Mehendi

First off, I am not anti-tattoos. I have many, many friends who have some beautiful tattoos. And I've seen my fair share of horribly done tattoos as well. I think they are just like anything else: if done well, they can be very beautiful, and if not, they can look pretty bad. I also think sometimes it doesn't matter how they look to the rest of us sometimes because many people get tattoos for specific reasons and to remind them of certain people or experiences in their lives. So to those of us on the outside looking it, the tattoo might be horrible, or badly placed, or inconsistent with the rest of their pieces, but to them, maybe that tattoo has a beautiful meaning or purpose.

When I was younger I actually thought I might get some tattoos. Something pretty extravagant too, like a huge cherry blossom tree on my back, or a big panther going down my back and butt, and with the tail around my leg, or a koi fish along my side. A lot of this was "inspired" by the guys I was interested in at the time since they all seemed to just love tattoos and thought tattooed women were very sexy. And bottom line, I wanted to be sexy because I really didn't feel very sexually attractive at the time. I know that sounds a little negative, but it's the truth.

Then I decided (or rather remembered) that I don't like needles and, more importantly, I don't like permanent things on my body. I used to dye my hair less natural colors because I knew I could always dye it back and/or it would finally grow out. The beauty and the drawback of tattoos are that they are pretty much forever (with some exceptions). And for me, that's just not something I want. I like to be able to be (or at least look) completely natural, so I've actively chosen not to modify my body in any permanent way.

And to me that is a conscious choice, just like people consciously choose to be modified. And I think conscious choices are something to be respected.

What's really kind of amusing is that sometimes I feel like the "odd" one because I don't have tattoos. I don't mean that as a bad thing, but I do find it interesting that as much as people say they want "natural" models, most of the most successful freelance models I know have tattoos. If I look on Zivity, I actually can't name more than a couple other fairly active Zivity models who are unmodified, though I know there are a few more at least.

I also find it interesting that so, so many photographers claim they want natural models, so I should be in quite high demand and able to charge somewhat of a premium rate, but I can tell you quite honestly that it is certainly not the case. Sometimes I wonder if I might actually be more successful if I did dye my hair a bold color and get some very tasteful large tattoos. Of course, I would never do those things because they would not be me and I would quickly wish I had not done them, but as a model, I do wonder. And before you flip out and try to tell me I should never change just for modeling and I am fine the way I am... cool your jets. Models wonder about these things. I think everyone does. But for models, this is our job and we do wonder if we could make changes that would increase our earnings. I don't hate my hair at all, I quite love it, and I definitely don't hate my body.

I actually just ordered some wigs thanks go my very supportive husband who made me go pick some out. I picked two in very unnatural colors and I'm sure you'll be seeing them soon after they arrive. The ones I chose were both curly with bangs/fringe. If I like these, I am sure I will be getting more. I think they'll be great for cosplay and fun for mixing up my look in photos, too.

Photographer: Joshua Winstead, Henna by Magic Monkey Mehendi

 And as for tattoos... I do have that secret tattoo love I mentioned at the start of this: henna (which is what is all of the photos in this post). It lasts just the right amount of time and the deep red on my skin tone is quite lovely. Unfortunately, it's quite expensive and good artists can be hard to find. I've had a couple friends in the past that did my henna, but they both moved away from me. I'm working on some projects to turn my body into a canvas again, so if you know any Detroit artists interested in working on a nude/semi nude tiny model canvas, let me know ^_~

I absolutely love having henna-ed feet!
Photographer: Trinity Roy, Henna by Magic Monkey Mehendi

Also, I do have a special project on Tumblr where I share nude, lingerie, and similar photos of un-modified women (basically, no piercings aside from single earrings, no plastic surgery, no tattoos). I am always looking for submissions and more followers: http://untouchedskinblog.tumblr.com ^_^