First Tattoo Guide: What to Know Before Getting Your First Tattoo

Getting your first tattoo is exciting, but it's completely normal to have questions before you walk into a tattoo shop.

How much is it going to hurt? How much will it cost? What should you bring? Should you eat beforehand? What happens when you get there? And what are you supposed to do with the tattoo afterward?

This first tattoo guide covers the basics so you can walk into your appointment or walk-in feeling prepared.

At Moon & Ash Tattoo Co. in Merritt Island, Florida, we work with both experienced tattoo collectors and people getting tattooed for the very first time.

If it's your first tattoo, don't be afraid to ask questions.

That's part of the process.

Step 1: Choosing Your First Tattoo

Your first tattoo doesn't need to have some enormous life-changing meaning.

It can.

But it doesn't have to.

Some people spend years planning their first tattoo. Other people see a piece of flash they love and get tattooed that afternoon.

Both are perfectly valid reasons to get tattooed.

What's important is choosing something you actually want rather than something you feel pressured into getting.

You can bring:

• Reference images

• Drawings

• Photos

• Screenshots

• Examples of tattoo styles you like

• A general idea and let yo