Friday, July 2, 2010

Celtic tattoos designs

Celtic tattoos designs have been influenced by the long, complex history and culture of the people themselves. They are a spiritual people, with one foot in this world and one in the spiritual world. The modern designs have been influenced both by their earlier pagan religious practices, which were nature based, and their now long practiced Christianity.Most of their designs have reference to a deeper meaning. Their folklore is full of stories of the other world. Their art and symbols are heavily influenced by their pre-Christian pagan religions in which they worshipped nature. The sun, moon, stars and the earth were sacred to them, as were animals and the seasons. Later, after they were introduced to Christianity, their art included the cross, in various forms, but their earlier traditions were well established by then. This mixture is seen in their work today.

Celtic Cross Tattoos

This is the predominant symbol of Christianity but the Celts have given it their own unique design with the ringed cross. The cross, of course, represents the Christian belief itself while the circle can represent eternity or God's eternal love or the continuing act of salvation brought by Christ's death and resurrection.The symbol of the cross predates Christianity and can be found in ancient civilizations. Both the cross and the circle are found in a number of cultures. They have been found on rock carvings several thousand years old. The circle can represent the sun. Those not drawn to Christianity can find other spiritual meaning in the symbols.





Celtic Knot Tattoos
The Celts have made knot work their own but it has elements that evolved from earlier cultures and civilizations. The intricate criss-crossing and inter-weaving designs of their knot work is said to represent life itself. Life is a maze, complex, with each life interwoven with another's. The lines of the drawings are never-ending, representing the continuity of the natural cycle of death and rebirth. It can also represent the crossing over of the physical and spiritual world. It can represent eternity and the boundlessness of God's bounty and goodness. Animal forms are often intertwined, reflecting the people's earlier connection to nature and the animal world. The images of horses, dogs, birds and other animals can be found skillfully woven into the lines of artwork so that they become an integral part of the whole. Animal images were used in many cultures, often in the hope the wearer might take on some of that animal's skills or characteristics or simply link them spiritually to the animal.All these elements can be found in illuminated documents, such as the Book of Kells, which have heavily influenced modern Celtic tattoo designs.



Celtic Spiral Tattoos

The spiral has fascinated humans from earliest times. It appears on early rock carvings and in most cultures. It appears in nature in the horns of animals, in snail and seashells and in the galaxy. It has been studied by scientists and mathematicians and pondered on by philosophers. The spiral most associated with Celtic design is the triple spiral or triskele. The design is found around the world because the Celts made inroads into so many cultures. In earlier times it represented the sun but later came to be used in Christianity to explain the Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Some see it as representing our spiritual journey to God - an ever-unfolding mystery. Others see in it our journey through life. It is a tattoo symbol full of mystery and can remind us of our own spiritual and emotional journey.









Celtic Heart Tattoo -Love and Romance

Tattoos have since been a form of art and self-expression even from the earliest centuries. It also represents a person's characteristic and how he perceives himself/herself to be. In the past, only the warriors of a tribe had tattoos. This was to show what they have been through.

The tattoos of today represent or are in a way, a representation of the tattoo designs of the past. There are tribal tattoo designs, Celtic tattoos, and Goth tattoos. But out of these three tattoo designs, type or class of tattoos; people look to the Celtic tattoo designs for symbolism from artwork. These Celtic designs are difficult to decipher on what they really mean.
The most basic and fundamental key elements of Celtic design tattoos include spirals, knots and crosses, and even hearts. Most commonly, a heart is made with spirals, knots and crosses. A Celtic heart tattoo is requested and even chosen by people who feel a strong emotion which is love. Thus, the heart tattoos symbolize love, charity, and compassion.

The fresh and modern Celtic heart tattoo is understood as a symbol of love and faith as a person journeys in his life. If there are spirals on the design, a spiral open on the right side, it means it moves in the clockwise direction and is thought of as a sign of good luck. Once the spiral is open to the left, in a counter clockwise direction, it means you are in harmony with the Earth. Another thing to be noted is the number of spirals in heart tattoos. Three spirals signify the Holy Trinity and four represent the four directions: north, south, east and west.

One of the most common Celtic heart tattoo designs is the Claddagh. It is represented by a heart that is gently clasped or held between two hands or with a crown on top. This design is a symbol of loyalty and love and is popularly seen and found in jewelry designs, especially in rings and sometimes in pendants. There are several types of Claddagh designs that have both subtle and not so subtle variations.

If there is a knotwork on the tattoo design, it is thought of as a symbol of never ending love. Thus, it also shows the strong emotion of love.

There are people who choose these designs because they show the meaning of love and romance. In the past, lovers get Celtic hearts as tattoos to show their devotion and love for each other. Women often choose small Celtic hearts with spiral design tattoos or just a plain heart. For men however, they choose a bolder, more colorful and vibrant approach. They mix hearts and crosses, as well as spirals with knotworks. The possibilities with these designs are endless. With the combination of the basic elements of Celtic design, your heart tattoo will become more meaningful.
These tattoos can either be in the typical black and white color scheme which suit these designs best or for a bolder approach, colors could be added.

Celtic Tattoos Designs - Some Ideas

Celtic tattoo designs can make very attractive and interesting tattoos for both men and women. There are many Celtic symbols that have become popular as body art, and there are almost limitless ways to use them in original ways to suit your own preferences.

One of the cool things about Celtic designs is that there are some very simple yet beautiful types of images out of which many different types of tattoos can be created. The most basic of these is Celtic knotwork, which is the basis for much Celtic artwork. Celtic knots can be seen as symbolizing infinity, the way they intertwine in a continuous spiral. Celtic knots make great tattoos by themselves or they can be made into other designs, such as Celtic crosses. Knotwork can also serve as a border or addition to other types of tattoos.

Celtic crosses are also popular as tattoos. They can be used, like other crosses, as a Christian symbol, but they also have other meanings, as the cross actually predates Christianity as a symbol. The Celtic cross is also called the equal-armed cross, as the horizontal and vertical lines are of equal length represents balance between opposing forces.
Spirals are another type of Celtic symbol that work well as tattoos. One type of spiral, called the triskele, is a kind of triple spiral that was found in the British Isles dating back thousands of years, which even predates the Celts. This is a very interesting tribal type design that makes for a great tattoo.

Another type of popular Celtic design are zoomorphic or animal images. These can include birds, lions, serpents, dragons or other animals. Of course, any animal can be drawn Celtic style. If you look at one of the classic sources of Celtic art, the medieval Book of Kells, you can find many examples of this animal art. Many images from this book have been used as the basis for modern Celtic style tattoos.

Celtic tattoos work especially well with rich colors, which can be anything from the traditional green (at least traditional to Ireland) to blues, reds and any color combination you can imagine. Celtic knotwork in bright colors is very striking on the arm or anywhere else on the body.
Some people wonder about how "authentic" Celtic tattoos are. This is an interesting question, because there is no actual evidence that the ancient Celts even used tattoos! They did paint themselves, especially to prepare for battle, but whereas other ancient peoples, such as natives of the South Pacific, definitely used permanent tattoos to decorate their bodies, we really don't know for sure if the Celts did.

This does not change the fact, however, that the symbols people use today to create Celtic tattoos are traditional to the Celtic lands. If we are using them today in a way that is different, that's just part of the way cultural symbols and practices change and evolve over the centuries.

Southern California, picking a reputable Orange County tattoo shop

In Southern California, picking a reputable Orange County tattoo shop is critical if you want to preserve your health and well-being after inking your skin. There are at least 20 Orange County tattoo shops that offer not only unique and impressive designs but they also adhere to legal regulations that promote the safety of people who want to be tattooed. Since, getting a tattoo is better and safer now than they have ever been before, Orange County tattoo shops are in many cases considered to provide serious and highly skilled body artists for tat afficionados living within the proximity. In fact, Orange County tattoo salons are becoming increasingly popular even for professionals and college students living in the suburbs. This clearly demonstrates that American people today are widely adapting the historical art which was first practiced in Ancient Egypt.
California Tattoo Artist PlacasoGuidelines in Choosing the Right Orange County Tattoo Salon

1. The first issue to consider when picking a tat shop is if it's licensed to operate. Licensed Orange County Tattoo Salons have successfully completed a course on infectious disease transmission and most probably passed an exam. Also, check with your local state office and find out if that particular studio abide with the regulations for body modification.

2. When you step in the studio, look around and observe the shops equipments and facility. The best Orange County tattoo shops should be properly sanitized and well organized. If you think its not, turned around and walk out.

3. Orange county tattoo shops should use EPA approved disinfectants. They should practice to keep their tools and needles in a Biohazard Container.

4. Ink, ink cups, gloves, needles should only be used once to eliminate the chances of viral contamination for people who want to get a tattoo. Best Orange County tattoo salon purchase these items in sterile packaging and should be opened in front of the customer just before the artist begins work.

5. Observe, if the artists use autoclave to sterilize their equipments. It uses heat, steam, and pressure to kill every organism on the equipment. The process should take about an hour to run a complete autoclave cycle from from a cold start to effectively kill all organisms. As a customer you can actually ask for an autoclave and sterilization certificate.

Lastly, tattoo artist of top of the line Orange County tattoo shops should first ask you which part of your body you want your tattoo on. Some parts of the body tends to be more sensitive than others. You should be fully aware in making the final decision excluding the pain factor because you will wear the tattoo for the rest of your life. So, it is the best decision to get it done exactly at the spot you want it. Long after the tattoo is finished, you might regret it and thought it was in a better spot. If you get your tattoo in just the right place, for years to come you'll be proud you made the right decision



Tattoo Machine Maintenance Tips-machines breaks down

Maintaining your tattoo machine is the key to getting more years out of it. With constant vibration every time you use your machine, it is easy enough for some parts to come loose or to completely break. This could result to sudden cuts and stoppages, which for sure you would not want to see happening right in the middle of a tattoo job.

If you are a professional tattoo artist, you need to have more than one tattoo machine, so that you always have one in reserve. Doing so will make sure you won't have to stop your tattoo session in case one of your machines breaks down. However, if you are just a tattoo hobbyist, and could not yet afford another machine, it is best to keep your equipment regularly checked and well maintained.

When your tattoo machine stops, the first thing to check is the power pack and its connection to the machine frame. If your machine runs on batteries, it may just be a matter of recharging your batteries. However, if there are some carbon build ups on the mounting holes of inside the machine and the clip cord ends, this is causing poor connectivity which results to stoppages also.
A simple nail file or a pick can actually come to the rescue and remove carbon build up. Just remember to clean up filings from all parts of the machine after using a nail file or a pick. Although some tattoo machine users will tell you to use a sand paper to clean up the carbon, it is actually best not to do this because some sand may be left on the contact surfaces, which can also affect the performance of your machine.

Check if your contact tension screw is properly connected to the front contact tightening screw. Sometimes, it is just a matter of tightening the screw contacts or the clip cord. The stoppage may also be caused by broken wire strands on the electrical cord. To avoid this from happening, always keep an extra power cord handy.
These are simple maintenance tips that can assure you of less cuts and stoppages from your tattoo machine. In case the machine still stops even after checking loose connections, cleaning and adjusting the screws, it may be the right time to retire the machine and get a new one.


Safest Way to Apply Tattoos-tattoo guns

As we all know, there is a machine called tattoo guns, which is usually used to create as well as to apply tattoos. Guns are also called machines. For all those seriously looking forward to enjoy some beautiful pieces of body art, tattoo machines offered in tattoo kit is what helping them to make their dream come true. You might come across parlors and shops all over the world using tattoo machines and guns today.

41414759_9294340_thumbnailIt has been said that the first tattoo machine or gun was invented in the year 1870 by none other than one of the greatest inventors of all time called Thomas Edison. Unfortunately, it was not good enough to meet the perfection while creating the tattoos. This is the reason why the inventor himself intended to use this machine as an engraving machine. However, some other scientists started to modify Edison's machine such that it can be worthy to be used in applying ink into an individual's skin in all manners. This is how the first tattoo gun was invented.
However, these machines witnessed many rounds of modernization just for a reason that the artist should be able to achieve the design in his mind with no compromise. The modern machines offered in modern tattoo equipment supplies are found to use electromagnets. The entire tattoo process can be easily controlled with the help of electromagnets. The latest guns including the cheap tattoo guns have offered the artist a great opportunity to control everything in the tattooing including the speed of the needle, depth of the needle and force as well. No matter what is the size and design in the mind of the artists or customers, tattoo equipment and supplies are the only precise and effective way to achieve it.

In order to offer more convenience for the artists, all tattoo supplies are made in different sizes. In fact, you would have already seen some machines used to apply a single color and others to apply more than one color. However, the maintenance and the right care is what actually matters while the tattooing process is still in progress rather tan the size of tattoo machines offered by various wholesale tattoo supplies shops. No matter whether it is a cheap tattoo gun or top quality one, it is seriously advised to take care of the guns. The reason is that only by doing so the tattoo machines as well as other tattoo equipments offered in tattoo kits will be able to produce beautiful and high quality tattoos.

For all people quite serious in getting started with tattoo business, it is seriously advised to go for only top quality professional tattoo kits. Only these kits will be able to produce satisfactory results since tattooing any design is absolutely is absolutely difficult. You may find many online shops selling cheap tattoo gun separately or with the tattoo kit. Tattoo equipment and supplies including dts tattoo supplies is an area, which requires your great concern in order to witness success in this field.



How to Clean a Tattoo Machine-important process

Cleaning the tattoo equipment after completing tattooing is an important process not only for the beauty of the machine, but also a regular basis in order to sterilize them, preventing diseases and infections?

A. The most important factor of tattoo sterilization is the tool. Common tools we need to clean and sterilize a tattoo machine are autoclaves and ultrasonic cleaners.
Before sterilization, the tattoo machines, needles and tubes should be cleaned completely after each use or at least daily. The best and easiest tool to clean a tattoo machine before sterilization is ultrasonic cleaner. It can clean all remaining tattoo ink include any tiny gap and dead angle without chemical reactions to the machines.
But keep notice that although the ultrasonic cleaners performance great in killing Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus. But bacteria like HIV could only be sterilized by autoclave sterilizer, that's why it becomes the only professional tool for tattoo sterilization.

B. Clean before sterilizing. 

1, Remove the tip, tube and grip of the machine. This procedure of unscrew the parts may vary depending on the brand and model of tattoo machine.
2, Basic cleaning, Wash these machine parts with anti-bacterial soap and warm water.
3, Further cleaning by ultrasonic cleaner
Pour 300ml-500ml water into the ultrasonic jewelry cleaner's tank; Put the tips tubes and grips into the ultrasonic cleaner tank; Turn on the digital ultrasonic cleaner, and set the cleaning time, take the machine pieces out after 3-10mins; Rinse and dry naturally, or use special mull to save your time.

C. How to sterilize a tattoo machine 1, fill a bag with the sterilization of the tubes, one with the tip and one sterilization bag with the grips. Prepare one tray for each bag; Place each bag on a sterilization tray. Close the bag and put each in its own Autoclave sterilizer tray. If there is only one tray in the autoclave, then sterilize one bag at a time, take turns with the others.
2, Fill the autoclave with distilled water. Fill what's right in up the middle. Turn the autoclave on; always take care on the autoclave, as it will take 1-2 hours to clean each bag.
3, Wait until the temperature displaying 0 degrees before opening. Remove bags, or put in sterile bags in a closet clean and dry, at last assemble the machine again.

D. Contraindications and tips of tattoo cleaning. Do not soak your tattoo machine in water, as the liquid will rust the coils.
Pre sterilized disposable needles and needles with silicon grips need not re-sterilization.