Acceptance
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Saturday October 10th, 2009 @ 12:15 AM
Filed under: Tattoos
First of all, I’m a rookie. I have minimal visible modifications (1g lobes and a tragus piercing), and two reasonably sized tattoos that generally are not visible. I tend to be pretty private about my mods (largely because my folks are still helping to support me through contributions to my education).
I’ve also followed BME for about 7 years, and am looking forward to a time in my life when I can comfortably be more visibly modified (and can afford it). Anyway, I love reading about tattoo conventions, and there is one that’s going down in my vicinity in the near future. I want to go, but in light of some recent comments on modblog (dealing with someone “earning” various modifications etc.) and my own observations on the community — I am very intimidated by the idea. Are conventions typically open-minded settings in the sense that they are welcoming to people who are not visibly modified?
Hope it’s not too silly of a question.
Thanks
You shouldn’t be intimidated; these days tattoo conventions are more “pop culture” than they’ve ever been. The last convention I attended had more people wearing Miami Inked shirt than people with heavy tattoo coverage. So go and have a good time. If people look down on you because you’re not “modified enough” you can still have a good time knowing that you understand something they’ll never be able to. Have fun!
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5 Responses to “Acceptance”
“If people look down on you because you’re not “modified enough” you can still have a good time knowing that you understand something they’ll never be able to. Have fun!”
That made me smile. Just sayin’.
Shay on October 10th, 2009 at 4:44 amPeople who are snobby about their dress or lifestyle put themselves in a contradiction. First they complain about not being accepted by normal people, then when their “thing” becomes normalised they complain about it being stolen by the mainstream
As someone who also has not a lot of mods but is interested in them anyway I say thumbs up for conventions becoming more open.
Xenobiologista on October 10th, 2009 at 8:37 amWow! How sad that you feel that way! Shame on anyone who would make someone feel inadequate because of how few visible modifications they have!!
I run a tattoo and piercing studio and with a regular T-shirt on I don’t have any visible tattoos even though most of my torso is covered.
I often get people who make comments like “Shouldn’t you have more tattoos if you work here?” Uhh…no?
Tattoo conventions are actually pretty chill. I worked them running a shop booth, as an exhibitor and as an organizer and educator. Tattooers go to them to tattoo and make some cash, the public go to see what tattooing is all about.
Most people do tend to have more tattoos on their clothes (Thank you, Christian Audigier) than they do on their skin.
Lexci Million on October 17th, 2009 at 4:43 pmMake no appologies to anyone.
This is really comforting, as I was one to experience a bit of negativity at a convention when I wasn’t so visibly modified. PLUS I was 18 at the time, but looked more like 14. Probably thought I was just some fangirl, or something.
dunecat on January 20th, 2010 at 3:38 amI posted this question, and just wanted to comment with an update. I did end up attending the convention (The New Zealand Ta Moko Tattoo Convention) and was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere. It was intimidating at first, but the crowd was so friendly - all smiles! I was so pleased to see lots of visibly unmodified people, and lots of families! It turned out to be an incredibly educational experience and I didn’t experience a moment of negativity. Glad I took your advice!
Sarah on January 31st, 2010 at 5:03 pmLeave a Comment