Jolly Roger and Family Crest

Both tattoos were done by Josh Garcia of Anchor's End. The first one (with the dragon and masks) is an original design from me, drawn by a friend and modified by Josh. It's supposed to be my own Jolly Roger. Beginning in high school, I became obsessed with pirates (about the same time I became obsessed with studying history) and like any good pirate, I wanted a Jolly Roger that represented me. The masks replace the traditional skull and show my love of acting. The crossed katana and long sword replace the traditional crossed sabers and show my interest in swords, as well as an interest in history of many cultures. The rose represents the importance of love to me. The dragon represents my love of dragons and mythology in general and crest as a whole represents my interest in pirates and symbolism.

The second tattoo comes from "The House of Names" and is what I believe to be my family crest. It shows the pride I have in my family name, as well as my interest in history as well. My paternal side did not keep any records so I took it upon myself to research that side. At first this research was to only find the crest (again, because of pride for my name). In doing so, I've been able to compile a broad family history and understand and share my heritage. Getting this tattoo done wasn't only an accomplishment because I'd wanted it the longest but because I had to work to find my family's background.

Ben Peters

Interpreter

Split Rock Lighthouse

Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Family

This tattoo was designed/created by an artist in Albuquerque NM based on what I had sketched on an airplane while traveling to visit my youngest son who is in the Air Force and was being deployed to Iraq.  The design incorporates my 4 children (the 4 hearts) held together by the vine (family love).  The yellow care symbol stands for the "bring my son home safely" and also as a childhood cancer ribbon for my grandson who is in remission from Rhabdomyosarcoma (diagnosed at age 9 and into remission at age 11 - he is now 2 years cancer free!). The flag care symbol stands for how proud I am of my Air Force son and the love of our freedom that we enjoy because of the men and women who serve.

As a side note my son was with me to get the tattoo and his deployment only lasted 27 days due to pulling back of the troops.  

Gloria Stern

Museum Store Manager
Split Rock Lighthouse 

Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Dancing Skeleton

My life is not of my own, but of the people I encounter, even if briefly. The actions I take today impact the lives of those who come after me. I like giving back to the world, even if it means that I won’t see the intended result in my lifetime. I’ve spent a lot of my time volunteering through the efforts of numerous organizations like; American Red Cross: Disaster Services, Human Rights Campaign, Environment Florida, Oceana, Florida Public Interest Research Group, Sierra Club, my community Church and MakerSpace activities at Local Libraries. I’m a humanitarian and love to  provide whatever I can to those who need it.

Hans Lau

Exhibition Technician

Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science

Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Totem Animals

Like more than a few other eighteen year-olds, I went out to get my first tattoo, a cartoonish dragonfly on my right hip that I had drawn myself. I still remember the little house in Eureka, CA where I went with my friends one afternoon, the old television set turned into a tarantula terrarium and the piercer who pulled out a scorpion and let it walk all over his hands, freaking us out. But as I grew older, I knew that I would someday modify that little blue creature of ink, but just didn't know when the inspiration would come.

Flash forward a decade or so, to the time when I'm living in the Presidio of San Francisco, and going through a rough patch in my personal life. One spring day I was meditating on our porch that overlooked Baker Beach, and a little lizard joined me in the sun. I decided that this western fence lizard had shown herself to be my new totem animal, and I went about searching for an artist who could ink one onto my upper left leg (providing balance to the two tattoos on the right side of my body). It took a surprisingly long time to get an appointment for a consult with Cecilia (she was next to Rainbow Grocery at the time), but the final appointment was made for January 20, 2009, and my totem lizard was finished in time to watch President Obama's inaugural celebration that evening.

After migrating away from the Bay Area to work for a few seasons in Yosemite's high country, I landed my current job in rural Eastern Oregon. On my first evening of walking around my new (small! quiet!) hometown, I was struck by the thought that it was time to change up that little dragonfly remnant of my past - that whatever life event I'd been waiting for had finally arrived. Earlier that summer, I had encountered a number of butterflies, and decided that the swallowtail would be the icon of my metamorphosis. I worked with Lindsay, a great local artist, to cover up the blue dragonfly (look closely!) with a realistic new insect. This piece was completed in January 2012, and life has been getting better and better ever since... I met my husband about six months afterwards, and gave him a body-balancing tattoo from Lindsay for his birthday this spring!

Gypsy Burks
Exhibit Specialist
National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center



Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Sugar Skull

This tattoo has many meanings for me. I've always had a fascination with skulls, I have a collection of them at home. So naturally I've always wanted a skull tattoo. I choose a sugar skull because I'm obsessed with Dia De Los Muertos and I'm Hispanic so I grew up around it. The pickaxe represents my degree in archaeology, the makeup brush represents my artistic side as a professional makeup artist and the flash in the left eye represents my passion for photography.

Samantha Moreno
San Diego Natural History Museum

Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Gates outside the Governor's Palace, Colonial Williamsburg

My tattoo was inspired by the first place that inspired me to go into museums - Colonial Williamsburg! When I was thinking up ideas for tattoo concepts, I didn't want something that was obviously historical - like George Washington's portrait emblazoned on my arm. This design was taken from the gates outside the Governor's Palace - a subtle way of representing my love for history, museums, scroll work and Colonial Williamsburg. This is, I'm sure, the first of many more history-inspired tattoos to come!

Alli Schell

Director, Milton Historical Society in Milton, DE
www.historicmilton.org

Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.

Meera's Animal Kingdom Tattoos

These tattoos are dedicated to the people and creatures that are a part of my life. My fascination with animals and the natural world began as a youngster in Queens, NY where I visited many museums, zoos, and gardens over and over again.

After studying Natural History at SUNY-ESF, I wanted to cover myself with illustrations that represented the animal kingdom.  So far, I have included birds, insects, reptiles, and fish. Although I still have a long way to go, each animal reminds me of an extraordinary person, critter, or experience.

The zebra finches are my pet birds that I had as a child - Joe & Judy. As a kid growing up in Ozone Park, I didn’t have much exposure to the natural world. One day my aunt brought home these lovely birds and they became very special to our family. Joe even lived for over 9 years!

The bees remind me of my love for gardening, and helping kids overcome their fear of bees – a fear I thought I would never overcome!

The snake spine combines my attraction to both science drawings & skeletons.  Our museum has lots of animals children can meet and touch, most of them being reptiles. Holding a snake is another fear I have recently overcome, and it has become a part of my everyday museum routine.

When I got my first tattoo at 18, I asked my mother “What should I get?!”

She responded, very seriously, suggesting that I get a seahorse. At first, I thought this was a ridiculous idea. Five years later, my most recent tattoo, of a seahorse, is dedicated to my mother.



Meera Jagroop
Science Educator
Brooklyn Children’s Museum



Want to share your own story and tattoo?
Email Beth: beth (at) redmond-jones (dot) com or Paul: info (at) orselli (dot) net.