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Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

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Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#41

Post by egypturnash »

zck wrote: post #21
k-mcgrady wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your doubling the cost of a tattoo though and they're already pretty expensive. Wouldn't it make more sense to just be certain you want one before you get it and save hundreds of dollars?

> Wouldn't it make more sense to just be certain you want one before you get it and save hundreds of dollars? Sure. But how can you be certain? I have no idea what it's like to have a tattoo, or whether I'd regret it. Would I be too self-conscious about having it? Or would I enjoy seeing it in the dark? I've had one specific one in mind for most of my life, but I don't know if I want it. If I were able to get a fadin…

About eight years ago, I came up with an idea for a tattoo I wanted: a pair of stylized dragon wings stretching from one elbow to the other. I drew up a first version of it, made a stencil, and got my then-boyfriend to draw the thing on me with a magic marker. It took a week or two to wash off, during which I could get used to the idea of having a pair of wings on my arms and decide if I liked it.

Ultimately I ended up taking another four or five years before I finally settled on a version of the design I liked, and spent eighteen months getting it tattooed on me. It's been finished for about two years and I'm still delighted to see it every now and then.

If you've wanted the same design for most of your life, I say go for it. Iterate on the imagery until you have a version that you look at and say "yes, this is perfect, I want this on me now because I have been waiting long enough already". If you're not an artist like me then find one whose work you like and ask if they're taking commissions. Then put it on yourself: stencil it on with a magic marker if it's a tribal thing, get it done in henna, or even print it out on temporary tattoo paper. Which is a thing that exists, that you can shove into any inkjet printer. No need for hassling with the incredibly slow and painful process of having needles stuck in the same part of your skin twice.

Take ownership of yourself by putting your own mark on your body.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#42

Post by askldfhjkasfhd »

solipsism wrote: post #25

Oh good, even more barbed wire biceps, carp sleeves, black fore-arm stars, "tribal" patterns on white dudes, spiderwebs, hummingbirds, infinity symbols, and other ways for people to show how eager they are to express their "individuality"! Edit: Down-vote me if I offend your tattooed rebellious self-image, it's fine, but there's a real point to be made. This technology will lead to a lot more tattoos, and a lot more…

The downvotes are because your comment added nothing to the discussion beyond expressing your distaste for people who dare decorate their body in a way that indicates membership in a group you personally have distaste for.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#43

Post by Swizec »

mbrameld wrote: post #40
Swizec wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Sure. But how can you be certain? You're not. That's the whole point. You get a tattoo and then you live with it. It's a part of your body. It's just there. It's not something you really think about on a day to day basis. At least I don't. I have 3 tattoos and sometimes forget they're even there until something reminds me. The only reason I don't have more is that they're expensive and that you have to stop working…

You're confusing the way things are now with the way things must be, for some reason. Just because things are one way right now doesn't mean they won't be another way in the future. Especially if new technology comes along that disrupts the field.

This is true, I was responding to the parent post in particular. Right now, you can't be certain and that's part of the allure.

Many (most?) people, for instance, get tattoos to commemorate important events or people. The entire point of a tattoo in those cases is that it's permanent.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#44

Post by refurb »

jessriedel wrote: post #5
daveguy wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Safety is definitely the number 1 concern. I'm not sure how long trials will need to run before they can confirm there is no increased cancer risk. Also a concern. If it's gone in a year, what does it look like in 6 months? Are you going to look like you have a nasty blob-bruise for 6 months as the definition fades and the ink migrates?

There is absolutely no way that they can take enough statistics to prove that there's no increased cancer risk. i don't think we even know whether regular tattoos increase cancer risks.

We don't know a 100% whether current tattoo inks causes cancer, but we have a pretty good body of evidence to suggest they don't. Most tattoo inks are pretty old compounds whose toxicity has been tested (e.g. black ink is carbon black).

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#45

Post by solipsism »

askldfhjkasfhd wrote: post #42
solipsism wrote: post #25

Oh good, even more barbed wire biceps, carp sleeves, black fore-arm stars, "tribal" patterns on white dudes, spiderwebs, hummingbirds, infinity symbols, and other ways for people to show how eager they are to express their "individuality"! Edit: Down-vote me if I offend your tattooed rebellious self-image, it's fine, but there's a real point to be made. This technology will lead to a lot more tattoos, and a lot more…

The downvotes are because your comment added nothing to the discussion beyond expressing your distaste for people who dare decorate their body in a way that indicates membership in a group you personally have distaste for.

Yes, and the up-votes were because the up-voters understand nuance.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#46

Post by steele »

solipsism wrote: post #25

Oh good, even more barbed wire biceps, carp sleeves, black fore-arm stars, "tribal" patterns on white dudes, spiderwebs, hummingbirds, infinity symbols, and other ways for people to show how eager they are to express their "individuality"! Edit: Down-vote me if I offend your tattooed rebellious self-image, it's fine, but there's a real point to be made. This technology will lead to a lot more tattoos, and a lot more…

I don't see the problem with other people's taste. Not sure why you have such a problem with it either. I mean, your handle is solipsism instead of hnreader7381648 because you like the word even though someone else may think it's an uninteresting word from a first year philosophy syllabus.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#47

Post by ChristianBundy »

aristus wrote: post #37

Long long ago I was a tattoo artist. With very careful needle adjustments, color choices, and a steady hand, this is already possible with conventional inks. Simple example: white ink is titanium oxide, basically sunscreen, and breaks down rapidly with exposure to UV. But you are still gonna have scarring and roughening. If you're gonna get ink, be prepared to have it for life. Also, testing on pigs? Like, live pigs?…

> Also, testing on pigs? Like, live pigs? I'd pay money to see that. :)

Disgusting and shameful behavior, I can't believe that attitudes like this still exist.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#48

Post by steele »

solipsism wrote: post #45
askldfhjkasfhd wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The downvotes are because your comment added nothing to the discussion beyond expressing your distaste for people who dare decorate their body in a way that indicates membership in a group you personally have distaste for.

Yes, and the up-votes were because the up-voters understand nuance.

Nah, they are probably salty folk like yourself that got a chuckle from your open mic night tattoo joke because you typed what they were thinking but chose not to comment because it little to do with the actual article or because your complaint was a complete work and they felt they could add nothing and echoing the sentiment would be ironic in this context. With that said, you articulated one of the most clichéd reactions to fad tattoo designs.

Re: Ephemeral is developing tattoo ink designed to disappear after a year

#49

Post by solipsism »

steele wrote: post #46
solipsism wrote: post #25

Oh good, even more barbed wire biceps, carp sleeves, black fore-arm stars, "tribal" patterns on white dudes, spiderwebs, hummingbirds, infinity symbols, and other ways for people to show how eager they are to express their "individuality"! Edit: Down-vote me if I offend your tattooed rebellious self-image, it's fine, but there's a real point to be made. This technology will lead to a lot more tattoos, and a lot more…

I don't see the problem with other people's taste. Not sure why you have such a problem with it either. I mean, your handle is solipsism instead of hnreader7381648 because you like the word even though someone else may think it's an uninteresting word from a first year philosophy syllabus.

That's my handle for a reason having nothing to do with the philosophical concept, actually. Each person has his or her own reason for picking a handle, often publicly unknown and personal -- this is one of the cool things about handles.

If handles looked like this though: solipsism1, solipsism34, solipsism85, solipsism87, solipsism21, solipsism3485, solipsism_is_cool, solipsism_4thewin, solipsism111.... well, I can see being annoyed at seeing the same thing over and over again. It wouldn't bother you I guess. That's cool, there's no accounting for taste.

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