Many people spend the first 17 years of their lives counting down the hours until they are able to buy their own cigarettes, get a piercing or even get their first tattoo. Before tattooing your body, you should consider the fact that a piece of art will be on your body for the rest of your life, unless you are willing to pay hundreds of dollars for laser removal treatments that can sometimes be literally scarring.

Scott Bryant, 33, is a professional tattoo artist at American Graffiti, located on 19th Street and Capitol Avenue in downtown Sacramento. Bryant has been tattooing for more than 11 years and has performed cover ups for many of his clients. Bryant pointed out two main factors that can sway a person to consider getting a tattoo covered up. He said people tend to get their first tattoo in a bad shop, and after seeing other people’s tattoos, ask: “Why doesn’t my tattoo look like that?”

Second, Bryant’s No. 1 reason why people want to cover-up their tattoos is because they want to conceal a name. That person must get a tattoo that is bigger and darker to mask the name underneath.

“The only thing that will cover up black is black,” Bryant said.Students generally do dramatic things when they are on vacation during Spring Break. If you decide to be spontaneous and ink yourself up, then make sure it isn’t something bold and black.

Bryant said that, recently, people have been getting bigger and more extravagant designs for their first tattoos. He also said that people are not as scared to get their first tattoo, even if it takes 15 hours to do. This is because tattoos have become more acceptable in our society, he said. Now the average working person can show tattoos comfortably. Recently, a 78-year-old woman came into American Graffiti for her first tattoo.

“They wanted to do it, they’ve always liked it, but now they feel it’s OK to do it,” Bryant said.

Some college students feel that getting tattoos will affect their future careers. Other students, like Patrick Piccolo, a senior history major, don’t have any concerns about their tattoos interfering with their career. Tattoos are common among people who, like Piccolo, are in bands. Piccolo has both arms, his sides and legs tattooed and he is in a hardcore band called Embrace the End. Some of his tattoo artists charged as much as $150 per hour.

“The only thing that will cover up black is black,” Bryant said.Piccolo said he doesn’t regret any of his tattoos, but has had interesting reasons for getting them. Piccolo has a tattoo that says “San Antonio” and the year his band toured there tattooed on his lower leg. The members of the band he is in were offered free tattoos if they said San Antonio on them. Piccolo took the offer.

Camille Esguerra, a criminal justice major senior, knows very well that you get what you pay for. Esguerra decided to cover up her tattoo of the Philippine flag that was on her wrist. Esguerra said she decided to do the cover-up because her tattoo was a “crappy job.”

She went to Stockton to Uptown Ink, where she had it covered and replaced with a cross that appeared to her in a dream. It is now her favorite tattoo.

The advice her tattoo artist gave her was: “Cheap tattoos ain’t good, and good tattoos ain’t cheap.” When Esguerra turned 18, she decided to get her high school nickname tattooed on her back, but she realized she has grown out of it. She plans on getting it covered up this year. A good rule to follow before getting a tattoo is to check out the shop before you commit to getting inked. Tattoo artists usually have portfolios of their work handy. Paul Rife, a senior criminal justice major, thought he had made a good judgment when he agreed to get his fourth tattoo done in a hotel room for $60. Rife wants to fix the faded tattoo. He said the colors were too light because the quality of the ink was poor. Although he likes the design of the tattoo and plans to get another one similar to it, Rife isn’t satisfied with the color. At the age of 18, many people want to experience getting a tattoo and often make sudden decisions.

Justin Short, a junior photography major, is planning on covering up his first tattoo, which he got at age 18. It pictures a cross and says: “Isaiah 7:9.” Short likes the experience of getting tattoos and said he has never regretted any of them. He plans on covering his first tattoo not because he regrets it, but because he just doesn’t want it anymore.

“It’s cheesy and it’s old,” Short said. He is currently working on a new design for it. His goal is to eventually be suited with tattoos and said that he plans to be a photographer, where he will have more freedom with his appearance than in other careers.

If you have a tattoo or are planning on getting one, you must consider that your opinions and views of life might change. So whether you think you will not ever regret your tattoo, you don’t know how you will feel later in life.

Another possibility for getting rid of a past tattoo mistake is laser surgery. The lasers target the colors of the unwanted tattoo and break the ink down into particles which your body will naturally dispose of. Green is harder to remove than black and blue, according to the local Center for Dermatology and Laser Surgery’s website.

Bryant has been through the process of laser removal at the Local Center for Dermatology and Laser Surgery. He was 18 years old when he decided to get this tattoo and it was too dense to cover up without the laser removal process. His tattoo faded significantly after one session, and he will be able to cover it with a new tattoo in the future.

To remove a professional tattoo, 10 to 12 sessions of laser surgery are recommended. Bryant said to seek out a good doctor and see the work he or she has done. He said that not every one of the doctors is good at the process, similar to tattoo artists. He said it felt like a burn and he had to treat it afterward like a burn. Camilla Aceves can be reached at [email protected]