Pokes at UCLA

As a first year student, the shift from living at home to being at UCLA has proven to be a bit odd. It has not necessarily been difficult, but life has become very fast paced. Although school is time consuming, somehow I have found that I always have quite an abundance of spare time in my schedule. This alots time to engage in my hobbies, which includes writing, watching tv, and most importantly making art.

Art is an intimidating thing to jump into. In my experience, I have always felt like my work isn’t enough. It didn’t feel as detailed or creative as others, and these constant comparisons I put on myself made it difficult to create. My art has always consisted more of simple black pen and paper doodles, making me feel like I wasn’t skilled enough to put my work out into the world, let alone UCLA. The artists here are so experienced and their work is incredible, especially on my floor (I live in the Creative Collective, a themed housing for creatives). However, the transition to living at school has given me a bit more freedom to try new things, or just be a bit more sneaky.

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Before I came to college, I knew I wanted to get a tattoo as soon as I left home. Through impulsive decisions and a long wait, I was able to get a tattoo in an odd way. One needle, a bit of tattoo ink, patience and bit of pain tolerance landed me this tiny fellow (it's a less than three).

This method of tattooing is known as “stick and poke”. In getting this tattoo, I realized that this could be a way to share my art with the world. My goofy little doodles soon began to have more meaning to me. These are a few I have done on myself.

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Here are a few pieces I have done on my friends, and a bit of the experience.

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Jennifer

Jennifer gave me the less than three on my finger and gave me the idea to start poking people. The mastermind behind this new passion of mine and she is my biggest supporter! She let me do one of my doodles on her out in nature. For a first, it came out very pretty. Plus she’s a trooper and didn’t even flinch! Pain tolerance 10/10.

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Chloe

Chloe really wanted a tattoo and was willing to take the pain. It was decided that she wanted a heart on her leg. She was a bit nervous, but she did a great job at handling the pain! Pain tolerance 9/10.

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Jason

I met Jason the same day I gave Chloe her tattoo, and he was thrilled to get a tattoo. He was bold enough to ask for it on his arm. It was a bit scary because he has very veiny arms so one deep poke is a game over! He chose this very cute design he saw online, so it wasn’t mine. He took it like a champion! Pain tolerance 10/10.

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Natalie

This one was by far the most difficult design to execute. I drew up a fancy butterfly since she originally wanted a bit of the boring B-shaped butterfly. This one was mostly freehand and she trusted me so I couldn’t mess it up. The area she chose was her hip, so the skin is a bit sensitive there. Natalie cried a couple times during the process, but it came out awesome! Pain tolerance 4/10.

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Evelyn

Evelyn is one of my closest friends and just messaged me, “Liz. Tat me up.”. She did not want anything in specific but suggested a smiley face, so that is what I did. It was a very fun experience since we did it at the park (weird, I know). The skin by the ankle is thin, so I can see why this one was painful. Only a couple twitches, so she is a warrior! Pain tolerance 7/10.

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This is my new UCLA hobby that I use to express myself and display my art. I am hoping to give tattoos to people on my floor soon. Thank you for reading!