Okay peeps, here's my koi half sleeve. (Excuse the nipple....).
I chose a koi because of its meaning, along with the cherry blossoms. Like the others, I could go into a long personal story, but won't bore you. If you do wanna know, Google
After one of my sittings, I asked my artist if I could 'have a go', as I was fascinated and intrigued to feel what it was like to 'tattoo'. She said yes so I tattooed a short line (about 3cm) on my ankle (I obviously picked somewhere out of sight - I'm not that stoopid ) and it gave me a much greater respect for the skill the tattoo artists have and the accuracy they need to perform their art.
It was similar to drawing a line with a felt tip pen - the harder you press, the thicker the line is. The more pressure you applied to the skin with the tattoo needle, the bolder the line. Most of my 'DIY tatt' has faded now, as I didn't press quite hard enough