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By infmom, September 6, 2009 11:03 am

As you can see, the look of the blog has changed again.  I had been using the TechLand theme on my other blog and loved the way it could be customized pretty much any way I wanted.  However, the author is no longer supporting it, and it isn’t adapted to the newest versions of WordPress.

So, after struggling with it for way too long yesterday I decided that I’d rather switch than fight. 

I’ll be tinkering with things here for a few days, but as far as I know, everything works right as it is.  If you spot a glitch somewhere, please let me know.  I already know the gravatars in replies are not quite right.

Look for my Twitter and RSS links at the top of the page.

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By infmom, September 5, 2009 1:04 pm

An online friend is in the process of getting his first tattoo.  It’s a lovely retro pinup design, with some nifty modern elements, and it covers most of his upper arm.  It will take more than one session to complete.

I think he’s very brave for starting out with such a large design.  It’s hard to tell how one will react to the process of getting inked, and if one is committed to something that covers a fair amount of surface area for a first tattoo, one might be in for a far harder time of it than if one had chosen a smaller design to start out with.  However, obviously each person’s reaction to the inking process is unique.

When I went to get my first tattoo, the artist, seeing someone’s middle-aged mom in the chair and being understandably cautious, drew a line on my skin with an un-inked needle first, to show me what it was going to feel like. When I told him I’d be OK with it, then he went ahead with the rest.  And truthfully, the only part that made me say “OUCH!” was when he was doing the little dots of color that surround the stars.  The rest wasn’t anything I couldn’t easily handle.

Now, if I’d decided to start out with my ankle tattoo, which hurt like the dickens, I might not have gone back for any more ink.   I had a really amazing endorphin rush after the second ankle inking was done, and walked around on cloud nine for a long time afterwards–but that didn’t negate the fact that it hurt like the dickens while it was being done!

There are tons of blog entries about people’s experiences with tattoos and how much they hurt.  I’ve written a few myself (like this one here).  And the ever helpful About.com site has a very helpful article that anyone doing research should make sure to read.  But in the end, only the individual getting the ink is going to know whether the pain today is worth the pleasure tomorrow.

Am I being too cautious to suggest starting out with a small design first?  What if someone only wants the one tattoo?  (OK, most of us know that ink is addictive, but there are some people for whom one tattoo is enough.)  What’s your opinion?

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By infmom, August 26, 2009 1:58 pm

OK, gang, I quit talking about it and got busy.  The site has a new theme and a new banner (which matches some of the items in my CafePress store, in case you hadn’t noticed–shameless plug).

Let me know what you think, and if anything is not working right for you after the switch.

Addendum:  Wow, yeah, something was wrong with the RSS feed but it’s fixed now.  One thing about WordPress, it provides endless opportunities to learn something new!

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By infmom, August 25, 2009 4:45 pm

I now have a CafePress store.  I created a new Multi.Colored logo, which I’m going to adapt for a WordPress theme as soon as I have the time to sit down and fiddle with it, and I also have some items with my THINK OUTSIDE THE FOX slogan.

There’s a link in the sidebar–tell me what you think!

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By infmom, August 20, 2009 11:26 am

(Eeeek!  I wrote this days ago and for some reason it ended up in my Drafts folder rather than getting published.  I blame WordPress.  Yeah, that’s the ticket!)

I’d really like to thank Bizcard.com for their sponsorship of my first-ever giveaway, and I hope the winners have already sent in their best designs for their free cards.  Sometimes the best things in life really are free!

Coming soon… CafePress Multi.Colored designs!

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By infmom, August 20, 2009 10:43 am

So, are you on Twitter?  I am–click the link on the right to see what I’m talking about.

One of my Twitter friends (someone I have met offline as well) is thinking about getting a tattoo.  Naturally, I leaped at the opportunity to plug this blog.  (I’ve also handed out a few of my new spiffy MOO MiniCards this past week–yes, I’d love to have more readers).  My friend asked me about whether aloe is used in tattoos, since he’s allergic to it.

Which gives me the perfect opportunity to talk about skin care and tattoos.  I’ve talked about this in the past (see the sidebar on the right? Scroll down to the Tags section and click on “aftercare” or “skin care”) but it’s always a subject for discussion because once you’re multicolored you have to take better care of your skin if you don’t want your

Image via Wikipedia

investment to fade or flake away.  Today I’m going to talk about natural (and more-natural) remedies.

Aloe vera juice is a favorite natural skin-problem remedy for many people.  I’ve had aloe vera plants for many years, starting when my kids got diaper rash.  Using it is simple–you just clip off a segment of leaf, squeeze it gently to press out the juice, and apply it to your skin.  It’s a clear gel that smooths on easily and protects your skin for quite a while.  If you don’t have plants, you can buy aloe vera juice products in most of the places where you’d buy other skin care products, but read the ingredients carefully so you don’t get a bunch of extra chemicals you don’t want.  Some of the aloe vera products sold in stores are designed to soothe sunburn and contain a mild topical anaesthetic.  You may not want to apply this to newly tattooed skin.  The idea is to keep as many possible irritants off the tattoo until it’s well healed.  After it’s healed it’s not so critical.

It’s also a good idea to keep the skin protected and moisturized during and after the healing process.  A lot of tattoo artists warn against applying petroleum products to the tattoo as it heals–but I’ve seen some of those people turn right around and recommend A&D Ointment, which is petroleum based.  Go figure.  Petroleum jelly (Vaseline) is not a moisturizer, per se, but once you’ve got the skin well hydrated it helps keep the moisture inside.  Judging by how many “don’t use petroleum products” warnings I’ve seen, I would not advise putting Vaseline on a new tattoo, but once the healing is complete, you could put a very thin layer on after you bathe.  The down side to that, of course, is that petroleum jelly forms a coating on the skin rather than sinking into it and you may end up getting it on your clothes or on your bed.

As for commercial skin care products, there are zillions of them out there.  Today I’m only going to talk about the ones I have personally used and liked.  I am not a fan of putting layers of glop on my skin, tattooed or not, so I look for products that are light, contain as few noxious chemicals as possible, and are not tested on animals.

Burt’s Bees has several really good skin care formulas.  I have mentioned their Hand Salve before, because it contains almost the same ingredients as some of the products designed specifically for use on tattoos, and is more readily available.  It’s light, not greasy, and has what is to me a pleasant scent.  I know some people are sensitive to scents, though, and this one does have eucalyptus oil in it, so you might want to see if you can sniff it before you buy it.

LUSH Cosmetics has stores all over the world and a mail order catalog.  Their products use natural ingredients and are processed in small batches, and each comes with a “best used by” date.  A little LUSH goes a long way, too.  If you’re anywhere close to one of their retail outlets I recommend going in and talking to their super helpful salespeople, who will happily give you a generous sample of anything you’d like to try.  I’ve tried their skin creams, shampoo, soap, and powder and have liked them all.  One caveat:  These products tend to be strongly scented, although the scents do fade after application.  If you’re not sure, definitely get a sample and see how it “wears” for a few hours before you buy.

Avalon Organics and Kiss My Face, which you can find in health food stores and in chains like Whole Foods, also make skin care products with natural ingredients, and their formulas are designed to be kind to skin.  I currently use a lavender-citrus skin lotion from Kiss My Face, and lavender-citrus face wash and toner from Avalon.  I happen to like that combination of scents, but once again, it’d be a good idea to sniff before you buy.

I have no recommendations for more natural sunscreen products and I’d sure like to find one.  Do any of you have any experience with those that you’d like to share?

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By infmom, August 13, 2009 11:46 am

I suspect there are not too many other grey-haired ladies driving around town in geezermobile Buicks (OK, we inherited it, we didn’t buy it, honest!) and blasting the reggaeton station on the stereo.  Well, what can I say?  I like reggaeton (I’m amused that not long ago I was one of only a few Gizmodo readers who knew who Wisin & Yandel were).

Of course, that station is geared toward, shall we say, a younger audience than the classic rock station I also listen to a lot, and thus the products advertised are somewhat…  different.  The other day, in among the ads for acne products, boob jobs, trade schools and so forth I caught one for a product used to fade tattoos.  And when I heard the product name I could not believe my ears.

Wrecking Balm?  They want us to buy a product called   Wrecking Balm?  Ye gods.  No matter how much I wanted to get rid of a tattoo, I could not imagine putting anything called Wrecking Balm anywhere near my skin.

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By infmom, August 7, 2009 3:37 pm

The business card giveaway is still on!

If you don’t want to place a public post, you can email me or catch me on Twitter.  Don’t let this one get away!

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By infmom, August 4, 2009 1:21 pm

A few days ago I wrote about how I decided that getting business cards for this place would be a good idea (and according to MOO, they should be arriving in the mail any day now). I’d like to encourage others to get business cards of their own.

I’ve got a special offer for my readers. Bizcard.com, which has a great selection of designs, will give 500 free cards to three lucky people. And this is really free, if you live in the USA or Canada–alas, they can’t ship free outside those areas. If you live somewhere else, the cards themselves will still be 100% free, you’ll just have to cover the shipping cost.

Want to take advantage of this? Just post a reply telling us why you think having your own business cards would be a good idea. On Saturday I will pick three posts at random and those three people will get free cards of their choice. And thanks to Bizcard.com for their generous offer!

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By infmom, July 31, 2009 11:40 pm

As I mentioned in the last post, it’s been hot lately in Los Angeles.  This means I am almost always wearing a shirt that shows off at least part of my swirly-stars tattoo over my right collarbone.  People notice it and often ask me what the rest of it looks like, and it’s easy to show off.

That often leads to conversations about tattoos, or getting tattoos, or the other person’s ink, which is all to the good.   One of the receptionists at our veterinerians’ office has a star tattoo that looks a lot like mine, so we were instant friends. 

The other day, as we were checking out at the grocery store, the cashier noticed my stars and we got to talking about a tattoo she’s planning to get soon, that has a lot of personal meaning for her.  She’s really looking forward to the experience.  After we finished the conversation and walked on, my husband made the suggestion that it would be a good idea for me to have business cards with the URL of this place, so I could invite people to come have a look.  He was right!  That definitely falls into the category of “Why didn’t I think of that?”

I started designing cards, using a business-card-design app I’ve had for years, but after I’d messed around with it a while I realized that to do justice to a multicolored design I really should get the cards professionally printed on paper that’s better than you can buy at the office supply store.

Which leads me to tell you about a company called MOO. Ayear or so ago, they opened up a LiveJournal, and offered a free package of MiniCards to other LiveJournal writers.  I took them up on that, getting a nifty design with my cat Caliban’s eyes on them.  I still have a few of those left, because I like them so much I have been hoarding them.  I thought the MiniCard size would be perfect to carry around in a pocket and hand out to fellow ink admirers, and when I discovered they had a beautiful multicolored design with a triskele in the center, I was sold.  I also ordered a plastic keychain case to carry the cards in so they won’t get crunched up in my pocket or purse.

MOO is located in the UK, but they can now ship from within the USA as well (and if they’d for pity’s sake open up an office in Los Angeles I’d be first in line to apply for a job) so I should have the cards in hand next week.  Can’t wait!

I wish this had dawned on me earlier, because my stars are a good conversation-starter and it’d be even better if someone with whom I’d been talking could come here and say hello.   Onward and upward!

If you’d like to check out MOO for yourself, they offer a free sample pack of business cards.  Go here and scroll down the page, you’ll see where to click. If you get some, you show me yours and I’ll show you mine.

photo credit: FiveAcres

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