Backs of my knees by Arne 
Arne’s work around the Cambodian Sak Yants
Arne is a machine free tattoo artist who prefers to use the “stick and poke” method of tattooing. This involves using the same type of needles from electric tattoo machines but having him manually poke the ink under my skin with them. This is a very time-consuming process but results in a unique texture both in the shading and the lines, not to mention a quicker healing time. He is another artist who I have met up with in various countries (Germany, Thailand, Poland, UK) as his aesthetic style was very appealing to me and I really wanted to showcase it on my skin.
I’ve been asked many times about how painful it is to have your ears tattooed. Both my ears were hand poked by Arne and they were probably the least painful of all the ink I’ve had done. It may just be a testament to acupuncture but for me the ear tattoo process was so soothing that I nearly fell asleep during it.
A fortunate side effect of my tattoo endeavours are the friendships which have been made. The tattoo community is like a family and whenever I spent time at tattoo conventions or festivals, I could feel the bond between the artists and the love they have for the work they do. Even though I am not a tattoo artist myself I was made to feel welcome within their ranks and I still keep in touch regularly with the people I’ve met over the last few years.