Alright, so you wanna hear about my attempt at recreating Conor McGregor’s back tattoo? Buckle up, it’s a ride.
First off, let me preface this by saying I’m no tattoo artist. I’m just a dude with too much time on his hands and a questionable amount of artistic talent. But hey, gotta chase those dreams, right?
The Inspiration: Obviously, Conor McGregor’s back piece is iconic. That gorilla with the crown? Badass. I saw it one day and thought, “Yeah, I could totally do that… probably.”
The “Canvas”: I wasn’t about to permanently ink myself with something I might regret later. So, I grabbed a large sheet of that temporary tattoo paper you can print on. Found it on Amazon for like 10 bucks. Figured that was a good starting point.
Sourcing the Image: Getting a clear image of the tattoo was harder than I thought. Lots of blurry photos and weird angles online. Ended up piecing together different images to get a decent outline of the gorilla. Thank god for google images.
The “Artistic” Process: Here’s where things got interesting. I imported the outline into Photoshop and started tracing it with a stylus. My artistic skills are… let’s just say “developing”. But I managed to get a passable replica of the gorilla. Added the crown, the rosebush, and some other details. It took me a good 4-5 hours. My hand was cramping.
Printing and Application: The temporary tattoo paper comes with instructions, thankfully. Printed the design in reverse (super important, don’t forget that!), applied the adhesive sheet, and carefully peeled it off. My heart was pounding. Time for the big reveal.
The “Application”: This was the tricky part. I had my buddy help me apply it to my back. We cleaned my back with alcohol, positioned the tattoo carefully, and pressed it down with a damp cloth. Held it there for like a minute, praying it wouldn’t look like a complete disaster.
The Result: Okay, it wasn’t perfect. The edges were a little wonky, and the ink was a bit faded in some spots. But from a distance? It actually looked pretty decent! I strutted around the house like I’d just won the UFC championship. My wife just rolled her eyes.
The Aftermath: The temporary tattoo lasted about 3 days before it started to crack and peel. I took a shower, scrubbed it off. All in all, it was a fun experiment. Would I do it again? Maybe. Would I get the real tattoo? Probably not. But hey, at least I can say I tried.
Lessons Learned:
- Temporary tattoo paper is surprisingly effective.
- PhotoShop is my friend.
- I still have a long way to go before I’m a tattoo artist.
- My wife has infinite patience.
So, yeah, that’s my Conor McGregor back tattoo adventure. Don’t try this at home… or do, I’m not your mom.
