My name is Renee, I'm 20 years old, born and raised in Sacramento, California. I have many tattoos, including a chest piece that took 14 hours alone to do. I have a half sleeve which is a tribute to my grandpa that just died this past January, I have a blue rose with banners quoting 'Always Forgiven' on the top of my wrist, accompanied with a broken heart with the ocean inside. I got my first 'real' tattoo when I was 17 in the back of a tattoo parlor on the poorer side of town. My aunt had known the artist, which allowed us to be tattooed underage. The tattoo I got was not of the best quality, but after the few moments of blissful pain, I was addicted. I have always been an artist, color-free skin was never an option or appealing to me...I loved the fact that people could express stories and feelings on their skin; I wanted to be like those people I saw on a daily basis. I plan on getting full sleeves and a back piece, which I'm excited about. I have over 30 hours invested and over $1,300. The broken heart, the rose/banners, and my chest piece were all done by a local artist at Timeless Tattoo named Ezra Mc Cabe. The Virgin Mary was designed by a woman named Alycia Harr, who also happens to be a local artist around Sacramento, California.***contact: Crackmyribx@aol.com***

My chest piece, two pin-up style mermaids (a redhead which signifies my sister, and a brunette which stands for myself), a heart with an anchor through it with a banner atop that says 'Mom', and crossed flags with stars followed by a lighthouse with rays of light that overlook troubled waters. This tattoo is my bloodline: my mother, my sister, and I. My family. My mother has always been my guiding light, throughout my life.

This is the tattoo I got in the back of a tattoo studio...as I said, not of the best quality. I hand-drew this star...I am not a perfect person, so I decided to have an imperfect star. Black and red, which are two of my favorite colors, were what I chose for this particular piece. The red swirls signify life, and how it's forever changing course, sometimes overlapping. This tattoo was pretty much my life, and how it's always going to be different compared to everyone else's.

The rose and 'Always Forgiven' banner, because my mother had taught my sister and I to always be accepting and forgiving to those we care about.

This piece, by far, is my favorite. The banner below says 'Papa', which was my nickname for my grandfather. He passed away in January of 2004, which I previously stated. His family had immigrated from Italy back in Prohibition, and, being from Italy, were very religious and adament Catholics...hence the Virgin Mary. I chose to make her green for 2 reasons: 1) green was my favorite color, and 2) I wanted her to look like the un-dead. Her cloak is an abundance of hues of blue...blue for sorrow and the passing of life. Yellow rims her cloak as signs of faith and light, that death is not where we end. The red stars signify the blood that is life. Daffodils and irises outline this piece because they were my grandpa's favorite flowers during life. This piece is not finished yet, I have one more session left. The banners, some flowers, and the rays of light which will extend from behind her adding onto my chest piece are all future plans. Yay!

The broken heart was the first real tattoo I got from my sister's tattoo artist. I got this mainly because I knew heartbreak at such a young age of 18. I got this tattoo on my inner forearm, because I wear my heart, literally, on my sleeve everyday. The crossbones signify how love is deadly and if you lose it, you feel like you're dying inside. It's broken, but stitched back together, meaning things are always fixable. The troubled water with rays of light that shine into its deepest parts emphasize how you should always have faith and hope, being lonely will always pass and greater things will come your way.