Circle of Me

fuckyeahtattoos:

This is my friend being tattooed at Borneo Headhunters, Sarawak, in the traditional Iban tribal method of hand-tapped tattooing. The tattoo artist, Ernesto, is using nothing more than a stick with a needle on the end, and another stick to tap the needle into the skin, to create incredible, intricate tribal designs.

The atmosphere was a world away from the normal sterile atmosphere of a tattoo shop- we sat on rattan mats on the floor, with just a soft lamp to illuminate the skin, and spoke softly over the tap-tap sound of the wooden sticks, as the ink bloomed on the skin.

It was such a privilege to be allowed to watch this ancient process- and it hardly needs to be said that the tattoos were awesome!