Getting a tattoo inked onto your body is a big commitment to make. Why, you may ask? That's because you have to be able to wake up every morning and still love it. Not everyone likes the tattoo work they get in the long haul. Trust me, there are people out there who get tired of the same design taking up that body space, in the end opting for either tattoo removal or cover ups. The former is a painful procedure, that can take days or even weeks to finish in terms of sittings. It's a waste of money on your tattoo work, not to mention an expensive procedure. Many of you may have heard of DrTattoff, who deals mostly with tattoo removal for the well-known and famous. Don't go down that road of getting a tattoo done, unless you're one hundred percent certain that it is what you want. The best way of doing this, is to get a tattoo that isn't meaningless, but symbolizes something that is important/dear to you. That way, you know for a fact, that when you see it, it'll be a constant reminder of that particular thing. For those of you who've had tattoos done in the past, and want to know how to design your own tattoo for free, then you're at the right place. For first timers, this seems like a smart choice by tapping into your creative side, or getting help from someone who's better with design software. Before Getting Inked Before getting a tattoo done, you need to ask yourself if this is what you truly want. There are places that offer you temporary tattoos that you can try out before deciding to get a permanent one. Try getting used to the design on your preferred body part, and see if having it on you is something you can get used to and come to love. Like I said, it is a huge commitment, especially if it's a big piece of artwork you're getting done. You don't want something that you'll grow tired off or one that will make you resort to having it laser-ed off. Design Your Tattoo Online The first thing to decide before the artwork design, is where you're going to place your tattoo. Depending on that surface area, you can design your art piece, without it looking odd/misplaced. Web companies online help you out with designs on how to put two and two together, helping users come to a concrete decision. Whether you want a tattoo on your hips, lower back, shoulder or wherever else you can think of as usable, they can help out. There are a lot of design options for those of you who want to design your own tattoo online. You can pick and choose from a whole ton of options, and mesh the designs together to make the end product - the perfect tattoo design. These web portals can help you with designing artwork meant for body art. Tattoo Lettering Getting lettering done as a tattoo, is esthetically appealing to others who see a great tattoo with not just meaningful text, but spot on choice in font. You can experiment with getting lyrics or sayings, quotes, someone's handwriting, poems or even excerpts from books, inked onto your body. This online portal provides an interface that allows you to type in your text, choose your own font and size, before viewing it. If you like what you see, all you have to do is print. Just be sure you know your tattoo means before getting another's dialect/symbols tattooed onto your body; you don't want to make that kind of mistake. Also see web portal, 'SinoftheSkin for more lettering design options. Tattoo Design This online tattoo maker is an apt choice for tattoo lovers, who want to try a hand out at designing their own tattoo artwork. They provide a mini video tutorial on how the software works, and shows users how to maneuver software controls to make the most out of the tools available. You can even design your tattoo design from scratch, if you want to try something other than their 10,000 designs available. Once you're done, all you have to do is print. Pretty neat stuff. TattooDesign also has the option of allowing you to design your own tattoo lettering, in the same way that the portal TattooLettering provides. They even give you listings of tattoo artists around the country, so you could probably get your tattoo inked from one of them. Also try out FreeDownloadManager, to download software meant for tattoo designing. Before you design your own tattoo, it takes one to get all those creative juices flowing, giving him/her a chance to get a little artsy. After you have your artwork done, remember to go by the right tattoo care. The healing process is the harder part to endure than the tattoo sitting session. It needs a lot of care and attention to heal and take form, without room for infection and scarring.