Beer Can Hill

If something doesn’t make sense, then I know I’m not being presented with all of the facts. I can’t figure out what’s going on with Kimberley Vlaeminc and her claim that Rouslan Toumaniantz tattooed her face against her will.

I’ve noticed that Toumaniantz blames Vlaeminc’s father for her sudden change of heart. Some sources say that her father was waiting outside of the shop while she was tattooed, others state he was at home. In my experience, a parent or significant other’s negative reaction to a tattoo can affect a young person’s feelings about their decision. I have to wonder if Vlaeminc was trying to emulate Kat Von D and didn’t fully consider how having a tattooed face can affect her life.

I don’t see a total of 56 stars on Vlaeminc’s face. I’ve also noticed that different media photos and footage of her show the tattoos on different sides of her face. Is it all some kind of hoax?

Notice her lack of eye contact and passive posture when she talks about what transpired. I don’t know about you, but if somebody tattooed my face against my will I’d be looking pretty pissed off when speaking about it.

I don’t believe that she slept through having her face tattooed, unless if she was under the influence. I haven’t read anything about Vlaeminc signing a waiver to be tattooed either.

It also doesn’t make sense for somebody in Toumaniantz’s profession to go “above & beyond” on a piece that involves somebody’s face. I don’t know very much about European tattoo etiquette or customs, but a reputable tattoo artist in the USA wouldn’t have agreed to tattoo an 18 year old’s face (or her neck or hands either for that matter). I think Toumaniantz knows he messed up too, because now the media is reporting that he’s offered to help pay for laser removal.

I continue to be amazed at people who don’t comprehend that tattoos are permanent and then don’t want to take responsibility for their decisions. I was panhandled with this crap via MySpace the other day and I told the woman in question exactly what I thought about her campaign: I think it’s ridiculous and she should pay for her own tattoo removal. I generally don’t think other people should pay for someone else’s tattoo removal. If you paid for a tattoo, you can pay to fix it.

I believe that if I get a tattoo and I hate it, then it’s my responsibility to either communicate with that artist about fixing it, go to another artist for a cover-up, or pay for the removal myself. Otherwise, I perpetuate the stereotypes and make myself look like an irresponsible jack ass.

There is no intelligence or maturity test to be passed before going under the needle, and I am not implying that there should be. But I implore tattoo artists and other people in the industry to be ethical and responsible with their customers, particularly the ‘barely legal’ crowd.