Calm Before the Storm

If you're reading this, you've stumbled upon my personal diary, the place where I'll be documenting the building of my Donburi Sōshinbori. Saying, no, even typing those words doesn't seem real, with the sense of excitement I feel at being only a week away from the start…

Until the end of last year, when I finally decided to go for it, I never thought this day would come. The more I think about it, the more I realise this has been decades in the making. From seeing my first heavily tattooed person in the paper, to reading everything I could find about tattoos in the early days of the web, then to finding Irezumi and Horimono and knowing, straight away, that this was what I wanted. Not a sleeve. Not a back-piece. The full thing: a bodysuit.

The idea that you can decorate your skin like that, and tell a story with it, still fascinates me. It's art you carry with you, and it's for nobody but yourself. Going from zero tattoos to a Donburi Sōshinbori is going to be some adventure, and one I've been waiting 25 years to start.

Next week, that journey begins with the right leg sleeve.

I'll share more of the why as the journey progresses, but for now, roll on next week.