I was wondering what is the purpose of shaving where the tattoo is to be placed. Is that an important thing to do? The reason I am asking is because on Saturday I had my 3rd tattoo done... I had wanted the same guy who did my last tattoo to do it but he was no longer there so I did it anyway. The guy that did it did not shave my inner wrist before doing the tattoo and as he was in the middle of it we were talking and I found out he just started doing tattoos like in the last 2 months so I was wondering if it is okay that he didn't shave it and what the purpose is of shaving it because my last 2 tattoos they did shave the area.

Tattoo artists shave the location that your tattoo is going to be in for a couple of reasons : 1. It prevents the hair from getting caught in the tattoo gun (ouch!), 2. It makes it easier for the tattoo artist to see what he/she is doing, and 3. It prevents the tattoo needle from pushing the hair back down into your skin, causing ingrown hairs.

Whether the hair gets shaved has nothing to do with how the tattoo turns out. I have seen tattoos done both ways, with and without hair, and all have turned out OK. :)