Tattoo artist Helen McDonnell

Helen McDonnell (37), single and originally from Drogheda is the proprietor of Skullduggery Tatu on Dublin Road in Belfast. She says:

"I have two full sleeves (two arms fully tattooed), a large back piece, a necklace and various ones on my legs. I had my first tattoo done when I was 18; it was of a bat and was done in a place called Johnny Eagle's Tattoo in Dublin. I was really nervous but that was because I was asking them to take me on as an apprentice at the same time. I was an art student building up my portfolio and I hoped to do it with tattoos. I was very lucky when they took me on, as after that lots of people came in asking for apprenticeships.

I don't find the pain too bad, but I realise as I get older I can't sit for quite as long as I used to. With the last tattoo I had, I had to ask them to stop after four or five hours. My tattoos blend into each other now so it's hard to name particular ones. I have a flower tattoo on my leg that was done in New Zealand by a guy named Paolo Suluape — women can't get demon or god tattoos as it's not considered proper. I was honoured to have that one done as normally they're only done on Samoan women.

On my left arm I also have some waves and cherry blossoms done by a man called Horiyoshi III, probably the best known Japanese tattoo artist there is. I chose the waves because I wanted something to symbolise water, and he chose the cherry blossoms. It was a great experience having a tattoo done by him. A lot of mine have been done by friends which makes them special to me and most have a particular meaning.

Tattoos go through trends like everything else; nowadays they're very colourful with intricate designs. People from Northern Ireland are quite good to tattoo as they don't have much sun damage on their skin. I see more and more women coming in and getting more coverage. If someone comes in and they don't seem absolutely sure about getting one, then we send them away to think about it some more. I've regretted tattoos when I've rushed into them, but I've been able to have them covered over with something else.

I think if a woman wants to decorate her body, fine. It's not a statement, it's a decoration, like jewellery. Tattoos are very personal things and they do hurt, you don't go through pain for something that's just a fad. I think that women should be aware of the fact that they may want to have kids some day and that will cause their bodies to change, but bodies change anyway as they get older. In order to preserve tattoos, the best idea is to put sun block on them as the sun will fade the colours. I see tattoos as art, I think they're beautiful, so I can't agree with people who don't like them."