Pen on Vellum Paper

I heard in December that he came to London for medical treatment and I contacted the hospital and his brother almost daily for information. He died approximately one week after arriving in the UK and he was returned to Dubai for burial. As a woman I could not attend the funeral but my friend's husband attended on behalf of us all. 

After the event I received a very long, thoughtful and sympathetic email from my friend with her husband's description of the funeral. Right before he was placed into the ground two dragonfly's flew out of the bury hole. And now, whenever we see a dragonfly we think of our friend. 

He was unique, truly one-of-a-kind in many ways, and I would like the tattoo to be the same as him. I lived in Dubai for 7 years and adore Arabic calligraphy. During a difficult time in my personal life he once said to me 'my heart is with you'. I think these would be very appropriate words.. 

I'd like the design to be beautiful, thought-provoking and ethereal as if the dragonfly is in flight. I'm slightly apprehensive at the thought of having a tattoo. It's very likely that I will get it done but I'm struggling slightly with the idea of marking myself with this huge grief that has been such a significant part of the past three years.”

Amir

 امير 

Pen on Vellum Paper

“I am from Germany but living in the USA. Amir, my father was from Baghdad.  He passed away 4 years ago. It was and is still very painful. I can feel him with me, but i also want to be able to look at something that reminds me of him at all times. That's why I would like his name tattooed on me. He was a free spirit and the most generous and humble person imaginable and he was loved by so many people."

Bashir 

بشير 

Digital Drawing

“I lost my precious grandfather last month, and he was my whole world. His life revolved around books and classical music - the most intellectual person I’ve ever come across in my life. He was the one who raised me, and thanks to him, I inherited his love for reading, learning, knowing, growing and just being. I’d like to get a tattoo in his honour. His name was Bashir (the bearer of good news) and I’d like to get it on either my wrist or my shoulder; something in beautiful Arabic calligraphy, which he absolutely adored.  I was thinking about also possibly incorporating a dove, to represent the meaning of his name.

I would like to include books and music too. He moved from Syria to Kuwait in the 1950s with nothing, and opened up the first bookshop in the country which eventually became the biggest in the region at the time; and he read every single book on every single shelf of that shop!

My first introduction to classical music and ballet was The Nutcracker. That became our ‘thing,’ and what I played when we had a small gathering to honour him after he passed.

I miss him to my very core. The rawness of the loss takes my breath away. He was the constant; the anchor; the unconditional. This is the first time he’s ever left my side.” 

I Love You Always Ali Sakr 

 احبك دائما علي صقر 

Digital Drawing

“My brother, Ali, passed away last year in a tragic car accident. He was and still is my other half. We are Lebanese, born in NYC, so I want a design that combines Lebanon and New York to remind me of him. He meant the world to me." 

"Your Life Was a Blessing, Your Memory a Treasure, You Were Loved Beyond Words and You Are Missed Beyond Measure 

{In the name of God the most gracious, the most merciful}

{حياتك نعمة الهية وذكرياتك كنز فأنت محبوب بما لايمكن و صفه بالكلمات ، كما انه يصعب التعبير عن مدى {بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Digital Drawing

"This design is to honour my father, who was born in the year of the horse. He was a great man, his parents died when he was 14 and he raised all his siblings on his own. A few years after he met my mother, the genocide in Cambodia forced them to flee the country and they finally settled in Canada after many years. He worked hard everyday of his life, even after his first run-in with cancer, and only after the cancer returned 5 years later was he forced to stop working. He lived to help others and he sacrificed everything to see his family happy. Every time I look at my tattoo I will remember him." 

Lucas - Goodbyes Are For Those Who Love With Their Eyes, Because For Those Who Love With Their Heart and Soul Their Is No Such Thing As Separation  ~ Jalaludiin Rumi

Digital drawing

الوداع هو لمن يعشقون بواسطة عيونهم٠ اما الذين يعشقون بقلبهم و بروحهم فلا يعانون من الفراق٠لوكس  

"This design is in loving memory of baby Lucas who is in heaven...watching over his big brother and Mum and Dad; at peace; free; no more struggle. A life that brought so much to everyone he touched in just six short weeks." 

Wafi Tariq Kilaouy 

وفي طارق كيلاوي 

Pen on Velum Paper

“I'm writing to request your help with a tattoo design in memory of my little brother. He was only 22 and he left us suddenly. My entire family is reeling with the unexpected and devastating loss of our youngest brother. Wafi had a beautiful heart, filled with the most caring love, laughter, and light for his family and friends. I am one of his older sisters and I remember the day he was born. That day our family grew in number but more importantly and most irrevocably in love, light, and heart. I can feel Wafi's love and light with me even now. 

Wafi loved the water, beaches, and swimming.....Would it be possible at all to form waves into the shape of a heart? I'm thinking the heart shape would be natural and organic, and a way to express the intense love and ache that my little brother's absence has brought into all of our lives."

“Jeff, I Am Strong Because You Are With Me.” 

جيف،  أنا قوي لأنك معي 

Digital Drawing

“My husband died in 2002 and I was left with my two beautiful daughters, who were then only 2 and 4 years old. His name was Jeff. Yesterday my youngest daughter turned 18. Over the years we have had many experiences where we have seen a swallow and thought it was a message from my husband. The day he died my youngest daughter pointed at a swallow and said "there's daddy!" Whenever there's a significant event, we see swallows. The three of us would love a swallow tattoo each, incorporating his name.”