Tool time
From left to right: a bottle of black ink (which will be used on me), two of the needles that will be used, a disposable razor (even if it's not an overly hairy area, it's always shaved anyway to remove any and all small hairs) , a plate with a glob of A & D ointment (used as both a lubricant as the needle's moved across the tattoo and to keep the area covered while it's in the early healing process), tongue depressor (which will be used to apply the ointment to my back, not my tongue), ink cups (currently empty, but they'll be filled soon), and two needle tubes (the needles are held in place by the tubes as they move back and forth at high speed).