Dan

it's a cool tattoo, enjoy it,show it off, and wear it with pride.

take a breath and relax, it will pass, and start planning your next tattoo.

find the right artist that likes doing coverups & is good at it, they could do just fine, what you have to do is a lot of research to find the right person, I have a couple coverups that are perfect.

you need 10 constructive posts to have access to all the features here https://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/guidelines/

me when I go to the islands

maybe a zoom or skype consult would work ? or maybe go to somebody else ?

no I can't say that I have, pre-tattoo consultations have always been an important part of the process IMO, and yes, I for feel a consultation is a very necessary parts of the process, for the us customers AND the tattooer that's going to do the work. I think you paid all the proper respects already in what you said in your post here. ". I made it clear that I didn’t want to guide the process or throw in a laundry list or requests, rather just want to spend a few minutes hearing the artist’s view for the piece" that's perfect IMO

I don't see how that would be a problem for the tattoo

our tattoos are a roadmap of our lives,the good and the bad, actually that's what makes us who we are,so it's important IMO to remember the good and the bad and all the lessons learned form life experiences and relationships we have all had.so wear it with pride and don't worry about what all the judgmental a s sholes think of you and your tattoo.

LOL that's my point ! asking for handouts from other people and their money is risk free for you, not them ! wouldn't work for me,but whatever floats your boat.

sorry but I don't like it when people ask for handouts to start a business,do it the right way,get a loan,save your money,earn it, work for it.

it's 100% normal, it will go away.

are you putting cocoa butter or aveeno on it ? I just healed my other knee ditch and it healed just fine,not as good as a flat skin spot,it just takes a little extra TLC. but maybe the difference also was that I use Saniderm, and that helped a lot on a tough spot like a knee or elbow ditch.

how is this tattoo news ?

leave it alone, it looks fine, you are having a little tattoo remorse,it's normal to feel that way,especially with a first tattoo, that feeling will go away, you will learn to like it. start planning your next one.