I was commissioned by my three daughters to come up with a design that they could use for their sister tattoo.

In the design, I incorporated their initials “C” for Courtney, “D” for Dennielle, and “L” for Lanie into the design along with 2 “S” letters. The design is called, “Sumo Sissies”, (aka: The Matsumoto Sisters).

Many, many years ago, when my husband was a wild teenager growing up in Hawaii, he decided that he would get a tattoo on his arm. As the tattoo artist started tapping on his arm with a needle wrapped with thread and dipped in Indian ink, my husband quickly changed his mind because it hurt. Needless to say, he has a small dot tattoo on his arm. To incorporate the girls’ father into the design, I used the dot as a symbolic token of love for their dear old dad!

Each dot represents each sister’s favorite color as well as status in the family:
The pink dot is Dennielle-the oldest sister
The orange dot is Courtney-the middle sister
The green dot is Lanie-the littlest sister

The design takes the form of a blossom. The dots also represent water dipping so that each sister will always be nourished with the never ending promise to one another.

I did a lot of research on Maori and Hawaiian tribal tattoos, and try to stick with the island feel for the design.

I wasn’t quite sure if I would be able to nail a design that all of them could agree upon because each one is so picky and each had their own opinions.

However when I presented the design to them, they all were very happy and not one thing needed to change on the design which was amazing!

They are now forever tattooed with the “Sumo Sissies” design to symbolize their love for one another, and to be forever bonded in sisterhood!