Problem: Article: Now is the time to get creative! Cut up magazines to make a collage that represents the color scheme or mood you would like to recreate with your tattoo. Make an inspiration board that evokes the feeling you want to convey with your design. You might also jot down words in a diary that come to mind when thinking of the design you want. This can be super helpful if you want the tattoo artist to design or draw the tattoo for you. If you can draw, sketching the tattoo is a fantastic way to give your tattoo artist a more accurate picture of just what exactly you want to get inked when you go into the parlor. Get out a piece of paper and draw the tattoo to scale. Don’t be afraid to go through multiple drafts - you are drawing something that will go on your body permanently, so take your time and work on the sketch until it’s just right.  You can draft a rough sketch and bring it to the tattoo artist. The artist can, in turn, refine your vision and bring the design closer to what you had envisioned, as well as advise you on feasibility and cost. If you don’t know how to draw, get a friend or hire a freelancer to draw your vision for you. Or, use a site like Fiverr for help. You can even collaborate with a tattoo artist by explaining to them the design you want and having them advise you on location, coloring, and type of ink. You will have to explain very carefully what you envision and likely go through multiple drafts until the drawing is just right. Trends come and go, but a tattoo is forever. Determine whether the tattoo you have will age well by asking yourself questions such as: What is the likelihood that I’ll have the same interests and beliefs in 10 or 20 years? Am I making this decision based on impulse, or have I given it time and careful thought? It's best to think about the tattoo for several months before deciding to get it.  Examples of timeless tattoos include tattoos of animals, flowers, skulls, maps, or nautical symbols.  Another way to test timelessness is to tape up the design you have created to a wall and look at it every day for a few months. While that may seem like a long time, if you get tired of looking at the design you will be able to reconsider whether this is really something you want inked on your body permanently. If you would like to try out your idea before committing to the design, you can order a temporary custom tattoo online on a site like Etsy or Momentary Ink. Submit your design online and the seller will make you a temporary tattoo. You can also ask your tattoo artist if they can do a transfer of the design on your skin first. Ask for this during your initial design consultation.
Summary: Jot your ideas down in a journal. Sketch the design. Opt for timelessness. Order a temporary custom tattoo.

Problem: Article: Leftover mint from the store or garden can be preserved for later use. To freeze your mint, place two washed mint leaves in each basin of an ice cube tray. Fill each with water. Freeze them until you’re ready to use the mint.  Once the mint cubes have frozen, remove them from the tray and place them in a plastic bag in the freezer. (Now you have your ice cube tray back!) When it’s time to use your mint, pull the ice cubes out of the freezer (as many as you need for how much mint you require) and place them in a bowl to thaw. When the ice has thawed, drain the water and pat the mint dry. Dried mint can be used to make teas, and can even be put into the reusable cups for single-serve coffee machines. Take the fresh sprigs of mint and loosely bundle a couple together with elastic bands. Hang them upside down somewhere warm and dry until the leaves are dry and brittle.  Mint contains more moisture than some other herbs, which means it can take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks to dry, depending on the climate. The warmer and dryer the room you use for drying, the less time the process will take.  When the leaves are dry, place them in a bag or between sheets of wax paper and break them up. Store in a spice jar.
Summary: Freeze your mint leaves in an ice cube tray. Dry your mint.

Problem: Article: 95% of the time you should get the "regular weight," or "lite" strings. While some guitarists use heavier gauges or odd string configurations, you can't simply grab a set of strings if your guitar is not made for it. Strings that are too heavy for your guitar can warp or bend the neck without the proper adjustments, so stick to regulars until you know more about your guitar.  In general, you want your high E to be a ".008-.0011" thickness. This is for medium, lite, and extra lite strings. If you use drop tunings, like a drop D, you might want heavier strings. Ask your music store staff for a specific recommendation. Give yourself plenty of room to work, laying the guitar down on a table so that you can adjust it comfortably. Make sure to place a towel or blanket underneath to prevent scuffing or scratching. Some people like resting the head off the edge to make tuning easier. This hole should point away from the string so that it is parallel to one of the frets. If you were holding the guitar and playing it, the hole would be pointing up. Once you've got the first one done, repeat the process on the rest of the strings, working through the packet. Remember to clean the fretboard after removing a string, to leave some slack in the string before tightening, and to crimp the string in place before starting to turn. If your head has a 3x3 set-up, remember that the lower set of tuning pegs must be turned in reverse. Simply repeat the proceeding instructions, replacing left with right and up with down.
Summary:
Purchase the correct strings for your guitar. Lay the guitar on a flat, soft surface at a comfortable height. Turn the hole of the tuning post so that the hole faces you. Repeat the process on the rest of the strings.