Arizona man spends $15,000 having his whole body TATTOOED

An Arizona man spent a staggering $14,900 getting his entire body inked in just 40 days after being inspired by a model on Instagram.

In 2017, marketing specialist Paul Steiger, 35, from Scottsdale, Arizona, first dreamt of getting his whole body tattooed after coming across a model on Instagram who had visited Phuket in Thailand to have work done.

In July 2020, after four years of saving up, Paul finally had the money required to cover the cost of the work, however the global pandemic put an end to his plans, and his flights to Thailand were cancelled five times.

Interesting: Arizona marketing specialist Paul Steiger, 35, has revealed he spent $14,900 having his entire body tattooed in Thailand in January

Interesting: Arizona marketing specialist Paul Steiger, 35, has revealed he spent $14,900 having his entire body tattooed in Thailand in January 

Unique: Paul insists he has no regrets about his tattoos, which took 41 days to complete

Unique: Paul insists he has no regrets about his tattoos, which took 41 days to complete

Before and after: Prior to his Thailand trip, Paul had a few tattoos, however they were all covered up by the artists in Phuket

Before and after: Prior to his Thailand trip, Paul had a few tattoos, however they were all covered up by the artists in Phuket

Before and after: Prior to his Thailand trip, Paul had a few tattoos, however they were all covered up by the artists in Phuket 

After six months of waiting and a 15-day quarantine on arrival, in January 2021, Paul finally landed in Phuket where he immediately headed to the Bloodline Tattoo Parlour to get his body fully covered in ink.

Despite planning his full body covering for over four years, Paul decided to leave the specifics of the tattoo designs up to the professionals.

Over the next 41 days, Paul had his chest, arms, back, neck, and left leg completely covered in tattoos, in excruciating sessions that lasted upwards of five hours per day.

The tattoo artists covered Paul’s muscular frame in a combination of intricate gothic and floral designs, including a skull on his left forearm and a haunted house on his side.

According to the 35-year-old, the most painful part of his body to have tattooed was his chest with his knee, upper ribs, hands, fingers and the front of his neck also being particularly sensitive spots.

Fortunately for Paul, his friends and family have been overwhelmingly supportive of his cavalier attitude towards his tattoos, with only his 77-year-old grandpa speaking out against his decision, saying that his tattoos will look rough when he reaches old age.

In total, Paul spent $14,880 on his tattoos, getting a significant discount due to the tattoo parlor being almost empty because of the pandemic.

Completed: Paul first planned to travel to Thailand back in July 2020, but had to put his plans on hold for six months because of the pandemic; he eventually made it there in January

Completed: Paul first planned to travel to Thailand back in July 2020, but had to put his plans on hold for six months because of the pandemic; he eventually made it there in January

Completed: Paul first planned to travel to Thailand back in July 2020, but had to put his plans on hold for six months because of the pandemic; he eventually made it there in January 

Dealer's choice! Although he knew where he wanted the tattoos to be placed, Paul allowed the tattoo artist to get creative with the designs

Dealer’s choice! Although he knew where he wanted the tattoos to be placed, Paul allowed the tattoo artist to get creative with the designs 

Maybe next time! Paul says the only regret he has about his full-body art is not getting his armpits tattooed

Maybe next time! Paul says the only regret he has about his full-body art is not getting his armpits tattooed

Maybe next time! Paul says the only regret he has about his full-body art is not getting his armpits tattooed

‘I had a few tattoos before on my right arm and chest, but I honestly thought that my tattoos were s**t, looked like s**t and I just wanted to fix them,’ said Paul.

‘So I thought I might as well do the whole body at once while doing it.

‘Four years ago I made a goal that I would go to Phuket, Thailand, which I found out about from an Australian Instagram tattoo model and get my tattoos at ‘Bloodline Tattoo’.

‘In summer of 2020 I finally saved up the money to get the work done and fly there.

‘Unfortunately my flights were cancelled about five times and I wasn’t able to get to Phuket until the end of January 2021.

‘Even then I had to do a 15-day quarantine in Bangkok first.

‘I was told numerous times that I could do it in Hungary or the USA for probably cheaper and sooner, but I had a goal and a vision and I had to make it happen. So, I did.

‘We worked Monday through Saturday doing roughly five hours per day, which added up to more than two-hundred hours in total.

‘As far as tattoo design, I didn’t plan it too much. I had some images I sent to the shop but nothing was set in stone.

Then: 'I had a few tattoos before on my right arm and chest, but I honestly thought that my tattoos were s**t, looked like s**t and I just wanted to fix them,' Paul explained

Then: ‘I had a few tattoos before on my right arm and chest, but I honestly thought that my tattoos were s**t, looked like s**t and I just wanted to fix them,’ Paul explained

Inspired: After deciding to get his old tattoos (pictured) updated, Paul saw an Instagram model with full-body inkings and was inspired to do something similar

Inspired: After deciding to get his old tattoos (pictured) updated, Paul saw an Instagram model with full-body inkings and was inspired to do something similar

Inspired: After deciding to get his old tattoos (pictured) updated, Paul saw an Instagram model with full-body inkings and was inspired to do something similar 

Process: The tattoos, which cover Paul's back, neck, chest, arms, and one leg, were completed in five-hour sessions over a 41-day period

Process: The tattoos, which cover Paul’s back, neck, chest, arms, and one leg, were completed in five-hour sessions over a 41-day period 

Complete: Paul says he has been supported by his friends and family - except for his granddad, who insisted that he will regret his tattoos later on in life

Complete: Paul says he has been supported by his friends and family – except for his granddad, who insisted that he will regret his tattoos later on in life 

‘All I knew was that I wanted to cover my whole body except my right leg and right butt cheek.

‘I wanted it to have a little contrast and I didn’t want to be average.

‘Lots of people have full body tattoos suits completely covered but it’s very rare that people leave a leg and butt cheek open when doing a bodysuit tattoo.

‘For me my chest was probably the most painful part, because he was covering my previous tattoos so he was going deeper and using white ink.

‘I remember a few spots being pretty bad like my knee, my upper ribs, my hand, front of my neck and my fingers which swelled up.

‘My friends and family were pretty cool about it all.

‘I feel like having a s**t ton of tattoos in 2021 is okay now without being judged as much as it used to be.

‘I do know that even though my grandpa totally accepts it and has only given me a very small amount of stick for it, I think he would prefer me without any tattoos.’

Despite undergoing what some would consider a bold move in getting over 200 hours worth of tattooing done in little over a month, Paul has no regrets, apart from the fact that he ran out of time on his visa to get his armpits tattooed – something he wants to put right as soon as possible.

After a chance encounter with a TV and film producer during an overlay on his way back from Thailand, Paul hopes that his tattoos marathon story may inspire the creation of a miniseries tattoo challenge show on Netflix or Amazon.

‘I won’t ever regret my decision to get my tattoos,’ said Paul. ‘I can’t reverse it so why even think about that.

‘Only thing I regret is not getting my armpits done, because my visa ran out, which they told me would bug the hell out of me eventually and it already is.

‘I plan to get that fixed in the very near future.

‘It was one of the greatest experiences of my life and I would do it all over and go through the pain again if I had to.’