I have eight...I have an angel with horns and a book on my upper left arm, a band of bat and angel wings around my right arm, a fleur de lys on my right wrist, a pinup faerie with pink wings and 40s film star hair on my back, ankh on my right shoulder, Arthur Rackham Grail Maiden on my left shoulder, two Brian Froud faeries on my right forearm top and on the underside of my right forearm, a full piece of Kaylee from Firefly.
I got my first when I was twenty one and I've been getting tattooed for over a decade. My advice would be...
Make sure you find an artist you LOVE. (A good artist will work with you and make sure you have exactly what you want. I have had incredible luck and click best with female tattoo artists, but what matters is that you work well with the person.) Your artist should give you a free consultation.
Check out the studio, make sure it's clean-it should be certified by the American Association of Professional Tattooists.
Ask any questions you may have up front and the artist should be able to explain to you clearly and openly. Ask about aftercare, ask about what may hurt most. (The center of my back hurt like mad, but I'd also been going for 4 hours...!)
If you feel like you can't talk, go find another artist or another studio.
Another place you can go look for ideas is a tattoo convention--the Mad Hatter's Ball in NYC is supposed to be fun, the Boston Tattoo Convention is good as well, but I love Marked For Life in Florida--it's all female tattoo artists and has an excellent clientele and atmosphere.
Trust your judgement and trust your love and let it be a wonderful time. (Oh yes and don't forget to have a snack beforehand:))
Since I would be remiss if I didn't share...my artist's name is Mulysa Mayhem and she is in Saugus, MA and she will travel. She is beyond awesome, does beautiful work and also understands the magick of tattooing and how special it is. I love her to pieces .
http://www.myspace.com/mulysa_mayhem
(and hopefully it won't be off topic, but this is my arm with Kaylee from Firefly done by Mulysa:
http://jessicamelusine.livejournal.com/865480.html )
(and I do have other ideas.)
Anyway, if you have any other questions I can answer, I'm happy to--good luck!