New tattoo

[Ally]

Hey all!! So I got a new tattoo about ten days ago from a reputable artist in my community. Although my picture inspirations I sent her for my tattoo did not turn out like the actual tattoo, I still okayed the design. Now the more I look at it, the more I see wrong. I’m really not loving my tattoo and her execution and I need advice. Does it look as bad as I’m seeing and what should I do?! 

Thanks for helping!

[Hogrider]

It's not cringe-worthy, but it's not very good. Seriously, the first thing you need to do is learn how to tell a mediocre tattooer from a good one. The tattoo is really flat and poorly drawn, but at least it doesn't look like they damaged the skin, unlike a lot of disasters posted here. You need to find a really good artist who can probably rework that into something decent.

[Ally]

And I researched and her work isn’t bad, that’s why I’m so pissed. I don’t know what to do. Am I supposed to contact her? And my next problem, I don’t even know where to begin to find someone who can fix this without it turning into a larger tattoo. I’m seriously contemplating having it laser removed. 

[tattoomemomo]

49 minutes ago, Ally said:

And I researched and her work isn’t bad, that’s why I’m so pissed. I don’t know what to do. Am I supposed to contact her? And my next problem, I don’t even know where to begin to find someone who can fix this without it turning into a larger tattoo. I’m seriously contemplating having it laser removed. 

When you say researched have you looked at the healed work? also define how you assessed the portfolio.

 

[Hogrider]

1 hour ago, Ally said:

And I researched and her work isn’t bad, that’s why I’m so pissed. I don’t know what to do. Am I supposed to contact her? And my next problem, I don’t even know where to begin to find someone who can fix this without it turning into a larger tattoo. I’m seriously contemplating having it laser removed. 

I've seen more people make a situation worse than better by rushing to try to fix something. First, you shouldn't have anyone work on that until it's healed; I'd wait at least 2 months. Second, laser removal doesn't leave the skin looking like it did before you got a tattoo. There's almost always a faint outline, so I'd forget about that. Why don't you send a link to the artist and maybe we can help you see where you went wrong. Also, if you identify what city you live in, you can probably get some recommendations.

I wouldn't contact her. She phucked it up once, why would you give her another shot?

The main thing is to think this through before you do anything else. I was getting tattooed once when a woman came in with a coverup that she wanted reworked. She hated the original tattoo and didn't research the person that covered it up. Someone said that it looked like Arnold Schwarzenegger climbing out of a tar pit.

Time and patience are your friends. 

Edited June 10, 2022 by Hogrider

[Ally]

Well I’m from Wisconsin and this is my first tattoo, I’ve been told to let it heal and see what it looks like after the fact. I just wish I loved it more and it has me in such a funk right now. I think it will have to be touched up to fix the lines and make it more clean. The picture maybe just makes it look worse than it is also. I’ve seen great tattoos, I just don’t have a damn clue who does anything like that in my state.  And I don’t even know if it can be fixed into something I love, super bummed out.

[Hogrider]

35 minutes ago, Ally said:

Well I’m from Wisconsin and this is my first tattoo, I’ve been told to let it heal and see what it looks like after the fact. I just wish I loved it more and it has me in such a funk right now. I think it will have to be touched up to fix the lines and make it more clean. The picture maybe just makes it look worse than it is also. I’ve seen great tattoos, I just don’t have a damn clue who does anything like that in my state.  And I don’t even know if it can be fixed into something I love, super bummed out.

The ink goes under your skin; you can’t “fix” lines. I really recommend against going back to the shop that did this.

There are a couple of tattoo conventions in Wisconsin in September/ October; it would be a great place to see and talk to a lot of artists. Don’t take money or credit cards; everyone will tell you they can “fix” it. You want to listen to what everyone has to say and think it over.

[Ally]

2 hours ago, Hogrider said:

The ink goes under your skin; you can’t “fix” lines. I really recommend against going back to the shop that did this.

There are a couple of tattoo conventions in Wisconsin in September/ October; it would be a great place to see and talk to a lot of artists. Don’t take money or credit cards; everyone will tell you they can “fix” it. You want to listen to what everyone has to say and think it over.

So I’m not really thrilled about the idea of waiting until then. How do I find good tattoo artists who can do a cover up tattoo? I’m willing to pay anything at this point. 
I am absolutely not going back to that studio to have it fixed. Are you implying that a coverup won’t even work either? I’m honestly freaking out over here, I have lost sleep over this. I’m so pissed at myself and the artist for just doing this to someone. 

[Hogrider]

3 hours ago, Ally said:

So I’m not really thrilled about the idea of waiting until then. How do I find good tattoo artists who can do a cover up tattoo? I’m willing to pay anything at this point. 
I am absolutely not going back to that studio to have it fixed. Are you implying that a coverup won’t even work either? I’m honestly freaking out over here, I have lost sleep over this. I’m so pissed at myself and the artist for just doing this to someone. 

That absolutely can be made into a beautiful tattoo, so I wouldn't worry about that I found my artist through referrals from friends and I happened to meet him at a tattoo convention.

I am really trying to caution you to slow down. It's June now. You should do anything until it's at least 8 weeks old, so you really shouldn't be working on it again until August at the earliest. Most good artists are going to have a waiting list. My artist has a 2 to 3 month wait, even though I've been going to him for more than 10 years.

Seriously, I'd recommend watching a season or two of Ink Master. Not that they don't have plenty of awful tattoos, but the judges tell you what to look for in a tattoo, why a tattoo is good, or why it's bad. Look around your area and when you find someone you like, post links to their work here and people will let you know what they think. I'd still like to see a link to your artist. If I don't know what you were looking at, it's really hard to tell if you missed warning signs, or if they just cherry picked their work that they posted. 

One of the purposes of this web site is to help people get good tattoos.

[Ally]

2 hours ago, Hogrider said:

That absolutely can be made into a beautiful tattoo, so I wouldn't worry about that I found my artist through referrals from friends and I happened to meet him at a tattoo convention.

I am really trying to caution you to slow down. It's June now. You should do anything until it's at least 8 weeks old, so you really shouldn't be working on it again until August at the earliest. Most good artists are going to have a waiting list. My artist has a 2 to 3 month wait, even though I've been going to him for more than 10 years.

Seriously, I'd recommend watching a season or two of Ink Master. Not that they don't have plenty of awful tattoos, but the judges tell you what to look for in a tattoo, why a tattoo is good, or why it's bad. Look around your area and when you find someone you like, post links to their work here and people will let you know what they think. I'd still like to see a link to your artist. If I don't know what you were looking at, it's really hard to tell if you missed warning signs, or if they just cherry picked their work that they posted. 

One of the purposes of this web site is to help people get good tattoos.

I’ve been searching for days for a good tattoo artist to help me and I have had no luck. None of the people I know have had to do this with their tattoos, so I’ve gone nowhere. I wish I wouldn’t haven’t done this at all, I want it off my arm at this point.

[SStu]

Yep. Patience. You can find someone who can re-work the tattoo into something more cohesive, but don't rush into it - and after you've narrowed down your prospects, post links to their work here. We'll help you vet. 

[Simong]

I’m sure there will be an artist out there who can help you out. It’s just about taking your time and finding them. For what it’s worth the tattoo doesn’t look particularly bad until you get up close. It could be so much better but I wouldn’t rush into something thinking it looks awful. As others said it needs to heal properly yet before you do anything to it.

[oboogie]

You have to wait for it to heal. Just wait and find someone who won't f*ck it up more. You think you hate it now? Rush into "fixing it," and you will REALLY hate it.

P.S. It's not perfect, but it isn't THAT bad. We've seen so much worse—SO MUCH worse.

Edited June 14, 2022 by oboogie

[Ally]

On 6/10/2022 at 8:58 PM, Hogrider said:

That absolutely can be made into a beautiful tattoo, so I wouldn't worry about that I found my artist through referrals from friends and I happened to meet him at a tattoo convention.

I am really trying to caution you to slow down. It's June now. You should do anything until it's at least 8 weeks old, so you really shouldn't be working on it again until August at the earliest. Most good artists are going to have a waiting list. My artist has a 2 to 3 month wait, even though I've been going to him for more than 10 years.

Seriously, I'd recommend watching a season or two of Ink Master. Not that they don't have plenty of awful tattoos, but the judges tell you what to look for in a tattoo, why a tattoo is good, or why it's bad. Look around your area and when you find someone you like, post links to their work here and people will let you know what they think. I'd still like to see a link to your artist. If I don't know what you were looking at, it's really hard to tell if you missed warning signs, or if they just cherry picked their work that they posted. 

One of the purposes of this web site is to help people get good tattoos.

I’ve been searching for days for a good tattoo artist to help me and I have had no luck. None of the people I know have had to do this with their tattoos, so I’ve gone nowhere. I wish I wouldn’t haven’t done this at all, I want it off my arm at this point.

 

 

Update:

Still not in love with the tattoo but I did find an artist about an hour away who has experience in fixes and cover ups. I have a consult with him this week! Obviously I need to wait for it to heal before doing anything but knowing I might have a plan and a beautiful end goal helps. Thanks for the support!

[Hogrider]

5 hours ago, Ally said:

I’ve been searching for days for a good tattoo artist to help me and I have had no luck. None of the people I know have had to do this with their tattoos, so I’ve gone nowhere. I wish I wouldn’t haven’t done this at all, I want it off my arm at this point.

 

 

Update:

Still not in love with the tattoo but I did find an artist about an hour away who has experience in fixes and cover ups. I have a consult with him this week! Obviously I need to wait for it to heal before doing anything but knowing I might have a plan and a beautiful end goal helps. Thanks for the support!

Why not send a link to his work. It could help you avoid a mistake, or reassure you.

[oboogie]

We need to see some of his coverups. Just because he says he can do it doesn't mean he actually can.