New to the forum

[Conor]

Hey there, my name's Conor and I live in East London. I'm finally about to lose my tattoo virginity courtesy of Liam Sparkes and thought this place could really offer an awful lot of useful information, and being a tattoo enthusiast for as long as I can remember I'm sure it'll be fun to talk to like minded people (it's strange how few people are actually positive about tattoos, let alone enthusiastic!)

Well that's about it I suppose, hope to see you guys down the road!

[mrmolders]

Welcome Conor. Greetings from North London :-). What's your plan for the first tattoo ?

[Conor]

Still in the final planning stages, I'm still a bit nervous about going to the artist with primarily a set of elements and concepts rather than a concrete idea, I don't want to appear to be half hearted or a poseur of some kind. I get the impression that though that method might be commonplace in tattooing, it still gets on the back of artists when a customer has too disparate or weak of an idea. We shall see!

[Lochlan]

Welcome to the tattoo forum.

If you've chosen a good tattooer that can do their job then giving them an idea even a vague one you can let them work their magic as long as you don't try and dictate or micromanage their process too much. More often than not you'll get additions you never considered....look forward to seeing it

[Swan]

Welcome Conor. My tuppence worth would be to have a clear idea about what you want. I was vague about a sleeve piece and am unhappy with the end result. Good luck with it!

[Conor]

Hey Swan, I've decided on a design based on a hooded Falcon (blackwork, obvious when you consider the artist's style), with a subtle red geometric design overlay, similar to what one might see from Maxime Buchi. I'm determined to avoid the possibility of it looking dated in a decade or so though, I'm going to see how Liam feels about it, he's the artist after all!

[Graeme]

Hey Swan, I've decided on a design based on a hooded Falcon (blackwork, obvious when you consider the artist's style), with a subtle red geometric design overlay, similar to what one might see from Maxime Buchi. I'm determined to avoid the possibility of it looking dated in a decade or so though, I'm going to see how Liam feels about it, he's the artist after all!

Speaking as someone who is getting a raven sleeve from Thomas Hooper at the moment, I think tattoos in that style are going to look dated over time. That doesn't mean that a well designed and executed tattoo in that style isn't still going to look rad in ten (or twenty or thirty or forty) years, but I think it will obviously come from a certain era of tattooing. Personally, I'm okay with that with my tattoos. I think if you want timeless go for either traditional Americana (keeping in mind that it has gone in and out of fashion over time) or traditional Japanese.

[Conor]

Speaking as someone who is getting a raven sleeve from Thomas Hooper at the moment, I think tattoos in that style are going to look dated over time. That doesn't mean that a well designed and executed tattoo in that style isn't still going to look rad in ten (or twenty or thirty or forty) years, but I think it will obviously come from a certain era of tattooing. Personally, I'm okay with that with my tattoos. I think if you want timeless go for either traditional Americana (keeping in mind that it has gone in and out of fashion over time) or traditional Japanese.

Very true, after giving it some more thought I think I might decide to er on the side of caution. I love the style, and so as long as it doesn't become the equivalent of a Taz or barbed wire arm band in the next couple of decades, I'll be fine. The design is actually inspired by a Bukowski poem, I'm willing to bet a whole bunch of people would consider getting such a tattoo in anything other than a Traditional Americana style as blasphemy haha. Still a hooded falcon, but I've made some slight ammendments to the overall approach (considering adding some more traditional imagery etc). Almost every tattoo I've loved has had the same underlying aspects; A simple, strong image with a slight twist done boldly and cleanly, this is what I'm aiming for! Any suggestions with regard to possible placement would be really appreciated.

How in the world did you manage to get tattooed by Hooper? One of the lucky few I guess haha!

[Rhapsody831]

Welcome!

[Graeme]

Very true, after giving it some more thought I think I might decide to er on the side of caution. I love the style, and so as long as it doesn't become the equivalent of a Taz or barbed wire arm band in the next couple of decades, I'll be fine. The design is actually inspired by a Bukowski poem, I'm willing to bet a whole bunch of people would consider getting such a tattoo in anything other than a Traditional Americana style as blasphemy haha. Still a hooded falcon, but I've made some slight ammendments to the overall approach (considering adding some more traditional imagery etc). Almost every tattoo I've loved has had the same underlying aspects; A simple, strong image with a slight twist done boldly and cleanly, this is what I'm aiming for! Any suggestions with regard to possible placement would be really appreciated.

How in the world did you manage to get tattooed by Hooper? One of the lucky few I guess haha!

You will never go wrong with getting a simple and strong image from a good tattooer, so I'm sure you'll get something great. Try not to overthink it, trust your tattooer, and keep us updated about how it goes. And then you can start thinking about your next tattoos. Good luck.