Introduction/Advice

[Bobby Diebold]

Hello! I'm new to the forum, and I was hoping to get some advice (or maybe just some words of encouragement) on a recent tattoo I got...

I went to a very reputable studio in my area and was tattooed by an incredible artist. I don't want to mention any names, though, as I don't want to risk drawing any negativity to the artist's reputation.

In any case, he did a tattoo of my dog's face on my shoulder. I LOVE the tattoo- he did an amazing job and really captured the essence of my beloved canine companion. There's just one issue, though... My dog's right ear is floppy, and somehow or another, the left ear of the tattoo is the one that is flopped!!! I guess he drew it how he saw it in the photo, and the image was flipped when he did the transfer (which put the floppy right ear on the left). When I checked the transfer on my skin, before he tattooed it, I was looking at it in a mirror, so the reflection looked right... I just didn't notice until someone took a photo of it afterwards :(

I know there's nothing I can do about it now. I thought about the possibility of having the ears lasered off to have them fixed, but that just seems insane to me (it's expensive, and the tattoo could go from looking really good to looking noticably bad). You wouldn't notice the ear issue, unless I'm standing next to my dog or comparing the tattoo with a photo. I guess it's just something that I will always be aware of, and it kind of bums me out a little. I keep going back and forth between being upset about it and thinking that it's kind of funny...

I think the artist may have noticed after the outline was completed, but (if he did) he didn't say anything... I know it was just an honest mistake, but does this happen very often??? I'm going back in a couple weeks to have him put my other dog's face on my other shoulder- fortunately, there are no more floppy ears to contend with! :p

[ApprenticeLife]

Hello! I'm new to the forum, and I was hoping to get some advice (or maybe just some words of encouragement) on a recent tattoo I got...

I went to a very reputable studio in my area and was tattooed by an incredible artist. I don't want to mention any names, though, as I don't want to risk drawing any negativity to the artist's reputation.

In any case, he did a tattoo of my dog's face on my shoulder. I LOVE the tattoo- he did an amazing job and really captured the essence of my beloved canine companion. There's just one issue, though... My dog's right ear is floppy, and somehow or another, the left ear of the tattoo is the one that is flopped!!! I guess he drew it how he saw it in the photo, and the image was flipped when he did the transfer (which put the floppy right ear on the left). When I checked the transfer on my skin, before he tattooed it, I was looking at it in a mirror, so the reflection looked right... I just didn't notice until someone took a photo of it afterwards :(

I know there's nothing I can do about it now. I thought about the possibility of having the ears lasered off to have them fixed, but that just seems insane to me (it's expensive, and the tattoo could go from looking really good to looking noticably bad). You wouldn't notice the ear issue, unless I'm standing next to my dog or comparing the tattoo with a photo. I guess it's just something that I will always be aware of, and it kind of bums me out a little. I keep going back and forth between being upset about it and thinking that it's kind of funny...

I think the artist may have noticed after the outline was completed, but (if he did) he didn't say anything... I know it was just an honest mistake, but does this happen very often??? I'm going back in a couple weeks to have him put my other dog's face on my other shoulder- fortunately, there are no more floppy ears to contend with!

I would suggest that you find the humor in it and try to not let it upset you. Memory tattoos are hard, because the imagery can be hyper-specific, like which ear was supposed to be floppy. Just realize that your artist has (presumably) never met your dog and just did what you gave the OK on. As tattooers, we 100% rely on the client to be the final say in what gets tattooed. We have people write names, dates and overall be vocal about the most important parts of their tattoo. I understand that it is difficult to identify any potential mistakes from a mirror, but with something so specific, there should have been a, "So, the right ear is floppy, right?... Which ear is floppy?... Which side is the right side on me?" It sounds absurd, and it tends to turn into a funny comedy bit throughout the process, but it's super important to be vocal. I think a lot of people worry about annoying or offending a tattooer, but the most annoying thing is pointing out a mix up AFTER the tattoo is done. Long story short, I wouldn't get laser removal if it's technically solid. I mean, the world might see the portrait with the wrong ear flopped, but they don't know your dog. You will see it from a mirror, where it will be correct. If someone is enough of an ass to call you out on it, say, "This tattoo is for me. When I look in the mirror, I want to see my dog how I remember him/her. If it has to look right to me or you, I choose me." Then say, "Beat it, Nerd!" and Tupac walk away like a boss. Good luck and just remember this for next time.

[Bobby Diebold]

I would suggest that you find the humor in it and try to not let it upset you. Memory tattoos are hard, because the imagery can be hyper-specific, like which ear was supposed to be floppy. Just realize that your artist has (presumably) never met your dog and just did what you gave the OK on. As tattooers, we 100% rely on the client to be the final say in what gets tattooed. We have people write names, dates and overall be vocal about the most important parts of their tattoo. I understand that it is difficult to identify any potential mistakes from a mirror, but with something so specific, there should have been a, "So, the right ear is floppy, right?... Which ear is floppy?... Which side is the right side on me?" It sounds absurd, and it tends to turn into a funny comedy bit throughout the process, but it's super important to be vocal. I think a lot of people worry about annoying or offending a tattooer, but the most annoying thing is pointing out a mix up AFTER the tattoo is done. Long story short, I wouldn't get laser removal if it's technically solid. I mean, the world might see the portrait with the wrong ear flopped, but they don't know your dog. You will see it from a mirror, where it will be correct. If someone is enough of an ass to call you out on it, say, "This tattoo is for me. When I look in the mirror, I want to see my dog how I remember him/her. If it has to look right to me or you, I choose me." Then say, "Beat it, Nerd!" and Tupac walk away like a boss. Good luck and just remember this for next time.

Thanks so much for the feedback :) I guess I will just have to laugh this one off. His floppy ear has always been a point of humor for my wife and I anyway, so I guess this little error just adds to the silliness of it. To use your words, it is definitely technically sound- in fact, I think it really looks awesome. I'm tempted to post a photo of it, but I really don't want to risk drawing any negativity to the artist (especially since it really wasn't his fault). My initial reaction was that I got a "botched" tattoo, but I guess it's far from that. It's not a tattoo of a baby that ended up looking like a vampire ;) I guess I could just have a serious heart to heart with my dog to see if he can work on reversing his ear flop...

[ApprenticeLife]

Thanks so much for the feedback :) I guess I will just have to laugh this one off. His floppy ear has always been a point of humor for my wife and I anyway, so I guess this little error just adds to the silliness of it. To use your words, it is definitely technically sound- in fact, I think it really looks awesome. I'm tempted to post a photo of it, but I really don't want to risk drawing any negativity to the artist (especially since it really wasn't his fault). My initial reaction was that I got a "botched" tattoo, but I guess it's far from that. It's not a tattoo of a baby that ended up looking like a vampire ;) I guess I could just have a serious heart to heart with my dog to see if he can work on reversing his ear flop...

My teacher has a story of tattooing a mom's wrong birth date on a friend... so, yeah... it could be worse. Haha

[Bobby Diebold]

My teacher has a story of tattooing a mom's wrong birth date on a friend... so, yeah... it could be worse. Haha

Oh my goodness... I think that would warrant removal :( My very first tattoo was a memorial rose for my older brother, and I seem to recall the artist asking me no less than 3 times if the initials and birth/death date were correct :p I brought three different sources with the dates because I was so worried about the scenario you just shared. You'd think I would have remembered that for the dog tattoo, but it was almost 20 years ago (and I honestly didn't think there would be any issues with my dog tattoos, since lettering/numbering wasn't involved).

FWIW, my wife pointed out that my dog is facing towards the front of my body, so he IS looking in the right direction. I guess the only thing that is really "backwards" would be his floppy ear.

[ApprenticeLife]

Oh my goodness... I think that would warrant removal :( My very first tattoo was a memorial rose for my older brother, and I seem to recall the artist asking me no less than 3 times if the initials and birth/death date were correct I brought three different sources with the dates because I was so worried about the scenario you just shared. You'd think I would have remembered that for the dog tattoo, but it was almost 20 years ago (and I honestly didn't think there would be any issues with my dog tattoos, since lettering/numbering wasn't involved).

FWIW, my wife pointed out that my dog is facing towards the front of my body, so he IS looking in the right direction. I guess the only thing that is really "backwards" would be his floppy ear.

Haha yeah, fortunately he said it was easy to stylize the 1 and turn it into a 4, so no harm done. I'm doing a few lines from a poem today and I'm preparing my brain to do its thing. No matter how good you are at spelling, if you write stuff one word at a time and stare at it too long, everything looks wrong. Actually, I shouldn't be talking about this right now... (knocks on wood)

[Cork]

This is your first tattoo? Don't sweat it man. Love it for what it is and now you have a story to tell. Things like that put character in to the tattoo.

[Bobby Diebold]

This is your first tattoo? Don't sweat it man. Love it for what it is and now you have a story to tell. Things like that put character in to the tattoo.

Thanks, Cork :) I actually have three others- I need to add some photos of them to my gallery. I got my first one almost 20 years ago, and I have two more recent ones from Bailey H Robinson (one from last year and one from about a week ago). I got my dog tattoo about three days ago, and I'm scheduled to get the next one in a week or so (just making up for lost time :p)

It definitely makes for an interesting story :p I just need to get past all the "what-ifs." If I had only paid more attention... If I had only texted a photo of the transfer to my wife... If my wife had only come with me... Blah blah blah... At the end of the day, it really is a badass tattoo. I have to remember that it is a stylized representation of my dog and was never meant to be a fine-lined, photo-realistic piece or anything like that. No ragrets :D

[SeeSea]

When I checked the transfer on my skin, before he tattooed it, I was looking at it in a mirror, so the reflection looked right...

Sooooo, just look at it in the mirror. ;)

[Bobby Diebold]

Sooooo, just look at it in the mirror. ;)

That is definitely one major advantage to having the ears backwards! Incidentally, I think that's also why I didn't notice the mistake until after the tattoo was done. The sketch he showed me beforehand obviously looked good, and then it still looked good when I checked the transfer in the mirror. I guess I was so intent on just getting through the pain (which actually wasn't bad at all) that I wasn't thinking about whether the floppy ear was on the right side or not...

I just need to shake that sinking feeling I got when I first realized the mistake, and I guess it will just take time :rolleyes:

[polliwog]

Check out this tattoo. (livedintattoos is run by @Iwar and this is from @gougetheeyes Sunday Takeover.) It's probably pretty normal to stress about your first tattoo, but in the long run "mistakes" can become endearing. I have an "oops" in one of my tattoos that I didn't even notice until after it healed...

[Bobby Diebold]

Check out this tattoo. (livedintattoos is run by @Iwar and this is from @gougetheeyes Sunday Takeover.) It's probably pretty normal to stress about your first tattoo, but in the long run "mistakes" can become endearing. I have an "oops" in one of my tattoos that I didn't even notice until after it healed...

Thanks so much for sharing, this :) I guess it really is kind of cool in a way- I'll always want to tell people how the right ear was supposed to be floppy, which will lead to the funny story how my dog's ears both stood up perfectly when he was a puppy, and then one started drooping as he got older. My wife and I already laugh about it, so I guess this just kind of adds to the memories and giggles.

[Marco Falcone]

Hey guys, new to the forum. :) Was wondering what you guys thought about a minimalist tattoo with the initials of "fortitudine vincimus" > FV or F.V. in ancient roman lettering on my shoulder or bicep.

[SeeSea]

Hey guys, new to the forum. :) Was wondering what you guys thought about a minimalist tattoo with the initials of "fortitudine vincimus" > FV or F.V. in ancient roman lettering on my shoulder or bicep.

Welcome! You'll get more traffic if you start a new thread over in the Initiation area.

[Bobby Diebold]

Okay, so I got my second dog tattoo... Like the first one, I absolutely love it- totally bad-ass execution. There's just one issue I have with it, and I'm hoping to get some more advice... I'll try posting over in the Tattoo Advice forum...

- - - Updated - - -

For some reason, I still can't start a new thread in any of the other forums, so here goes...

My second dog turned out a little more demonic than I was aiming for :eek: The eyes are pretty intense, but I think it's the pointy teeth that kind of put it over the top:

I was thinking about having the artist just fill in the tips of the teeth, so they aren't pointy... I was just messing around with the image on my computer, and this is what I came up with:

My question is this: Based on the pictures above, would the artist be able to make this change with some simple filling in or would it just look weird???

[SeeSea]

On the surface, it doesn't look like a big deal. I've had areas darkened to improve the image - I didn't ask for this, he just did it as a part of the design on subsequent sessions (multi-session tattoo). However, I am not a tattoo artist, so just go ask him. Or email the pics. It's a cute tattoo.

[thejao]

Give some time for tattoo, I'm sure this is new tattoo nerves,is common, it will pass, good luck!!