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FUCK THAT. that being said, i do think people should be presentable, clean and wearing clean clothes, decent shoes, etc. i heard a saying from rollo..."if you're gonna ask somebody for $100, you better look like $100". but as for official uniforms, FUCK THAT.

i have a uniform for work. it's whatever is clean in my house haha! i'm a slouchy person so most of my clothes are slouchy, i wish i could care more about the way i dress but i can't seem to. being comfortable is important to me, physically and psychologically, i simply feel like a dork if i try to match an outfit together. i live in jeans and plain tshirts. on the shop uniform thing though, i couldnt imagine working in such an environment. to me it speaks of the shop's ethos. at frith street the emphasis is on the tattoos that come out of our shop, not the way we appear to the client. we dont turn up smelling of booze or wear offensive slogans/tshirts, we're a tidy bunch, but we try to let our work speak for itself instead.

there's some amazing stuff in this thread! totally blown away. anyways here's my back, in progress by Mr. Mike Wilson at Inksmith Jax Beach obviously this has been worked around an existing tattoo on my upper back

Being professional has fucking nothing to do with looking like you work at Starbucks. Just be clean and presentable. And work your ass off for the client. If you want to impose some tradition on your elf about the way you carry yourself at work, that's cool. Just don't expect everyone to do it, or even try to make them. You could all be wearing suits and still tattoo like shit.

There are sometimes exceptions to any rule and I agree with Tim but I would go much further and use the term parasite. They are feeding off something and giving nothing back. I fail to see how any tattooer can understand what they are doing to people if they have no tattoos. Yeah there's the pain side. Mostly it's not that bad, but if you're tattooing ribs, chests, backs etc you should at least have empathy with your customer. But more than the sensation of being tattooed, there's the mental and emotional side to being a tattooed person. The way it feels to have made a deliberate choice to get a tattoo, placed a certain amount of trust in a stranger (usually) and to have the results with you every moment of your existence. To know what it's like to live with a tattoo, to see it age with your body etc. Not forgetting the social side, the way other people interact with you, either positive or negative. All these things cannot be understood without having tattoos. Being heavily tattooed is certainly no indicator of the quality of a tattooers work, but I have zero respect for tattooers with no tattoos.

HAHAHA 30 Pieces of flair. "uuuummmmmmm yaaaaaaaa I am going to havvvvve to umm ask you to come in saturday. . . yaaaaaaaa and then again on sundayyy ok that would be greeeaattt *takes sip from coffee mug*". oh office space you crack me up.

What's next Time clocks, name tags, 30 pieces of flair. I guess if you wear the uniform you have a better chance of winning employee of the month but honestly its a tattoo shop give me a break. Everyone is an adult and can figure out what they want to wear without having it dictated to them. Plus it seems a little weird to tell someone who has chosen to cover their body with tattoos that their wardrobe is inappropriate

a uniform? as a customer I would walk out of a shop like that just as soon as I entered. I deal with enough attempts to increase conformity at work and I don't want that from a TATTOO STUDIO. I feel like a tattoo studio should embrace the weird (getting tattooed is strange no matter how you think of it) and not the false sense of "sameness"...

Hey guys, I make these rad (i think they're rad) hand embroidered things. Hand embroidered means no sewing machine, just me and a needle and some thread. I'd love it if you checked them out! You can see them on my blog www.thread-wizard.com or my Etsy store Thread Wizard by UrsulaThomson on Etsy Also huge thanks to those of you who've bought my stuff online and at conventions! THANKS!

Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

It's been an amazing opportunity for me as a non-tattooer being able to have seen all the art in his shops and a lot of stuff him Mike, Richard and others who've been through the shop have collected over the years. Priceless really. Being around his shops really helped me learn a lot about art and what a good tattoo can be.

Finally got A Bob Wicks girl head from Eli three weeks ago. Will post a healed soon.

I ran into a small inkwell that was a "scholarly skull" last week from the late 1700's in an antique shop. Pipe, book, and mortarboard. Shit looked just like a piece of flash, was the size of a baseball, but it cost 900 bucks.

The tattoos should separate you from the scratchers- not your clothing. There are plenty of ways to appear professional without looking uniform. You KNOW IT when you walk into a legit studio, regardless of the wardrobe of the artists. You can put a scratcher in a uniform but that doesn't make him PRO.

The dates have been announced for State of Grace's tattoo convention for October 21-23, 2011 at the SFO Hyatt Regency. As more info is released please post. Also if you're tattooing there please let us know and how you prefer people to make appointments to get tattooed by you. Here's the LST Link and discussion for the 2010 tattoo convention Horitaka's Link to Tattoo Convention Info

Still toy with the idea of sticking a SP heart somewhere there's space! Musta drawn that thing a thousand times from ages 11-..well, now.

I had just turned 18 and knew jack about tattoos- ended up with a really crap pointed heart from the Alkaline Trio logo on my wrist. Upside down on my wrist, no less. The guy who did the tattoo had done my mam's, and she insisted I went to him for my first. Thankfully, a few months later I stopped being an irresponsible jackass, learned more about tattooing and managed to get it fixed, adding a traditional banner on it so it looks a little better (why thank you, Hayley Parkin!). I don't think I'd do it any differently if I had the chance though, to be honest. In fact, a year or two later I got an upside down Smashing Pumpkins heart on the other wrist, just to remind myself that I don't exactly make the best fucking decisions sometimes. Every time I have to sign something or make a big decision, I look at those first, haha. Thankfully, my other tattoos are far better (and they're not cheesy band logos!).

I did a guest spot in Canada a few years ago a when I got there they gave me some bullshit shirts with whack ass letters on it and said you need to sport it like everyone else, my exact words where "fuck that" I have not busted my ass in this industry for 10+ years for someone to tell me what to wear. If an employee of mine came in looking like warmed up garbage and smelling like shit then we have a problem, but a uniform, get real. Wear a suit, wear a black tshrit, shit wear a fucking toga, just do good work and wash you ass!

it's too bad chicks like her ruin it for the rest of us tattooed ladies.

Figured I'd see what the very first thread was! 2001, bluebirds on my chest, picked out from the tattooer's flash on the wall. Woulda wound up with much gayer looking birds had the shop girl not recommended the guy's own sheet.. which was pretty new school hahaha

Tattooing came to Eric later in his life. He was close to forty years old and unlike the majority of other tattooers who become interested in the business and art of tattooing after collecting tattoos , his interest in the art, culture and history and especially the how's and whys of applying beautiful tattoos - came first. He does have only a couple of tattoos on his arms but on his legs are solid, bold, strong tattoos that he is known for - often as a result of his experimentation early in his career. Eric is a rarity.

some totally moronic girl i used to know, and her friend, decided it was a great idea to tattoo their fingers whilst drunk - with a kitchen knife.

Metallica wore their own shirts during the good days. They ruled. As long as you dont smell like shit, have food on your shirt/beard or look like an ICP fan i think you can do as you please.

To be totally honest, I always thought it was cheesy to wear a t shirt with your own tattoo studio's name on it. It's like bands who wear their own merch, I just think it's kind of lame (well, except those bands who are so broke they have no choice by the end of their tour, haha!). A few of the tattoo artists I see regularly actually wear other studio's t shirts on them, and I always thought that was a really cool, and sort of humble thing to do. I'd much prefer that if you're going to be wearing any studio related shirt.

damn, it all feels so apocalyptic. i hear shit everyday that makes me shiver.

from Lil Dave a few years ago when he was still at Inksmith. kind of a shitty pic. really damn difficult to get a picture of the back of your own knee. post yours Hoggy

hey thanks everyone for the replies. this has really helped re-align me and how i feel about this tattoo. i'm really not insecure in my toughness or my image..if i was i definitely would never have gotten this tattoo. i think though that the simple answer is that i just need more tattoos to put this one in perspective. thanks again all

that tattoo is fucking awesome. you seem concerned with your "tough" image, but a "real" man would wear this with pride. you loved your dog, he died, you're honoring him. nothing to be ashamed of. real tough guys are tough enough to cry sometimes.

that is a rad tattoo. i don't think there is anything wrong with a dog tattoo either. i think just about every tattoo i have gotten it took me awhile before it became part of me. it's just weird a tattoo changes the perception of your body. and until it completely healed its just sort of annoying. i would live it with for at least a year before doing anything. my second tattoo was a butterfly and i'm a dude. talk about not tough. idgaf i still love that tattoo. you just need more tattoos.

Bumping this back up because it's super inspiring! People are crossing nations to get tattooed. Did a quick little drive to Philly a few months back (about 2 hrs) to get tattooed by Scott this year, which just planted the seed and was a great all around experience. Distance is nothing but I know travel expenses are the bigger issue. Dead set on getting bigger tattoos (see: not being such a pussy) so hopefully this time next year I'll either have more stories or more progress! I am traveling (ahem..) down the street to get tattooed in a couple weeks and then have to give it a rest until after I get hitched in the fall. Weddings are fucking expensive. Anyone else?

State of Grace uploaded this on their Facebook page over the weekend. the line up is amazinggg

There is a biblical passage " do not forget to entertain strangers, for by doing so some people have entertained angels" i like this when applied to many situations - from a non biblical stand point

There was a time that I could be pretty sure - that at any given time , I was the only tattooist on a plane flight or at a baseball game or at parent- teacher school open house. That if I met another tattooist at such an event it would be like meeting a former schoolmate while vacationing in a foreign land. What are the odds of that? I remember a time that I could tell , just by looking , that someone did what I did and we shared a common bond and if you spotted one another at an amusement park or a mall- you knew one or the other of you had travelled out of your own territory. There was a time when introduced into the life of a child that they would remember you, for the rest of their lives as the tattooed man or lady. There was a time that when responding that I was a tattooer, when asked what I did for a living - was met with the same awe, disbelief or astonishment as if I had answered that I was an alligator wrestler, an astronaut or in the French Foreign Legion. That was a great time!

i think there's a big statue of a lady in the river? i heard about a big park out there too.

http://blog.saltwatertattoo.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/11.jpg This is on Tim Hendricks blog. I think that it probably sums up the whole situation.

the inscription inside the ring he gave her says "im the nigger you need" jesus didnt he adopt a african american baby with sandra? how about not doing stupid shit like get married when clearly you can't stay faithful????? what ever she was fucking all kinds behind olivers back i guess she will get hers..

BIRDMAN Or a day in the life of a tattooist in 1978 At 4pm the sun was shinning nearly dead even into the window of the small tattoo shop on Kennedy Boulevard speaking of dead it was located just opposite the car rental that rented the white van to the first unsuccessful bombers of the World Trade Towers. Union City, NJ was not exactly exotic like Bombay nor was it cool like NYC for that matter it didn’t even seem like New Jersey it was more like little Cuba. Run by a soon to be convicted for corruption and extortion Italian wise guy, the not so honorable Mayor Musto. The windows in question, where the sun was about to cook through, were grayish and gritty. Despite the efforts of the proprietor, that’s me by the way, to clean them often. I suspected it was probably from the crematorium just a few blocks up the boulevard. It gave me pause to think of somebody’s grandfather dusted across my window. So I always said “excuse me folks” when I washed it off and wished them a quick trip over the river Styx. Although it could have been the carbon burning traffic on this snake like road, it was constant and as loud as two young Italian wannabe wise guys yakking up stories of hitting and robbing the trains in the transfer station in North Bergin and wanting to trade stolen goods for tattoos. This strip down to Staten Island on the NY side was much later to be the haunted holy grounds of The Sopranos’ Godfather Tony. It’s not what you think, a typical scummy little tattoo shop in a grimy small town in New Jersey. It was a small piece of heaven in 1978 for me. “Clean enough to eat off the floors” I’d say. The shop was only 12 feet across and 25 feet long and it held the universe. From the moment I opened the doors I had so much business I almost couldn’t handle it. I became fast friends with the local Santero, A Santeria Priest for those of you of the white bread persuasion. After that I was gold in the Cuban Community they watched out for me Cooked for me invited me to salsa dances and got tattooed as penance or prayers Santa Barbara, St Lazarus, Cryptic scrawl of Santeria spells all became my tween worlds my bread and butter. I was being taught to speak enough Spanish to ask what color and how much do you want to spend by a young lovely young Cuban woman without dancing legs in a wheel chair who sat with a talking Parakeet on her right shoulder that spoke more Spanish than I could, after four months I quit. Speaking of Spanish speaking birds and other oddities of living in the land of the Mariolettos (Cubans let out of prisons and insane asylums a gift from Castro for the US State Department to give visas too. the Set on rickety boats to America. Those who made the crossing also made their way from Miami FL to Union City NJ. What was I saying? oh yes, I have to pull on your coat about the Birdman. I had a slow day doing a couple of cryptic Santeria tattoos on friends of the local Santero. I was buzzing away on the last one when it started. I had a wall separating the tattoo area from the front and a small security mirror to see who came through the door. I heard this chirping. I was thinking it was a bird found it’s way into my shop. I looked up to the to see him, this guy chirping away. First long chirps with pause then rolling chirps all connected together. He was wearing a cut off yellow windbreaker with out the usual wife beater shirt, and ripped jeans. I called over the wall “I’ll be right with you pal.” He just stuttered out another bird song. Completing the tattoo I was doing, I collected my fee and walked through the door to the front. “So what’s up?” He pivoted, pulling down the jacket zipper turning his naked to the waist and tan lined body to me smelling of High Karate, yelling, he was, “THE BIRDMAN!” To prove it he had it emblazoned across his his back from shoulder to shoulder in eight inch tall Old English letters tattooed, that read, B-I-R-D-N-A-N! I say calmly, “OK Birdman, never acknowledging the eight inch missing M, What can I do for you.” Pointing to a blank spot among the small bird tattoos wallpapering his arm, he said, rattling through his nose. “Well! What do you think? I want a bird tattoo right here.” There were birds the likes of hummingbirds as big as eagles and chickadees larger than crows, no accounting for scale, style, or skill. Although, he was working hard to fill with birds in every open space. Sort of like the driving style of New Jersey drivers if there is a space you fill it. He shows me the picture of a whippoorwill whilst chirping the whippoorwills’ song or so he claimed. I never having seen or heard a whippoorwill took his word for it. During the tattoo he entertained me by singing no less than 50 songs of various birds of North America, all while chewing on sunflower seeds. I didn’t bother putting on the stereo. Someone else came through the door, as I was finishing up the tattoo. Birdman was donning his windbreaker; I strolled to the front to chat up the next client. He passed me singing a sad bird refrain and smiled and whispered passing. “I’m the Birdman…” The new customer and I walk to the work area. I look down to the clients black leather chair and there to my astonishment where Birdman was sitting, was a three inch,golden foil covered, chocolate egg!