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Breaking my several month LST silence w/ a bullet. Done by Scott Sylvia @ Blackheart Tattoo in SF just a few hours ago.

got this a few days ago, here is pic about 6 hrs after i got it here is a pic the next day, about 24 hrs after finished sorry this one is taken in a mirror and a different light the bruising below the tattoo is darkening now, 2.5 days after finished, a reddish purple i've never had this much bruising, but all my other tattoos have been arms and legs...

Turns out Chad Koeplinger is back in Ireland in February - I have a 3 hour slot. Sweet...

^ yeah i'll put in there, waiting for it heal up some. richard stell did it.

heres a good thread on magazines http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/random-crap/956-best-worst-tattoo-magazines.html

simply amazing...

222 was THE shop that changed everything for me. I didn't know it then, nor did I know just how monumental of a shop it was at the time. I was super new to SF and I wanted to get more tattoos. So I was told I should stop by this shop my roommates had printed shirts for (which I still have).... I got tattooed by Jeff and Juan. In fact getting tattooed by Juan made me want to get into tattooing... he also scared the crap out of me, just by how care free he drew on me, and could tattoo while being on the phone. I thought for sure he was going to mess it all up. It was also the first place I got my taste of "tattoo shop humor" Juan was tattooing 1976 on the back of my arm and Scott came up and said, that looks good but what is 1982 suppose to mean? I also got to see the great "after hours" aspect of tattooing there, that I will keep between me and the parties that were present.... all in all, 222 changed my life.

So we've got a lady head thread, how about an entire lady body thread! Here's one that I've always liked! It's by Mike Wilson. And if you knew the guy in the photo, please know I mean no disrespect by posting this, he was a friend of mine to, and he had and did some awesome tattoos. I really like the simplicity of the design. The shading is so minimal yet so effective.

hey everybody we have been coming out of pocket on this site it actually cost money and a ton of time to run. so i would like to introduce you to the donate button down at the bottom right. feel free to use it if you like. thanks

I photographed my wifes neck tattoo healing from 24th December to 8th January. The photos are in date order from the 24th December - 31st December. The last one is 8th January. Well on the way to healing now.

Just say is posted on needles and sins blog. Thought I would post it up here. http://www.needlesandsins.com/2012/01/free-sailor-jerry-tattoos-in-chincago-nyc.html

Im the tube jockey at a shop,Im a dedicated forum lurker/info junkie,so I normaly do not post much. So far this is the best tattoo forum I've seen. cheers

I started posting before I read the forum, because I'm a narcissist who's all about himself. But it's a fun place to hang out! :D

When i click on Truth's name, it tells me she's been suspended. :)

Our cats Jack & Digby:

The best part is you both hold the title of "ex-lurkers". I remeber myself once being a lurker

I recently saw some work on facebook by a guy called Manoel Garcia Inkarmanation from Brazil, some of his coolest tattoos are on people's fingers/knuckles

the first step of a lurking problem is admitting you have one...so I registerd. lol

While I never got to see the shop in person, I do have hanging in the shop, my prized posession...one of the Frank Kozic Eddy Deutsche posters.

you got farther than I did.

Yep, I'm a paleface ginga ninja. I'm so pale I get moon-stroke, especially tonight. My wife is also a redhead and our tattoos seemed to go through a very similar process of healing, and looked much the same. There were points with the flaking when I started to wonder if my body was just kicking out all the ink. It will be three weeks tomorrow, and the black is starting to become very vivid as the skin heals over. It's the best bit. Lovely tattoo by the way!

My donation came out of my moderator's paycheck. I won't ask for a raise this year, either.

In the words of LL "Don't call it a comeback" ,heavyweight champion -Jake .

He never gets out of bed.

Haha yea it is almost impossible

Red is made from fire and Blue, obviously, is made from clouds. I also been told by clients that fatty and boney parts hurt more to get tatted, or hurt less, depending. That tat guns go a "million times" a second. That Kat Von D is the most famous tattooer. Of course, there are always the stories that still persist of the ol " fox hunt" tattoo that they're buddy's uncle had. That female tattooers hurt less (especially Kat Von D). Oh ,and where can I get that skin -colored ink to tattoo over unwanted tattoos..Bill WaverLy? I'm lookin at you....

@hogg

Coincidentally, @dcostello told me that, in many towns and cities in the north of California, getting an X tattooed on the back of your hands gets you free drinks. He was wrong.

@Stewart Robson, I was hoping you'd say, "Lie back and think of England." I always try to take deep, controlled breaths. For me, it helps to inhale deeply before the needle hits, then exhale slowly for the length of the needle attack. I only do that when things get really bad, though. Like for the entirety of my ribs.

BUMP! Brian just posted more shots of the Shoki body suit he's working on. It looks incredible--check it out! TRUE NATURE TATTOO: Shoki

In spite of all the wordy crap this is one badass Grandma.

A few pics of Richards. . .

[/img] This is Orion. He's my 21 pound roommate. He liked cuddling, beer and annoying anyone who comes over. He sleeps on his back and mildly snors.

the indomitable Tim Lehi. Interesting to see an American image of an eagle with the Japanese background

i was taking a peek at ross nagle's wordpress just now, such killer stuff... he posted this eagle that is on his own neck, done by tim hendricks. i thought it needed to be shared here, 'cause it's really cool. hope you don't mind the stolen material ross?! thanks dude!

A few of Richards Bald Birdies... Animals: Eagles, Snakes, Big Cats... Most of his favorite subject matter to tattoo...

Im also looking to tattoo lettering across my toes soon too... omit the pinky toes on both feet and get "24 inches". TWO FEET, GET IT!?!?!...

the beer slut on that guys chest with the nintendo knucks is the best ever!!! thanks for sharing!

There is a guy on highway 1 by Monterey and Pacifica who runs a BBQ place on the side of the road. He has "PORK RIBS"on his knuckles. He is big and scary so I have not taken a pic yet. But I will try next time I go there.

so i think the best wife beater one ever is" baby hush" man makes me smile just thinking about it....didnt sunny tufts have hunny hush tattooed on his hand and covered it cuz he said it looked like it said funny hush? script im assuming.. not because it was wrong mind you.

Two more favs... FIST CITY and FISH WIFE

Thanks for playing, everyone, but we have a winner.

Mine say "HUMILITY"

Here's a set I've done within the last year. An appropriate one for election day. And, if you cross the hands, it says Free Feel. How cool is that!

them lettering book are a "stepping stone" to what can be done. the truth is, if you trace the letters directly out of the book, it totally shows. there is nothing like hand drawn letters. even when i do OE letters, ill tape tracing paper over the original style and then redraw my version of them directly on top. hand drawn letters have much more soul in them than any traced letters will ever have.

i have always been a huge fan of lettering. even before tattooing. ive always noticed the lettering in cool old signs and window season displays. once i started tattooing, first time i saw some dave gibson lettering and some jack rudy letting i was FLOORED! you guys remember the old National tattoo convention posters that jack would design? each poster had like 9 different styles of lettering in them. all of them amazing. that being said, if you want to be good at lettering, study the shit out of it! i notice it and space draw it all the time. for some reason, i always see good lettering at the movie theater. like right before the movie starts when words come up telling you about no smoking and popcorn and shit like that. when you cant think of anything to draw, draw letters. and i dont mean write letters, i mean DRAW letters. there is a difference. i could go on and on with this subject. ms rad, if you want good lettering, look for sign painters manuals. also, look at other peoples letters. see what you like and learn how to do it. and then add your own spin on it. tattooers here in milwaukee HATE doing lettering. ill do it all day long. word edit..... favorite style of lettering for tattoos..... SCRIPT AND PIKE STYLE LETTERS. done correctly, they will always look classy and timeless worst style of letters for tattoos...GRAFFITI. ugh. just ugh

ran across this card, from when i was there in 1999 (sorry about the cell phone pics)

I was fortunate enough to live around the block from 222. I went in there a bunch and was the pesky kid with no money, i bent Juan and Rassier's ear a few times with tales of tattoos i didn't have money to get. They had a pretty good bullshit detector but humored me anyway. I got to watch Paco paint the side of the building and when i was a bike messenger I delivered a heavy ass box of flyers or something from the print shop to 222. Scott was there to receive it and asked me how the hell i road there with that package. I told him I rode it on my bars wedged in between my forearms, and he gave me a $20 tip. It was one of the only tips I ever got while messengering.