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New one from Thomas Hooper last week

I found a lost dog roaming around while I was walking my dog this morning. It wasn't wearing a collar. I caught the dog and went around the neighborhood trying to find it's owners without any luck. I had to get to work so I brought it to my house for fear that it would get hit by a car if left outside. I then spent the entire morning while at work putting out ads for this dog. I got a couple calls throughout the day but this wasn't the dog these people were looking for. By the time I got home I called my vet to see if they could scan this dog for a microchip but they were closed for the night. By this time it was dark out but I took the dog for another walk around the neighborhood in hopes of finding its owner, still no luck. Just an hour ago I was sitting at my computer and thought I heard a very faint whistle and what sounded like someone calling a name. It is unusual for me to not have the TV or music on while at home but for some reason I didn't tonight and I was able to hear this. I opened my window to see if I could hear it again. I saw a woman across the street calling out a name. I yelled across to her and asked if she was looking for a dog. Sure enough she was, and the dog I found was hers. She was in tears and I was so happy to get her dog back to her. I was so stressed out about getting this dog back to his family. All I could think about was how devastated I would be if my dog was missing. While putting out ads for this dog I couldn't believe how many dogs and cats people are missing in just this city. It really bums me out but I'm glad I was able to get one of them back home.

i got this on my forearm from Mike Wilson at the SOG convention. he was stoked on this being the first time doing a snake with a black belly. (fyi, this is an unhealed pic, one day after i got it)

Already posted this in Latest Tattoo Lowdown but I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring. 100 Years of Solitude rib piece Artist: Matt Brotka Shop: Salvation Gallery

By mike wilson

posted mine in the november thread but my band was in frederick, md recording so my girlfriend and i drove down a little early and got tattooed by Antonio Roque @ Black Label Tattoo Co. its hard to get a good picture but this is underneath the tattoo on my kneecap and wraps up around the inside of my knee.. these are the two that my girlfriend got.

Got this from Antonio Roque today @ Black Label Tattoo Co.

I am a fairly social person but do not like talking about my tattoos with those that I feel are just being nosey. My standard answer... Them," Hey where did you get those tattoos?" Me, "prison" Although my work I think is exceptional and def not prison work(Ive never attended!) this response typically pushes people way from me while they make sure they still have their wallet and/or purse. If you want to be flat out mean and are in a bad mood....When they ask "Did it hurt"....just reply, "not as much as the sex I traded it for."

@missStark has the best feel-good story of the day!

Buying one of those waterbrushes that Valerie mentioned earlier in this thread was one of the best moves I've ever made! haha. Alexander Grimm also suggested getting them and his paintings are fucking excellent. Takes sooooo much stress out of painting tattooy type images. I just apply paint/ink with a normal brush as usual) and a pentell water brush to blend out. Just start to blend out with the water brush, quickly dab the end of it to get rid of paint that has now come on to it, then blend out some more with it. Real easy. Make sure to only use a smallish sized water brush so not too much water is coming out. Also, one other thing I noticed don't fill up the water brush fully with water when refilling it. Only fill it around 1/3 of the way maximum. I've found that if it's completely full then the pressure of the water causes too much of it to rush out when you're using it which makes the blends harder to do. Anyway, hope that helps someone :P I did this quick rose painting with the water bursh and this longer girl head in a rose one with a water brush too. Definitely saving me a lot of time :)

Bonus shot sent to me by someone who saw my finished tattoo on my instagram and commented that they took a pic while I was getting tattooed. This is what they texted to me :D

Awesome things I am doing lately..... Worked my first convention Went to my first seminar and I've made a point of being more honest and true to myself. Goal next year, travel more.

no problemo. inner arm by Jondix. i also got a perfect space filler under my knee by this Japanese tattooer, Hideki Kobayashi, whose book captivated my eyes and mind. he turned the lines from the third pic to the tattoo in the second.

Looking forward to him looking forward to you looking forward to posting. And welcome!

this is fucking balling. congrats, dude.

Am I the only person who thinks this?

I believe these our yours and your lady's. awesome tattoos.

Came to Chicago this weekend and got this one from Nick Colella.

i also started to attempt learning how to watercolor.. here's two i did a in month or so ago.

Like @Graeme said, I rarely get this one anymore because we live in a neighborhood where it's more common to be tattooed than not. I also keep my tattoos covered up a lot of the time. Usually when people do ask, it's because they are friends or acquaintances who know I've recently gotten tattooed and want to see and are curious. I would say that most of my tattoos do have meaning to me, but not in the literal, very specific way that they're represented on TV. For example, when I recently got a dragon on my thigh, it was because I'd been feeling really drawn to dragon imagery for how it depicts both luck and strength, and I'd been feeling like I needed a bit of both on me. I think of my dragon tattoo as my little good luck charm. Also I just really loved the design and couldn't get it out of my head! It was the right thing at the right time. I think when serious tattoo folks talk about tattoos having meaning, it's often in that way--some really beautiful imagery that just speaks to you and feels right on your body, like just what you need. Even my less obviously meaning-laden tattoos are still meaningful because they serve as reminders of the time/place I was in when I got them, and who I was at that time. These meanings are often pretty ethereal or abstract. When we make fun of the LA Ink style meaning thing, it's often because people go so literal, rather than letting the power of tattoo imagery speak for itself. All that to say that when folks ask me about what my tattoos mean, I am happy to get into it if it's close friends, but it is pretty annoying if it's people I don't know very well. Because there's no good answer. If I say it doesn't mean anything, then that's alarming to the tattoo noob (I think they mix up meaning or lack thereof with how seriously you took the decision to get tattooed, as though if it isn't obviously meaningful, then you must not take tattoos very seriously. So misguided.). But if the tattoo is super meaningful to me, then why on earth would I want to share such super personal stuff with someone I don't know very well? Part of the tattoo TV problem is that it assumes that even if we are getting tattoos that are profoundly meaningful, that we're also all super confessional exhibitionists who like, want to announce all this shit to any stranger we meet. Nope.

From Jondix - " They can never copy my migraines or my travels so it will never be the same .... but it could be even better if they wanted " Maybe much like the REAL East L.A. style something that probably has to be lived , maybe it requires living under darkened sky in damp studio flats and is a response elicited amongst the relative oasis of the natural history museum or the like I don't know, mostly I think it stems from a desire to be different . Also like that other style it has a shop , IN2U , as the epicenter in the same manner as that old "gingerbread man " shop , G.T.C . Cool to see Negrete put his spin on it .

You and my wife have basicly the same mike Wilson tattoo. Right on....I love it

Manny was a damn nice guy. So sad to see him go. I wrote a little thing on OV about the time we met. Dennis was a character. Not as sweet as Manny by a few miles, but still a loss.

Actually, this and another laser thread have inspired me to pursue a larger back piece. My 1st laser session is this afternoon, so after 4-5 sessions I'm planning on some new work in 2014. I'll start a new thread with before, during and after pictures in the Spring. Thanks.

Went to congress st. tattoo this past sat to get tattooed by the gentle ginger (Jason Scott). Was a great time with great people who love tattooing for all the right reasons. I got the higgs inspired tattoo (jug fulla sun eyes in it!) and my wife got a great strange UFO/lobster/rose thingy. Got to hear great stories from Jason and see some amazing higgs,whitehead,bink,and bswelt tattoos amoung other things. I love these kind of tattoo trips! . @jasonscott523 | Higgs Inspired! | Webstagram - the best Instagram viewer . @jasonscott523 | Ufo!! | Webstagram - the best Instagram viewer edit: I guess click the @ symbol to see the tattoos, I have a hard time consorting with those of the robot race.

From a En guest spot at IN2U .

Aww- you flatter me :) We made a deal back when he was 15 that if he waited and passed on the sweet kitchen tats his friends were getting, I would help pay for his first tattoo in a legitimate shop. I've been hearing about that promise for three years! He sat like a champ and we all had a good time.

What an inspirational thread! Picked this one up today. Tony Nilsson Blue Arms Tattoo Oslo, Norway

Scott sylvia blackheart tattoo SF done in 2 sittings 4 hrs for outline of eagle and shading 7 hrs for roses and color its also going over old lasered stuff!

I use arches cold press and I love it. I've also recently started using Waverly liquid acrylics (previously I used FW exclusively) and I really enjoy them. I've been doing a ton of marker stuff lately but this thread is making me itch to get back to my liquid acrylics. When I transfer the image to the arches, I use a super fine nibbed pen, and after doing all the shading and color I go over all of the lines with a brush, and that's honestly my favorite part of the whole process. I'm not perfect at it but it's a fulfilling challenge I suppose. Here are a couple I did earlier in the year with Waverly liquid acrylics. Sorry if the images are huge >.<

What an absolutely INSANE weekend! Got to chat with @hogg, meet @Reyeslv and watch @Stewart Robson work on his AMAZING back piece, got to meet @Scott R and see his insane 11 hour back piece as well as watch @Valerie Vargas work on his thigh pieces, chat with Valerie while getting tattooed with Jondix, Hang with @Tim Hendricks while he tattooed my Wife and much more! Here are some highlights... My Wife and I with Jeff Gogue, such a mellow down to earth guy! the tattoo he made on me Jeff drawing it on Jeff tattooing my Wife the finished piece pic from Jeff's Instagram Tim drawing on my Wife's foot, another super down to earth guy and a blast to hang with... Freddy Corbin also hung out for half the tattoo... needless to say, a memorable experience :D Tim with my Wife and the finished piece Pic of the tattoo from Tim's Instagram - - - Updated - - - My Wife and I with Jondix, the coolest most humble guy I'll ever meet and an absolute pleasure to be in his presence... his AMAZING banner The stencil for my stomach lined out and after 6 hours of tattooing, the finished product of which a photo does NO justice here's the tattoo he made on my Wife Jondix shared his booth with Deno and I took this pic for a friend but I'll post it for you guys, this was some original artwork that he was selling words can't describe how amazing this weekend was but hopefully these pictures attempt to paint a picture :D

Hadn't posted in this art thread in awhile- finished this over the Labor Day weekend:

Since beginning my journey into fitness/health (52lbs lost as of yesterday's weigh in!) I've been getting much more inventive with cooking; i'd always relied on fat, salt, etc to make things taste good. Now that Im cooking more balanced meals I've had to really stretch myself to make it interesting and satisfying while maintaining the caloric guidelines I set on myself. I've been really pleased with how things are coming out, and was recently asked to teach a 'healthy cooking' class for my weight loss group. Oh. And I celebrate every 10lbs lost with foie gras and charcuterie, so I'm not a total square!

welcome to LST add some tattoos to your gallery for us to check out

Incidentally, although I've read the main novels, I haven't read any of the 'Dunk and Egg' novellas that George RR Martin has published seperately. Three so far, with another six planned (in theory). They're set before the events of ASOIAF, during the Targaryen reign, and follow a famous knight of the Kingsguard and his companion ... Or so I gather, anyway. I kind of like how, as the books go on, Martin is sort of changing the history we 'think' we know from the early books. The Targaryens, exactly how evil they really were as a whole, and their fate etc. being a good case in point. - - - Updated - - - Just re-read that post. So nerdy.

I usually tell people that I got mine so have something to look at if I forget a magazine when I go to the bathroom.

Marius Meyer

Most people don't appreciate barnyard art... was thinkin' of getting maybe a "lambscape" done at some point. Rob

I was recently appointed to my cities ADA Advisory Board. As a disabled man, that is a privilege, as I will have a chance to help my people. On the fun side, I leave for Palm Springs next month to spend a few weeks with my parents, and celebrate Christmas.

Most people I just simply tell them they watch too much TV and I don't want to talk about my tattoos because they bring up a dark part of my life and I paid my debt to society. Either that or that I was really drunk and don't remember why I got them. In the shop talking to customers, I usually use a sports analogy. I explain that tattoos are what I follow, like most would follow a sports team. Can you imagine being able to book a couple hours with your favorite sports star and have a permanent souvenir. The experience holds more meaning than the tattoo,but the tattoo is a reminder of the experience. I usually let the tattooer pick the image, because I want a tattoo that represents their style, so I remember where I got it from. They either get it or just continue to mouth breath, until I start talking about their idea again, but either way it shuts them up. I think the most important thing is having people in real life an on the internet to vent about these things and understand we to some degree go through the same things having tattoos.

Some really great work this month! I thought I'd throw mine in as well. Tony Nilsson Blue Arms Tattoo Oslo Norway Tony did a great job! I couldn't be happier!!! Here's a link to Tony's work via.... Instagram

I got upper arms done first, then chest plates, then started working on my legs. I started and finished my back, and this year I have brought one arm down and will start filling in the rest of my front. Next year I guess I'll bring the other arm down, chip away at the front piece and maybe add some filler to my legs. I don't really regret the order I did things in. Like David I would probably choose to do things in a different way if I had another shot at it, but this is a little like wishing that you could go back in time and study a different college course or take a different career path or something... The grass is always greener in some respects. When I got the chest plates I never thought that I would want to fill my whole front in within a couple of years. Funny how quickly your ideas about where you draw the line change. I guess someone raised above that the 'ideal' in one POV would be to do legs and all the very private space first, and only then move onto the arms and the public space. Reallistically, however, I think there's a minority of people who want to invest all that time, pain and money to have an almost entirely private collection of tattoos for a good number of years. I think people want to 'look tattooed' without necessaryily being an exhibitionist.

Guess I'll post this in here since I never have yet. Cover up by Aaron Coleman, Immaculate Tattoo.

bongsau is the hunter s thompson of tattoo clients haha

I would go with Tim@ Brainstorm,or Travis.They both are versatile tattooers,and they both would do a good job with that.here's a pirate girl Tim did- Brainstorm tattoo - pirate girl

I like the rawness of Bailey Hunter Robinson, Max Kuhn and Santu Altamirano but Valerie truly is in a league of her own.

My 17 year old son came into town a few weeks ago and he's an avid fisherman. He's always been into it, but I never took the time to go out with him to the lake when he was younger. Well, this time, I went out with him and brought my two daughters and fiance as well and had a blast. Right before he went back home, we stopped at the local Academy and I bought a cheap rig for myself and my oldest daughter (my youngest already had a pee wee rig). Went out once last weekend with just the girls and they got bored (probably not early enough to catch anything). This weekend, I went out with my girl and fished twice- once in the morning, once in the evening. Damn, it was so relaxing. I didn't catch anything, but I really just enjoyed sitting in the quiet listening to the woods breathe. I also dropped my bike off at a cool local shop to fix a head gasket leak. It's been an issue for several years, but I'd put it off because I'd already switched the gaskets once (different shop) and my pride wouldn't let me spend another $500+ doing the same repair. I finally came to senses and got tired of getting my jeans/ lower leg covered in scalding oil and it is now being fixed correctly. Lastly, I'm putting together a grand opening art show here in town with local printer Mindzai Creative (also in Atlanta) called "ATX Works: The Working Class Show" theme chosen because it falls the weekend before Labor Day. I've meeting with Scott at Mindzai a few nights a week to work out artists, sponsors, fliers, DJ, etc. Last artshow I put together was years ago, so it's been a re-learning process.

I can highly recomend these. Had one of these 50 minutes before my tattoo today. Worked a treat. :)