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Here's what Iain Mullen @ Imperial Tattoo in Stockholm created for me today. Side of thigh. Black n gray, red is from swelling.

funny...i get back on here and i see this and the post speculating about our departure from ctc! ha! one kind of answers the other...it's more a forum for civilians (no offense). i'd like to chime in here and there, but honestly, i'd be more interested in a forum for tattooers only, as i chat with "civilians" all day! but i want to try to make an effort again to be on here more because i do think it's a positive!

It's unfinished, but I thought this one by Marina Inoue was pretty unbelievable. One of my favorite designs for sure.

Made my way through this whole thread, and now I'm starting to reconsider future tattoo placements so I can get a real back piece. Thanks a lot, LST! Also, does anyone have any more pictures of Bert Grimm Sundance tattoos? I know there was this one done by Nick Colella a few dozen pages back but I couldn't seem to find much else on the internet (especially not a full back). It's such a classic!

Love that everyone is just quitting their jobs, I did it a couple of weeks ago myself so from now on I'm my own boss! :cool: Since I'm the boss now I also booked a trip to Hollywood and tattoo appointments with Chris Conn and Bryan Burk! moahaha! Can't wait for May to arrive! Also I got my second session on my back with Valerie next week, good times! Life is pretty good right now! :D

Hey, intro threads are the perfect place for answers and advice. You gotta give us a little bit to work with though, otherwise we're going to suggest that you get some combination of snakes and panthers.

Waiting at Goldrush towards the end of the line. Tim Hedricks is doing walk-ins. The guys at the head of the line got here at 12am. That's dedication!!!!

Mario for what its worth you were active when I found this site and I have also read I assume every thread and you indirectly helped me start to get it. I have since lasered my crap and only get good tattooers who care about tattooing to tattoo me. So I can see why you prefer not to post I for one am really glad you have. I thank you

I did what I call "The Reverse Lebowski": a bathrobe worn backward. Just untie it and brace yourself.

Got this rad dragon head tadoo from my Aussie pal Jake Fraser the other day who is in town from Melbourne. Weird spot but fun nonetheless! Look how happy that dragon is! Decided to go with slightly different colors than usual since it's surrounded by more traditional looking ones. Didn't even notice the little blue tips on the horns til I cleaned it off later that night. Really stoked on it! (Kinda reminds me of the Clay Smith Cams logo..

Moahaha is right! It sounds like every Norwegian gets tattooed like a pro. I haven't quit my job because I love my job for the first time in my life. However, we're moving into a much better place on the first and after we get back from a summer trip are going to look into adopting a dawg. Feeling pretty good myself right about now..

Turns out that yes, I do. Some of it is on OV now. - - - Updated - - - New Dave Lum stuff on OV. People driving 200 miles to wait all night for the chance of a walk-in. So rad. http://occultvibrations.wordpress.com/2013/03/08/dave-lum-excerpt-walk-in-day/ Been a while re: new captured video, explanation is in the post.

Ive spent a while lurking the forums and browsing the galleries. Ive also watched all of the interview videos, which I loved. So now I finally got off my but and decided to be an active member. I have a background in fine art and Im a full time Graphic Designer. I have an appreciation for all the visual arts and I have recently developed a bit of an obsession for tattoo Imagery. Ive wanted a tattoo as long as I could remember, but I was always a bit of a wuss and was worried about the pain. Also, I would try to save up money for a tattoo, but would always end up spending those funds on something else. I was in the wedding of a heavily tattooed friend and as groomsmen gifts, we got gift certificates for a tattoo. Now I couldn't use money as an excuse and I couldn't back out. 2 Months later and I had an appointment. I had a great first tattoo experience and the ball got rolling from there. Ive been getting tattooed regularly now for a year and a half and Im proud of the work that I am wearing. My art background has made me picky with who I want to tattoo me. At the same time, my experience with working with design clients allows me the ability to trust my tattoo artist and usually let him do his thing. In addition to getting tattooed, Ive been really interested in the history of tattooing and how the process of tattooing works. I use to do alot of painting and drawing growing up and had to do alot of it in art school. My interest in tattoos has really gotten me motivated to draw and paint more. Ive been trying to learn the techniques tattoo artist use to paint flash. Its usually quite the opposite of the way I learned to paint, but I love the look of a well done painting in a flash art style. My regular artist (Dave Kruseman, Olde Line Tattoo) is really awesome with answering any questions I have. This is probably because he knows that I have no desire to become a tattooer. Thanks for taking the time to learn a little bit about me. Im looking forward to becoming a part of this community. Here are a couple pics

I was bored one Sunday and thought I would make a map of decent artists around the world, with their details and small thumbnail of the style they do. I thought it might also help new people to find an artists near them :) I am adding to it all the time and trying to incorporate all styles, so if you don't find someone on the list and they should be, I can add them :) or if anyone feels that someone shouldn't be! I know alot of the people on here are into old school tattoos, which are basically the ones I know least about. Anyhows, here is the link :) Enjoy! The ForbesTAT List! - Google Maps

UGH. Crazy busy day, dealing with an a-hole attending and a pager that just wouldn't stop beeping. However, after a backrub from my sweetie and 4 martinis life is feeling much better (and slightly more spiny).

Waiting outside War Horse to get tattooed by Ron Wells. We're finishing up my skull and mandala from a few months ago. Pictures to come.

@Kahlan ......find a good shop....go inside and tell them you want to help with the shop in your free time (scrubbing the toilets, taking out the trash....sweeping the floors....etc.) AND tell them you'll do it for free! Don't even mention you want to tattoo....and definitely that you are doing it at home....even on practice skin!!! Put away your machines doll....it really is disrespectful to those who have earned the right to tattoo the proper way. For over 20+ years i had been getting tattooed and never ever thought about picking up a machine to tattoo someone because of the respect I had for my friends who tattooed and just out of respect for the craft. One day i went into a shop while i was on a "tattoo road trip" and a guy told me he'd "trade tattoos" with me! I explained that i did not tattoo and why i was against this! He told me he had learned to tattoo from bob shaw on the pike in california after the vietnam war and had 40 years in the biz and he wanted me to tattoo him. I was really worried what some of my friends would think about me tattooing him but I figured he had earned the right to tell me it was okay to tattoo him....so i did! You may think it is silly of me to have been scared of what my peers would think....but it's because I respect them.....and they respect me! I didn't want to loose their respect because that is a very hard thing to gain back! You can learn the way you are learning.....BUT....to truly have the respect of your peers you should learn the proper way! And to have the respect of your peers in this craft.....is one of the highest honors there is! I'm not busting your balls doll......just trying to give you a different perspective on why you should learn the right way! I personally think you should be offered an apprenticeship....not ask for one! And why do I suggest you should offer your services to a shop for free and work like a dog for them for free??? Because you will never learn the proper way to tattoo until you earn the trust and respect first....then you learn to tattoo! It took me 20+ years to be offered an apprenticeship that was the right fit for me! My answer to the original question in this thread is....yes....there do still need to be apprentices! But not because you need free help or because the shop is slow and you need the 5-10k you can get for teaching someone! It's because the craft needs quality people in it that are willing to earn it and one day pass it on! An apprenticeship is not about learning to tattoo....it is about learning the business as well....at least it used to be! - - - Updated - - - i had the pleasure of sitting down with Zeke at the Philly Convention and the world is definitely a much more wonderful place with him in it!!!

@Ironmask I suggest exploring this site and seeing all of the quality work posted on here. We are always happy to have new people here, however, you may want to observe the way people work around here. This site is here to promote "GOOD" tattooing. As such, it is our missing to post and talk about quality tattoos. Although I can appreciate your enthusiasm, posting the work you are doing on yourself does not and will not ever be "appreciated" here.

Do you live in mainland europe? If not, make the most of it and get the 2hr flight to Barcelona and get tattooed by Jondix. That's what I would do.

tomorrow my youngest turns 1 (!!!) and i just quit my job. good times.

@Reyeslv and @ironchef - Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu... thats all I have to say at this point in time as I can no longer string together a coherent sentence after witnessing the awesomeness of your backs. 3 Months and counting to start mine.

Another one down, 6th session.

So I'm pretty much a packrat. And I have 1000s of hours of VHS video in various rubber maids around my house. Some commercially produced stuff. Some literally one of a kind transfers of old 8mm films that were left to me when older friends passed away. I found out last night that my "dazzle" video hub doesn't work with a mac, so I put an order in for a Apple compatible device. Soon I'll be transcoding old films to digital. I'll try to remember to post links to anything I put on youtube here, though some of the footage (Cliff Raven tattooing naked) may not be everyone's cup of tea so I'll use discretion. First up is some NON naked Raven, some classic Realistic Tattoo stuff with Hardy, Irons, Salmon, Zulueta and the gang. Just have to wait for the hardware to arrive!

Wow nice blog and alot of info for just North America lol I will go through it eventually :) Mando Rascon-Immaculate Tattoo, Mesa, http://www.mandorascon.com/ - - - Updated - - - Hi mate thanks for the tips. Some of those are already on there and would appreciate anyone wanting to add someone to check first that its not on there already as it will take me loads of extra time :)

All said and done, I had a great session with Tim Forbus at Acme Tattoo Staunton on Thursday. Inner bicep, which wasn't as nearly as painful as I thought it would be. Couldn't be happier with the design. The blue rose is skewed due to the bend in my arm.

I've been really digging Easy Sacha from Mystery Tattoo Club's work lately. Seems like there are some good tattooers working there: EASY SACHA Instagram

It all depends on how specific a piece you want to end up with. If you're letting the artist have free reign and you're both familiar with the image(s) you want done, then no reference materials would be needed. If you like a specific style of Oni or dragon or samurai or you want a specific pose or other prerequisite that you want incorporated then you should bring that. Otherwise you can browse his porfolio and indicate which pieces really hit home with you so that he understands how to proceed with a drawing.

If I didn't already use the quote from @dcostello as my signature...

You can never have too many dragons.

Gotcha

@gougetheeyes That little guy is so rad! Don't make me get a fourth dragon....

I am glad I never have to get above my pubes or around my belly button done again. Fuck that shit.

Turns out about an inch away from your testicles is fairly brutal.. yowch.

Here is the latest on my backpiece from @stewartrobson Did 5 hours on Saturday and 4 hours on Sunday. Actually tapped out on Sunday, it was a long week of good eating and drinking and it caught up to me. It's 47 hours of total work so far and it will hopefully be completed in October. Pic is from Stewart's IG. Photo by stewartrobson • Instagram

I started an apprenticeship 3 or 4 months ago. I am in the shop 3 days and work 3 days plus a few hours on the days I am in the shop. I have been offered the desk job at the shop for a small wage to allow me to be in the shop more and hopefully learn faster. I feel very lucky to have been offered this and am working my notice now to allow me to take up the position full time. Things seem to be slightly different in the UK, it is rare that you would pay for a good apprenticeship, there is a shop fairly local that have 3 apprentices that have all paid £2,000.00 and are just sat around the shop as the shop just isn’t busy, as someone mentioned earlier it seems that the shops that charge over here are the ones that need the cash whereas if a shop thinks you have the potential to bring in clients they are more likely to actually try to pass on some knowledge. Back to the original question; I agree that there are too many tattooers, but certainly in the UK the majority aren’t great. I think in an ideal world good tattooers who are willing to teach things the right way and of course who actually want to apprentice someone do so as that is the only way that the right way will continue, I know that’s just common sense. I also think that people who are in it for the wrong reasons ought to stop taking advantage of people to make some quick ££. And finally I think people should stop looking to be offered an apprenticeship over the internet (obviously not aimed at anyone here). Some of the other forums I use every other post is just a request for someone to get in touch and offer to teach them.

Tattoo by Chad Koeplinger done at Frith Street Tattoo in London, England Filled up the spot nicely! (and quickly 2 Hours!)

Tony Nilsson at Blue Arms Tattoo in Oslo, Norway is doing incredible girl heads in my opinion. I just recently started paying attention to his work and it is very solid. I would definitely love to get a tattoo from this guy.

Nice meeting you too.Also got to meet and take a pic of Zeke Owen & Sailor Jerry Swallow.

This is the best picture I could get of the Thom Devita backpiece when new. Snagged from my copy of Tattooing A to Z by Huck Spaulding

I feel the same way. About my beard.

Jeremy Sutton: Thad Ritchey: Cory Lenherr: Stuart Cripwell:

Spider Webb, NY 1974

One down. LOTS to go!