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I don't have many tattoos yet but I love the ones I do have. New one done last month at Frith Street by Stewart Robson... (I hope it works)

Was done at Randy Englehard shop in Germany. 7-8 hours more progress now, artist Carlos Torres!

Done today by Paul Slifer at Red, Hot and Blue Tattoo in Edinburgh,

Got my walk in at Frith Street yesterday. Happened to get Oliver, he was an absolute gentleman, was a really nice experience overall. If any of you guys know the shop, Dante, Jordan and everyone else were hanging out joking, was so chilled. And I came out with a perfect tat :)

Tim at The Pearl finished my left shoulder on Wednesday. My chest piece is now fully connected. There is just a little spider-webbing left to do on my pecs and the chest, she is done. I'll post next week. So close...so close...

That looks great but how is it going to hold up? ( Just trying to fit in here ;) I really don't care what it looks like in 20 years because that is one sick ass tattoo now)

I got this from Josh Adams a few months ago. I love it but it healed up a little weird in one spot (between the hands). It's probably just cause I already had a dry skin patch right there and never noticed until it was tattooed. I just set up an appointment with Frank William in a week and a half and I am stoked.

Blue tiger/dragon by Danny Rossiter of Rain City, Manchester, UK. Fell in love with the painting when he posted it on Instagram so had to snaffle it up :) pleased and sore.

My old boss had been putting money in the stock market for something like fifteen or twenty years planning for his retirement. Then the recession hit. If he'd spent that money on tattoos he'd at least have something to show for it.

Thank you mate, I'm with you. It will last as long as it lasts:)

Mine is really simple. I shout from my station to my colleagues station 'I've had a cancellation/no-show too. Do me a tattoo NOW!' Then I spend the next hour pissing and moaning, accusing him of specifically trying to hurt me, saying how I'm sure I don't hurt my customers this bad, asking what have I ever done to him to deserve this terrible treatment, and swearing profusely. I then go back to work and moan to my customers about how much I hate being tattooed, which really helps them suffer the pain I'm sure! Tattooers make the worst customers. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I am gearing up to move into Oakland or SF in the coming weeks. And I have started a zine project. Also, looking for a new job/jobs. Big life moves for me, but nothing extraordinary.

I forgot I posted Louie in this thread, haha. Since then I got a dog, she'll be a year old next week. Louie's friends with her now but it took awhile. Bonnie: Bonnie kayaking: (well, taking a break from kayaking)

I looked over a couple of posts and realized I could have gone a little more in depth. It's been my experience with forums so far to tread lightly until you get the feel for how people interact there. My actual name is Darrell. Yes, the Sausage King, no not really. I just have an affinity for 80's movies and sometimes reference them. I'm from Birmingham, Al, although I've been just down the road in Tuscaloosa for the last 3 years. I decided to go back to school and so I'll graduate from the University of Alabama College of Commerce and Business Administration in December 2014 at the ripe young age of 37 with a double major in finance and economics and a specialization in macroeconomic and monetary policy. I haven't always been a stiff, so y'all don't hate me. I spent 15 years in the service business with 7 of it running a poker game in the Birmingham area. My hope is to apply for MBA programs in the Atlanta, Ga area after graduation and most hopefully find a job there. I have family there already. So that's me, and I want at least 3 large tattoos so the people I'll end up working with, where we'll all wear long sleeves and buttoned collars, won't have a clue that I'd be inked until the first company picnic, then they'll get the surprise. I'm not talking sleeves, but shoulder and back for now.

I second @Killercook76. Definitely tell them your budget and also know it's OK to ask for a ballpark even when the design is in limbo. I ask all the time and they usually give me a range, then I save the amount of the highest figure + tip.

Cheers :-) Alright then, there is still loads to go, even just planning certain bits out we haven't finished yet, need to get the fingers finished, bloody loads to go on the lantern, try to fit the background into the Jess Yen work on the left thigh, then put lots of sweeping hair across the face - but here's our start! Will be full colour in the face/hand/lantern, and loads more black in the background. Will take quite awhile, trust me! I will update as we go if people are interested, cheers :-)

not the best picture but i got this from Josh Adams yesterday while he was guest spotting @ Old Soul

WTF?

You will see him doing that often, yes. Show was great, saw old friends and made new ones. Such a good time. Highly recommend going to this; go support a living legend and get some priceless artwork.

NPR Music's 50 Favorite Albums Of 2013 : Best Music Of 2013 : NPR I had fun going through this. Obviously Deafheaven is on there, but there were some real gems like Dawn of Midi - Dysnomia and I didn't realize The Flaming Lips released a new album last year.

Welcome Dano. It sounds like your on your way to becoming a pretty good collector.Uncle Allan does real nice work,and so do the other artists at his shop.I would like to visit Berlin too,there's just so many good tattooers there.You should come to Jersey,and get tattooed by Kevin Leblanc. Instagram Some of these guys do neo traditional like Uncle. Derek - Dark Age Tattoo Instagram Name Brand Tattoo Instagram

Before I go into, I'm using the term greyscale for all black. Is there a more accurate term the community uses to describe that kind of work? Hmm. I'll tell you about them and perhaps you can tell me if they fall into a style. I've tried reading about different styles so that I could communicate with artists about the work and I've yet to find the right vocabulary. The first I thought I was a little set on and the more I look into it I'm changing my mind. I want a phoenix on my left shoulder, I'm a pretty big guy so there's room to work, I had kind of envisioned a pastel look with just orange, yellow, and red flames and no real outlines. I wanted the feet holding five roses, three turned to the right with blossoms, and the other two to the left that are wilted. So get back to reality, after talking with artists and researching, that vision needs to be changed. I really wanted this to have vivid flames on the wings in place of feathers, that still might be possible. On Ink Master season 2 the lady did a phoenix in greyscale I think and there were elements of it that I liked, I don't want to copy that, just some elements that would work for me. So when I find the right artist for me I'll be asking his or her opinion, telling them what I'm getting at, and see if they can help me interpret into a workable piece that will hold up. Next two are kind of companion pieces. On my left shoulder blade, kind of large taking up about the upper quarter of my back, I want kind of a fallen angel. Not Lucifer, but it's female, but not sexual, she's kneeling and either looking away or down. This would be greyscale. I have some pictures and images I've saved kind of about her body, but the artist I work with would really have to help me out with the wings, I'm a little lost on them. The third is on the right shoulder blade, takes up about the upper quarter of my back and is the angel of death with his scythe. I like greyscale on this, but possible with some blueish or greenish tinting, maybe like a green fog in the background. The color, if any, I would look at the artist and ask if they think that is a good idea, if not then the whole thing could be greyscale. Plus with the two pieces on my back being so large, and being companion pieces, they might just run into each other and be turned into one large piece. And so then I don't know that it would make sense to have a green or blue fog on one side and the other side be greyscale completely, so the color might go. - - - Updated - - - I welcome any comments or suggestions on the above idea. And let me state that just because I mentioned Ink Master doesn't mean I watched the show and decided to get a tattoo. I'm sure some people do that and to each their own. It's just that for the many years that I've been wanting the phoenix tattoo I've always kept my eye out for ideas or inspiration. So any art that sticks out at me I might save on my computer, get a pic of, or tuck it in the back of my mind.

Wow! Love the details in her corset/dress!

I'm going to second what @JAllen said about your username and I like you already because of it.

Your post is, in the words of Nathan Explosion, brutal. On so many levels.... Spambots be like:

Maybe not. But I was down there last January and enjoyed being there so much. Then through my research I found a website that listed it as the best tattoo city in the country. I'm not trying to start a fight with those words right there and offend people in other places, anyway. So there was that combination of things that told me I wanted to go there. I didn't limit my research to there. I have also researched shops in Atlanta because I travel there a lot. There are definitely shops there that have good reviews as well. Maybe I can find an okay artist closer, there is actually supposed to be a guy right up the street from me who has a good reputation. Part of it is that these tattoos have so much meaning to me that I want the whole thing to be kind of an experience. I swear, I'm really joking with the part about surprising coworkers. These are for me, no one else. That's in part why they'll be so that they are pretty much covered if I have a t shirt on. I mean if the one on my shoulder comes below a short sleeve a little it won't bother me. But, that's part of the reason I'm here is to find that tattoo artist, or artists because I want one color and the other two like grayscale, that will give me that experience. So I'll be searching around for threads where I can join the conversation about what I should look for in a shop and an artist.

Yes, that is inspiring and eye opening reinforcing for me that although I'm ready to move forward maybe other parts of the process are not lined up yet and I need to make sure it's done right, not necessarily done right now.

Just booked an appointment with Dusty Neal at Black Anvil Tattoo 3/28/2014 and I can't wait. I'm getting a grim reaper with a yellow rose and a banner reading "Death Makes Life Worth Living" on my left thigh. Can't wait!

Welcome. Respect for your dedication in going to the artist you really want no matter the money or patience required.

Hayden, Jun's pieces are the only ones I have..I followed his progress from my mid to late teens and basically said to myself I'm going to get tattooed by him no matter the time or cost. His super hard to get accepted by and given I live in OZ his also really far away and really expensive comparatively... So far I'm happy with the process/tattoos and I highly recommend him to anyone interested in B&G..

Finished my first tattoo 4 days ago. Second session was a nice 5hours of colouring. Sort of a bio-organic thing :) By Yliana Paolini

My sister asked me to touch her stomach tonight.... and I felt my nephew kick for the 1st time. I think I am the only person outside of my sister to feel him kick

Not one on myself, but one I put on a good friend recently. He came home for New Year's to surprise his family, and drove three hours to surprise my fiancée before she went home to Ireland. I was the only one who knew of his plans, and thankfully he avoided all the snow issues. Inside of the knee/thigh... or the No Fun Zone.

Got this for only 99p. Heard some good things so figured it was worth a read.

I got a cobra wrapped around an ankh on Dec 29,2013 by Christine Vallieres at Old Town Ink in Scottsdale, AZ After my first tattoo, I thought about this one and what I wanted it to be. For me, it symbolizes rebirth of life and protection. I think snakes get a lot of bad rep but I think they are awesome creatures. I consider myself pretty spiritual so the Ancient Egyptian symbol of life fits with the snake imagery. Some people think it's an evil snake but it's not :p This tattoo, along with the one on my back of a scorpion and some Arabic script do mean quite a lot to me. I got them a year after I had a near death experience. I was hospitalized for a long time and lsot my job and almost had to return to living with my parents back in Connecticut. I beleive that I was given a second chance and was being watched over somehow. It made me think how precious my life is, how strong I actually was and how much people cared for me.

just a little Indian action and tiger from Kemer here at Superfly tattoos in Leon Mexico

I tried to post this last night but it got caught by the spam filter for some reason. Done by Jeff Zuck in Ann Arbor, MI. I'm really blown away.

Thanks for sending me in the direction of Blood Ceremony lads I brought the new album and really like it , the singer really reminds me of Siouxsie Sioux .

nO regrets with tattoos! i did chest and both ribs first. i decided to go this route so i could tile the background underneath the ribs. which would have made sense if i went with a japanese motif full tiger but instead i opted for a neo-trad tiger head. the narrow space did limit placement. i.e. a little too narrow to line up the mouth with the belly button and make the rest of the cat head fit within. my tummy tiger ended up sitting low and goes below the belt line (no biker bodysuit ha). the tiger head ended up smaller than I had originally envisioned but overall I love it and think it's size compliments my physique and does not overshadow my chest bird. in the end I am quite happy with how the layout of my torso tattoos ended up. i like the space and think that i got a pretty unique end result. <pics in my gallery> and now that the big placeholders are done my plan is to tighten up, add contrast and darken the background neck-to-crotch to coalesce it all as it is several artists who have contributed to this bizarre vision I had/have for my front tattoos. someone once told me i looked like the backboard on a pinball machine (which makes me a laugh, take it as a compliment)! on the flip side, if you go tummy first you might limit space for placement of chest and sides. so it's all relative, really. just go with the flow and let the plan develop as you make progress. nO reGretssss!!!

I've just got back from Mexico, WOW! love that place, will definitely be going back for sure. Good food, Bad Alcohol (but lots of it!) I Also spotted Oliver Peck, met Liam Sparkes (nice guy) and physically bumped into Jared Leto. Crazy trip, Bring on the next one. Happy New Year!

Slowly getting back into running after a foot injury has had me off it for months. I'm not horrrrribly out of shape, but nowhere where I want to be. It's been great to get back into running more regularly though!

Getting back from our road trip down to Cali today. Stopped by Off the Map northwest on the way up through Oregon just to sight-see. Super nice shop/people. If the stars align I'll be headed back down in august to get a piece from Henrik Grysbjerg who will be guesting for a few days. Crossing my fingers for a busy tattoo year!

@chrisnoluck Tattoo Marks in State College? I got my first few tattoos at their old shop behind McLanahans.

Just got these two from Dusto at Tower Classic in St. Louis as a Christmas present to myself

Got this from Kirk Jones yesterday, birds wing look distorted but it is just the photo. Awesome guy, it is a shame I don't have another shoulder to get tattooed, easiest spot so far.

This is what I've had done so far. Four sessions; the rose and yet more black went in last Friday. By Grez at Kings Avenue.

Latest session. Two more to go!

Here is my Backpiece from @Stewart Robson started in London at FST November 2011. Did sessions in New York at Saved, SOG 2012, FST again in March and July 2013 and complete this past weekend at SOG. So between 2 continents, 3 cities and 60 isn hours this part of the journey is over. The piece is in the process of extending down the thighs and that will be completed at the end of November. Then we begin the front, have the subject picked out and stewart will be taking traces of me today.

Tanners dragon and koi full back piece by Ben Lucas. Professional Tattooing & Piercing | Chico, Ca | Eye Of Jade Tattoo