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This is exactly (I think) what Myles meant when referring to how this shit changes you, and you just become a person that's different to how you were when once young. I have memories being as young as 9 (in the late '70's) when the Heroin epidemic was rife in this country, & watching a current affair programs with my mum about the numbers of young people falling victim to smack. It scared the fuck outta me and remember crying like a fuckin baby & saying to me mum how I never wanted to be like them...with me mum telling me that people only end up becoming what they choose to become. She was fuckin' right, I did make that choice. I also see now after all these years how hardened it even made my poor mum & dad.They're still alive & live next door to us, and for the 1st time ever, we talk openly about the very beginnings at age 15...the bars & strip clubs, the drugs & alcohol, the violence, the disappearing for weeks on end to like surface for a day or 2, then the cycle starting all over again...and that emptiness that clouds over you at times, ha! a lot of the time is the exact same look that comes from the old girls face, as she had to deal with the same pain from a mothers perspective. We never, ever talked about this shit until sort of recently when out of the blue she asked me just one question. "What did I do wrong which made us loose you all them years ago"? For the last 31 years, she finally plucked the courage to ask that 1 question. That's when it hits home to you how much damage this shit really causes. My old man on the other hand, like the day I turned 40, looks me in the eye, shakes me by the hand and just simply says "how ya fuckin made it this far mate has simply just got me fucked". A statement like that holds just as much power ya know, because that draws out that smile that's so desperately needing to surface...even for just that couple of seconds. Within the last 72 hours, I've had an old mate who came a "pick" away from ending it all because of that internal struggle. Thank fuck he's in a safe place receiving treatment. He said to me today...when ya hit rock bottom brother and end up in a place like this, you realise who your real friends are...faaark all. This interaction here talking about this shit has been a very positive outlet. Thank you. @MadeIndelible...keep that network happening mate, and @jimmyirish said, work it!

While I was up in Brooklyn, NY this past weekend I also added a tattoo from Peter Giaquinto of Pete & Cubo's Tattoo in Queens! Pete is the 100th tattooer to have tattooed me! (yes I have kept track at several peoples request in the craft) Here are the photos.....

Hi all Thought I'd give you a little update on the phoenix tattoo that is slowly (but surely!) taking shape on my back. It is very much a personal celebration of triumph over adversity (when you lose everything that is familiar to you, you almost experience a rebirth of sorts, I find). We have all gone through tough times and these experiences usually give us a chance to learn lessons about ourselves and our reactions, re-awakening our ability to grow. The phoenix to me is a symbol of strength, resurrection and survival, and now a permanent reminder that I am stronger than I think :-) It is my first tattoo so please be gentle :-p Tattooed by Danny Rossiter of the Rain City Tattoo Collective (Rain City Tattoo Collective | Rain City Tattoo Collective, Manchester) xccx

Here's another one by Franz at the Okey Doke.

my vote is a tradtional american design on the inner bicep area then roses and japanese clouds and wind bars to tie it all together. rose in that open area between the sparrow and your shoulder, another on the elbow/outer forearm area, then maybe a skull in the elbow ditch.

More like 2 or 2 and a half? I wasn't really watching the clock because I was having so much fun (except when things started to swell up towards the end). I found him to be really gentle, though it wasn't a bad spot. This tattoo is a lot cooler than I am.

Well then. Session 1 complete of my back piece with Ian Flower at New Skool Tattoo in Surrey. Nowhere near as bad as I was expecting and my back is not feeling too bad all in all. Next session in 3 weeks.

I just wanted to chip in to the conversation about 12 step program's. My dad has been in the AA program for about 6 years now and it has given him and his family something I never thought possible. It's not just about stopping the using (although of course that's the primary focus) but it's like Mick said, the drugs or the booze become so internal over years and years that suddenly relating it the outside world sober can see really difficult. There's an expression for that in the rooms which is a 'dry drunk' and I've seen it with my uncle who hasn't touched a drink in 20 years and hasn't smiled or laughed once in that time either. Anyway I just wanted to voice my support @MadeIndelible, you've started down a road that really can transform your life - and it's a fucking brave thing. 'It works if you work it, so work it!'

Remember kids! always, and I mean always! hold your hands at the steering wheel at 10 & 2. It's the only safe way to hold a smoke and a bottle of beer safely whilst driving. It's funny how the world changes, and we obviously know the dangers of drink driving & shit...but fuck, I remember when we was young...hooning down gravel roads doing 100, sliding the ass end out whilst learning to roll a smoke at the wheel all at the same time....without a care in the world. Oh, until it all goes wrong.

This is how I always feel

My aunt and I have been painting the general store that her in laws own. We're doing the lettering and the friezes. It's a really great project. Will post pictures when it's done.

@hogg & Mark Bee. The term "bikie" is another media term only. Many years ago, a person would come close to having his mouth shut for even using such a derogatory term. These days with everyone becoming an expert as to what's written in the papers and what they see on the news, pfft, it just becomes another little piece of history that gets lost and some of us become a little too tired in trying to keep it alive. Another term "gang" is also a media typo. They're "clubs". Again, if that needs to be elaborated on, then it just ain't worth the time. Those of us who had/ have origins from the Oi days know how retarded the media terms to "skinhead or punk gangs" appear. Same shit. Back to the tattoo topic. This is what we get when we offer mainstream a glimpse into our culture. We create opposing cultures with two completely different takes on the subject, and that has been the sad part for me. It's like the day when I was getting tattooed in High St, Fremantle Western Australia back in 93, directly opposite the Workers Club, oh, in an old time "biker" run art studio...sorry, tattoo fuckin shop...these were the days Tattooers started charging like $100 an hour!! After we had completed our 4 pack of Rum and the 3 hour tattoo, I laid out $300 on the chair to complete our deal. Old mate looks me in the eye, handed me back half my cash and said...mate, the day I start charging top dollar for tattoos is the day I may as well be just tattooing Drs and fuckin lawyers. Fuck taking it away from the working man where it belongs. And that was my very 1st encounter in that particular shop.

I signed up just to say Thanks! I started these a year or so ago after finishing my back piece. When I get a chance i'll upload some pictures for you to check out the whole thing, its impossible to get good pictures of myself though :/

My brother failed his first one for "proceeding with caution" through a yellow light. Instructor told him he was supposed to stop. On my test the guy asked if I was wearing lead shoes. And I drove up onto the curb a little trying to parallel park. It was kind of a disaster...but somehow I still passed. You'll get it the next time! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That steak was huge @Pugilist. Scary huge. The cats were going nuts, they wanted a piece of the action so so badly.

@Mick Weder, thanks for the stories lately. They are enriched with honestly. It makes me miss the homey @Dan S, who I hope finishes his extended vacation soon.

every tattoo i have.

Fuck I love that BTC tattoo. I'm saving a little place, just behind my ear for one of them. Ideally I'de love to have Jimmy Skuse do this for me...we'll see how we go with the planned travel to Bristol to make this happen. Very, super fuckin' cool.

Thank you @Mick Weder for joining this forum and being rad. I would read your memoirs.

I might have helped open a can of worms when I explained that my husband asked me to get a tattoo. There is a big difference between your partner making you get a tattoo, and asking you to get one, and there is admittedly a lot of gray area between making and asking. This is quite a delicate subject. I want to be very clear that in my case my husband asked once, with great respect, and made it clear that he would accept "no" if that was my answer. When I finally made the decision to get a tattoo, it was my decision, independently and freely made. I commented on this issue in another forum on another site (not LST) a while back, and said something like this: The notion that “it’s my body, and I can do what I want with it,” absolutely has to be the fundamental basis for these types of decisions. However, in a committed relationship, there is an aspect of sharing that I think makes it is more complicated, nuanced, and a delicate than that. In a sense, when you are married or in a committed relationship, your bodies become sort of shared property, although each individual still has absolute sovereignty over their body. If you truly have a sharing and giving relationship, with open communication, it is not unreasonable for your partner to ask (not force) you to to do something to bring him/her pleasure, whether it be to cook a particular meal, wear a certain article of clothing, get a tattoo, or whatever. However, the key consideration is that your partner can’t expect that you must comply simply because that is what they want. The the other half of the equation is that in a loving, sharing and giving relationship, I believe that you owe it to your partner to at least consider these requests. In a loving relationship, one should be willing to at least consider stepping out of their comfort zone to please their partner. Maybe after giving it consideration, the you will decide that you are not comfortable with the request and will decline. That’s ok, as long as you gave it fair and serious consideration. Then your partner needs to accept and respect your decision. I think that this cuts both ways, too. For example, say you want to get a tattoo of a skull with a knife plunged into the top, and blood gushing out of it, in the middle of your chest. Maybe there is something very personally meaningful and symbolic about that image to you. But lets say that your partner finds that image very violent and extremely disturbing. Now, it is still is certainly your right to get that tattoo if you want. After all, it is your body, right? But do you really want to get a tattoo that will make your partner wince every time he/she looks at you for the rest of your life? Is that really how you want your relationship to be? Remember, you made a commitment to each other, and sometimes that means giving up a little something of yourself for the greater good of the couple. The key is that when you decide to give up a little something of yourself, you must make those decisions - freely, openly, and with out coercion, or intimidation.

I spent the weekend in Brooklyn....Queens....and Iselin, NJ! I was very honored to once again be tattooed by Tony Polito......and equally as honored by what he tattooed on me!

I failed my first driving test, because I was speeding and then argued with the proctor about why my speeding was legitimate. Yep.

i guess a posting a photo is the nice thing to do @Mark Bee

Decided to quickly drop my pants in a field Crow - Bert Krak Rock of ages - Steve Byrne Strongman - Stacey Ann Golliwog - Steve Byrne Pharoes horses - Steve Byrne Gorilla - Dan Santoro Tengu -Steve Byrne Rose of nomans land - Steve Byrne Grimm Reaper - Eli Quinters Not that many right now but until last July I only had two

I suppose I'll contribute to our collection of giant ass-flowers. Finished a few weeks ago by Grez!

I realized that besides for instagram photos in the Latest Tattoo Lowdown-thread, I haven't uploaded any proper hi-res healed pictures of any one the tattoos I've gotten since I first registered here 3 years ago. I'll make sure to get to that. Anyway, here's my twiggy pale legs at their current state: Left leg, top to bottom: Rose - Eli Quinters Judas wearing devil mask - Iain Mullen Heart factory-thing - Rudy Fritsch Dietzel masked girl - Joel Albertsson ACE-script - design by my friend, tattoo by Iain Mullen Swampy horned skull - my friend Isabel Crocodile bird - Joel Madberg SOOS Man with birdcage head - my friend Isabel Ancient aliens UFO with wings and bird claw - Iain Mullen Gorilla in tower holding skull - Deno Crossed bones RMA - my friend Isabel Återkomst - some scratcher named Jens (traded for a small photo) Badly healed heel tattoo - Iain Mullen Upside down skull - my design, tattoo by Iain Mullen Right leg, top to bottom: Shaman and hyena - James McKenna Rock of ages, upside down cross - Peter Lagergren Girl sleeping in moon - Jaclyn Réhe Human cuddled in egg shape - my friend Isabel Whispering devil + indian symbol and three moons - Iain Mullen Baboon head - Matty D'Arienzo Saraswati/indian looking head - Adde Ramstedt Behive - Knibbe Pallius Upside down eye of providence and snake - Ville Prinsen Big angry snake head - Deno Cat reaper - Joel Madberg SOOS Funky tiger coming out of flower - Cezilia Hjelt Equaly badly healed heel tattoo - Iain Mullen (both to be redone in a few months) Bum dreaming "C.R.E.A.M." - Frej Lind Hårda Tider-band logo on toe - my friend Isabel Edit: Oh wow, long post. Thought they were thin enough to go side by side in pairs. Well.. enjoy

Yep, AND they're opening up an appointment only shop down the block.. and fairly close to Gpt Tattoo..

A friend can't speak highly enough of Fat Ram's Pumpkin Tattoo - her favorite tattoo is from Fat Ram.

Nice one scubaron, very nice indeed - I've been looking out for this since you said you were seeing Anderson, love Anderson's work and it seems to me that he puts enough thought into outline and spacing to avoid being too concerned about blobs for along time !!

I passed my driving test with the most amount of points that I could fail, barely getting my license. Still not sure what I even missed. Maybe that's why I'm not that great of a driver.

Tattoo magic at it's most mischievious. @beez

Great story, @Mick Weder. Keep 'em coming!

Bump to this @polliwog, ya lucky duck. That's fuckin' very sweet.

Super duper cool @polliwog! An hour and a half? haha....

The artist drew "15" wrong :-)

Thanks all, I appreciate your feedback. I can't lie, I'm hoping my design is good enough to go as is, but I have no problem if it doesnt work. I tried for a little while to get into tattooing, but as it is now, a few of the shops I visited assumed that I got the idea from watching tattoo reality shows, and that I probably didn't care about tattooing as an artform. Theyre really hard core no doubt. I dont even watch TV lol. But it would be nice to know that I'd at least have a bit of a clue on how my tattoo should translate to flesh, but again, if I'm wrong, it'll be a learning experience for me. BrianH, thanks. I'm familiar with Allston and will check out Good Faith.

Even though hubby and I are respectably ;) tattooed - he heavier than I, and we do encourage/ enable each other, we would never ever ask the other to get a tattoo. Speaking for myself I'm really respectful that it is not my body. Even if I may not like every design my husband chooses I need to respect and keep my hands off/ opinions to myself on whatever he choses to have tattooed, and vice versa. Though it's great having a partner that understands and enjoys tattooing we are really respectful of each other and how personal tattooing is.

I remember going for my drivers license. I had split with this chick who dogged me to the cops that I was driving without a license. Was living in this small one pub town at the time when I got a visit from the local constabulary one Saturday morning. As he already knew, he squized me about who owned the Ute & the Station Wagon parked out front which I confirmed was mine. He then asked to view my license to which I said, "I think we both know cunt-stable I don't own one". Long story short, he called me a cheeky prick for driving around town, flipping him a wave every time I seen him, and that come Monday we better sort it out. Come the Monday, I drove to the Cop Shop, took the officer for a drive around the block. He asked me to do a hill start but I couldn't 'cause my handbrake didn't work, then drove back to the station and he issued me my license. All legal :) That fucked the ex Mrs plans slightly.

sooooo... are we trying to be morbidly obese?

OK, I'll play. These show most of my legs. I won't bore you with the sides of my knees or ankles. And I'm too lazy to type out who did what, but I'm happy to answer any questions.

diggin' this thread. dreading the knee ditch and inner thighs. here's what and who, so far... Upper left - three wise monkeys: my brother - tribal knife: myself - gypsy head: jill bonny Upper mid - third eye skull: my brother - sun, moon, web knees: trevor taylor - hardy bulldog: myself - butterfly: myself - daruma and candle: myself - umbrella eye guy: trevor taylor - green flame/symbols: myself - doll head: shawn barber - BnG snake: myself - flower: beppe strambini - fox & stars: hideki kobayashi - horse head: myself - bird: myself - cherry blossoms: my brother - 408: my brother Upper right - snake and kewpie: christopher ayalin - lucky 13 cat: matt arriola - eagle and clipper: mike Wilson - hippie snail: my brother Bottom right - horse head/ring of flames: myself - shark: myself - BnG pattern: myself Bottom mid - naismith: cris cleen - fu manchu snake: jeff rassier Bottom left - holey heart: myself

Just posted my twigs on Instagram this morning, but figured I'd repost 'em here too. Many of them are hard to see / are on the other side of my legs, but of what's visible... Right Leg: - Foo Dog by Mike Rubendall - Punk Rock Girl Head by Nick Oaks - Pyramid by Eli Quinters - Dragon Head (peeking out) by Steve Boltz - Rose Girl Head (peeking out) by Kirk Sheppard - Snake Head by Nick Oaks - Wacky Ankle Tribal Band by Paul Samplonius Left Leg: - Hindu Demon Goddess by Freddy Corbin - Devil Woman by Hillary Fisher White - Skull Mosque by Chris Stiles - Pyramid Palm Hand (peeking out) by Jason McAfee - Wolf Head and Snake by Bailey Hunter Robinson - Hammer by Nick Oaks - Dr. Teeth by Cody Zeek Not visible: - Oni Head by Dave Cummings - Dagger through Tiger Head by Jeff Rassier - Mom Heart by Steve Boltz - Higgs Druid by Nick Rodin - Demon Head by Todd Noble - Panther by Matt Arriola - Wacky Husker Du Mandala by Keith Stewart I think that's all of 'em for now, but I'm wearing pants so I can't double-check. :)

My pegs, tattoos by RHW (snake and rose), Cris Cleen (lady in the mirror), BHR (vulture head), Carolyn Le Bourgeois (snake, Niña Blanca), Scott Sylvia (candle burning at both ends), and Nick Colella (eagle and flag). No plans but to fill them up with rad tattoos.

don't be so harsh. that looks like a good foundation for a black panther cover up piece.

That style is called a total piece of garbage.

Personally I've never asked a design to be changed but my approach to collecting tattoos is to choose an artist and let them have complete control. I'm just happy to have a cool tattoo from a talented artist. I should also note that my ideas are usually so minimal/basic that the artists sometimes ask a bunch of questions to get a better idea of what I'm hoping for.

no face. i don't do them, either.

I want to go to Hong Kong so bad. Soooo much awesome stuff there.