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Finished what was planned for my left arm at the end of August although one little filler from that session (inner end of ditch) needs reworking after a shocking heal.

Finished up my Valkyrie tattoo yesterday. Couldn't be happier with how it turned out! Beautiful work by Megon Shore at Fist Full of Metal in Seattle.

Hey y'all just finished my outer thigh with Dr. Claw out of Diamond Club. Stoked now going to do the inner thigh, I can already tell it's gonna suck, Oh well. Going to be doing a jorogumo with webbing that will connect to the rest of the background.u

I (now) know this sort of thread can make people here feel like pulling their teeth out but the patience and effort of LSTers is a great thing and I remain eternally grateful. Honestly. So, despite the shame of bumping this I'm adding photos of the finished project 'cause it's maybe nice to have it all together. I already put them on Latest Tattoo Lowdown though, wasn't thinking! I did take an enormous mass of over thought out context and reference photos in but that went down fine and was actually appreciated. Balanced it out by giving him free choice on what to use from it all and full control on colour and placement. I like to think it worked out nice. Back again in November for a start on the next bit of me.

"I can stop any time!"

I was thinking about Jorogumo earlier today. I'll jump on the "can't wait to see it" train. - - - Updated - - - And @HettyKet, your arm looks great! It's a good example of some non-traditional tattoo imagery executed with traditional tattoo sensibilities. And it totally works. I love the layout, too.

I do it out of habit, not addiction.

Nothing wrong with getting tattoos simply because you like them. It doesn't have to be an "addiction".

says the guy who can't attend a tattoo convention without getting tattooed.

Danny Reed Hot Stuff Asheville NC

This: Tattoo silhouette and negative space is a great thread, just in case you missed it.

I believe it's three quarters. ROSS HOGG, BANHAMMER THYSELF!

Done by Ed in 1979! GOD DAMN!!!!!!!

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. You can also put a dagger through the panther to really emphasize the not yielding part.

I might be in the minority here in having this opinion, but I hope the general public doesn't stop seeing tattoos and tattooed people in a negative light. I have a hard time having sympathy or patience for people who claim that they're discriminated against because of their tattoos, especially when these people work in shitty low-wage, low-job security jobs. Where I work I saw a guy with a nice neck tattoo have an interview to be a busboy. Guess what? He didn't get the job, because if you're getting your neck tattooed while applying for jobs that pretty much any chump off the street can competently do, you're a dumbass. I probably wouldn't hire you either. For me, part of getting tattooed and becoming an increasingly heavily tattooed person is accepting and taking on something that most people don't understand and being okay with it. I think that responsibility, that willingness to put yourself at the margins, is an important part of getting tattooed, especially when into getting into less concealable areas.

i know Asheville very well. Used to live very close to there. I will definitely check those places out. Thanks!

I love the stuff I see coming out of Empire Tattoo in Asheville: Empire Tattoo AVL

There is no way we could ever keep cat hair off our fresh tattoos. No way. That is one I'm just going to have to live with. :)

2015 dates: September 11th, 12th, and 13th I have a back piece session scheduled in Massapequa, NY on the 12th... i imagine we can easily resolve that scheduling conflict by changing the location to Montreal. you all might be lucky enough to witness an ass session! (hopefully not)

S'okay, I give him a reprieve.

Yeah, mine mentioned cat hair as well. New sheets on the bed the night of the tattoo, and no cats in the bedroom for a couple nights. The four-leggers are never happy when I get a tattoo because they are banished. Leo, my quiet tentative sweet boy, laid next to me on the couch when I was knocked out after a very late night last week. Like he knew I was hurting and he was watching guard. Very unusual for my skittish boy and very sweet.

Jorogumo is one of my favourite images. Can't wait to see it.

If you can't manage another small one at Smith Street there are plenty of other great shops in the city that do excellent traditional and can take a walk-in. Check out Flyrite in Williamsburg or Greenpoint Tattoo in Greenpoint.

@misterJ - I've been trying to get tattoos that somehow reflect the traditional style of the places i visit, so I got a polynesian style maui hook in Hawaii and a traditional eagle from Matt Howse in San Francisco - Matt is an outstanding tattooist an all around great guy. I'm crossing my fingers that I can get into Frith Street in February.

@Lance All you have to do is ask bro....(Wendy's currently lasering her right arm to make way for another Shige sleeve :cool:)

Just finished up this piece with Matt aka Dr Claw outa Diamond Club. - - - Updated - - -

Sorry to hijack a little, but this thread has just given me a rad idea for a foot tattoo. A panthers head, in a Nazi SS helmet smoking a fat as fuck half smoked cigar. Ok, continue...thanks.

A big ass panther. Totally not joking, by the way.. Images > words.

Here is my submission for this months contest. My whole backpiece has been done in a 6-month period (just 31 hours in total) by Bonel from Corazon Santo, Arnhem, The Netherlands. I also have a full size picture available HERE

....here is his website for those interested...I always have them too..i will be at the spotlight booth at state of grace....but if you really want an experience..buy one from him.... his number is 757- 463-0249...also i have some out here west coast...you can contact me here...or at [email protected] I did not see his website link..i musta mucked that up..but here is his number....he makes these...now....also a shader but i will get a pic up of that too.....

I think the kid going for a job as a bus boy is such an interesting example. When you have no skills you are basically at the mercy of everyone, in the context of menial work you are going to be judged for your tattoos; because frankly you haven't got much else going for you! The way I see it the answer is not to spend your life doing shit work and not getting the tattoos you want, but as @Graeme says, embrace the margins. If you can develop a skill set that demands you be judged on the quality of your work rather than your tattoos, then you got the best of both worlds. There's a guy who drinks at the bar I work in who I've become friends with, older guy in his mid 40's who has made a very successful career in fashion buying. He's got one the the best collections I've ever seen, two Thomas hooper sleeves as well as hands, bailey Robinson, Chad, Steve Byrne and many many others on his legs, Ian flower on the back of his neck...you get the idea. One of the other barmen asked him if he had ever worried about it effecting his job opportunities, in his thick Manchester accent he replied 'nah, I know who I am, and I'm fucking good at my job'

I will second that Mike Dorsey vote. He is a factory that produces awesomeness by the buttload. http://i.instagram.com/mikedorseytattoo/

That one was cool the first fifty times I saw it.

Now i know it's been really overdone......but I say a walrus holding a club......but instead of clubbing a seal (could be a cute baby seal if you like) instead it gores it with it's tusks!!! strive.....seek.....find......not yield! I would so get that if it weren't so cliche' Oh....welcome to the forum too!!! :)

Hahaha @BrianH ! I hope so. :) When we saw these dates yesterday, we were both like, amazing to start thinking about next year's convention when our tattyjams from this year are barely healed. Val and Pierre do not sleep.

Take it from me @petiloi inner thigh is NO JOKE. Still tender today after my inner thigh session on Thursday. Healing should be interesting to say the least... BTW your thigh piece looks AWESOME!

I'm with @Graeme on this one. Lots of great shops in New York to get tattooed at. Add Three Kings, Fun City, and New York Adorned to the list. I know everyone thinks of Smith Street as the New York shop, but it doesn't even make my top five shops in that city.

Thank you for discussing what must be a sensitive topic for you. That takes some courage to ask for help, and shows more wisdom than was being used when you decided to tattoo yourself. A lot of people may look down on you, but this will serve as a warning for anyone who thinks doing stuff like this is a good idea. The only other positive thing I have to say is that you hopefully were only tattooing yourself. My suggestion would be to throw your "gun" away. Find and ask a good artist what you should do, and go from there.

I respectfully disagree. To non-initiates, a tattoo's a tattoo. They just see that someone is tattooed--not what they have. I have to remind myself of that from time to time. I once asked a non-tattooed coworker to describe 3 of my tattoos. This was a job where I wore T-shirts every day, and he and I were friends. He remembered my kid's name, but admitted that he was stumped beyond that.

Here's mine!

I'm sure you'll be there another year.... Sometimes life upsets the best laid plans.

couple of recent ones: made by Dave Condon (who is also currently working on my stomach) from Curtis Pettigrove

Big ass koi swimming upstream.

:: rim shot :: And again, beverage of choice, out my nose.

I bet you could skip the lasering and cover that whole line of text with a huge panther, never to be reminded of it again. The tricky part is finding the right person to do it, but if you stick around here for a bit, you'll see examples of tons of great tattooers and will have some great info at your disposal. Best of luck to you.

I have a consult with Thomas Hooper next Friday and my next visit with Kore Flatmo the following week. Cant wait!

A few years ago, I got back into getting tattooed, and really wanted to have my arms re sleeved. When I first sat down with old mate, we discussed new tattoos, and we continued along this path for 12 months before I hinted at him re sleeving my old work. He knew it was coming, and because of the extension of work we were doing, he then knew it was something that had to be done. I knew how difficult this was going to be for him, and he was honest...& said, if I had 1st walked in wanting my arms redone, he would have turned me away. But..everyone is different where a different approach is needed I guess. I knew the kind of person I was dealing with initially and just knew a certain type of etiquette and respect was required 1st.

Opie G. Ortiz posted this 20 year old Hardy backpiece on instagram a few days ago