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My arm isn't done, and I've only really started on one, but I can actually contribute! So I shall. :) Taking pictures of my own arm is hard, and I suck at it. There are individual pictures of these in my gallery, though, anyway! I was really late in coming to an appreciation of traditional designs (aside from traditional Japanese, which I have always loved). What sold me on traditional sleeves was the interesting way in which individual pieces become more than the sum of each individual tattoo...it becomes this collective aesthetic that I find so fascinating, in addition to being a very cool collection of individual images. I mention this because I have similar feelings about 'masculine' and 'feminine' aesthetics. (I'm also one of those people who thinks a man or woman can wear whatever the hell they want and still be masculine and feminine if they want to be, but that's a discussion of a slightly different variety. For the purposes of this post, I'm just using the generally accepted definitions of those words.) I think whether something reads as 'masculine' or 'feminine' in the traditional sense depends mostly on general presentation. There are tons of pictures out there of women wearing tough, aggressive traditional work, but they dress or present themselves in a way that's still super-girly and feminine. I think this look is amazing. Of course, there'll always be people out there who just find tattoos in general 'unfeminine' or whatever, buuut. That's really more about them, imo.

My name is Time and I am Thai currently living/studying in Norwich, UK. I am pretty new to tattooing. I just had my second tatoo a few day ago and it is still healing! I have interest in American traditional tattoos :cool: This forum has been very useful! My first one inspired to stay forever as a child. second one for my passion of coffee Looking forward to get more and be inspired by the people here :cool:

here it is. was a great time. really funny guy. i also think im having the best healing experience with this one from something i read in this forum a while back. i left the bandage over night and washed all the goop off in the morning. thing is minimally scabbing now http://imgur.com/8JFjxRJ

I have little shoulder caps too, (which may be one of my favorite parts) and both of my sleeves end organically. I didn't want any abrupt lines where tattoos begin or end. It's about what appeals to you as feminine.

I had the dream tonight where I was going to learn to make tattoos and I had a kit and everything ready. In my dream I had to do the first tattoo on myself but realized all the reasonable spots to start (reachable parts of my legs) where all ready covered with tattoos (as they are) so I began by going over them with really bad lines, just free styling random shapes. Horrible.

Love these... That is all.

Brought a drawing to Sacred Tattoo today with plans for getting a walk-in, after meeting the shop owner a week or so back. Niño was kind enough to redraw my doodle an this is what we came up with. Great way to celebrate the last few months of living in Oakland. Pic lifted from Nino's Instagram. Also, I visited Umami Mart and saw @CABS and that Felix and lady head in person. Great to meet you, Chris. Thanks for the directions to The Trappist!

Had a pretty hilarious "tattoo nightmare" last night. Don't feel obligated to wade through my subconscious insecurities here, but I bet I'm not alone here and I'm sure you tattooers have work nightmares. Anyone wanna share? (C'mon @Perez, you can't tell me those loft murals didn't invade your dreams..) So here's the dream: Went to a reputable shop to get two small tattoos and asked for the line drawing because it was my wife's birthday and the tattooer wrote Happy Birthday on it for whatever reason. He said he wasn't sure I would treat it right and I promised I would frame it and give it to her as a birthday gift. One of the tattoos was on my leg so I simply detached my legs from my torso ("I can't believe I never thought of this sooner!") so I could sit and watch without feeling a thing. Everything seemed cool, and then I went to pay and it was super crowded. The counter guy was talking really quietly and I finally got close enough to hear him say, "Ninety fifty." Huh? "Nine thousand fifty dollars." I tried to explain I just got two smallish tattoos, and only brought about a thousand bucks with me, which I figured would be more than enough. He said the tattooer was concerned because I was disrespectful and had some really "questionable work." The other people behind the counter (there were like a dozen and they were all dudes.. true nightmare..) were all just kind of talking and the one dude said, "Listen, they're all arguing about it now and it's gonna be a few weeks before they decide on a price." Right then, I realized I'd scheduled an appointment with a dude doing a guest spot for that day.. though apparently I decided to just get em done earlier? And then the dude came in the door and I decided I needed to get the fuck outta there. So I booked.

sup from san francisco everyone. been lurkin here for a while. figured its about time i made an account. have an appointment with austin maples at idlehand tomorrow and am reading all your tattoo experiences again in anticipation. still have yet to put together some references, but im grabbing a b&g dagger stabbing a globe. best one i've found that kinda suits me is one from rich hadley: anyone got similar ones to share? dont want a butterfly in mine, but i do wanna add something else to it so its not so plain. any ideas? cheers guys!

Here are some recent ones for me... Got this guy from Alan Berg Started this with Mat Welch and snagged this Bert Grimm horse from Miguel Olascuaga

I dreamed that all the blue color washed out of my tattoo. I was then checking the warranty on my tattoo to see if that was covered or not...

Yeah, I just stress out a lot before sessions, I've really wanted to do it for a long time, and I know I'll get through it, the worst part is my mind fucking with me beforehand!

I've just had a dream for the second time. I'm going around London on a bus, going to the well known shops we all know of. Except they aren't in the same place, they look completely different, and none of the same people work there. So I then get back on the bus and go to another one, and the same thing happens. I remember another dream from ages ago, I think it was that I was booked in with someone who I've been tattooed by, at somewhere they work.. Except again it was a totally different city than the shop's actually in, and it looked different, etc.. Anyway, I showed up, said I had an appointment with said person, they said he wasn't there, but someone else would do it. I said "no thanks" but they forced me to get it, I can't remember what the tattoo was, but it seemed quite terrifying during the dream.

Got this today from Derick at Level Up tattoo in Great falls, MT.

try this?

it's not too bad, but if you're anything like me, you'll have a very swollen knee for a few days.

Popped into my buddy's local shop today (Keith Reed at X-Treme Ink) to take a look at a small filler spot on my leg. Picked out a little Lehi flash to throw in there in the very near future.

Had my first session with Rob yesterday. Probably the nicest tattooer I have met. Everyone at the shop was a blast, and even as beat up as I felt for a relatively short (4.5 hours) session, I can't wait to go back. We started off with the general wolf that I had wanted for years. Then after looking at some of the awesome norse pieces he had done recently we started spit balling ideas with Fenrir and a skull from one of the deer eating from Yggdrasil. There is a sizeable cover up at the top, and we start down towards the back of legs in the next session probably :)

I'm getting my first tattoo in approximately two hours! I made the appointment almost a week and a half ago. I'm nervous as can be, but the excitement outweighs the worry.

March 10th I will be headed to Saved Tattoo for my consultation with Virginia Elwood. March 14th I will go back and get my chest piece started. I am getting both of my grandfathers' Navy portraits on either side of my upper chest/shoulder area, a battleship in the middle with two flying fish under my pecs. Maybe a rose in the middle of my sternum, and rope with knots "framing" the rest of the area on top. Basically letting her run with colors and design. I'm hoping she can do all the line work and a good first pass on the portraits in my first sitting. I don't know about her speed so we shall see. I have been planning on this for at least 20 years, that I can recall, so I am nervous and excited with anticipation. I trust she will kill it.

Yeah,Electric is one of the best...but you got Kevin Leblanc @ White Lotus in Tom's River,who I think is the most talented in Jersey.Tattooville in Tom's River...Nick works there and is a good tattooer@ Instagram Right Coast Tattoo in LBI has some good guys.. Instagram Tradewinds in Tom's River has Tommy,& Shaun.. Instagram Instagram Crown & Anchor in Pt.Pleasant@ Instagram Atlantic Tattoo in Manahawkin@ Atlantic Tattoo Black Panther in Pt.Pleasant,Slingin Ink in Pt.. NEPTUNE TATTOO & Freehold Tattoo.. Instagram Instagram There's a lot of good Tattooers by the Ocean...I did check out a shop in S.Jersey last month@ Dead Sparrow

Final days of waiting and I need some tattoo related stuff to read while i'm at work (pretending to work) any recommendations on blogs? I've already re-read the Body Suit to Fit blog.

I used to love to watch Steve Irwin...First time I saw him on tv,I was like who the fuck is this crazy guy running after animals...I still watch his old shows on tv....he was a great man..

As a bunch of other people here have already said, breathing really makes a difference. Or at least for me it did. I try to get into a rhythm with slow, deep breaths. I have about 13 hrs worth of work on my ribs/hip, and I kept on telling myself that if I drew a sharp breath, or if I wasn't breathing in a predictable way, it would screw my artist up. I'm not really sure how true that was, but the fear was enough to keep me breathing steadily pretty much the whole time. And when it got pretty painful, that thought kept me concentrating on my breath, which distracted me from the pain. It was less of a "zoning out" and more of a zoning in - thinking about how even I can make my breath, and how smooth I can make the expansion and contraction of my ribs with my breath so that there were no "rough edges" in my breath cycle.

Thanks, @Pugilist! :o And yes, I'd love to see more. Seeing casual/unposed shots of people with tattoos never gets old.

I'll just echo everything everyone said. Justin is a great choice for that, and every time I've met him there he's been the nicest dude imaginable. After finishing up my arm and having a baby, I think my tattoo budget will be pretty slim, but I'd love to get tattooed by him someday. I can't personally speak for the LI shop, but the shop guy at the NYC location is super helpful and would able to address your concerns up front. Just be honest and upfront with what you want and your expectations, then see how they line up with availability and interest of the artists. You won't be disappointed.

Thanks a million, everyone. You've been beyond helpful and may have saved me from a lifetime of regret. You have my most heartfelt gratitude :D

Agreed completely with this, especially about how placement is often the difference between good tattoos and GREAT ones. I think not only is it a hard thing to explain here, other than that it's one of those things where you'll know it when you see it, but it's something that really requires seeing tattoos in person because photos don't give a very good sense of placement, or of the movement of tattoos. Placement is something that is kind of irrespective of genre too. If you've seen Filip Leu's tattoos, I mean in real life, not in pictures, they way they sit is incredible. They look like they were meant to be there and that they were always there. My wife @Pugilist had her back done in a folky Americana style by Stephanie Tamez and it's the same, even though the style is totally different than Filip's. What was neat about seeing that tattoo come together was how immediately it looked like the tattoo belonged there.

drove down to portland to get this. underrated tattooer.

Got some more work done on my Bakeneko by Josh Damnit at Classic Tattoo Upland, CA

Beautiful lady arms! Here's mine, along with some unasked for lady back and butt (in progress). All of mine are done by the same tattooer, Gemma Pariente at Full Circle. I don't think sleeves are masculine on a woman, get what you wish, epic tattoos are for everyone.

Perseverance: Japanese Tattoo Tradition in a Modern World | Japanese American National Museum Store

Got this lil lady from Shawn VanOven! Thanks for lookinh

I know I already posted this picture when I first got these done, but I figured I'd include a photo in the actual "Hand Tattoo" thread as well. Here are my hands. Applied by Thomas Hooper.

I've been pondering that lately, actually. I think it would look great if it were all done in lighter tones of grey. At least with my tattoos, what I have on my arms is mostly traditional with really strong silhouettes. So if the background patternwork would be subtle enough to not detract from the impact of the prior work, I think it could look DOPE

I had a tattoo healing nightmare the night after the first session on my back piece. I was being chased by a really slow-moving mob, but I couldn't run because every few steps my shirt would adhere to my back and I'd have to stop and very very gently pry it off before I could run again. Even in my sleep my priorities are fucked.

Lucky I found this thread! The other night I had a dream I went to go get a tattoo with my sister. I don't remember what I asked for, but when it was down, it was a purple new school rabbit on my shin that faded to the right, which lead to a mermaid tattoo that looked like it was drawn by a child. No outlines, no black, choppy colors. I start freaking out on the tattoo artist and he told me you get what tattoos you deserve. I was screaming that he ruined my leg, who the fuck wants a hybrid rabbit/mermaid in two vastly different styles??!!

Last night, my wife dreamed that she went to get a small tattoo on her forearm: a bust of Mary in a traditional Americana style. The guy she went to said, "I use laughing gas for all my clients, so you'll be out for the tattoo." He showed her the drawing, and it was all wrong: a photorealistic rendering of Mary. So she told him she didn't want that at all, and he fixed the drawing--a little. Then he gave her the gas, and when she came to, he'd tattooed a shitty dragon that went from her forearm, onto her palm, and then--somehow--onto her forehead! She started freaking out, and even the other guys at his shop said, "Dude, that's not cool. Chicks don't get their palms tattooed."

i dreamed that I was going to get a friday the 13th tattoo and the guy doing it was like "hey, get a seahorse, fuck that other shit" I agreed for some reason, but i was legitimately bummed out that i was getting a seahorse on my forearm. Woke up so stoked I didn't have a seahorse. That counts, right?

Wow, you fuckers are strange. LOL. j/k. I had one the other night. Long story short, I was tattooing flames on this guy, I got done, went to bandage the tattoo and noticed the flames were real. The fucking guy was on fire and instead of trying to put him out, I screamed and ran, but there was no door to the shop, so the guy just chased me around until I woke up. I actually woke up, and jumped out of bed trying to find the door. Then I started laughing my ass off.

Last night I had a dream that I was talking with my tattooer about where to place my newest one and he suggested that we reposition the existing tattoos on my leg so we can fit the new one in the perfect spot. It sounded weird to me, but all I could think about were those Cripwell legs. He showed me a few that he did it to on himself and convinced me that it would be fine. So then he poured this liquid over each tattoo and peeled them right off. It was painless and they came off entirely. I couldn't believe it. I asked him how nobody had ever come up with this sooner. What a great invention, I thought to myself. He stuck the tattoos back in their new spots and applied the new one the same way. No machine, just a stencil and that liquid. There were a few parts that weren't adhering entirely and I panicked. He said it'd be cool and to give it time to heal. A few days later in the shower they started washing off. Then I woke up and stared at my legs.