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Some of you have already seen this, but we finished my back yesterday. Some of it is still fresh and angry, so I'll get better pictures when it's healed and settled in. Dave Cummings at PSC Tattoo in Montreal did this. Dave is the man, get tattooed by him.

I am Marcel, 38 from Hoofddorp, Netherlands (10 miles from Amsterdam). (sorry for my grammar as it's not my native language) Was just looking around the net and came across this forum, did a quick look around and think I could spend some time here :) Because of that it is nice to introduce myself so here goes.. I started with a little tribal on the shoulder when I was 17, couple of years later another bigger tribal covered up the small one.. At this point I didn't know there are good, better and master artists. A tattoo artist is a tattoo artist....How wrong could I be... Started looking up different artists in my country and talking to other inked people where to go for the best work. Couple of years went by without getting any new ink...But then my mother died, that is almost 5 years ago now which changed my mind to wait any longer. I found a good artist in Amsterdam: Tycho Veldhoen He was an apprentice from Holland's most known tattoo artist: Henk Schiffmacher and his wife at the time, now he's one of Hollands best. Now I'm just 4 appointments away from a body suit...Which I'll post when I can use HTML otherwise there will be a huge number of posts in this thread. Tnx for reading, any questions..?? Just ask :) See you around..!! Marcel.

Already mentioned in the london convention meetups thread but i figured i'd post here, all booked in with Tony Hundahl for Friday the 25th. Not set on the design yet but it's gonna be something hand sized to fill a gap on one of my legs. Probably. Maybe.

Welcome! Here's a little tip on dealing with pain. If you or someone you know ever took a lamaze class, you may already know that relaxation is the best tool for dealing with pain.* When we give in, bending like a reed in the wind, pain is much easier to manage. Focus on breathing slow and easy. As soon as you tighten up, force yourself to relax again. At times when it gets especially painful at a tender spot, I mentally move my brain and all pain outside of the body. I'll focus on something in the room and put my mind right there as if in an out of body experience. * Example: Take an ice cube in your hand and lightly hold it in a relaxed grip. You can do this for a fairly long time. Try holding a cube in a tight grip in the other hand. You can't hold it for a very long time compared to the relaxed hand. This is the same principle for dealing with pain of any kind.

Tattoos over 40 are the sweetest ;) Welcome! I am excited for ya!

I don't think I ever posted a photo of my back in here. Its not entirely finished but we don't get to work on it too much. Done by my boss Jedidia Reid here in San Antonio Texas. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I always find these intro threads a little awkward, but here goes. My first tattoo appointment is coming up this Saturday. I've waited 42 years for this thing - yahoo! This site was incredibly helpful so thanks! I'm still sifting through it all but feel pretty well prepared in terms of picking an artist and a design (botanical, hence the name) thanks to the wealth of information here. It's not a tiny design so I have a 4 hour appointment to start with - I hope can sit for the whole thing. I'm sure I'll have aftercare questions; I have my Saniderm pack at the ready and am already wondering how the heck I'm going to wrestle that thing on and off of my back by myself (I'm a couple thousand miles away from close friends and family at the moment). And then there are the questions about bras, but that one will wait for the ladies threads. Okay, I'm going to crawl off and enjoy a dose of first thread anxiety now. Maybe it's my age (didn't grow up with the internet) but joining a new forum always freaks me out a little. Does that happen to anyone else? You start wondering - why did that other intro thread get way more replies? I guess it helps to ask a good question. So I'll ask: did it hurt? What's the meaning behind that tattoo? What will you do when you're 90? Just kidding. Thanks for the great resource - I look forward to posting pics of the new tattoo and planning the next one with y'all.

i continued a tattoo on hip. it was hard :/ I waited this session two year and very happy now ) It will be one tattoo in next time we connect these birds =)

session 4 completed, another 3 hours putting detail and some colour into the octopus, sitting at 14 hours now...stoked !

Well, now that PAX is over and I've had two days to sleep it off, I can get around to doing internet stuff. @beez and I had a super fun time hanging out at Liberty a bit ago, because we decided we should probably go and get tattoos. Here is mine, by Christopher Ayalin: Good times! Spent PAX wandering around the exhibition hall feeling like the leg of my jeans on that side was full of mosquitoes, though. Ha.

Congrats. You are obligated, of course, to POST PICTURES OF THE NEW ART! We like pictures.

First off, you want I should go and bust his knee caps for ya? As for a cover up, the thin lines and small overall size should make it fairly easy in the hands of an expert. You'll need to put something a good bit larger to cover it. I'm thinking a rose. keep scrolling --> What would inspire you or reflect something important that happened in your life?

Welcome! How did it go?

Welcome! I didn't get into tattooing until around 50, and I've now been getting tattooed for almost 10 years, so I feel a connection with you already! While there are great things about starting young, there are also benefits to starting late. You are settled into who you are, you know what your career trajectory is, what you like and don't like, and perhaps are less impulsive (although impulsiveness in moderation is a great thing!). I enjoy the perspective of people who start their tattoo lives late. So much that you read focuses on tattooing in the younger generations, and it is really exciting to see how those folks are pushing the art ahead and making tattooing more accepted - we all benefit from that. But it is also fun to hear of the experiences of older folks. There is a different perspective that helps complete the picture of the tattooed world.

Keeping with my "get tattooed every month...duh" plan I set for myself: September - Jeff Zuck @ Name Brand October - Jon Larson @ Harlequin November - Greg Christian @ TattoFaction December - ????

For reasons that some of you may be aware of, it looks like I won't be attending the convention after all and I'm not going to be able to organize the customary LST meetup. Hope to see you folks next year.

A belated hello LST! I’ve been posting here for over a year, but I realized that I never did the obligatory introductory post. So here goes... I’m a female, in my late 50s. I started getting tattooed kind of late, around when I turned 50, when my husband suggested I get a tattoo because he thought it would be attractive. I was reluctant, but finally said “what the heck! It will be an adventure, and he will be happy. I’ll get one, and that will be it.” So I got a well-hidden tattoo. I loved it, and wanted another. I was hooked! I wanted another one, and then more and more. I now have eight, including half sleeves, and I’m thinking about a back piece. I’m otherwise pretty conventional, and work in a professional business setting, and have something of a mental block about showing my tattoos in public, even though I love, love, LOVE them. Old lessons are hard to unlearn, and I fear being judged or stereotyped. LST folks have given me support, and partly as a result of that, It hink I’m getting to a point where I can more comfortably go public with my ink. I joined LST because I have no, none, zero, zip friends (except my husband) with whom I can share my tattoo enthusiasm. I really like being part of the tattooed community, among people who are accepting, supportive, and enthusiastic about tattooing, people who “get it,” who know what it is like to feel the needle, understand the near addictive attraction, and have stories and experiences to share. I love to talk about tattoos and tattooing. I love being tattooed, it matters a lot to me. It is an essential part of who I am now, both physically and mentally. LST is my outlet!

pics please - love fish tatts! have 3 myself :)

Got a new one yesterday, done by Valerie Vargas at Modern Classic from some Ed Hardy flash.

My latest from Mike Aul from when I was in Michigan a few weeks ago.

So here's a long overdue update on my back. its coming along...Unfortunatley life gets in the way and I wont be back for more work until mid November and I'll have to book some more appointments soon for december and into the new year. I was really hoping ot get to Montreal for some more work and check out the convention scene but Im in a wedding that weekend so it'll have to wait for next year. anyways, done by Scott Duncan at Sugar Shack Tattoo in Kincardine ON. He's one hell of a guy, and I love going there

Well, I finally quit my job of 9 1/2 years. Some may say that is stupid but the stress level was taking a toll on me. The last year was hell and not getting a raise in 4 years was eating away at me. Still living with my grandparents who have raised me, I have to take care of them. But when i'd get home, I wouldn't "de-stress" and would still be in a shitty mood, which isn't fair or nice to them. I made plans to quit and had tons of back-up plans set up. Two of my back up plans actually worked. I got a full scholarship to grad school which I applied for back in March. So Now I work on campus 18 hours a week and get a small hourly wage but my tuition is 100% paid. Also, my friend purchased a business and immediately had me work with her. We deliver drinks like soda or snapple in NYC twice a week. Starting out, I told her to pay me very very little just to get the ball moving in her court. After about 8 months, is when I'm going to start making some decent money. all in all, I am working less hours. Making more money (in 8 months). Tuition is getting paid. Thursdays and weekends off. stress level is at zero. Started going to the gym more. I am emotionally on cloud 9.

i got my elbow tattooed yesterday by ivan soyars @ old soul tattoo; canonsburg, pa.

Had a whirlwind trip to Demnmark this weekend for my second session with Henning Jørgensen. I am extremely happy with how it's turning out.

My completed full back piece. Done by Tim Croke at Second Skin, Derby. Completed in 4 full day sittings. Let me know what you think of it!

Birthday bro tats with my best friend, done by Gordon Combs of Art Work Rebels. Gordon applied my first tattoo in 2008 in San Francisco (and tattooed my friend that same year), been awesome following his work in recent years. Photo taken from Gordon's IG. Mine's on the right...

Read this & thought of you all: I Can't Stop Reading One-Star Yelp Reviews of National Parks

Hey, at least she will have a cool story about getting her first tattoo one day. "I was 17, on a trip to Belize and tricked my teacher into letting me get tattooed. My mom was pissed."

1-shot from Nathan Kostechko during his visit to ROA last week . . .

I'm getting married May 21st next year (and you bet my dress will be showing off my back piece!). I'm also moving into an amazing apartment in The Beach area of Toronto come September 1st. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hubbs and I took a long weekend, went to the State Fair, a concert, had room service breakfast, ate all the things!, and snuck in some shopping. This was our first "after the kid graduates from High School" adult trip. The kid stayed home and took care of the dogs :cool:

"I don't understand why someone would get _______ tattooed on them" Yes... that's right... you don't.

In an unrelated matter, she was fired last week. :cool:

a guy at work dosnt like my tattoos because they have no meaning then i got a rose of nomansland and because my gran was a nurse in ww2 told him thats why i got it (even though i would have got it anyway) and all of a sudden he thinks its great, another time the same guy was slagging off my tattoos for having no meaning so i apologised for not pretending my life was a episode of miami ink

I just respond "It's an overworked/underpaid thing, you wouldn't understand." And, as Eddie Murphy would say, "No baby, that's just jokes."

I want to wear those to my office next Halloween, then take them off at lunch and see if anyone notices.

Incense and green soap take me way back. Now they don't use the same type of green soap and the smell isn't nearly as strong. - - - Updated - - - My a-hole brother and his dipshit wife are in town and popped in on short notice earlier today. I have a very fresh tattoo on my forearm and the outline has some red around it in a few places. It happened seconds after the lines were done and the artist said it is bruising. It has gotten much better since Wednesday. So the dipshit sister in law is (was.. currently disabled) a nurse and starts telling me my tattoo is infected. I say no, she says yes. We go back and forth and I question her knowledge of nursing and tell her I do not normally discuss tattoos with those who are without them. This shuts her up somewhat and I ask her how long it takes for an infection to be visible. She goes into some clinical rant and I get her to agree it would take at least 12 hours to a full day. Then I tell her how they showed up. She had very little to say and her and my brother made an exit shortly after that. Rob

getting my third tattoo...in the shop there was a candle burning and it had a distinct smell afterward everytime i would smell a candle like that it would transport me right back to getting tattooed and then i would want another tattoo also green soap

One summer's Friday down the pub after work with friends the conversation turned to tattoos as a 'celebrity' had recently posted photos of her tattoos (roses over both butt cheeks) and it had been all over the papers. One girl at the table went off on a massive rant, something along the lines of "How could someone disfigure themselves like that? It's disgusting." I'm sat there with shorts on sporting my brand new calf tattoos so decide to call her up on it. "So you're saying that I've disfigured myself by getting tattoos?" I ask, as nicely as possible. So began the furious back-peddling. "No, your tattoos are different!" and "That's not what I was trying to say at all!" Which I didn't believe for a second. I also had a weird one from my Mum when talking about one of my sessions. Referring to the tattoo parlour, she asks: "But doesn't it get a bit smelly in there?" After inquiring what the hell she was on about, it turned out she thought that part of the tattoo process involved burning the skin!

On my recent trip home I had the usual light-hearted debates w/my mom over tattoos. We were talking about me wanting to change schools and she said I couldn't get a job at another school w/these tattoos. I said that I keep them covered w/long sleeve shirts. She said, "You can't wear long sleeve shirts all the time in LA!" I explained that yes, I already do...we have air conditioning. Blah blah blah. So then later, she tells me that Adam Levine was voted the sexiest man alive. I asked her if she agreed with that assessment and she said, "Yes." I said, "But he has tattoos!" And she goes, "He's an entertainer, not a kindergarten teacher." Oh lordy. I knew she already had a double standard about it being more ok for men to have tattoos than women. Now I see, it's also ok if you are an entertainer. I told her he is a grown-ass man and I am a grown-ass woman and that my job requires me to be an entertainer most of the time, too. Then MIL told my hubby that if we keep getting tattoos we won't be able to move back to Boston. Oh parents. They are so silly. We are in our forties and these are the conversations we are having!

About the co-workers... these people vote and sit on juries... scary.... Rob

This happened in Subway about a month ago. Some inebriated guy came up to me as I was ordering: "Woah, look at your tattoos...your sleeves...you look dynamite! Can I lick your arms? I want them on my tongue!" I said maybe another time and he gave me a high five and left! Hahahah

I have a reaper on my calf. This past summer a little dude saw it, looked up at me in awe, and went "Woah." It totally blew his little mind. That was the best.

Hahahaha! Those are great. Oh man...a treasure trove, indeed. Reminds me of a story that an old friend of mine told me. He was getting tattooed by Chris Trevino around 1991, when Chris and Sean Degan still had Perfection in San Antonio. A guy comes in with his girlfriend and says, "I want this." It's a horrible likeness of his girlfriend with the words "SWEET CHILD O' MINE." Chris says, "Yeah, I could do that, but I won't put that drawing on you. I'd fix it up first." At which time his girlfriend interrupts and says, very angrily, "No! I DREW THAT! That's how it has to be." I think they went someplace else.

my most hated requests are from people who want "concepts" - literally people who come in and want "something to depict strength without saying strength." or "can you capture elegance and frailty, but nothing figurative or organic." im kind of over trees and owls, but its kind of my bread and butter at this point, so i just suck it up and try and push the design as far as i can.

We have a client who I've tattooed for 6 years now. I've seen him through girlfriends, drug problems, etc. I've spent years covering up all his hateful skinhead tattoos and we are almost all done. Reecntly, I've seen him meet the love of his life, with almost all his history covered on his skin, and he just had a baby. I tattooed him on his 365th day of sobriety just recently. I almost get teary eyed at the thought of what a difference he has actively made in his life and he went from being a difficult, cancellation-crazy customer to someone who I just wqnt to hug when he's on his way out. When he leaves, everyone in the shop has smiles about how this guy turned his life around. I love that we all get inspired to be better people through his hard work. Such a great guy.

Well i pretty much do what ever people ask me to do. even the celtic tree that "should feel like strenght and love" what the fuck is that suppose to look like.....oh crisp and bright. right. when i get all upity about my job i just remind myself its not my tattoo my ego only extends till im done then its thiers for the rest of thier life. even if you got john mayers sleeve tattooed on you. haha.but i did that shit tight. seriously ill do it all i actually love tribal shit and people think im kidding but i do like it ,just not most of the people who lend to it, much like the anal retentive people who like celtic. but what can you do? i dont believe everyone should be tattooed, shoot me but this aint for eveyone.

I once did 17 lines around this dudes arm. Different colors. I will never do not a single line/stripe around any one ever again. Stupid sweat sock arms

man, julio, you hit it on the head! haha. ever notice the dudes getting superman logos are never tough? they can never take the pain.