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Here's mine from Friday at the London convention, done by Tony Hundahl. So unbelievably happy with this one! Nicked the picture from Tony's instagram as my camera is broken

Got this Shishi Lion from Alix Ge at the London convention yesterday (pic nicked from her instagram): When I arrived, Alix was still drawing. She told me we couldn't put the tattoo on the side of my thigh like I had asked for because for that I would have to lie down and she only had a chair. Well, alright then. When I came back from a short tour around the convention she had obviously done another drawing which was much bigger than the first. She thought the animal had to be rather large to be nice, good with me. But she didn't think we could fit peonies as well, would I be happy with cherry blossoms instead...? Bummer...what? Noooo...! Oh well, so we agreed to put on the lion stencil and see then. Stencil went on, peonies were added freehand. No problem, all fitted on there nicely....but...that was gonna be a looong session. If I was a strong woman, she asked. Ermmmmm, well, I bl**dy hoped so...what else could I say? She looked at me particularly sceptical after she found out it was only my second tattoo.... Obviously, we made it, yippie!!! Six hours on a folding chair with two breaks. Even though I got some odd looks and remarks for running around with a pillow under my arm, I was well glad I had brought it because it made the chair way more comfortable! Apart from that, getting tattooed at the convention was actually surprisingly good as there was so much to watch and get distracted by. I could openly stare at all the tattoos walking by and quite a few people gave me encouraging smiles and words. That was really cool. Alix is super lovely and I kinda felt a little bad for her having to sit on her small suitcase for hours. Towards the end she told me that she wouldn't be able to do what I did and that she'd never get a tattoo that takes more than one hour herself. I doubt that's actually true, but it was a sweet thing to say anyway. Suffice to say I'm super chuffed but also glad it's over! And this morning my 3 1/2 year old greeted me excitedly with "Mummy, I have a tattoo, too!". Turns out the entire family has tattoos now, some of them of the temporary type, some rather not ;-)

Awesome weekend at the London Convention. There were some awesome tattoos walking around and being created, not least on some LSTers. Congratulations to everyone that got some work. Everything I have seen so far looks great. I didn't get anything big or dramatic this weekend. Just this little guy by Len Leye at Clan of Tusk in Belgium. Really nice guy and fun time getting tattooed. It you don't know his work then check out his instagram.

here are some of my tattoos rufio - - - Updated - - - The ones visible here are done by Bunshin Horimatsu, Jondix, Jonas Pedersen, Iain Mullen, Cheyenne Sawyer, Matti Sedholm, Alex Reinke Horikitsune

reactivating this thread with my Thomas Hooper piece:

Finally got some half-way decent healed photos of my Hooper musician leg. On the other hand, trying to paste together such a single photo is near impossible, at least for an old geezer like me. I'll reactivate the squidpants thread by putting this there, too . . .

My mom still gives me a stink face when she sees a new one, so I don't tell her about them. I don't hide them, but I don't constantly update her. When she found out I went to Austin (I'm in NYC) for the sole purpose of getting tattooed, she was pretty pissed, though, and served me her A+ guilt-trip game. Her and her siblings (my uncle and aunt) all seriously dislike tattoos. Yet all their kids have them. It's a bit of sore point for them, but what are you gonna do.

We took our 7 year old daughter to a jr. roller derby practice on Weds to see if she might like it. She is so crazy about it she can't wait a whole week to go back. Will take her again tomorrow morning, before ballet class. So psyched the Derby Dolls moved into our neighborhood! Between this and her Friday after school program "Rock Star" where she's learning to play electric guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums, she's doing much cooler stuff than I did at her age.

well, got some bug tattoos and made the paper: photo by Shaughn Butts, Edmonton Journal

"Tattoos are luxury products. It's not something that anyone really needs." I remember reading it just like that somewhere for the first time and I have heard people expressed the idea since. I've thought about it a lot since and tried to formulate my thoughts on it. I'm not sure yet that I have a definitive comeback that I'd let people quote me on but let's explore the theme for a while. If you talk about different sorts of needs, in most cases I'd say tattoos are not fundamental to life in the way food, clothes and shelter are. Getting tattooed probably ranks pretty close to the top of Marslows pyramid of needs for most people. Of course there is circumstances where having certain tattoos could save your life (or make you lose it), just think of prison culture in many parts of the world. Many of us have seen the sensational documentary about tattoos of the criminal Russian subculture. You could also argue that sometimes tattoos can help in sexual interaction and from some evolutionary perspective help the poor genes in your body keep life going past your death. Then there is all the sociological aspects of in-groups and out-groups and how most people try to fit in someplace, if not in the mainstream then somewhere else. Some biologists talk about how having a sharp intellect is an aid in evolution, that it's an important factor in the sexual selection. The intellect in turn would be expressed in external symbols, status symbols, titles, behaviors, the clever words we use to impress each other and tell the world who we are. I've read people arguing that often art: both appreciating (the right) art in front of others (or symbols there of) and the performance/creation of art (or the symbols there of) is also a evolutionary strategy in order to find a mate and make children. Of course us humans enjoy thinking of ourselves, and humanity, as something more complex than that. At the same time sex and violence/love and death is at the core of both art and the human experience. Right now I am reading a book about evolutionary theory and one of the main points the author makes is that we have to bridge the gap between biology and the humanitarian sciences. Religion and art for example, has it's roots in evolutionary processes but has in part branched out and become so complex over time that often we forget it was created by the human brain, which was in turn formed through evolution. Maybe that was sort of a side track, decide yourself. Truth is you can not eat your tattoos, they won't shelter you from the elements and keep you warm. (But many people have in different ways made money from making tattoos or having tattoos, to put food on the table in their cave or hut) If I was really running low on cash, say I lost my job, getting tattooed would pretty quick be had to put on hold. So I could eat and pay rent. However, I suspect most people who do get tattoo regularly, especially those LST-forum members, can probably afford to live a pretty comfy lifestyle by a global standard (or even just comparing with people in their own country) and on top of that spend money on this kind of luxury. Sometimes I can feel guilty about it, like this money could pay for "real things" that could prove helpful. I know my parents think I should be saving money for an apartment to own, and such things, as if I wanted their way of life. Or just put money in the bank for "the future". Once my aunts man asked me how much I paid for a tattoo on my arm and when I told me he exclaimed "But that money could get you a moped!". But I don't want a moped... I said. I think many are provoked by heavily tattooed people for this reason, to different extent. A funny scene to illustrate this happened last week. By chance I ran into my friend Olle (some people might know him as @tattoo_pilgrim on instagram) outside of Systembolaget (state owned chained of stores in Sweden, the only one who legally can sell alcohol stronger than %3,5) We ended up standing right in front of the store, talking for 10 minutes. All the time people are going into the store to spend money on alcohol. Both me and Olle have tattoos showing, and right next to me sits a Roma woman, begging the shoppers for money. On my foot next to her I have a tattoo of a sleeping bum with a cloudy speech bubble containing the acronym C.R.E.A.M. I don't know exactly how it ties to what I am writing, maybe not at all in the sense of language, but I thought it was an absurd scene to be part of. I think most middle class people, and even working class people in some countries, can afford to spend huge sums of money on objects, interests and pursuits that are not crucial to their day to day existence. One example I often find myself using is that it is not considered weird to want to spend 20.000 euro on a car, or to lust after a watch for 500 euro. In fact it's culturally sanctioned and encouraged by advertising and other instances of our society. For me tattooing is great joy on so many levels. I would not be the person I am today without the tattoos, impressions, thoughts and experiences I've collected since 2009 when I got my first piece. I could never have imagined then what it would spiral into. I remember the first time I formulated for my father that tattoos could be a hobby even if you are not making tattoos, or to my new friend in Italy that tattooing was art. It was strange to put those words in my mouth then, I was not sure if I really had thought it through enough. But now, years later, I know that this what I think and feel is good for me. So spending that money and effort is all worth it. In the same way people enjoy fancy cars, travel the globe to see their favorite band perform, slave away at the gym, put hundreds of euros a month on clubbing, alcohol and drugs, and all other things that may or may not be luxurious to indulge in. And maybe in a way we are doing it because we believe that in this culture it will set us apart in a way that allow our genes to live on. So even if the acts are "un-natural" or superficial, the motivation is very human and basic. It's up for debate Hmm.. maybe this blog post-length rant is not going anywhere really. As I wrote, this is like a loosely weaved net of ideas that is still shifting in shape and content. Feel free to discuss whatever I wrote or introduce your own ideas tied to the theme. PS. I studied sociology for a while, but probably not enough to make any sense, perhaps you can tell D.S.

I like alliteration, assonance and words that rhyme but don't normally go together. Awful waffle. Enemy anemone. Sourpuss octopus.

Thanks guys! Here's a picture of my torso so far: - - - Updated - - - And here is the last tattoo I got, because I'm a maniac lol Done by Zack Spurlock at Anonymous Tattoo here in Savannah, GA. 5 hours in one sitting.

Mine is @ItsNewport My instagram is kinda fucked for now as my camera is unable to focus, but you can check out the Viking skull i got from Tony Hundahl on his instagram - it's the one with the red lightning running through it

My Mom's gone, and I only get to see my Dad about once a year. He knows I have a couple of tattoos, but I don't think he has any idea of the actual extent. I just don't see the point in upsetting him during the little bit of time we get to spend together (and he's 83). If we lived in the same city then I'd hope he'd get used to it . . .

I have a really frequent client, female, who comes in and goes, "So. I want a cutie mark." I looked at her and all that could go through my mind was, "You can`t say that in a tattoo shop..." It hurt my mind. Sent from my SCH-S968C using Tapatalk

Finally got to visit State of Grace and get my Molly Monmon Cat from Horitomo! He did an amazing job. Just spectacular. I sent several pictures of her and some descriptions of her favorite things, her personality and her character. She *loved* shrimp sushi and got an entire order for her 16th birthday, right before we lost her to cancer. Horitomo created a picture of her in heaven with a halo and surrounded by her favorite things - including that she is surrounded by catnip! The face is perfect. I gave him a decent size square footage and told him he could expand beyond the cat and add other elements. Her face is perfect. When he showed me the sketch, my eyes just teared up. It was neat to be tattooed on the platform in the shop. It is a little sanctuary with neat drawings, books and items on shelves. He is a quiet gentle soul. I tried tebori for the whites and I probably would not do it again. For many areas, I didn't even feel the first 4-5 pokes. It just felt like a shoving pressure but there was *no* pain. Then the last several shoves were painful. But around my hip was bad all around. I'm glad I did it, though. Crashing out now holed up in the hotel with mom. <3 <3 <3

so it does turn out great when you tell the artist to do what they want,this is what Alycia Harr at Classic Tattoo in Grass Valley California did on my upper arm/shoulder.I just got it finished on Monday ,I am very happy with it.. . .

Many years ago I think I may have been particular, but in the end...man, it was just all about the coverage. Power lines, bold, slam the fucker in. A crocodile over the ribs you say? Sounds good to me. A pipe smokin' wizard smacked on the side of the neck? Fuck yeah. But in saying that, after years of being tattooed by the one person, he just knew what suited me as much as I did.

Hi everyone, I'm Shane. I'm not a tattooer but I am a tattoo collector and enthusiast. I only have about 20 tattoos but I have a lot of coverage. I'm working on a full front torso panel right now by Dave Resp. I really love learning about tattoo history and hearing stories. I look forward to learning so much more on here!!! - - - Updated - - - I forgot to mention that I love painting for fun. I only paint tattoo related designs right now but it's a ton of fun and very cathartic. I'm always looking for advice on painting! Whether it be about techniques or composition, I can use your help!

Let's be real, who would?

I'm getting a sleeve by Thomas Hooper! Quite stoked on it.

If someone is interested in some powerful bold irezumi, lines made with machine and all shading with tebori, I can warmly recommend Horimatsu (@bunshin_horimatsu on instagram). He travels a lot, especially in Europe. My first experience of getting tebori done was a juzu bead around my ankle, by said Horimatsu, and it pretty much felt the same as a machine tattoo feels. Then a few months after that he visited Stockholm again and did a half sleeve on me, with some cover ups in it, in five consecutive days . He did all lines and also background (because of the cover up situation...) with machine. That took three days. Then he shaded all colour in two 3-4 hour sessions. The arm felt pretty bad after three days. I think the tattooer stretches the skin with more pressure when doing tebori tattoos, so the last two days were kinda rough. I think what I'm trying to say is it doesn't hurt more than machine tattooing, unless you have huge areas of freshly made tattoos around the areas being worked on with tebori tools. The healing was a bit different on the tebori bits, it kind of flaked off faster than the areas made with machine. Also, maybe ot, I know it may sound stupid for someone to get tattooed five days in a row, but I really wanted the arm finished. And it was a pretty cool experience:)

Here's an up to date shot of my torso tattoo. About half done, can't wait to finish it. Two and a half years in.

I have a tiger on my hip/thigh by Dave Resp. Hurt way bad but looks amazing. To answer the original question, unless it's like a Coleman or Grimm style head I prefer the whole tiger. It's so powerful a design when you see the whole thing. Unlike the panther which looks awesome as just a head.

Thank you, yes, we have to get that book! I wish I'd done it, too. When I saw her going out onto the floor, I wanted to jump in. They moved earlier this year. It's a great space. This kid is ready to rumble:

How many of you folks that think the parents would be so rough on their children have children of your own? They may still dislike tattoos, may be upset, disappointed, etc., but they aren't going to stop loving them. Your perspective changes a lot when they are your kids.

it gets interesting when you go forearm which i did this summer onto both forearms - i wear short sleeves at work (school counselor at a primary school) and as i predicted the kids love them and the adults have a multitude of comments and questions which have mostly died down its funny as my overall coverage increases i get more comments and let me tell you it is quite a revealing experience in terms of the social skills defecits that many adults around me have i myself feel that i have quite good tact when speaking with others - understanding what topics or commentary are in good form or poor taste, etc - but those around me - wow "how much did that cost, how can you afford that?" "why would you do that to yourself?" "what do you think you'll look like when you're 80?" and of course "what does it mean, it must mean something?" but i have no regrets going below the elbow and i intend to add more :) its funny though - i'm telling my wife how so many times in conversations that peoples eyes dart around to my tattooed areas and how that feels weird - she said - "now you know what it's like to have cleavage"

Got a few more hours in on my custom dragon chest piece! So close to being finished but so stoked on how it's come together. London Reese is a pleasure to get tattooed by. Very easy going and cool to talk to. The shop is great, everyone there is a really friendly, cool, and talented as hell. After this last session, I now understand why some people say the chest sucks. 15hrs down so far, only a little bit more to go.

@heathenist I think "a trippy Jesus head" sounds pretty good as a request. Way better than "I want something to represent my family, my place in the world and how I developed as a person. Please also include a shark"

Well, if it's really 2.5' x 2.5' it's going to be very difficult to cover! :) (Presumably it's really 2.5" x 2.5"...)

So this morning I put on a plain short-sleeved white T-shirt, and my upper arm piece barely peeks out from the edge of the sleeve. My husband, who has no tattoos but supports my own interest in them (he seems to be completely ambivalent about them - take them or leave them, to each his or her own, etc.) said to me, "Now that's bad-ass." I didn't know what he was talking about and asked what he meant, and he pointed to my arm, explaining that the tiny bit of tattoo showing at the bottom of my t-shirt sleeve made me look like a bad ass chick, and he seemed quite delighted! He typically doesn't remark on my tattoos much, whether they're showing or not showing, etc., so this was new for him. So, sometimes, just like clothing can do for the female form, just the suggestion of what might be underneath is just as intriguing as showing off the full tattoo. Interesting!

Wow, What an interesting thread! I guess for me, I would say tattoos are luxury items because I really could live without them. Sometimes I think that I couldn’t live without them, and they do have psychological benefits to me, and have helped me with self confidence and self-perception, but really, if my kids were starving, I would not have got them. Also there seems to be a lot of “black and white” in the definitions of luxury. Economist and dictionary definitions seem to tie consumption of luxury items to wealth or high income. But “average folks” - even people in lower income brackets - may have some luxury items. Is a cell phone a luxury? Is a flat screen TV a luxury? Maybe, maybe not. My view is that as long as you are feeding and educating your kids and family, and contributing to society in some way, and balancing your spending, it doesn’t matter. Say you have aways wanted an antique breakfront because you think they are beautiful. You say “someday I’m going to have one of those,” and you save for it, and watch for one of the right style and price and then one day one shows up in a antiques shop and you buy it. You love the way it looks in your dining room. Maybe it is the one piece of really nice furniture that you own, a focal piece. Is that a luxury? And while it is quite delightful to go into a house that is loaded with beautiful things everywhere you look, in some ways it is more meaningful and touching to go into the house where they have the one antique breakfront that they scrimped and saved to get. I’m sure some here on LST are have high wealth, and have tattoos. But I sense that a lot are not wealthy, so they scrimp and save, and cut expenses in other areas to get good tattoos that look exactly like the ones that the wealthy folks have. Are both luxury items? So maybe the key difference is “living a life of luxury” vs. having luxury items. Few of us live a life of luxury, but many of us can have some luxury items.

Evolutionarily I like to equate tattoos to the coloring on venomous animals. And the mating habits of birds. Not necessarily essential for the individual, but an inextricable part of effectively living a good life... My body doesn't need it but my soul does @Graeme makes a good point about tattoos not having an exchange value... There is no real economic interaction between clients and tattooers except for flash. The thought of tattoos appreciating in value, though, makes me wonder how much the stuff from tattoo city and what back in the days would be worth now To call them a luxury item is a bit silly to me... Anyone can tattoo themselves or someone else for free, with an original image or with some old flash. I guess theres kind of a division between tattoos and luxury tattoos. Is spending thousands on a backpiece part of the human experience? Or is finding a friend/being a friend who will tattoo you part of the human experience? Or is receiving/wearing the tattoo part of the human experience whether you paid admission or snuck in?

I think it's more like a medical procedure -- particularly cosmetic surgery, which is why I quoted both of you. Cosmetic surgery isn't often viewed as 'necessary' (though in some heinous cases of disfigurement, that point is certainly arguable), but it has the potential to add immeasurable quality of life to someone's existence. Sure, there are cosmetic procedures that the majority of the population would consider 'frivolous,' but at the end of the day, the only person who can put a value on it is the person wearing the results. People spend GOBS of money of veneers, facelifts, breast implants, etc., but those also have no exchange rate (and few people these days consider that outré, barring extreme examples). Both cosmetic procedures and tattoos are tied to our self-ideation heavily. Tattoos differ -- quite possibly from any other comparable material purchase -- because there's a whole amazing culture, with a history that feels rich, full of fascinating characters, and the time we spend actually being tattooed is as much a part of the process as anything. I know fuck-all about the history of plastic surgery, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't consider any pre-op time with the doc to be an integral and cherished part of the experience, lol. In that sense, there's probably just no comparison!

Very good idea for a thread, @mmikaoj and there's so much great discussion here. My wife is as into tattoos as I am so what I spend on tattoos isn't a contentious point in our relationship. For all the things my parents have said about my tattoos, they've never really brought up money. I recall my mom once made a comment once about how they must be expensive, but when I confirmed that without offering any specifics she didn't make any judgmental comments or say that I could be spending my money on better things or anything like that. They have all kinds of feelings about my tattoos and particularly the extent to which I'm getting covered, and surprisingly not all of them are negative anymore, but they've never tried to make me feel guilty about spending money on them. My inlaws would be super judgmental, but that's why they don't know either of us have tattoos. So basically I don't feel any guilt or have any bad feelings about spending my disposable income on tattoos, and when I think of things that I spent money on before I started getting tattooed (booze and records!), tattoos are a much better use of my time and money. Tattoos given me experiences, growth, stories, and friendships that I wouldn't have had otherwise and they've enriched my life in countless ways. I agree that tattoos are a luxury in that they don't shelter or feed you--tattooers will rightly disagree with me here--but I like what @cltattooing is getting at above about them meeting a psychological and spiritual need. I don't think they're entirely frivolous in the way that I think that, say, buying the latest electronic gadget is. It's fascinating how tattooing is something that has been around probably as long as humans have been around and yet still persists. We all have our reasons for getting tattooed but I think there must be some deeper, primal drive down there at the root of it and that getting tattooed and being tattooed is a fundamental part of what it means to be human. I am not so sure about tattoos being a "product" though. Yes, there's an exchange of money for a service rendered, but it's not the same as going to a car dealer and driving off the lot with a new car, or buying a TV. Obviously the process is entirely different but there's something more happening there and tattoos have a different economic character than most goods. Economics isn't my strongest subject, so somebody here who does understand economics is probably going to bust my balls here and say that I am totally wrong because I am applying economic analysis of commodities to something that isn't a commodity because I'm a fool, but it seems to me that tattoos don't have exchange value and that sets them apart from most goods we spend money on. I can't trade in my old dated tattoos for the latest most fashionable ones. It's not like art collecting in that there's no speculating on the future value of my tattoos. If we want to compare tattoos to other things we spend money on, I think tattooing shares more characteristics with spending money on education than it does with spending money on things. Or maybe it's more like spending money on a vacation or something like that? I don't know. I'm thinking out loud here and poorly articulating half-baked ideas.

Luxury in that I don't need them to live. I can not get tattooed and live a functional life. I won't be nearly so cool looking or feel so pretty w/my many colors..but they're not like water. But they're a need for me in that it's a way of self expression. I have huge issues w/my appearance and feel...not good about myself. But I love my tattoos and like how they make me feel about myself. Money wise...I am on a jewelry forum and some of the people there have crazy insane budgets, and others, like me, need to decide what's important and spend some time socking money away in order to get an heirloom worthy piece. Just like w/tattoos, you get what you pay for, and you need to research where you go. I did my research and got myself an heirloom worthy piece. Sadly I can't pass my tattoos on to my kids haha. I do feel guilty about the money we've put into our tattoos. (and my jewelry) W/that I can tell JD if he divides the cost by the number of years we've been married, he's got me at a bargain. W/tattoos, I figure-what else can you spend that money on and have forever?

Tattoos are definitely a luxury good, by definition. If any of us were to win $100,000 tomorrow, we would surely want another tattoo, probably one larger or better than we have had before (as long as enough bare skin remained). And yet as each year passes they become less and less luxurious. Cell phones were once exorbitantly expensive and truly "luxury", now they are all but necessity in our culture and owned by many people who we would otherwise say were extremely poor around the world (most people I met in Haiti had a cell phone, though they often didn't have electricity of their own to charge them). I'm not certain, but 'poor/lower class' people in the West are probably more likely to have a tattoo than a "wealthy" person. There are also many tribes/cultures around the world where by our standards they live in abject poverty and yet they have tattoos - they spent time and resources on them even though they aren't needed. Unless, maybe, they are on some level? Tattoos are also unusual because they are flexible/ scaleable in a way that many goods are not. A quarter-sized bird silhouette is "a tattoo", and so is a Battle Royale full backpiece. But a Hot Wheels is not "a car" the same as a Cadillac. So classifying all tattoos in the same way (luxury/normal) isn't fully accurate.

Tattoos are a luxury good, but they are also in a way the anti-luxury good. I hate having a lot of possessions, and I hate how society encourages us to buy new, not reduce the amount of things being put into production. Tattoos are anti-production because they are a luxury we can have, that go with us to die, and leave no additional lasting fingerprint afterwards (anyone who's had to deal with what to do with a loved one's possessions after they have passed will understand the struggle!). I like the idea of them being a statement against physical goods and against wastefulness.

Good for you for working it all out. To be quite honest, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, it looks like you're just starting to figure out some of the basics of drawing for tattoos. I'd spend some time tracing stuff. Seriously. That SJ rose you see on the wall. Trace it 100 times. That way you know it by heart. Repeat. On whatever subject matter you like. Nothing too big. Just things to get your understanding down. I would hesitate to do any of those as tattoos just yet. That whole crawl before you can walk thing. I started in the same place, and not too long ago at that. While I have a fine art background, learning to draw a panther, or oni, or rose, or swallow, or dragon, or whatever...it takes a lot of practice to do so correctly. I'm still figuring it all out...much like the rest of us.

Teenager conversation at the grocery store... Teenage Girl Cashier: "Like OMG this lady I know, like, she got a tattoo of a cobra snake ON HER CLEAVAGE. Like, OMG, you could see EVERYTHING. I mean, like, she was wearing clothes but OMG, like you could see her tattoo. Why would you get a tattoo so everyone could see it?" Teenage Bag Boy/Bro: "Yeah, well I heard you can get a tattoo for $100." Me: "Try double per hour" TGC: "Well, like, how long did your tattoo take to finish?" Me: "12 years so far" TGC: "Like, OMG that is sooo expensive." Me: "Would you rather be covered in cheap tattoos or nice tattoos?" TBBB: "Yeah bro, when I'm gonna get my tattoo, like, it's going to be the most expensive tattoo possible."

I've been tattooed by some super "famous" tattooers and by some people no one's ever heard of. I am very, very wary of a sort of "starfucker' mentality in tattooing. There are so many amazing people that aren't as well known as they should be because maybe their style isn't trendy, or they're not on social media, or they just don't prioritize instagram like others do, or they don't travel to conventions as much, etc. People who are well known only gets you so much. And that one tattooer is more well known than another is not necessarily because they are "better". There is a lot of noise in this subculture, and I am very careful to pay attention to what really turns me on, so to speak, about a tattooer's work, and not get swept up in their name, hype, trendiness, whatever. I had a really good chat about this with a fairly "famous" tattooer recently, who said that while they get a lot of "collector" types coming to them, they can immediately tell the difference between someone seeking them out because they are really psyched on their work, and someone who is more interested in their name and adding it to their list. Apparently there is a pretty big difference in the experience of tattooing these different kinds of people. It was a nice conversation in that I sometimes feel self-conscious when people ask me who my stuff is by, or who I am planning to get tattooed by in the future, and this person was basically like: don't worry. If you are genuine in your enthusiasm, people can tell. If you're a douche and just want to cover yourself in big names, people will know the difference. Our true intentions show through, and it's important to me to connect with a tattooer's work in a very primal way. Basically, to this person, there is an upside and a downside to having a "big name". All of which to say that I think there is an important difference between recognizing, talking about and respecting the work of people who are doing awesome, creative and inspiring things, and getting wrapped up in names and tattoo celebrity. The former is what makes this community so great, but I think the latter is basically poison to any sense of creativity and authenticity. And the line between them can be thin. I also agree with others that the experience of getting a tattoo, or if I can put it in hippie terms, the vibes that go into it, is super important. At this point I am unlikely to get tattooed by someone that I haven't heard about through someone else as being awesome. Instagram photos are not enough.

Close up of mine, by Chad Koeplinger. (Healed)

Can't make this shit up. Two recent conversations from the bar. Number One! Me: What're you up to tonight? Girl: Well I supposed to get tattooed but my tattoo artists rejected me! Me: What?! What happened? Girl: (Pulls out a piece of paper with a crazy long math/physics equation and begins to unfold to show me.) Well, I was supposed to get this on my finger, but-- Me: (Bursts out laughing) Yeah, that ain't going on your finger... Girl: He laughed at me, too! Me: Yeah. Sorry to laugh, it's just so long you won't be able to get it that small and still see what it is. What about on your arm, or wrapping around your wrist? Girl: Yeah, that's what he suggested, too. Especially because it's my only tattoo or whatever. But I'm a programmer and I want to look at it while I'm working at the keyboard. He also suggested that I shouldn't get it in white. Me: White.. ink? Girl: Yeah. Because it's for me. And I don't want anyone else to just be able to see it like that. Me: Sounds like maybe you should think about it some more.. After that initial talk we had a pretty cool conversation about the equation and the dual reality somethingorother it pertains to. She was a super smart person in that realm for sure. I left her with the suggestion of getting a cat in a box as a much cooler design (part of this theory about a cat being in a box with the lid closed and there being two realities..) but she was pretty set on the equation. Number Two! The set up here.. it was late, this chick was at the bar for a while so obviously a little drunk. Girl: Hey, you get your tattoos here? Me: Yeah, mostly, at this point kind of all over. Girl: Where should I go? Me: Hard to go wrong in this neighborhood, Three kings, Eight of Swords, Adorned, Saved... Girl: Are they open? Me: When...? Girl: Now. Me: It's almost two in the morning -- no shops are open right now. Girl: Really? None?? Me: You could go into the city and check out West 4th St. but I really encourage you to not do that. Girl: So.. there are no tattoo shops open in Brooklyn right now is what you're telling me. Me: That's what I'm telling you. Girl: (Takes her drinks that I made her and begins to walk away.) Fuck this borough. And I thought that would be the end of it! She came back and wanted to talk some more. Girl: So, it says XXSHOPXX is right off of XXSTREETXX -- is that close by? Me: It's not far but I'm telling you it's not open. Why don't you just wait? Girl: YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. My friend over there is only in town tonight and we won't be in the same city again for like maybe a couple years. Me: Well that might work better, you can both get great tattoos in your respective cities and they'll probably be way better than trying to get it in at like 2 AM. You could get something awesome! Girl: Nope, you don't get what I'm saying. Me: (Past the point of patience and I can't walk away because I'm making them another round of drinks.) It sounds like you probably shouldn't get tattooed. It sounds like a bad idea is what I think you're saying. Girl: Well aren't they all? Me: I'm sorry..? Girl: All of this (pointing to my arms) -- you can't tell me any of this is actually a good idea. Me: Did you really just say that? Girl: Well, I mean, come on.. when you're 90. They're going to look like shit. Me: No, they're going to look awesome and I'm going to be an awesome 90 yr old with tattoos that I didn't get at fucking two in the morning. This is going to be your last round, I'll have the server bring your check over and you can still make it over to West 4th, the cab ride shouldn't be much more than $20! Girl: Whatever. Me: Have a good night! Good luck! Hope I'm not sounding like too much of an asshole.. My bar persona is always ten thousand times nicer than my real life demeanor but this second girl really pushed it. I'll put up with a lot of idiots and I know how to handle plenty of bullshit but when you outright insult me in my own bar..? You're done. I hope she went and got tattooed.. everyone gets the tattoo they deserve!

it's not like tattoos are a gom jabbar, sifting out the humans from the animals. +1 if you get the reference