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made a trip to michigan over the weekend jeff zuck @ name brand tattoo. not sure why the picture looks weird at the top of the flames alex boyko @ sunhouse then today on my way home i swung by old soul and got this from john hill

Hey guys...I'm not on the boards too much lately because frankly, I'm kind of tired of even thinking about tattoos at the moment. This current project I'm working on is the most grueling yet. Once I finish this piece, I think I'll go back to traditional one shots on my arms, because this thing is burning me out. Anyway, I met with Sam Warren recently to work on doing some coloring (so far we've done one for lining, one for black and gray shading, and now one for color). One more session to go next month to finish coloring and maybe do some touching up. Sorry the pic is horrible but have you ever tried taking a picture of your own thigh? It ain't easy. Here's some close ups of the key components:

Here is the piece I just got in Springfield, Oregon at the Evergreen Tattoo Invitational. It's not quite finished but will get it's final touches in Vegas in a couple weeks. It's a collaboration piece done by Christian Buckingham and Dwight Bulb who both work out of Revolt in Vegas. Christian did the black and gray realism of Archangel Gabriel and Dwight did the Neo Traditional Jasmine flowers. Ended up sitting for almost 11hr over 2 days and had a blast! It was my first convention and was such a great setting to get a tattoo. Had originally scheduled with Christian who did my first 2 tattoos but when he asked if I had any interest in doing a collaboration with Dwight I felt honored and jumped at the opportunity. I'm amazed at how nicely the Neo Traditional works with the Realism and it really does frame out the angel is such a stunning way....basically two great tattoos in and of themselves. Dwight did all of the flowers freehand and they fit my arm so perfectly. In June this sleeve will be continued onto my lower arm in some way. I want to have a cavern with a devil and maybe some dead trees and/or wilted flowers...?? The art isn't decided yet but will be a Heaven and Hell sleeve basically. Will have Christian and Dwight collaborate on the lower half too so that it carries well. Hard to get all of the piece in one pic but will get some nicer pics after the work is done and it's healed. I'm so completely stoked about this tattoo and feel like I got such a great one for it being my 3rd piece.

that was you! ugh, when it popped up, i was screengrabbed it instantly!

A little twist on a classic. Picked from the incredibly twisted, but amazing, sketch book of Matt Kerley.

Greggles and I did a thing today. Haven't been in a tattoo shop since last summer. I dunno if that was the reason, or if this spot was just really tender, but holy crap, I feel like I just got hit by a truck! Poor Greg. I was unusually squirmy. Worth it though, as always. https://www.instagram.com/p/BCmDYNNzBHG/ We set the appointment to line my back for April 9th. I am legit scared of a day that consists entirely of lining! Haha. Especially since we're aiming to line the whole freakin' thing in one shot. Excited, though.

So yeah i'm not great at introductions but much better online than I am in person my names Jo :) i'm 22 and I got my 1st tattoo last november/december time and my 2nd in January 1st Tattoo: Just after it was finished - https://www.instagram.com/p/_cxpObJiQr/ All healed up - https://www.instagram.com/p/BAaMUlqJiVe/ it wraps a bit on both sides so it's hard to get a photo but you get the gist 2nd tattoo: Just after it was finished: https://www.instagram.com/p/BAxQatPOFF5/ mostly healed (video): https://www.instagram.com/p/BBckockJiab/ I'm hoping to get something done by Jef Small when I'm in Amsterdam in May and i'm currently emailing a local artist about having something done at the end of June. Unreleated to tattoos i'm a "mature" student who's doing history at un, my dream job would be to open a cow sanctuary because cows are great but i'd also like to travel too. I also really like pizza and most other animals except bees and moths they can fuck off.

This is a good place to get your first tattoo if this is the place you want your tattoo, that's all anyone can really say about it. There is no hard and fast rule, though I think most would agree hands and neck/face should be later on down the line! I think a lot of women these days tend to start out on their feet, hip, shoulder, or other places like that where they can very easily keep the tattoo hidden. Then, they either stop there and never get another one, or they like it and start to get more. I always have a very specific idea in mind of where my tattoos will go and I can't explain why, but there's no need to. If this is the spot where you picture your design on your body, then this is where it should go. It should be a pretty simple process in terms of the logistics of having it done, just by wearing a cami or tank top, like you say. You'll only see it in a mirror though, and that's the bummer (to me!) about tattoos on the back, but it is a great spot since it looks good, doesn't necessarily get a lot of sun exposure (less fading) and is easy to hide or not hide, depending on the circumstances.

i'm 2 weeks plus post knee tattoo and still dealing with scabs but... finally can see the light at the end of tunnel was a pretty tough heal though basically knee became a swollen oatmeal cookie for awhile little bit of color / line droppage meh - i still dig it - rob did a great job and it was a blast would i get the other knee done oh hell yeah!

yep,I wash starting after 3 or 4 hours after the tattoo application in a warm shower scrubbing the tattoo with the palm of my hand with a anti-microbial soap and then 2 or 3 times a day for the first 3 or 4 days.

Aww thank you, I was originally going to get a smaller piece but i took advantage of a cancellation appointment with Antony who's work i've admired for like 2/3 years now. Told him I wanted a cat and some roses and I got that, it took two sittings overall to do. One for lines and black and the other for the colour but super happy with how it turned out.

bunch of traditional tattoos is a great choice

Thanks so much for the amount of information. It must have taken you some time. I really like the stuff by Casper and Kirk Shandro, and I will take everything into consideration. :o

You're not wrong.

I say get what you like your tattoos will age some more gracefully than others but hey look your tastes may change maybe you end up with tattoos of different styles along the way picking a good artist though is more important than the style why worry what its gonna look like in 10 years aint no day promised to ya but the one your living besides - they look good "lived in"

My nipples are decorations so I am leaving em'!

i think it's a nice old mom rose keep it and patch a bunch of traditional style tattoos around it

cheers thx GraemeHi Becky @Clementine People ask me hey Budd where did ya get your tattoos done. I just say "Edmonton" haha. We have a lot of tattoo shops per capita which is a good and bad thing. In the sense that we have a lot of accessible good tattooers and saturated with what I consider just-average tattooers; it can be tricky to navigate as a newcomer. Your first tattoo...the shop itself should as an important qualifier as the tattooers portfolio because we want you to have an awesome and memorable first experience. Champion Tattoo * This is Shawn Hedley's shop. He has been tattooing for a long time and is a 'tattooers tattooer'. He is superfriendly, has some great war stories and has a reputation for customer satisfaction. I'd like to get something from Shawn one of these days. Teddy Kardos* has a few years of experience and is pretty good. Solid dude. He has been tattooed by a lot of wicked tattooers so he knows his stuff. I have the 2nd worst tattoo he's done lol. Champion looks and feels like a tattoo shop should in my eyes. Walkins always available in all styles. I've been pointing people here lately cause I had such awesome experiences at the shop last year. Showdown Tattoo & Skateboards Dope shop in Chinatown. Casper* works out of here that's who first came to mind for what you've described in your post. I've got some early colour work on my legs from Casper which is funny cause he runs the Blackworkers page and tattoos in black ink exclusively. This is your guy if you want that illustrative/black style. Ryan Buttar does some dope colour traditional and also seen some nice geometric/mandala/fillagree black tattoos. Andrew is a rad dude and does it all. Get Taz or Hot Stuff from him. Doing Tattoo This is Severino's shop. He does some incredible grafitti neo-japanese in a very unique big style. OllieXXX* is my homie he's done about 25% of my tattoos. He does it all but really if you want the brightest god damn colours around and black that's blacker than blackity black. His tattoos are fast and furious but damn do they hold up. Kat may be also be a good choice if you want illustrative or portrait black n grey tattoo. * I've been tattooed at the shop or by the person Other decent shops: Lucky Strike Tattoo* Fountainhead Tattoo Easy Tiger Tattoo - Spencer Evans new shop. Bunch of pals have small trad bangers from him and they like em. Shades of Grey Tattoo* - cool spot on whyte, esp if you like geek stuff like star wars. Danny Gordey just started doing walkins on weekends here which is amazing opportunity to get a piece from one of the OG-best tattooists in town. Kirk Shandro - i think he's at atomic dragon or something. nice young dude with a sick tattoo and flash collection. actually his simple black illustrative tattoos may be up your alley. I know you've said black n grey...that's what i wanted and got for my first...and ended up with a big colourful background. and 10 years later a royGbiv bodysuit life is much fuller in colour. And don't be afraid to go much bigger than you planned ;) tattoos look better that way eh It really depends what YOU want, I mean that's what tattooing is all about. But here's a starting point. The rest of the work is you. Good luck ! and let us know how it turns out.

@chrisnoluck that jeff zuck tattoo is awesome - - - Updated - - - @chrisnoluck that jeff zuck tattoo is awesome

Just go for it, you don't have to be in a hurry to finish maybe try and do 2 days each trip if that's possible, like everybody else has said if you love that artist then itl be worth it, what's 30 hours of flying for a tattoo that lasts a lifetime

Thanks, it was a milestone one for me. First tattoo below the elbow - - - Updated - - - Thanks, it was a milestone one for me. First tattoo below the elbow

so we went to the Fresno,CA tattoo expo yesterday and had all saturday afternoon with Oliver Peck. Central Valley Tattoo . I got these two, . . . . and this one on my left lower thigh,it's a little bruised now. and Saniderm on it. . . . and my wife got this . . . . we had a really great day getting tattooed together at a convention,it was awesome.

Check out Mike Moses in Columbus, OH. He's very illustrative, but not exactly like the above style. There are plenty of sketchy tattooers in the US however, they usually do full sleeves for a pack of smokes and dimebag.

Latest and greatest. 9hrs worth. Full color coming next session in March

so it turns out healing a knee tattoo is...not fun :) meh

Unfortunately after I finished my back the itch didn't stay scratched for too long. Started this piece on Thursday. I have been shitting myself about starting the front and I wasn't disappointed, there were some seriously ouch spots. Have to keep telling myself the end result is worth it. :)

Ta Moko designs are based around genealogy, social rank and status, accomplishments, and so on, so I could see a hypothetical situation where you got a Maori tattoo because "they have the most badass warrior culture on earth" and ended up getting a tattoo that describes somebody else's life and family. Would Maoris be offended by this? I don't know, but they'd probably think you're a dumbass for getting a tattoo of something that you're engaging with so superficially. I do think the same goes for Viking stuff. If you're going to get magical staves tattooed on you, it's probably best to understand what you're getting and what it means. The trend a few years ago of people getting Masonic imagery is another example of this: you might think it looks cool and mysterious and occult, but people who know how to read the imagery know you have gibberish on you and you come across as a moron as a result. I don't see how getting a tattoo just because it looks cool and having no understanding beyond that is any different than somebody getting kanji while not understanding the language.

I know it's hard to not think like this especially if you are new to getting tattooed or prone to getting star-struck (me), but you shouldn't! Tattooers are just people with a specialized skill set. We owe our lives to the clients and have no valid reason to think that we are better than you. Don't get tattooed by people who think that you owe them something, can't stress that enough. You will find that the more you get tattooed, the experience is just as important as the art. Get tattooed by people who not only do awesome work, but who are friendly and humble people that you will want to spend however many hours in close proximity with. If you aren't comfortable in your tattooer's presence, you probably shouldn't get tattooed by that person. Hope that helps :)

While I was at Frith Street my beautiful squeeze had her second session. A really stunning Day of the Dead Girl, tattooed by Stewart Robson.