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Holy poop. Just booked travel to Denmark for a tattoo in May.

3.5 hours put in today by Tim and I. We covered a lot of ground, outlining my entire arm. the ditch of my arm wasn't awesome. Unfortunately for me theres an oni head right there so its going to seeing a lot more abuse. The atmosphere at atlas is rad, theres absolutely zero ego floating around. Everyones interested in what their peers are doing. Stoked to head back next week.

I'll throw mine in the ring. Scott Sylvia, done at the Richmond Convention a few years back.

Sup y'all!!! Super stoked, getting my jap half sleeve done this weekend in Thessaloniki!! 2 days 7 hours each. Going on a 4 day trip with the girlfriend to do it! Koi on the outside, and an Oni on the inner bicep... Been waiting/planning/searching for 2 years for this peace, and here i am on the precipice of the needles.. and actually found myself dreaming that i went to a different tattoo shop, and forgot to tell some random artist about the oni, and the tattoo came out completely f'd up hahahaha Ill definitely upload pics when its done!!

The fact that it is older and a bit faded will indeed assist in blending in with black and grey around it. More roses, and bury a skull in there somewhere. Nice name by the way . . .

The dog is my frist dog

https://www.instagram.com/handoftheforge/ She is guesting at Hand of Glory in NYC the 16-18th of this month. Everyone in the Big Apple hop on the guest list!

Colin Baker. Working next the the likes of Horitomo I can understand living in the shadow. That being said I think he is killing it right now.

Hello there! I am booked in with a local artist for my first proper tattoo, a full sleeve featuring my wonderful pets; my hound/collie cross, my three guinea pigs and two budgies :) I am absolutely certain on my chosen subject(s) but I had a dreadful tattoo experience just over ten years ago, including some horrible laser removal and it absolutely ruined anything to do with tattoos for me, plus the darn thing is still on my arm! Anyway, after dealing with some mental health problems last year, I decided to start to try and enjoy things again and I found myself looking up tattoo artists who specialise in the bright and the bold. Fortunately I have found one fairly local to me and his work (I feel) could add the element of fun that I'm looking for to represent how much joy my animals bring to me, but... I'm genuinely worried that it could be exactly like ten years ago, when I got home and burst into tears at how terrible it was! I know its different this time, this artist actually has talent for a start! and the studio has a very good reputation but the doubts still linger. I have even woke up in the middle of the night thinking "what am I doing?!" but the excited part comes in and reminds me of how crap things were last year and that those little animals got me through each day and how amazing it would be to have a dedication to them. I must admit, I do wonder if I'm the "right sort" of person to have a tattoo by which I mean, I can get hung up on very small things that to a regular person wouldn't really matter. If you have any words of wisdom/advice it would be truly welcome!

my first back piece session was linework by Chad Koepligner and Jondix. They both work super fast, which means they were ripping into me pretty good. It was painful as F*** and there are fewer breaks. usually, you get the breather when your artist is dipping, wiping, or thinking. in the case of having multiple artists, one artist's break is the other's prime time. I posted about it here, in the collaboration thread: here's some video evidence: the appearance of the one session where they both worked on me simultaneously turned out just fine.

Thank you for the reassuring words marfil98 I love the "its art, not science" advice, I'd never thought of it that way before. The artist I have chosen seems to be capable of a wide range of styles, from the absolute bizarre to the incredibly adorable, but it's his bold line work and strong use of colour that has really won me over. I am booked in for a full day (including consolation) on the 8th of feb. The only good thing I can say about my old crappy tattoo is that I don't remember it hurting, either that or I dealt with the pain well , which hopefully will come in handy for a long sitting

Trust me I know the feeling. It's very easy to obsess over every little slip or tiny shake in the line work, I still do sometimes, but the best piece of advice I was given on here was "it's the little imperfections that give it character" "It's art, not science" And remember, most of the time we're the only ones who notice the little mistakes because we're looking so closely. So, if you like the design, and you've seen your artist's portfolio and like his/her work, I say go for it!

Dude. That photo of her finished Bowie/Freddie piece is super freaking cool. Thanks for turning me onto another awesome artist! I'd never seen her work before. People who kill portraits are such a special breed. @Dan

It's really hard to give an opinion on what I assume is just a placement sketch. If you're not into butterflies, have the artist do them as moths instead, seems to go with the theme.

Wow, Chris is the master! I love his work. I've never seen anything of his that I didn't love, love, love. Paul Dobleman is doing mine. I'm trying to figure out if I want full face, profile or 3/4. It's going on the side of my left hip. @suburbanxcore

My satanic girl by Sheena Gabriella.

Missed skulls, so I'll enter this month for fun (not a chance of winning with @Gingerninja's back in the competition!). It's by Joshua Henderson, Brainstorm Tattoos, 2014.

Okay, I'm in. Dagger by Grez (Kings Avenue) done at Pagoda 2015.

Well, I just got back from the shop a few hours ago to finish coloring/shading my moth tattoo. I was told the blue and dark brown in the head would lighten up a bit making the contrast/shading more visible. Will post a healed pic in a few weeks. P.S. If it looks slightly crooked, it's just stretched due to my arm taking the picture.

I got this at the beginning of September . I did post it,but only in the images section.

David Bowie blackstar

This was done last night by Gina at Studio 69 tattoo... on my ribs. Came close to tapping out. The mark on the upper left is a drain from my heart surgery.

Getting a "gone too soon" tattoo tomorrow night in honor of my late wife Barbara. I'll post a picture of it after my appointment.

Getting a Hannya from Myke Chambers in February. Super excited!

Wow, @Michaelshane . I love Marie Sena's work. That cat is in the most comfortably odd position. Something I am doing with my backpiece (there's a tiger involved).

By Marie Sena.

My first was 2 hearts and a banner with my wife (at the time) and my name in a banner. Actually pretty well done. This was in 1977. By 1979 her name was inked over. In 1980 the whole tattoo was covered with a snake and rose. In 2011 that tattoo was covered up with a big peony. I think it is now covered up enough.

that's cool ! my wife and myself got tattooed at a convention together at two different conventions this year,we had back to back appointments by the same artist at each show,it was a really great time to spend together getting tattooed. My wife also recently had two large tattooes done by 2 different artists within two weeks of each other,I had 4 done this year ,it's been a busy year for us too ! it might sound sappy,but both shows we went to and got tattooed at was a real bonding fun time for us.

So, I've gone a little crazy lately. I already had an appointment in December with Chauncey "CK" Kochel. Then I made my appointment with Dave Wah in January for the Austin convention.......well, my wife and I decided we needed a vacation..... So, we both have appointments in February with Freddy Negrete at Shamrock in LA. After that, I swear I'll slow down.

Kevin Leblanc. He's been killing it for a long time and his name only pops up here and there. I don't believe he gets the credit he deserves.

Nami Chang from Three Tides, Osaka.