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Scott Sylvia is the theme for this month's tattoo, right?

Ok well I definitely wouldn't put any color in the actual cat, but you could definitely frame out the bottom with some nice bold flowers and the juxtaposing styles would look really nice together. Overall, not a bad tattoo, but I do think it could have been applied by someone with more skill. Unfortunately, there is not really a middle ground between lackluster photo-realism and outstanding photo-realism. It's just one of those styles that tends to fall short if you're not at the very top of your game. I think if you go to a seasoned artist who works in several styles and has 20+ years under their belt with a solid portfolio, that person could probably do a lot to make that tattoo more crisp and visually legible. Just my .02 edit: and just to be clear, I don't think it's a bad tattoo, but I can see where your dissatisfaction comes from. It's definitely an easy fix with the right artist. If you let me know where you live, I can help point you in the direction of someone who can do it.

Thanks for the nod Also I'll be there through the 19th and still have some available appointments if any of you lovely new yorkers are reading this

@HonestBridge Young grasshopper, you have much to learn.

it's all downhill from here!

Let me try again.

Congratulations and welcome to the forum! Nice work - and it's even more so because it has special meaning to you. Well done. I waited until I was almost 61 to get my first so you're on a better timeline than me.

Yeah, after doing a bit more research I've decided against it. What I wanted to know was basically: If you saw someone with this tattoo would you assume they were in the military? And now knowing that answer is yes, I can't in good conscience get it. I still want some form of dagger tattoo on my forearm but I'll go with something with no ties to the military, like a dagger through a rose, or through a panther head, or through a skull etc. I agree with you on the whole political correctness thing Dan, but in my opinion, nowadays nobody assumes that someone's in the navy because they have an anchor tattoo. Much like sparrows/swallows and nautical stars, anchors have become a mainstream staple of traditional tattoos. And likewise I wouldn't assume that someone was Maori because they had polynesian tribal tattoos. But this specific design, the "Death Before Dishonor" dagger, still seems to be worn mainly by members of the military. I agree that nobody owns any form of art and I don't buy into the whole "cultural appropriation" thing either, hey, if you want to get something like a mandala or whatever go for it! But let's say you were to get a tattoo of the Wal*Mart logo, it would be logical to assume that you were or are employed by walmart. Again, I'm not trying to tell anybody what they can and can't do, but in my personal opinion military tattoos are like MC colors, if you haven't earned them, don't wear them.

I was never in the Navy,but I got my anchor tattoo like many people have and I'll guess most have not been in the Navy either. just like my Marquesas ,and my polynesian,and native american feathers tattoos,is all just art. I don't think it's disrespectful at all,screw the politically correct crap ! like I said before,nobody owns a style or form of art. IMO no big deal. sorry for the rant,and I didn't mean to derail your thread.

In my mind, this tattoo does have a more specific military meaning - although it can obviously be tied to the greater concept of virtue and the commitment to protect it at all costs. A quick search of the web will yield many references to it as having a military tie. As a retired Army officer, I would automatically assume that anyone I saw with this tattoo had some military experience. That said, people are free to have whatever they want as a tattoo. Personally, this falls into the real of "just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should." And, of course, this is just my own very personal opinion. Actually, if/when I opt to have a lower arm tattoo done, some version of this would be my choice.

if it's this tattoo, you can just use the same thread.

I can't see anything.

Welcome!

I'm probably biased since 99% of my tattoos are by him, but Joshua Henderson at Brainstorm is amazing. Love the guy and his work. https://www.instagram.com/joshuahenderson/

There they are. Amazing!! @Acedia your pics don't seem to have come through!

Yeah, don't put color in the cat because it's already somewhat on the dark side, and any color you add will only layer over it and make it darker. And Dubai, oh man that's kinda tricky. I don't really know of any artists working over there and the preliminary searches I've done on the web and through instagram haven't really brought up much that's any good. Maybe post the artists you find here and I can help you figure out who is worth seeing.

Lol sorry about that. I uploaded the photo with my post but didn't realize it failed. Hope you guys can see the pics attached. Thanks!

Hard to say without seeing a photo, do you have one?

Theo Mindell demon.

My sneaky panther concealing a mini dagger with his tail made by Shawn O'Connor

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

That's too bad.

I had this done last night on my foot. Surprised the pain was quite tolerable. I was medicated but not that much. We breezed right through it in 2 hours flat. I went to bed that night and then it was painful and took something for pain. Today only surface swelling and it feels pretty good. I'm staying in for the next few days to give it time to heal.

I'm not itchy yet and the peel is done. It's like waiting for the other shoe to drop.

@66pens87, it's hard to say how long a sleeve would take to complete. There are many factors. How fast is the artist? How well do you sit? How well do you heal? How many breaks do you and your artist take during sessions? How large are you? The larger the arm, the longer it will take as there's more coverage to fill. A lot of artist don't like quoting time because of all the varying factors. As long as you show up for your appointments, you should be good. After your first session or two, you'll probably get a gauge on some of the above and you'll probably be able to figure a ball park time. Have fun starting a new tattoo!