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Just got a spiderweb from Garver. Always a great experience, quick as hell and conversation is always cool. Spoke about finishing my sleeve. So damn excited. (Sorry about large crappy pic)

Just finished up my half sleeve last week. Took 3 sessions, about 12-15 hours total. What do you think? And yes, I chose black and gray for a specific reason, which is why there is no color. :)

SCORE! Found out yesterday afternoon that Henry Lewis would be doing a 1-day guesting at Eye Candy here, so I caught an appointment for TOMORROW. Glad I was paying attention. https://www.instagram.com/henrylewis77/

Kudos!! That's awesome you knew what it was :) Does the Voyager have a direct special meaning to me? No, not really. But the concept does. It's essentially an earth/human species time capsule shot out into space. A never ending search for something other than our planet (unless it gets taken out by space debris). It's somewhat of symbol for hope. No matter how much we get stressed out or think our lives are going to shit, hard times, etc., it is nothing compared to the vastness of the universe. To me, there is something really calming about that. All of our personal and world "issues" are not really issues on the grand scheme of things. The Voyager symbolizes that for me. Searching for something greater than ourselves. Also, the light beams under the Voyager are in the exact pattern as the sun pulsar map on the golden record, which I think was a nice touch :) The idea of Saturn has to do with "Saturn Return" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturn_return. I'm 29 years old, so I think it was pretty fitting.

No meds. It's supposed to hurt. It's a goddamn tattoo.

April 21-23 right here in scenic Scranton, PA. Electric City Tattoo Convention web site List of artists as of 2/28/2017

Good advice. What's that saying....patience is a virtue? Tattoos are not for the faint-hearted...or the impatient....

bottom line, you're just going to have to wait (at least 4-6 weeks) and see.

another way to describe the style you're looking for would be "illustrative".

So here's my final weigh in on my first experience with tegaderm/saniderm. As I stated earlier, it became clear early on that saniderm wasn't up to par. I replaced the saniderm with tegaderm a day after getting tattooed. I had some reservations on reapplying anything from what I had read on this thread however I was left with little choice. I showered and removed the saniderm; once out of the shower I dried with fresh paper towels directly on the tattoo then let air dry for 5-10 minutes before applying the tegaderm. After applying tegaderm. After having it on overnight I saw no change to the tattoo or surrounding skin. Four days later I removed the tegaderm revealing a beautifully in-process heal. I have attached a photo of the tegaderm I removed. As you can see there was a layer of skin/ink that came along. I highly recommend Tegaderm if the area calls for it. I did't use any tegaderm on my sleeve for a multitude of reasons. The first was simply due to the financial burden of buying large quantities and having to apply it over the weeks my sleeve was in process. I don't believe the end result is any different regardless of which healing route you take. I can definitely say tegaderm greatly reduces the peel and heal time. Hope this information helps out. Stay stoked and get great tattoos Cheers

Looks very nice! Does Voyager happen to have any special meaning for you?

Love his style! Very nice, thank you!

Looks great! Welcome to the forum!!

There are some massively good tattoos being shared. So inspiring!!

I got tatt-toad by Scott Rusnak / Lucky Strike Tattoo Edmonton a few days ago. Coins are the size of an actual coin for reference ;)

I too was in SF but missed @gingerninja but failed to link up. I did however I did stop in to see Kahlil at tattoo city. First and foremost what a great dude and great experience. The shop has so much energy. Kahlil's booth has seen some great tattooers adding to the mojo. I left with this bad larry. On another note I can say that I stand behind tegaderm as a healing method. Ill go into it more in the tegaderm thread.

Done at Mondial du Tatouage (Paris) by Valerie Vargas.

latest from James Cumberland

Theo in two weeks...OMG.

I also vote for color, but that's just my preference. I have an appointment booked for tattoo number two with James Cumberland in April! Also hoping to get back in with Myra Oh in April since I wasn't able to get a March appointment. Working on those squidpants.

Have an appt set up for the beginning of May for...something. No clue what yet exactly. Currently we're discussing continuing the wind on the left, water on the right, so I'm thinking a sea turtle above my right knee or a bee or dragonfly for the wind side above my left knee.

@Howie I wish I could double like that for the Ron Swanson gif.

Going in this Saturday for a traditional kraken vs clipper ship on the ol' shoulder from the same artist who did a great biker girl head on my other shoulder! Can't wait!

Don't over clean it, either. Twice a day should be fine - I like to use Dial Gold - and pat it dry with a clean paper towel each time you wash it. I then use just a very small amount of Aveno.

Every tattoo and every body heals a bit different. A lot of variables. I've had lots of tattoos made and some heal in a few days, some take weeks. Note this is superficial healing, the real healing of the body takes place over several weeks. I don't even use lotion anymore (dry heal) because my skin gets irritated and I find that's what works to me. Just leave the tattoo alone and keep it clean, don't put too much balm or lotion on it. Whatever you think is the bare minimum cut that in half ! Doesn't look infected at all, your arm (not leg haha) isnt' going to fall off and the tattoo is in there. Just give it time and don't stress. We've seen waaaaay worse in person and on the internet and you're looking fine bud. Congrats on popping your tattoo-cherry and welcome to slippery slope of dermal illustrations ;)

its funny how polarizing such an issue can be - i am def a whatever floats your boat guy on issues like this - that said - i couldnt imagine blunting the pain - it would diminish the experience for me as i see it as such an amazing part of the process anyway just my .02