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I grabbed this just before my flight home on Monday morning, Steve was great and came in early to get it done

Since it's Tattoo Tuesday, here's a sneak peek at a WIP by Grez. The outline is done for the entire piece but only got to finish the dragon kite. In June, we'll finish the rabbit, her kimono, the moon and the background. I know that everyone thinks that their tattoos are cool but I really do think this is super amazing! Grez took my random concept and executed it to perfection. The kite is so freakin' awesome. Love this guy!

I think I found my wall at about 2 hours on the ribs. Thanks Ashley @senslessadornments

@Devious6, pretty awful, just like the first one. Haha. Glad it's done! Love how it turned out.

Guess who had a cancellation today? Lunch hour tattooing is happening now ...

So remember when I said I wouldn't be doing my other foot right away? Yeah, well. I've already pushed how much it hurt to the back of my mind. I'm waiting to hear back from Josh about when he can fit me in. Hahaha. @Gingerninja, I love that! Beautiful. Just like the wearer.

My shin bone would have been very interested in sedation tattooery this past weekend. Went with the more traditional post tattoo beer and food sedation therapy instead.

I have a new little friend! Snake and cherry blossoms by Chris Garver. My homage to spring. She fits the space so perfectly. He drew it on, made the stencil and we were tattooing in less than 40 minutes. Boom. (I'm swollen AF but whatever).

@oboogie They both look fantastic!! No pain ,no gain. You've definitely earned your bragging rights these past few weeks!

@Gingerninja very cool. but now this song is stuck in my head...

These are true. Find an image that will remind you of her memory, something that you two shared and enjoyed. You don't need to explain an image to anyone, and in a few years you probably won't want to, anyway.

@oboogie Now, who could have predicted that??? lol

@Devious6, thank you! I'm very pleased. Now for the healing part!

How's this one going compared to the first?

Thank you very much. My pants were rubbing it. I got the tattoo in vegas so it's not the closest. But I recently took it into a local shop and asked the artist. He said the same. Just got let it heal its hasn't been 2 weeks. I got freaked

@Gingerninja Truly, truly awesome. Congratulations on another killer piece of work!!!

Just kidding. But I have a sinking feeling when I look at the contrast in bold dark with my faded and shaded tattoos on my arms. I could use some reassurance in terms of style and placement. I really like the tattoo on its own but am now trying to figure out where to add on my traps and top of shoulders as the Hawk looks low to me now. What do you think? Take a chill pill? Looks alright? Slow down before adding more or I am right in thinking it looks a little odd with the space above? photo was taken at a downward angle and I'll try to take another photo do you can see my other work to see what I'm talking about.

Not for me.

I'm so sorry for your loss. Some great advice here. I'll be totally honest—I don't love the tattoo idea. It is very literal, and the placement is very prominent. I think you could have a remembrance that was more subtle and symbolic. Give it a lot of thought before you decide.

First off, I am very sorry for your loss. I can't imagine the pain you are feeling. Remembrance tattoos have deep personal meaning and a tremendous tradition...but remember that they are (unless you want to go the laser route) permanent. A signature will always be there to remind you of her, but it will also always be there in the future and, at your age the odds are great that you will eventually enter into another relationship. In terms of the concept of appearing feminine there are many examples where traditionally feminine images are unisex in application in tattooing. Roses and other flowers are a prime example that are seen in tattoos on many people. In the end, this design is yours - it holds deep meaning for you - and I would personally not even give this issue a second thought if, in the end, it was the design that achieved your desired goals. You don't have to defend yourself to anyone. I would suggest several things. First, seek out a good artist and have a face to face consult about your ideas. Seek out an artist with a great reputation for listening to the desired outcomes of the client - not someone who will just do what you ask. Talk with him/her about your intent and get guidance on placement, design, and style. Talk about options. For example, instead of a signature, is there some other symbol that had deep meaning to your wife (or perhaps you both), that can replace the signature? That approach might be a way to achieve your intent yet not present future issues in another relationship. The artist might also offer a design on the birds that appear more "masculine" if that's a concern for you. Next, I would suggest you let some time pass before you commit and have the work done. Of course, I am not sure how long it has been since your wife passed, but emotions can cloud our decisions and since this is generally a permanent thing, you might want to wait until the initial grief passes and then make your final commitment to go ahead or not. Getting your first tattoo is stressful enough. Doing under the pressure and grief of losing one's spouse is much more difficult. Don't let grief drive your decision. You have one chance to get this right so take the time it deserves. An impulse choice is generally not good under any circumstance. In the end, go with what achieves your intent and makes you happy. There is an argument that says that no matter what happens in the future, you will always have an attachment to your wife and no future person you enter into a relationship should expect that you would forget her so the signature shouldn't matter. Still, I would seriously consider finding some symbol to replace it...but that's just my opinion. I hope I've helped a bit. I am sure others will chime in as well. Again, I am so very sorry for your loss.

Welcome to the forum! I'm sure some of the more experienced folks here will jump in, but I had two greatly different heals with my two tattoos. The first was easy with just normal itching and no scabbing. The second seemed to take longer to heal, had scabbing and more color loss, especially in reds and blues. I used the same healing regimen and they were both on my upper arms - one all black/gray and the other a mix of colors. First, a full heal takes much more than 3 weeks but at that point you'll have a good idea of what it is going to look like. We all heal differently and there are many factors that affect our body's healing process. Finally, there are external factors like the clothing we wear, exposure to the sun, etc that can affect the healing. Did your clothing perhaps rub on the tattoo while you were working? Let it heal and then go back to your artist in a few weeks. He will be able to guide you on the need for any touch up. Both of mine needed some light touch up and my body definitely reacted differently to red and blue inks than others.

Hey @dan... He did another piece for me a few years ago but I don't think that it had anything do to with getting in. I booked in with him last December when I dropped by for a consult. He offered to get me in earlier but I knew that I was already going to be in the city in April. Email [email protected]. Jess, his assistant, is good at responding. He basically books three months in advance when he opens his books. He normally only books for three hour sessions, so know that going in. He's truly amazing. He understands form, design, placement...everything. And he has a light touch. And he's fast. And he's super chill with a great sense of humor.

New to the site. Here is my latest. It took 6 hours and 45 minutes but got it all done in one. I think the artist did a great job and initially I was very positive about the piece. I really like some of the shaded area in the middle but am trying to warm up to the wings as they contrast a lot with my arm tattoos. I may even go back eventually to have less blank space between the feathers on the wings.

First rib tattoo coming up on Tuesday. Should be an experience. I've been trying to tell the people in the office that Tattoo Tuesdays would be a great morale booster but they just laugh and blow me off. Guess this will show 'em.

Thanks, i'm super amped. Hoyer got me into this dude and now I'm hooked at everything he does.

I also stopped riding a motorcycle for the safety reasons. I was stationed out in Oklahoma when I had my bike and "Bubbas" thought it was great fun to slide up alongside me and then edge me off the road. And, there are way too many distracted drivers....and deer here in northeast PA. This was way back before cell phones in 1983.