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We're done! The previous two day session didnt' go as well as the few before it had, I ended up having a pretty bad case of hitting the wall hard enough to lump my noggin. So I was concerned about the final session... but I did much better during those 5 or so hours a few days ago and here we are! Total I think ~35 hours, maybe deduct one or two total for breaks etc. That tengu has the exasperated smarmy expression I would expect it to have having had a teenage Yoshitsune (nee Ushiwakamaru) thwack it with a wooden sword. Horifuji's instagram has some clearer pictures from before we applied the film on it (as you can tell it was a bit ticked off and seepy by that point). (by Horifuji @ State of Grace, San Jose , CA, USA) Feels a bit weird plopping this on teh intertoobz but I am so pleased with my experience* that I wanted give him and the whole shop a shout-out. *minus the hurty being- poked-with-needles part.

Here's my white tiger, in progress. It represents a dearly departed tiger named Jellybean that I worked with when I volunteered at a local tiger rescue. My artist had visited Jellybean, so it was a nice connection. I specifically requested a mellow tiger rather than a fierce tiger. My sleeve of special animals is taking shape. By the way, the work in the ditch hurt like a sonofabitch! It was worth it, of course. 😀

And here's what Mike made for me on Saturday. Next level chrysanthemum. I am so thrilled!

I've had both of my shoulders done and I just about slept through it. Sounds like it may be time to move on.

@piccalilli Amazing. Congrats!

Thank you! I just saw your post. That backpiece you have in progress is quite something! Takashi's work is so powerful, I follow him on IG and marvel at the work he does.

@piccalilli congrats, really an amazing piece.

You feel you were overcharged by $200, but you left a $100 tip?? That'll teach him ... NOT 1 hour prep, 30 minutes lunch, 15 minute break each hour, I'd look for another artist. I don't want to sit for 6 hours to get four hours worth of tattooing. Also, every time he takes a break, you have to get into the zone again. My guy usually goes about 2 hours between breaks.

so you paid for his lunch break? on what planet? generally it sounds like he milked the time, but quicker breaks (5-8 minutes every hour) is totally fine (and needed for the canvas!). not sure what I'd say, but you're paying for him to eat lunch. that's not how capitalism works.

Fair warning - If you're going with the foot placement, it probably won't matter how you word it.

This is about as close to the internet as this is getting, but couldn't resist posting a peak of this silky smooth background action from Edmonton's fav underground tattooer (as I'm sure @bongsau would agree).

"Don't look for meaning in this inscription; better to try to find it in your life." --this one works. "Don't make this tattoo more than your life is." --this isn't really grammatically correct. it should be something like: "Don't make this tattoo mean more than your life does." Or, "This tattoo shouldn't mean more than your life does." But it's a hard idea to convey in words. @Gingerninja has a good idea. Is there an image that could represent this? Cool idea though: images don't always mean.

long time I didn't post (but no worries, I'm still lurking around!) Here's my last one (2 days ago) by (again) Alix Ge

The back is a lot of real estate to waste. I would recommend stopping until you figure out what you want to do. What's the hurry?

Maybe you're nervous because it's going to hurt like a bitch ... maybe. What's very sensitive on one person may not hurt bad on someone else. As my artist always says, just because it hurts is no reason not to get tattooed.

Nearly two years ago I posted here suggesting Adam Kitamoto for a Tiger. I now have one of my own haha.

@DJDeepFried Man, that sucks. I was hoping that the tides had turned and the courts would rule differently. The Olympics are going to be very interesting in 2020 when the world's athletes and tourists arrive all tatted up.