ttoosday

My experience is somewhat similar to yours in that I got mine years ago, was one of the first in my social circle to get a tattoo, and it was not an internet design. Mine was a walk in tho, one night at Elm Street Tattoo (if I didn't know better I'd say from Oliver himself but I just can't remember) Anyway, I love it no matter what derogatory term is inflicted upon it. I hate the term and never use it.

No advice, as I am one of the people you would undoubtedly turn away, but one of the reasons some people do it is because they can't get any visualization of what is going to permanently be put on their body otherwise. They are afraid to trust a stranger with their skin and they're not willing to let their skin be an open canvas to whatever. So they do their own research (feels like part of the tattoo journey to mostly non-tattooed people) and pick a design that they love and that looks flawless and they fall in love with it for its specific details, and why it spoke to them. Also, I have been turned away from shops because I didn't bring a design Id picked out already. So sometimes a person can't win no matter what. I will say this, at least you turn them away instead of tattooing different than the design without telling them. Cuz it sucks when that happens.

Oh haha. What a rascal. Well I like realism and that's what i thought I was getting with my latest tattoo, but came out with a bit less realism than I expected. So, I'd say black and gray, on the realism side. But I need excellent linework as I don't think I can go all out realism/no lines with an add on at this point. Even if I could, I prob wouldn't cuz i like some linework. The artist I linked did a (in my opinion) good arrow and compass, which, a compass is exactly what I had in mind as an add on. But I want to make sure others in the forum feel like he does great work too.

Um I'm confused...? The link I posted is for a rebel muse artist. I felt Richard Stell is not quite the style I want. I was thinking I'd be open to ideas for add on to an arrow on my arm. - - - Updated - - - Five stars is certainly impressive. But I'm not all that into his style of tattooing. The link I posted is for a rebel muse artist.

I got tattooed there before the term made its way around. Eh I don't care what anybody calls it. I'd do it all over again even with the derogatory label, except it kinda hurt in that location.

What do you guys think about this artist. Was given the name after contacting rebel muse in tx. Lucas Eagleton (leagle_art) on Instagram | iPhoneogram

I've definitely seen some websites that say there's a time minimum and a price minimum. Maybe that's not the norm then. I just dont want an artist to laugh in my face because what I need is nowhere near what they usually do. Im in Oklahoma and have been thinking about OKC or the Dallas area.

Jealous of all these amazing tattoos! I want to go to the best artist around but should I expect a top notch amazing artist to be willing to do a small ~an hour's worth of rework/adding to piece that is quite a bit lower than their quality? Some of the research I've done has taught me the best artists have a 3 hour or more minimum...I'm just not looking for that big of a tattoo. How does a person get a really top notch small tattoo? And now I'm looking at a rework or add on which makes it more difficult to find the right tattooer in my mind.

The drama is so fake and why do they think they even need it? It doesn't add any allure or make the show better. I'd think it would drive away potential clients, I would not want to do business with anyone who conducts themselves the way they appear to.

Well naturally. :) but even portfolios can only show so much.

Just wanting to see if anyone has any recommendations for Oklahoma tattooers who specialize or lots of experience in reworks or adding to existing work. I plan to do my own checking around of course but thought it couldn't hurt to check here. I've done a search on this site and all I find is Think Ink in Norman. OKC has Atomic Lotus but I get bad vibes from that place, ie snobby and unhelpful staff. Really just scared to trust anybody I might pick off of Google going by reviews. Thanks!

Hey I like that attitude! I will try to embrace that. Tho mine is not actually bad, it just could have been better. I am already thinking of maybe adding color or adding some elements to it maybe. We shall see. I feel bad to tell the artist I want some changes to it. But also feel bad not to give him the chance to work on it. The truth is that my trust is shaken.

Thank you for the honesty. That is what I'm trying to do...lurk a little bit, gain some perspective and maybe get a bit of advice and encouragement along the way. I didn't come here looking for a tattoo critique or find out what to do to fix mine, I want to learn how to love it by figuring out whether or not most tattoos are flawless and exactly what people expected. It sucks to be down about a tattoo especially when a person only has a couple and is surrounded by people who would never get any, and a tat like mine is the reason why. I don't want to feel embarrassed by it, I want to be proud. But I'm overwhelmed by feelings of disappointment so I'm just listening and trying to add my experience to the mix. :)

Yes I know. I'm learning that it's not generally a thing. Something I didn't know before.

No, I haven't. I don't think I'm going to honestly. Number one bec I don't typically post any identifying info or photos in general on any sites, number two, I'd rather not hear the harsh critiques that would make me feel worse than I already do, and number three, I would feel terrible if it happened that my artist found a photo of his work on a forum with me or other ppl blasting negativity about his work. Or maybe he wouldn't give a shit, I dunno. As much as I would love some feedback, I think I will hold off on posting a pic until I have something good to say about it. But I will say I think the tat needs some attention but some parts will not be able to be altered (not in symmetry, slightly crooked looking). Some of the lines could probably be thickened to fix an issue and maybe MAYBE some shading could get the tattoo closer to the original reference pic, but I don't know. From what I read it sounds like I'll never be able to get a tattooist to copy another tattoo exactly.

Ahh u make a good point. And I agree that is more what I would be looking at in my case. However, I still am on the fence about what to do. Even if all I needed was a touch up, I still would contemplate whether making the drive is worth it or not.

I have felt a slight panic feeling post-tattoo for each of mine, that goes from initial freak out to emotional to regretful to acceptance and then utter love. This last one has been no different except the panic is a but more pronounced than before bec I can't quite figure out if I like this one or not. It wasn't what I expected, design or quality wise, so I'm confused about how I feel honestly.

This a question I have been mulling over. If a person was dissatisfied with the quality or even just the final product of the tattoo, one can imagine they would not feel confident that the artist could get it to their liking with a touch up, or at least that is how I feel. My reasoning to go to someone else would not be just to be rude or for even the convenience (xtho it would save a 7 hour round trip of just driving, not including tattoo time, meal times, and the expense of gas etc), but because I would be scared to end up a worse tattoo than I had to start with. Would that affect opinions on this subject if that was the case?

I'm noticing some itching now after all scabs have come off. Im in that secondary peel but not really peeling stage that is making the ink look awful. Geez it's slow going right now.

Well, I'm trying not to be obsessive since a couple of posters indicated that secondary peeling is normal. Buuut today is day 11 and this tattoo looks like it's 10 years old. It almost feels scabby again in a couple spots, and the skin is flaky and dry, but not quite like last week. I'm not actually seeing any flaking off. It feels raised right now and still slightly tender. The skin directly on top of the ink is wrinkly and shiny but the ink is looking dull and faded. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be using lotion during this period or not. I'm still wearing loose clothes and going easy on the area.

I see. That makes sense. I think I must have not communicated what I expected, and even if I had, it's possible he, like you said about being hesitant to copy verbatim, just wasn't going to make it identical. I would think that as a tattoo artist, all the pieces of work they do day after day becomes like nothing at all, just another tattoo to them. But as a customer, it's a big deal, haha especially to a person who only has one or two. So being in the shop is like a whirlwind kinda, talking about size, placement, colors, pain, nerves, signing forms, all this stuff, it doesnt seem real that these choices will directly affect the tattoo, it still seems like it will come out how we envisioned. When I mentioned specifics about the design he said "oh well....ya know, blah blah blah" and so all a person thinks is, well he's the expert....but then the customer leaves with something not like they wanted and it's too late. At least my experience, anyway. I guess I could have him add a line here or there to make it more symmetrical but I don't wanna offend him or anything.

So, it is not uncommon to come away with something a bit different than what was expected? Man, it makes me lose a little bit of trust for all tattooists in general. I understand that it's them putting the ink in, not me, so we will always be at their mercy as far as final product, which is kinda scary! Especially for a large piece. How can a person ever know exactly what their tattoo will come out looking like?

I have a couple of questions and I guess here is a good a place as any to ask. My tattoo peeled normally with a few scabs over the first week, and now appears to be rather smooth and slightly tender. Today is day 8 since it was done. It looks like it is going to peel a second time, this time just small white colored flakes. Is a secondary peeling normal? Also, this tattoo did not come out as the final product I'd envisioned. I'd been to the tattooist before and was happy with his work. His stencil looked great, straight and perfect. The final product tho, is not as good as I thought he was capable of. Some spots look crooked, some parts not in symmetry, not the realistic look I was going for. Its not a bad tattoo, really it's not. At a glance it's really pretty good. I guess I expected him to copy the image I brought but he didn't, he took his own artistic liberty, or the limit of his skill I guess, I don't know. I just am so confused about admitting to him I'm not crazy about it, asking him to fix it, or just not going back to him at all. I'm disappointed all the way around because of my disappointment in this (my perception of) imperfect tattoo and I don't know if I should just try to love it or what. I want to love it, but I just don't get excited when I look at it. Does everybody get what they would consider an imperfect tattoo, by virtue of the human aspect of tattooing and/or being a canvas? How can I start to love this one?

My husband is type 1. He got a pretty good sized tattoo with color and extensive shading about 5 years ago. He didn't have any problems, not with sitting or healing or anything after several years now.

Hi I just got my third tattoo last week and so I wanted to have a place to come to be around like minded individuals. I like to read others experiences and see if my personal concerns are normal as far as tattoo experiences, so I tend to be on the quiet side, adding some input when its applicable. Glad to be a part of the community.