sweetling

Thanks a million, everyone. You've been beyond helpful and may have saved me from a lifetime of regret. You have my most heartfelt gratitude :D

All right guys, you've convinced me that money is no object. There is just one more thing (I think...I hope...) I want to check with you guys before making a final decision. I'm not sure the tattoo I'm looking to get is really Justin's style. I'm looking to get a semi-realistic to realistic (read: not too cutesy or cartoony) owl in a bright color like blue or orange (think red phase eastern screech owl), which I realize may not be up everyone's alley (not only because it's an owl, which I guess is pretty overdone at this point, but also because it would seem some artists are averse to mixing realism and color). I'm worried that I'd make an appointment with Justin and wait till September (since the consultation doesn't happen until only a few weeks prior to the initial tattoo date) just to be told that he doesn't do that kind of tattoo and I'll have to take my business elsewhere. Is that a legit concern? Or do you think Justin is versatile enough that he'd be cool with that?

Thanks for all the info and recommendations! I'm going to check out all the places that have been mentioned. Just wondering - how do you guys know all these shops in NYC do good work? Have you gotten work done there, or know someone who has, or do they just have really good rapport in the tattoo community in general? I ask because up until I joined the forum I pretty much relied on Yelp reviews and the like to determine which shops to look into. A few months ago I stumbled across Kings Ave's website and was really interested in getting work done by Justin Weatherholtz, and I was told his rate is $275/hour. That was way more expensive then I'd been expecting - even in the city, that's pricey - so I was really disappointed and figured I'd have to find someone else. $200/hour I'm totally fine with...but considering I'm not exactly rolling in dough, he's kind of out of my price range.

Wow guys, the info I'm getting from you is so much appreciated. You're way better at this "help me choose an artist" thing than my stupid boyfriend is (it's not his fault, he's just inexperienced with tattoos). Why the hell didn't I join sooner?! The tattoo I'm looking to get is an owl with blossoming dogwood branches on my upper arm/shoulder, full color.

Wow, that's really neat. I wonder if paramedical tattooing would work for facial vitiligo (unpigmented patches). Granted, vitiligo isn't always as noticeable as scarring or burns, but I know lots of people with vitiligo would be thrilled if tattooing became a cover-up option. I remember asking my dermatologist, when I was a kid, if they could just inject pigment into my vitiligo patches.

Well, I'm currently considering getting some work done at a place called Red Baron Ink in the city. I'm really impressed by his portfolio (it's mainly one guy, with two beginning tattoists who do smaller pieces) but I'm a little concerned because he hasn't been tattooing for that long...seven years, I believe. Do you think that's a legit reason to be concerned, or am I just being overly cautious?

I wasn't insinuating that people with "breathe" tattoos and the like don't have them for personal reasons. I'm saying that at this point they're kinda cringeworthy now that they're all over the Internet and everyone and their dog has one.

I've got Latin script on my wrists and I don't regret it. It's been a little over a year, so if the regret ever comes, it certainly won't have been instant. As for fonts, I just Googled "cursive fonts" or "script fonts" and poured over hundreds of fonts over the course of several months before settling on one called "Lavanderia" (that's Spanish for "laundromat" - kind of makes me like my tattoo even more).

This is something I've given a lot of thought to as well. I love the idea of having one artist who is *my* artist and who does all my work, but I have yet to find an artist who's equally good at everything. I'm planning of getting my next tattoo done by a guy whose color work is gorgeous and who's a great artist in general, and I think he could do a great job on most of the work I want to get done. But let's say I wanted to get a photorealistic lady portrait tattooed on me. Those are really tough to get just right; while this particular tattoist is a fantastic artist, I don't love all of his portrait work, and I'd be uneasy with the idea of having him put one on me. On the other hand, I know an artist who bangs out portraits perfectly - he's like a machine - but I asked him if he could do a colorful semi-realistic owl, and he told me he'd only do it if he could make it a black and white photorealistic portrait. So it seems to me that sometimes you just have to work with artists' specialties and go with an artist you know will be able to do a great job with that particular tattoo.

Thanks guys! I know Kings Avenue! As in, I've been to their website and ogled their artwork...I'm not cool enough to actually KNOW any tattoo artists, haha. Da Vinci, I've actually not heard of. Off to look them up now!

Yeah, those bother me too, along with "breathe", especially on the wrist or forearm. I mean, come on, you can do better than that. There are so many other, more original ways to get the same "ok, calm down, relax" message across without resorting to that particular, overused word. For me, I've considered getting bits of text tattooed on myself because I find a lot of beauty in words, if they're used right. "Too weird to live, too rare to die", for example, really resonates with me...it really makes me FEEL. Not that pictures don't - I love picture tattoos - but sometimes the right words just really get to me, you know? I have one tattoo (well, really two, split between my wrists) that reads "Transit umbra / Lux remanet". It's a quote from a sundial, and it means "shadow passes / light remains". That was my first (and, as of now, only) tattoo, and it has personal meaning to me. As for why it's in Latin, well, Latin's just a lot cooler than English.

I work as a preschool teaching assistant and an exam prep tutor, and both of my jobs are cool with my (very minimal) tattoos, as well as my piercings (stretched lobes, 4 in my chest, and nape of my neck). But of course, those are all pretty subtle mods - I'm not sure how much I'd be able to get away with. People around here seem to be way more cool with a cute little ankle or wrist piece (they're insanely popular, after all) than they'd be with, say, a full sleeve. I'm looking to get some work done on my upper arm/shoulder and while I'd love a half sleeve, I just don't know if it's a good idea. I mean, yes, it's very cover-able, but do I really want to wear 3/4-sleeves or long sleeves everyday of my working life if I get a job that won't tolerate that much ink? Ultimately, I won't get a tattoo that isn't easily covered for work if need be, or that'll force me to be hot and uncomfortable all summer if I ever work without AC.

Hey, I'm Sara from New York and I'm new here (obviously)! I was into piercings for years before I caved and got my first tattoo (Latin text on wrists), and I'm looking forward to getting many more. I actually found this forum on Google while I was looking for a place to ask for tattoo advice, and while I initially wasn't interested in joining for any reason other than to get an answer to my question, I think I'm actually going to stick around. I really like the idea of being able to talk to other people who love tattoos - most of my friends think tattoos can be cool but would never get one themselves (that's Long Island for you), so I think it'll be nice to talk to other tattoo-minded people. So...yeah! I guess that's about it. Look for me around the forums.