DavidR

That's a very good point. - - - Updated - - - I suddenly feel like an idiot.

I know that if I were to tell a used car salesman that I had a budget of £1000 then all of a sudden, every car on the lot would be at least £1100 and he'd "do me a deal" which really means he'd just do me. If I were asked for my budget, I'd probably go elsewhere. I'd want either a set price or a rate, a minimum and an estimate of the number of hours. I would never haggle; I find it vulgar.

That's weird. I was just watching some porn and kept getting distracted by the tattoos. Takes all sorts ;)

Desert island. Ship wreck. Lifeboat. Frozen pizza. XBox controller. Box of tissues. - - - Updated - - - Wifey just suggested an astronaut on a spacewalk. I suppose any explorer/adventurer motif could work too.

Thanks for the advise guys. This is just a case of me following my usual route and over thinking everything. As I've said elsewhere, I make conservative life choices and as a result, I've missed out on opportunities in the past. Deciding to get tattooed after all these years was a concious attempt to combat that tendency. Ironically, I've never regretted ANY of the crazier things I've done in life so what I'm trying to protect myself from, I'm not sure.

I'm working on it :p It's taken me a quarter of a century to get this far. My progress in the past three months has been hypersonic by comparison :D Fuck cancer indeed. Sorry for your loss.

So after a false start, I'm in the process of booking an appointment for my first tattoo. The goal is to end up with a full traditional sleeve. I have one unanswered question though. Should I stick with one artist for the whole sleeve or collect work from multiple artists? I both like and dislike the aesthetic of a single artist. One the one hand, the consistent colour palette and style can look great but on the other hand, it can all end up looking a bit samey if your not careful. Given that I have a lot of skin to work with, I have the luxury of being able to do both (I have two arms) so it's not something I really have to decide before booking for my second tattoo but I'd appreciate hearing of other peoples' experiences, particularly from people that are well on the way down one road or the other. Thanks in advance.

Hi @Italianbunny This is a great forum. You'll learn a lot and meet some great people. Have fun!

How does one earn the "contributor" tag? I'm assuming it's through some donation of funds to the site but I could be way off.

Hi @thyes. Welcome to LST. Check out @Iwar's post here for recommendations in Norway. Tony Nilsson of Blue Arms Tattoo is one of my favourite tattooers anywhere in the world.

Not on me (I wish!) but I couldn't resist posting this here. https://instagram.com/p/2XMZmTnXSj/

Looks solid! The Bristol Tattoo Convention

There was this one time, at elk camp... Sorry, couldn't resist :D

@UglyButProud You're never going to win over those assholes at your kids' school so don't even try (not that I think you plan to). Even if you did what your wife has asked, you're always going to be on the outside to those dicks. I suspect attempting to fit in would just make them despise you even more. I think if you talked about that with your wife, she might reluctantly have to agree. As far as her career is concerned, you can agree to cover up when interacting with her colleagues and clients. That's not too much to ask. By far the biggest concern is the schism between you and your wife. The fact that she's not prepared to stand by you is a real concern. Clearly you're gonna have to talk to her but make it clear that while there are things you're prepared to do, removal is absolutely not on the cards.

Enough woo, it's time for more tattoo.

BBC News: Apple says tattoos can cause watch problems - BBC News

I felt a great disturbance in the force, as if millions of hipsters suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something amusing has happened.

Hi Joey. Welcome to LST!

If by that you mean you're done with this forum, I hope you'll reconsider. I think you make a positive contribution and I think the forum would be a poorer place without you. As far as your English is concerned, it had never occurred to me that you were anything other than a native speaker and I am one, and a grammar nazi/language snob to boot. As far as owning tattoo machines is concerned, I see no difference between that and owning any of the other tools you list. If anyone says otherwise, then that's their opinion and they're entitled to it but that doesn't make them right. As far as how to go about that, I would never expect an artist to give you one and I'd be very dubious of an artist that would agree to sell you one. I would certainly advise against ever asking for one or asking to buy one; I think that would permanently sour your relationship with the artist. Of course you could buy one off the internet but I doubt that would mean anything to you. I don't really see a way forward but keep your eyes open and you may one day get lucky. Whatever happens, I do hope you'll stick around.

I grew up in a country whose language, laws, system of government, architecture and God knows what else (see what I did there?) were forged on the anvil of Christianity. I'm atheist to my core but those Christian influences go to my core too. If everything else in my life is influenced by Christianity, why shouldn't my tattoos be? I can't imagine anyone would think me Christian just because I had a panther head wearing a crown of thorns on my arm any more than they'd think me Christian because I said "bless you" when they sneezed.

The USGS have reported a 7.9 magnitude earthquake in Nepal between Kathmandu and Pokhara. News agencies are reported that buildings in Kathmandu have collapsed. The Nepal Tattoo Convention is currently taking place in Kathmandu. My thoughts are with the people of Nepal, India and Tibet and to anyone travelling in the region. If anyone gets any news, please post it here. - - - Updated - - - This is the most complete news report I've found so far. http://edition.cnn.com/2015/04/25/asia/nepal-earthquake-7-5-magnitude/index.html - - - Updated - - - Also: http://zeenews.india.com/news/india/live-two-major-quakes-rattle-nepal-historic-dharahara-tower-collapses-deaths-reported-in-india_1584785.html

This video makes me very proud to be British. God bless British TV.

Don't ya just fucking hate that!

Feathers!