knucklehead211

Hola. Go to imageshack . com, upload the img. There out to be a "forum html" link, just copy and paste. And welcome!

@bongsau, you hit the nail on the head. Ideally I would've been started at beginning of March, but my tax return was held up. I'm not gonna lollygag on this!

Good spot, a former friend of mine had his on his pec. If you want to save real estate, you could also do it on your bicep. My avatar is a pic of my traditionalized family crest on my mom's side, thought it went really well.

Gotcha. That's actually a really good timeframe. I've noticed over the years he has become much faster, but we usually shoot the breeze while we're going too. Thanks for the info!

Hey guys. If this post would go better elsewhere, just let me know. I'm just curious if anyone else has any guidance on how long between sessions it will usually be before you finish a big sleeve piece. I am going in late this month to have my artist start a pretty detailed calf sleeve, it's more on the traditional side. My artist said he wanted to do linework, then shading, and then color. I realize it's a big undertaking and I definitely don't want to rush it. But I do want to try and finish this before summertime so I can be healed and in my trunks poolside. How long do you guys generally recommend waiting between sessions?

Fresh off the boat is hilarious, reminds me of the nineties. Archer: Vice and Brooklyn 99 are also good, along with The Blacklist. I've been saving House of Cards season three for when my leg gets started, so damn hard!!

Yeah it's kinda been a new outcropping where you'll see these hard looking kids with 3/4 sleeves and piercings everywhere, and they're youth ministers lol. I think it's neat, just wish I could get away with it!

Congrats! You could also do birds, or lions, or any animal! I think a tiger with a tiger cub could be sick! Elephants would be awesome though

Haha I do what I can, thanks!!

Oh no dude, I am no artist haha! Just a tattoo enthusiast myself. I would definitely take that around to any shops in your area though, it's more than enough reference to get something awesome!

Welcome! Newb here too. I'd recommend just doing your research to find a reputable artist (don't know if any on here are from the netherlands) and then visualizing the idea while you tell them what you want. It'll make it easier for both of you, and they might surprise you with a mind blowing design!

Welcome, from one site newb to another! Can you show us some of your work?

No worries man! If you're looking to keep it small, I'd say an arrow shaft with the back snapped off dripping green poison lodged in your heel would look pretty cool. Plus it wouldn't be too big and could be easily hid. But like I said, I'm no design expert. I think my taste in tattoos has improved with time, but I still might be drawn to some tacky subject matter lol. Best of luck!

It really depends where you want to go with it. I've never seen any hardcore greek mythology ink. My calf sleeve will concern another greek legend, but I plan on going more modern with it - or at least taking it to the pirate age, beautiful ships! Anyways, you could do a sleeve scene or a back piece with Achilles being dipped in the river Styx with his mother's hand on his heel, or a shot of him in battle getting shot with the poison arrow, or both. But it might be a complex message to convey if you go small, and hopefully your artist will have some thoughts. I am by no means an expert! - - - Updated - - - Also, just throwing it out there, if you ever have time to just sit down and brainstorm with your artist, do it! I made my first appt with my artist over the phone in 2011. From there, we usually have talked on fb about what I want to do. this year, I actually went in and visited with him for a bit, and it was so much more helpful and informative than just messaging him. I got to catch up, see how he likes the new shop, and then tell him all my ideas in person. Seeing him take down notes, I could definitely tell he dug it and knew what I was going for. Right before I left, he remembered some reference art he'd been saving in the flash desk for my visit, and that hit every point I was looking for. It is much more reassuring and enlightening to meet face to face.

It's funny, I always thought my family would disown me or try to change my ways, but they accept it. My dad isn't a fan, neither is my mom, but my dad's side of the family doesn't really care. They're pretty liberal about most things anyways. Out of respect for most oldies in any situation, I usually don't wear less than short sleeves (cover about half of my half sleeve). Side note: asked my gf what she thought of me getting a full body sleeve. Response: "No, I'll divorce you" lol

I hear ya. I told work a month in advance that I had "an appointment " ;) ome of the site supervisors was all "oh you'll need a doctors note" haha glad my schedule doesn't come from him, my scheduler already approved it and I never said it was medical leave!

My job is basically the last ditch guy at security sites; I go in when someone takes leave, gets canned, or the spot can't be filled. Lately I've been working fifty to sixty hour weeks, and not only am I unhappy with it, but the missus as well. Just makes me look forward to the three days off I'm taking after my ink at end of March. After that I need to let my scheduler know he's gonna leave me homeless if he doesn't appease me and the lady. Not fun.

I'm in the minority I guess, I don't go very crazy with it. I leave the wrap on overnight then usually wash at the beginning and end of the day with a light bar soap, and after it's dry apply A&D. Do that for the first two days, and then start with the lotion. In the past I've had no issues with gold bond with aloe, but I may shop around this time.

It's hard for me now, I used to shout it from the mountaintops when I worked in retail (we could wear anything, as long as it wasn't obscene), but now in security, I'm a bit more guarded. When I took the time off for my sleeve coming up, I just said I had "an appointment" lol!

Thanks! I just hope it's not too busy. It's going to cover the entire calf, I just have to see how it turns out!

Only eighteen more days til my calf appt, think I will wear work out pants that have the side zips for ventilation and flip flops (not sure how I feel about getting ink and plasma in my shoes lol).

Man, where to begin. I knew nothing about getting tattooed, or even which shops around our area were good. Luckily my gf had a friend who was getting a lot of work done at a shop called freaks, so I dropped in and asked around. Got set up with an awesome artist, and four tattoos later, the rest is history!

My upcoming piece is going to be a two part design spanning both calves. The first part is going to be a take on the tale of Odysseus and the Whirlpool. I got the idea from a song I've loved for a long time done by Trivium - a metal band - called "Into the Mouth of Hell We March". The basic message being to overcome everything, no matter the difficulty. It has always been a song that spoke to me when I am in a bad way, not liking my lot in life, etc. My artist showed me some awesome work done by a guy who does paintings with old timey ships, whirlpools, and other neat stuff, and it instantly clicked that he knew exactly what I was going for. So on this first calf we'll have the ship riding the waves, getting blasted by lightning from Zeus above while Poseidon stokes a whirlpool from below, soldiers drowning in the waves, all sorts of chaos (when writing down the elements I wanted, my artist thought chaos was it's own thematic point lol). It is going to be a tough piece I think, but worth it.

Start of May could work. I wanted to have my calf started by end of feb/start of march, but the tax man held me up so I am getting a late start. Not to mention it's a big piece, so my artist wants to do the outline, then the shading, then the color... just hoping I can be finished before swim season!

I went simple with mine (pic is on my intro page). My mother's side is very irish, so my artist did a knights helm with my mother's maiden name (also my middle name) under it, and beneath that the family motto. To denote the origin he did the plumes in the irish flag colors (green, white and orange). Simply put, I couldn't have thought of a better way of doing it. Not as classical as a crest, done more in the old school tattoo style.