David Flores

If someone told me they drank Chimay I would be like "What year is it again?" The beer snob rears it's ugly head. I have some serious yelper that likes our shop and we seem to get business for her. I still don't like the site, but wont' turn down the business.

I think the right direction would be going to a shop at this point, you already know what you want get tattooed. Going back in forth on this forum for two weeks trying to find an answer or spending ten minutes at the tattoo shop figuring out what will work and what the tattooer (the professionals) suggest seems like an easy choice. Plus it would be impossible to try to figure out where you should get your tattoo over the internet. This forum generally gives good advice regarding tattooing, but the tattoo shop is the best fastest resource around. As far as getting the same thing, it's going to be hard if aren't into the same tattoos. You guys are both individuals and will like different things, so even if the tattoo differs slightly it will still be something you did together for the same reason. The experience itself can be your solidarity. Otherwise if it's that important to be the same you have to just agree on something, even if it means one person getting what the other person wants, I mean it's just lettering it's says the same thing no matter what the "font" is. Keep the whole process simple and relatively pain free so you focus on this being a fun event.

Yeah If you are willing to go big, I am sure you could cover it and end up with a nice tattoo. Usually people who want coverups don't realize how big the cover tattoo will need to be, but it sounds like you know what you are in for. The only downside is once you get that big tattoo on your side, you other side will feel so empty and you will want a big tattoo their too.

The EGA certainly seems like the original reference for this tattoo, but the tattooer turned into something completely different. I love this tattoo, whoever did it did a great job.

I will chime in, my son has been stepping on and/ or jumping on both my new tattoos for the last six days. He is lucky he is too young to know to really know better, he just wants to play and be a crazy little boy, but man a couple days ago tattoo was gnarly and it seemed like every time he wanted my attention bam right in the tattoo.

You would want to the face to be facing inward so the bunny would be right in the face which might not be the best coverup. Is this the type of thing you were thinking of (at least general idea)? You probably have enough room to cover bunny with flower and still get girl head as a seperate tattoo or have flowers around the head and use that as coverup, but again whatever you do make sure you like the idea.

I used to keep a book of bad tattoos people came in to have covered. There was an abundance of work by the same people. Sometimes when talking to people they tell you other shops they have went to or are thinking of checking out and if they seemed cool we would show them the book and stop them from going to certain shops. Until one day someone wrote a bad review of one of these shops on a review site and referenced our book of bad tattoos (even included shop name). Next day someone wrote a fake review about our shop, citing poor work and that they did a lot of cover up work from our shop, they also were trying to say that they were scarred after the tattoo but don't know how to spell so it says "the tattoo scared them". I wrote a short response but it's not the popular review site so I don't think many people have seen it even to this day. Needless to say we don't show that book much these days, and that shop has since gone out of business and owner left town. I would say that is the most snobby thing I have done.

Yeah i found her portfolio behind the counter and figured as much.

I don't often say this, but I really dig this lettering. ^ - - - Updated - - - Speaking of lettering, I heard a rumor that Katie Sellegren is moving to SF next month full time.

I tried to think of something I wanted tattooed on me that I didn't already have and couldn't come up with anything. Plus any idea I had would have paled in comparison to this design. Further proof of the importance of flash.

Inkstitution - Auckland Tattoos and Tattoo Design - Meet the Artists Go see Stephen, he is a good tattooer and a good dude. One of the guys at my shop spent last two years there and him and steven became good friends because their are regular dudes with egos in check that do good work. His online portfolio doesn't really do him justice. I second the flower on each side of the lettering would be my first suggestion for coverup, it would balance it out

Totally Agree, we all know ICP is the best band ever, am I right sleev?

Dan Gilsdorf @ Blackheart Tattoo.

Got this on Thursday at Blackheart by Dan Gilsdorf. What a great shop and amazing experience. All the guys were great and even offered to let me hang out and explore the shop for the day, but thought it would be better to give my wife a break from our son for a bit. Spider Murphy's was great as well. I would highly recommend both shops not just on talent but just as good people.

Stuart Cripwell on Wednesday.

Gangster Clap makes sense, Wouldn't know what brokeback girl was but no one comes off the street wanting that, they usually see it on the wall and just point. I call this version the swiss army knife of tattoos, because you get a skull, a girl, a dagger, and an eagle in one tattoo, quite a deal for the price.

Yeah on TV you can turn around a restaurant, hotel or hair salon in three days, but I always find it funny that we are all supposed to believe that people who were cooking shit food or had bad to no cleaning habits and sanitation skills are somehow going to be reformed by a stern talking to and a quick cosmetic make over of the work area. I think the same thing will apply here, someone who is doing shit tattoos isn't going to be able to get better overnight, I am sure there are some business strategies one could apply, but at the end the day the product coming out of the shop won't be much different.

I wouldn't tell someone coming into the shop that their tattoo was bad, unless they offered up that info. Even then usually try to make it seem not as bad as they think it is, if anything to avoid getting involved in a cover up situation. But like you said people should feel good about their tattoos. If you put good tattoos on people with bad tattoos they are sure to get it at some point. Even sometimes when it's just tattooers in the shop, I think the shit talking about who's tattoos are good can be too much. Most of us want to talk about the good tattoos we see, but there are always a couple tattooers who want to tell you why this tattooer sucks or that tattoo sucks and then tell you about how good the guy doing their back piece is. If they act like that in front of clients I can see why they have so much time for walk ins.

Tattoo Snob, Beer Snob, Food Snob, Clothes Snob, Music Snob...... I wear many hats. Funny all those people still call me when they want a tattoo or are traveling and want to find a restaurant or brewery. - - - Updated - - - I think their our different context for being a snob as well, talking with tattooers and people who get heavily tattooed their usually is a general understanding of what good work is and why some tattoos are bad. Outsiders might not have that eye for tattooing and just see subject matter they like and since you are tearing it shreds you are a snob. I use the example of taxidermy, I don't have a clue about what makes a good mount but love looking at the stuff, I might think a mount is cool just because the animal is cool even though the work is sub par.

60% of the time it works everytime.

I would love to make it down there to drink beer and get tattooed, not neccesarily in that order. Also really dig your stuff Erik, my friend Kyle has a lot of tattoos by you did a couple years ago. I have been tattooed at CTC a couple times but never on a day you were there, maybe next trip, huh.

All the guys at Hot Stuff Tattoo, Hot Stuff Tattoo - Tattoo & Piercing - West Asheville, NC | Facebook That is about all I know about Asheville other than they have really good beer down there and New Belgium is going to build a brewery.

Two Koi, one hitting it from the back , both covered in tribal tattoos. On an unrelated note I saw the funniest bumper sticker the other day on a Toyota Tacoma. it said "4BEAR4" and yes their were many rainbow stickers on the back window to verify that is what he meant by it. I thought it was genius, I mean really he likes to hang out with guys and 4 wheel just like any other guy. It's great to live in a city like Portland where people just don't care.

Funny I would think the guy with the tribal tattoo was gay, wasn't it the gay gentlemen who frequented leather bars that started that movement, at least here in the state, before it became the frat boy and then cage fighter tattoo? Not trying to start a stereotype just to show that anything can be turned around and twisted and things change over time.

I have a hot stuff blowing fire on one foot, thought about getting a kewpie doll on other foot or maybe a green hot stuff as the one I have is red. Honestly after having one foot done, I would want something pretty straight forward that won't take too long (shit hurts) but be bold and look good.