The Tig

Hello and welcome! Pictures are always welcome. (hint) ;)

My left leg will collect various tattoos with breaks between them. Joining the existing Tigger will likely be a U boat saw fish on the inner calf. This symbol has always amazed me for some reason. A classic Dia De Los Muertos face in black and grey is also in the near future for that leg.

Yikes! - - - Updated - - - I remember talking about tattoos 15 years ago at my Dad's house. He has an old one on his shoulder from the navy, circa 1954. My wife just got a small traditional rose (her deceased mother's name was "Rose") and I already had two. My conservative brother then blurts out, "Only bikers and whores have tattoos." You could hear a pin drop. My wife was about to jump his shit when I jump in and say, "Well, it looks like we'll need to buy you a Harley since you sure aren't a whore." I gave him the stink eye. My sister even came to her rescue saying, "I have eye liner tattooed to my eyelids and I'm no whore." My brother backed down and stayed that way. Dick move was called out.

First off, you want I should go and bust his knee caps for ya? As for a cover up, the thin lines and small overall size should make it fairly easy in the hands of an expert. You'll need to put something a good bit larger to cover it. I'm thinking a rose. keep scrolling --> What would inspire you or reflect something important that happened in your life?

Hello and welcome, bladezzz. I looked up your artist, Tycho Veldhoen, and they are quite impressive! You are fortunate to have such a talent nearby. :cool:

Welcome! Here's a little tip on dealing with pain. If you or someone you know ever took a lamaze class, you may already know that relaxation is the best tool for dealing with pain.* When we give in, bending like a reed in the wind, pain is much easier to manage. Focus on breathing slow and easy. As soon as you tighten up, force yourself to relax again. At times when it gets especially painful at a tender spot, I mentally move my brain and all pain outside of the body. I'll focus on something in the room and put my mind right there as if in an out of body experience. * Example: Take an ice cube in your hand and lightly hold it in a relaxed grip. You can do this for a fairly long time. Try holding a cube in a tight grip in the other hand. You can't hold it for a very long time compared to the relaxed hand. This is the same principle for dealing with pain of any kind.

My leg's tiger was completed 5 days ago. I removed the plastic wrap 5 hours later and cleaned it with a soap from my wife's clinic as usual. I then used Saniderm overnight for the plasma stage and replaced it the next morning. I left the new Saniderm on for 4 days. Wow, what an overall improvement compared to the past when I used triple antibiotic ointment the next day followed by aquaphor. The tattoo felt much less sensitive and didn't leak on any sheets or clothes. Not even the slightest sign of infection or edema. It was nice since nothing needed to be done.

Same here. My right leg sleeve is starting to take shape, but my left leg currently has only one and I'm looking to collect various tattoos there that I've always wanted. The negative space is part of the plan and this thread enforces how good that can work. The addiction grows stronger every day!

As someone who is new to LST but not to tattoos, I can really relate to what you are saying. My wife has only one on her hip that can't normally be seen and now wants a few flowers on her upper back/shoulder, which I think will be beautiful. We both work in conservative places and no one there knows we have any ink. We're both in our 50's. I'm considering a pair of irezumi half sleeves, however. The lower edges will be visible at work and I no longer care!

My step son's first tattoo is in large, flowing letters across his chest, "Only God can judge me", so maybe he has the right idea? LOL He's been in a little misdemeanor trouble lately, so I told him to button up his shirt when in front of the judge, just to play it smart.

I hope you won't need to wear any tight shoes this week. Foot top ink sounds a bit painful! Here's my artist, Tracy, consulting prospective clients. Hey, hurry it up... You're on my time!

Just started Randy Blythe's Dark Days: A Memoir Almost finished with Michael Collins' Carrying the Fire. It might be the best space program book I've ever read.

Spent some fun time with the twin grandsons last weekend. They just turned 6. I finally have had time to really enjoy the new acoustic, a Taylor 522 12-fret mahogany. It is by far the nicest guitar I've ever owned or will ever own. It sounds angelic to my ears. :)

Welcome Emma!

Welcome from another noob to the forum. Sarcasm is our friend. Well, not always.

Until this July it has been almost 18 years since my last tattoo. I've been semi-poor for most of that time. Responsibility is overrated! I'm OK with the wait since the level of ink artisanship has really taken off.

Or should I say, "howdy"? Like most, I've lurked here for a while. My hunger for more ink has really grown now that I've crossed my early 50's for some reason. I think not giving a shit about the usual mundane trappings accepted by society might be the cause. I guess I never really gave up the punk days of the early 80's. My first tattoo was in 1990 or '91, a small black tribal bear paw on my shoulder. Nothing to get excited about but I've always felt a spiritual connection to American Indians. In '96 I added a 7" Tigger on the back of my left calf. I was a bike racer with a pretty good sprint and the Tigger just kinda' expressed that, plus nothing like an EF'ing Disney tattoo to keep you from taking yourself too seriously! The idea was to balance it out with a serious tiger on the opposite calf, but a divorce and endless responsibilities kept that from happening until this year. I've been searching for someone in the Houston area that can create a quality Japanese tiger and ran across several artists at Scorpion Studios. I had Tracy Lambright create something after showing him a few inspirational photos, including one of his ownworks. I told him to create what he thought would work and really like the results. Not completely Japanese, more "inspired by". So here's the first sitting outline work back in July. Second sitting with shading and some color. It has settled in and looks much better now. Fresh 4 weeks ago: I'll go in to complete it this week. I'm thinking of half sleeving the lower leg, likely a koi fish on the front. I'm also thinking about some traditional irezumi arm half sleeves down the line. I'm open to black and grey and really love traditional Japanese. Personal stuff: I do IT security for an evil mega-corporation to pay the bills, love time with my family, playing guitars, riding road and mountain bikes, and getting some time out in nature. I used to surf, skate, skydive, ski, work for NASA, and 7 years as a firefighter/EMT.

I usually go by "Tig" but this forum requires more than 3 characters. It is from my bouncy sprinter days, short for Tigger. It stuck and I later got a tattoo of a Tigger on one calf.

I'll add a little something that may be useful but not likely an eye opener. As a former bike racer who has had many nasty roadrash injuries over 3 decades, as well as a retired paramedic, the key to minimal scarring/best healing is to keep the damaged skin moist during the first 4 to 5 days of healing. Tegaderm/Saniderm is always a great bet. Does this sound familiar? A fresh tattoo is similar to roadrash in the way the body reacts to it, just not as traumatic. Protecting it under the moist membrane allows everything to heal without drying out and scabbing, which we should always avoid.