smiling.politely

Unfortunately, I'm missing the opening... I won't be in town until tomorrow a bit before noon (then leaving just after midnight... life in the fast lane). My parents are there on their first trip further than Oklahoma or Missouri, having the honeymoon they never had, so if you see a lady with red hair with a long haired fellow with a wolf on his throat, he will definitely be happy to talk your ear off about getting tattooed by Charlie Cartwright 30 years ago!

Had planned a week long vacation for this, my first time to California as well... but life happens and that is no longer an option. But I already had an appointment booked, and couldn't bear to cancel that in addition to all the other fun stuff that already had to go away. So, I'm flying out the morning of Friday the 30th, getting tattooed that night by Stewart, then flying back to Kansas just after midnight. Before the doors open, I'm hoping to check out the Visionary Subversive show, grab some sushi somewhere, spend what money I have left as irresponsibly as possible post tattoo, before scuttling off into the night. Wish I had more time to spend there, but it just means that I have no choice but to go back and properly see the Bay Area as soon as I can!

#Bubbleberry

Always good to also look for the source...

Skin tone can alter the look of a pigment after it's healed... hence why white will usually brown or yellow once skin has grown over it. The color is always being viewed through a filter of sorts. Not saying that is the case, but is a possibility.

You got your question answered. Multiple times. You responded in an oblique fashion, repeatedly ignoring advice and information given to you by several tattooers and tattoo clients with similar experiences. I told you about the only thing you can do to fix it to your liking, and you completely glossed over it and focused on those you had already put off, rather than ignoring them. Do you not see how you could receive backlash from people for that?

As far as a root of a problem, there's a bunch of different things that could have happened. They may have made a mistake, or you may have twitched (even an involuntary nerve twitch), causing the needle to penetrate a bit too deeply... tattooing is a two way street, and not all of the issues that can arise are the tattooer's fault. If you want it fixed, it sounds like about all you can have done is have that line made a bit bolder, and everything else modified to match. Also, a one inch line with markings for smaller measurements is a fairly difficult tattoo, if you want it laser straight. I sweat those more than big roses or skulls. Plus, if you have it for practical reasons, I feel a ruler would be much better, so that you're not measuring things on an uneven, rounded surface all the time. Plus, as the tattoo naturally ages with you, those lines won't be perfect measurements anymore, just to let you know.

Fun times in New York with my newly immigrated fiancée. Bug is on her by Bert Krak, torch and rose are on me by Eli Quinters and Beau Brady, respectively.

Most of the tattoos I got for the first few years of getting tattooed were from Dennis at Artist at Large, but I also got stuff from Josh, Juan, and Duncan when they still worked there. And one of the guys that works with us loves Jeff Ensminger, so I know he'd be stoked to see it!

Welcome! Looking through your photos, do I recognize Artist at Large in the background of the owl? And it would seem my boss did your eagle. You should swing by Kellogg and West so we can see your back in person once you get it going!

I knew what he meant, and I passed it off jokingly. I made it clear what tattooing is to myself, my coworkers, and those who take it seriously. As I said, some people don't know how to phrase what they mean, and I helped him learn, hopefully. Also, whenever I hear someone say "Do something you love, and you'll never work a day in your life" it strikes me as infinitely uninformed... I love drawing, painting, and tattooing, but it's very hard work. Who knew that all those nights with two hours sleep drawing the same thing 20 times in a row didn't count as work? And it implies that you're supposed to hate your job (and, of course, usually do it to a subpar level because you don't care about it), which is a poor mindset to have as a standard bearer.

And some people don't really know how to articulate their compliments and phrase what they want to say well. This was a case of that. "Man, it's cool you guys found something you're passionate about." "Man, it's rad how much fun you have at work." "Man, this doesn't even seem like a career, just a hobby." One of those doesn't fit the other two in terms of how it sounds. Also, if you think I'm looking for something wrong in what people say to me, or have a negative disposition, then you don't know anything about me. My signature and my username sum me up pretty well.

It's more that it's a disrespectful and ignorant statement, due to how hard we all do work. A hobby is a passing interest... Playing guitar is a hobby I really enjoy. Just because you're having fun, doesn't mean you're not working extremely hard.

Fun one from a client's moral support... "I mean, this doesn't even seem like work. Just seems like a hobby... you guys are having so much fun!"

So, I can't start working like Shige or Filip? Of course, I'm referring to seeming constant shirtlessness, not the tattoo work (as I hope to one day be 2% of the tattooer that either of them are in terms of ability and productivity)? EDIT: In terms of someone having a name, the person who has tattooed the overall largest area of my body so far is my boss. Starting my frontpiece was fairly important in me getting me the chance to scrub the toilets for no pay, since it showed that I was serious. He is an amazing, well-rounded tattooer who does world class work, who hasn't done conventions or put himself out too far into the world after gaining sole custody of his son about 10 years ago (preventing him from working the Bay Area Convention for his first time). From my dealing with big name tattooers and booking appointments, he usually books out three or four times as far as all but the biggest names (there are far less options around our area with a comparable skill set, though, which means a larger percentage go to a handful of people, or just a few shops in our town). If I were to be at a convention, if anyone from here recognized me, it'd probably be from the eagle he put on my head (if I had short hair... otherwise, it'd just be two or three folks that have found me on IG).