smiling.politely

80 miles is about as far as i've always travelled to get tattooed... and it's as far as i commute every day for work (until i get a bit of money saved up and move back to town). my roommate and i in college drove a few times just to set up his appointments for a month later when we were about 2.5 hours away. if it's the best option, it's worth it.

Hacksaw Jim Duggan. I'm gonna b-b-b-beat people up.

if that costume doesn't incite spontaneous U-S-A... U-S-A... chants, then people suck, and you should hit them with your 2x4.

"Is she ok....SICK...WOOOAAHAHH" brootal

i like that his checking on her was timed to the music so they wouldn't lose the beat. and that he ended the "catch everyone" bit early to keep up with the "singing." is 25 too young to disappointedly say "Kids these days."?

EDIT: also, i'm not sure which i'd be more stoked for... a Civ tattoo, or seeing Gorilla Biscuits. preferably both.

DEFEND TROO POP PUNK!

seriously, though... this is what "punk" looks like to kids growing up in the Disney Channel generation. at least they're honest about their vocal talent, though, and aren't using auto tune. that way, new kids at shows can hear how much they suck.

i saw a few of these on a blog awhile back, and was bummed they didn't source them. PROBLEM SOLVED.

also, i have a degree in printmaking, and specialized in woodcuts and etchings. i made it all right around the time i really delved into learning tattoo imagery, and i've been wanting to make more to replace it all, since it's pretty rough. i don't even have access to a printing press right now, but this stuff reaaaaally makes me want to dig out the chisels again.

the back of my guitars have long been a repository for my favorite stickers. i have a few lining my TV as well, which was a bit distracting at first.

Did any one else feel that way when they got their back/thighs/full chest/ ribs done?

i have a full chest piece (or as it was described by my boss, a backpiece on my chest) started last November, and while it definitely felt like a really huge commitment, it's also the tattoo that's been the easiest for me to adjust to so far. usually, when i catch a view of a new one in the peripheral vision, it's a bit odd, or something seems out of place. for some reason, the biggest one i have yet just seemed like it had always been there.

also, that Burk leopard is super rad!

it's a Boltz painting... somewhere aways back on the Smith Street blog, they have an image of someone who got it as a full thigh piece, and i believe it's the basic composition for Frank Carter's backpiece as well.

This one isn't on me, it's on my Dad. However, I started an apprenticeship near the end of the summer, and this was the 50th tattoo i've done. Obviously, there are things that could be better with it, but I was honored he let me do it (and basically let me do whatever i wanted). Jay Cavna design...

i don't have any upcoming plans set in stone, but my fiancee has a few hours with Chad Koeplinger on the 19th in Limerick, Ireland, and if she can afford it, she's on the waiting list for Oliver Peck soon after as well. she's taking advantage of some of the guest spots at All Star before she moves over to all the splendor of the Great Plains....

That shit better be playing when I'm there in October.

Should be no problem, sir!

Also, i forgot why reading comments on videos is a terrible idea... hoping this fellow is trolling hard.

we have a big TV in the shop where i work that we just figured out how to stream things to (via a Blu Ray player). Tattoo Age all day for most of the last two weeks, sometimes with the sound off for music instead... i'm sure the random customers get tired of it at times. the new season should keep things exciting and new for us, since it's getting to be like our Rocky Horror Picture Show.

"If you controlled what they did, you'd just pass on your own rubbish tip of imperfections. You hope the next generation will be better, stronger, more generous."

Thankfully, it seems that she at least succeeded at this goal, although probably not intentionally.

Chris O'Donnell. Saved Tattoo. BK, NY. Session 1 of 5.

i saw the line drawing of this on the Red Megalith Facebook page when he posted it... me and the guys in the shop where i work spent some time drooling over it. times like this i'm glad i found this site. also, I NEED TO GET TO NEW YORK.

i'm at least glad that they're good at clean, readable graphic design, with a heavy emphasis on the hierarchy of information.

so far i'm batting .500 on still being straight edge. it's good enough for most who claim it, so it's good enough for me!

(on a side note, it's all pure sarcasm... similar to when my friends ask if it's breaking edge to swear or think about girls.)

is it breaking edge if a straight edge kid gets a Hunter S. Thompson tattoo?

if so, i think i may need to start up on the heroin to make up for lost time.

a few weeks back, i booked some time with my boss to work on my chest again in July... time feels like it's passing quickly, until i realize it's 37 days. sounds like such a long time.

also, in reference to disapproval of one's significant other to tattoo subject matter: i'm very glad that when i asked my fiancee how she felt about me covering the fronts of my thighs in skulls/severed heads/peonies, she responded with her standard "As long as it's not your face" answer. and if anyone wants photos, they're unfortunately not started yet... more waiting.

Tom-

Tim Hendricks was recently asked to recommend two Irish tattoo shops on Twitter, and I'd probably agree with his responses (if we exclude Belfast shops, at least).

In Dublin 'Classic Ink' on Crow St. is probably the best bet for traditional stuff. The guys in there paint a lot of their own flash- worth having a look at. I haven't been tattooed by the guys in there, but Oliver Peck did a guest spot in there recently and I ended up dropping in for that - it was a cool shop.

https://www.facebook.com/classicinktattoodublin

Outside Dublin if you are prepared to get on the train or drive down to Limerick you've got Ross Nagle in 'Allstar Tattoo'. He has been knocking it out of the park lately, super bright and distinct traditional style stuff. Gets a lot of guest artists, he's had Chad Koeplinger, Tim Pausinger, Grant Cobb etc in the past.

I went to Classic in January with my fiancee, and we got tattooed by Wal (if i recall his name correctly). super cool shop, cool dudes, and all the art in the back area distract from any pain.

and, since she's from Limerick, i got a big tattoo while there from Ulrich Hueber, who recently opened his own shop... i think it's called High on Ink. at the time, he was at a shop called Bullman's Tattoo Studio, which puts out good work as well.

(double post... i'm an idiot)

i can think of two off the top of my head, pretty sure i came across them here...

monochromedragon

Bodysuit To Fit

i would take someone with 4 inch tunnels and a beaded browline before all of those guy's hashtags.

i'm also assuming he has a sick backpiece... i mean, he is showing it off so much.

perhaps i'm just a square, but i can't understand why it's not possible to wait until you get home for said material... self control isn't that difficult.

mind you, i'm making no assumptions about anyone's skill/talent as a tattooer based on what's available to read in the main area, and would also ascribe to the "don't want to look? then don't" mindset were i to be in that situation. however, i could see that driving off the soccer mom market pretty easily, as well as some other folks. i can't be sure about where everyone else lives, but here in the middle of America, that's a huge demographic.

I tried to tell her there are many options that are way better and that will last the test of time.....

try to convince her that all barcode tattoos eventually blur into Black Flag logos, so she should go with something else. mind you, if she's stoked on Black Flag, that may just make it sound like a better idea...

I just joined this forum 3 days ago, I dont know what the most popular threads are. I am entitled to making my own thread as we are all, no need to build internet ego over something so careless...thanks for the responses all

actually, not trying to build internet ego at all, man. just pointing out something to help responses go a bit smoother in the future. also, in addition to the aforementioned ways of noticing popularity of a thread, on the main page of the forum, it lists the Most Liked Threads, which are generally ongoing discussions of some kind. i believe the Latest Tattoo Lowdown thread has something like 4100.

and, as for questions of civility over a faux pas, this wasn't all that bad. i've seen worse, and was part of a worse reaction when i came onto this forum while commiting a faux pas. i've spent a lot of time since reading instead of posting, learning, and trying not to overstep my bounds. hopefully, i've done just that.