PhilB

Yeah, I was trying to find more out about her. She has exactly one piece I see on her gallery where you can see what it is. The rest of the pictures just seems to be looking at her tits.

Woohoo... I will print out this thread and carry it wherever I go, just in case ;-)

Nobody ever got rich underestimating the stupidity of people.

Yeah, I think I'm OK with the Norse stuff. It's this piece, and it's inspired by Fenrir: It's actually a coverup of this piece I got almost 20 years ago: (bigger shot for scale) So, basically, we covered a wolf with a bigger wolf. I call it my recursive wolf. As you can imagine, I doubt I'll ever be confused with a white supremacist!

All good points. Also, I assure you no one will ever mistake me for a Norwegian nationalist ;-)

Well, my artist and I have been talking about a sleeve for a while and I know that'll be my next endeavour, most likely with a chest panel. I've been trying to figure out some sort of idea he can work with (I find it easier to just give an idea and see what he comes up with. That's how the squidpant happened). At first, I kept thinking that I love Japanese stuff, but that "everyone has big traditional Japanese pieces". On the other hand, they are popular for a reason...there is something to be said for tradition (and my artist does amazing tigers). My squidpant (can you singularize squidpants?) is all Egyptian stuff, and I'm of Egyptian origin, so that's a no-brainer. I feel a little like doing a big Japanese piece would be like "stealing" a little from this culture, of which I am not part. The other side of that coin is that Japanese art is a huge part of tattoo culture (if you can call it that, and I do believe there is such a thing)... I have a piece on my chest that is influenced from Norse mythology, and I was worried about offending people of Norse heritage, but it's far enough removed from the inspiration that I actually have to tell the story about it... I don't know if I'm making sense here. Am I the only one who gets these feelings? Is traditional Japanese such an integral part of tattooing now that it is considered an implicit part of tattooing?

I mean, hard to beat people like this person: Synyster Ink Tattoo (most here should be familiar with that and his/her facebook page), but at least that individual doesn't claim to be someone with 30+ years in the field... I wanted to find the person Charles claims to have apprenticed under (Dana Smith of London, Ontario), but, so far, the only references I can find to him/her are...from Charles. (try to hold back your surprise). I'm seriously considering creating an "Expose your local scratcher/con man tattoo artist" site...Except for the fact that most people who would get tattooed by these scumbags would never check it! I am the only one who feels sad when he sees it horrible work on people? I mean, if they're happy with it, why should I give a shit that someone is out there butchering people? I mean, it makes the whole craft/art look horrible, but those people are considering a running joke by people who really know the industry. On the other hand, warning people who *don't* know any better and would be unhappy with the result (and it sounds like there are a lot of those) might be beneficial... Sounds like some of his former associates are already doing that, though: To The Point Tattoo - Surrey, BC - 11917 98 Ave | Canpages (the reference to "after you and I were in Fraser together" refers to a local correctional facility.

Also, some of his ads on Craigslist (that's where all the world-renowned artists advertise, right?): vancouver, BC all for sale / wanted classifieds ""709-5098"" - craigslist Also, this "British Columbia Body Art Association" that certifies him as a "master"? He's the chairman (shocking, I'm sure). Anything I find in relation to that association has to do with him only (once again, shocking, I'm sure). Heck, the website is even hosted on the same domain his shop site is. The one entry in the guestbook is...charming! Guestbook - The British Columbia Body Art Association

Oh, come on, he's the only officially recognised (by himself and no one else) master tattoo artist in Canada (read: his brain).

...will get the best of your better judgement. I had been hearing about this guy for a while now: To the Point Tattoos Charles Parent (you can easily Google and see his website, more on that in a second). This place just happens to be not very far from where I live, and I felt like taking the dogs to a new destination on their walk...Went there and the man himself introduced himself to me, claimed he had "34 years" doing this. The shop is in his house, although he at least converted the garage to what looks to be a fairly decent shop environment. Proper chairs, etc...There was one other lady and two other young guys working there. But... He showed me the coverup he did himself on one of the young guys that works there. The young guy showed me and proudly exclaimed this was all freehand, none of "that stencil shit" (yeah, why would you want to draw something in advance, position it, etc?). It's here: Charles' Gallery - To The Point Tattoo (if that doesn't work, go to Home - To The Point Tattoo, then pick Charles' gallery) Go all the way to the last two pictures, the first one is titled "Coverup extraordinaire", then a closeup of it. I don't know if "Crayola drawn on by a 12 year old" was the desired effect, but that's what I got from it. It was hard keeping a straight face looking at it, but I walked out, never to darken that doorstep again (unless someone I know and like is on their way there to get tattooed, then I'll have to go stop them!) Don't know if there's any truth to the accusations of him stealing stuff for his portfolio, but let's just say looking at his gallery shows me two different calibers of work: 1- Nice and clean, and 2 - Horrendous. That is usually not done by the same person, unless he's heavily medicated at times! Anybody know this guy?

In their defence, Best Ink was apparently pitched and filmed before Ink Masters. IMHO, they are both equally horrible, yet I can't not watch for some reason...

That's some long-ass (literally) days to be doing consecutively.

That's what I did ;-) When we first did something on my shin (which was going to be large and symmetrical), we dealt with the same problem: I have very flat feet and walk "like a duck". If I line up my feet straight and bend my legs, my knees will actually collide in the centre very easily. So, do we centre it for when I walk, or when my feet are pointed straight? Figured my feet were never pointing straight anyway (quack), so let's centre it so it's straight when I walk/stand normally. After adding all the background, it was a moot point anyway!

It could (although I haven't seen the second episode yet), but then it would be called "LA Ink" or "NY Ink" :p

Well, I did get 71 hours of work done in 13 sessions from June to November or so...Shortest was around 4 hours or so, I think. Like I said: goal-oriented! And then had to drive home close to an hour and deal with customs (thankfully, never a problem) after each session...

I'm the other way around: "Just get it done." I've had a few sessions a little over 7 hours. It was miserable, but I wanted that section done. Then, I'll be back in two weeks if there's more work going there (I've also done two days back-to-back when there was an opening and I knew we could hit different sections. That wasn't much fun). Sometimes, it sucks being goal-oriented. It makes you forget about the joy of the process, something I sometimes also get when motorcycling. It's supposed to be about the ride, but if I'm in a rush, I just want to get there.

I find they are a different kind of pain. Outline is "sharp", but not as intense. Very concentrated, and since you're going all over the place, everywhere is a "new spot", which sucks. Shading is more "dull", but can be way more intense. However, if it stays in one spot, it either gets dull, or intensifies (if it's a particularly sensitive spot). Does anyone else feel this way?

You can tell that it's a sterile environment by the ashtray being at least 6 inches away from the bodypart being tattooed. <shudder>

@Jade1959 Beautiful work. Can't wait to see it with the roses filled in.

On the other hand, getting a bunch of tiny, solid black tattoos with zero background tying any of them together (all I can see on Navarro. I still don't get who gets a simple set of the four logos of the suites in cards, but doesn't even make the red ones red, but to each his own) doesn't make you particularly more qualified to judge things like how it flows on body parts, use of colour, shading, blending, contrast, how to work a 5 hour long session, etc..., all things the guy with the full sleeve may be more in tune with, maybe. I do agree that being exposed to so many top tattooers probably helps, specially if you pay attention to what else is going on in their shop when you're there. Let's be honest, the "celebrity judge" is just there to get a name tied to the show that people who aren't involved in/know anything about tattooing know about. Best Ink has some girl I've never heard of who claims she is "business in the front, party in the back" when she turned around and showed two small pieces (one all lettering) on her shoulders. I suspect executives know who she is, and they are the ones who think that'll bring more viewers. I'm sure most of us would much rather see Paul Booth host, but we are probably less than 1% of their target demographics.

From the article preview: Heck, at least Joe Rogan is funny, doesn't take himself too seriously, and has some actual nice ink (although I haven't gotten a good look at it, it appears nice from a distance). IMHO, YMMV, etc...

Yeah, I find that after 4-5 hours, the wiping starts to hurt more than the needles. The only time I ever yelped was when we went over the top of the kneecap. There was also this weird reaction at one point where I was just relaxing away, concentrating on my breathing, just being mellow...and the needle hit...something. I don't remember where this was, but I do remember my hand suddenly coming up in a fist and start heading towards the artist. That reaction actually scared me because, despite years of Muay Thai training, I'm very non-violent (never had to fight anyone outside the ring, and even that was just sparring, and I've been reprimanded for being too nice then!). I caught myself before hitting anything/anyone, obviously, but we still joke about it, where he says during that split second, he thought for sure he was getting punched. Odd reflex, for sure.

But wait, there's more! The Amateur Tattoo Artist is at it again. : WTF

I'll most likely be going there on the Sunday.