Tiresius

@Kurgana, it sounds lucky that you have budget restraints because it will slow you down. What happens when all your skin is filled in? lol ;)

I am thinking of trying to get an earlier appointment with someone else at the same studio, FallenHeroes. Her name is La and she specialises in 'illustrative' tattoos. I'm considering a faraway tree (Enid Blyton) that goes up my right thigh, over my hip and onto my side and stomach. (I'm a woman by the way - just happen like the name Tiresius!)

Though a lot of her work is watercolour I have seen just black from her too and really like the whimsical effect of her work. 

Got this tree colored in awhile back. Done by my teacher. The foundational grey wash was already done, so it was all dark to medium browns, some orange-ish burnt sienna and he did it in about 2 hours. By far the easiest heal ever. My teacher is known for his easy heals, but just for fun, we did a hot pack before bandaging. Holy shit, that hurt. Took a whole bunch of paper towels and ran them under all the way hot water, then immediately slapped them on my leg. Almost levitated out of the chair. Took the bandage off once home and washed, waited a minute, re-scrubbed, then turned the water up until it was unbearable. Got on the couch and elevated it for 2+ hours while it dried. Super red and swollen the next day, but after a few weeks it only ever developed a papery scab and healed beautifully. I use Ohana Organics tattoo butter after day 4 or 5 and it's great. It goes a long way though, so a little does a lot.
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I know this is older but I was just going back through. Sorry for the off centered "selfie" pic with hubby but I wanted to show off my 2 day old chest piece. We didn't go up terribly high on to the shoulders to leave room for more projects. Slight bruising around collar bone.
 

Spend yesterday afternoon in the chair of Jan Willem (@janwillemtattoo) in Rotterdam. Drew a Peony on my elbow ditch with this as the result: 

Pretty stoked on the end result!

My first two were also flash, the third one was a mash-up of several elements from a band logo, the fourth was basically a design by me which was improved upon by the artist. At this point, I had found someone whose artistic talent I really admire and who clearly knows what he's doing. The last two tattoos were totally designed by the artists (the previous one and a new-to-me artist). As you see, there's a clear progression there. 
What was the key to letting go and letting them do their thing was realizing that I liked (all or most of) their previous work, and that I would hate it if my micro-managing compromised the end result. IMO, a good artist will know what he/she is doing, and their artwork will very rarely benefit from overly strict requirements by the client. This is not to say that you shouldn't tell them exactly what you want, just be ready to listen to their suggestions and keep an open mind. Maybe don't bring a sketch with you ;). Also, I've noticed that it really helps with the "fit" on your body if you can be fairly flexible with the exact position and let them go as big as they deem necessary.
The "bad" thing is that once you learn to just get along with it, it just gets easier and easier and the indecisions tend to disappear. Personally, this is a bad thing mainly for my bank account ;). I have lots of free space left, a ton of ideas (now that I don't need to have the finished tattoo perfectly planned out before approaching the artist), and a fairly flexible schedule so without any budget restraints I'd probably live in the tattoo studio... As it is, I've gotten "just" three 3-5 hour tattoos over the past six months...

And I think if one is immersed in tattoo culture, that might also seem the way to go. Because most of the people around me are somewhat anti-tattoo, I think I need to feel great resonance with the image and more certainty about it having a particular place on me. 
My first was flash and second was one I saw on the Internet. Designing one feels a bit difficult for that reason...
 

Check this 
 

i think that sticker look your struggling with is the freshly applied hairless aspects of what new tattoos look like on IG, internet, etc 
it wont look like a sticker for long - it'll look like its a part of you and your skin - because it will be 
this thread has certainly got some legs to it - i have enjoyed the discussions and checking out some of the artwork on the artist IGs
though not the style i seek - there are some great looking tattoos out there in this style

Sounds like you are not a constipated perfectionist! Too bad. If you ever need lessons in hesitation, procrastination or general paralyzingly uncertainty, look me up! 

@Tiresius getting tattooed has cured me of a lot of that too, like @Kurgana says. Well, helped a lot anyway. 
It's not really my cup of tea, but this guy does a lot of stuff along the lines of the style you like. He uses what many people here would probably consider 'enough' black but it's absolutely not traditional https://www.instagram.com/thedavidcote/ 
 

Sounds like you are not a constipated perfectionist! Too bad. If you ever need lessons in hesitation, procrastination or general paralyzingly uncertainty, look me up! 

Hello all,
I very recently (Thursday, actually) got my first tattoo. I am quite pleased with it, an arrangement of an owl and flowers.
It is a scar coverup, with the intention of making my arm something I'm proud of in stead of something to hide away. I've been hiding it for over 8 years, by the way, these are the first pictures featuring my left arm since then :) Added bonus? You can't see the scars at all. They're just gone. La, the tattoo artist, in fact used the deepest and whitest of them as highlights on the feathers and the beak, and many others are now bits of flower. It's amazing, how it feels to take something that you have been hiding for so very long, and to in one day, turn it into something you just want to show everyone.
The idea is long in coming, with the owl being a reference to Minerva's little owl (and my love of nature). Sunflowers are my favourite flowers, and cosmos link to traveling along my country's roads. Mostly, though, it's because I find it beautiful.
Fine line black and grey, with lots of grey wash that right now just looks dark, but that should lighten with healing (she said two weeks, maybe a bit more, to see the effect). This was taken the next day, so it's very fresh here.

Done by the lovely La at Fallen Heroes Tattoo in Johannesburg.

Sounds like you are not a constipated perfectionist! Too bad. If you ever need lessons in hesitation, procrastination or general paralyzingly uncertainty, look me up! 

Lol. You've just described me. The good news is that tattoos might just cure you from that, once you find artist(s) whose work you are comfortable with. Or else you'll be spending the rest of your life second guessing yourself and/or in laser removal I guess :D.
I'm actually looking forward to my future tattoos since I'm now at a point where I'm starting to feel comfortable with just picking a loose subject matter/style and letting the artist run wild with that, rather than having to have the whole tattoo planned inside my head (or on paper) by the millimeter.

Sounds like you are not a constipated perfectionist! Too bad. If you ever need lessons in hesitation, procrastination or general paralyzingly uncertainty, look me up! 

@Tiresius hey good luck - found Thys on IG
you'll notice here that most of us favor some form of traditional tattooing but hey whatever works for you - how is some of that no outline watercolor stuff gonna age on YOU - hey only one way to find out right - anyway - our tastes tend to evolve as we get deeper into this thing so keep an open mind and enjoy

As someone said, skin is skin. That hasn't changed, no matter the "technology." Just keep that in mind. :-)

Me too. My 6.5 hour session required someone bring me a sip of sumpthin, but otherwise there is chat and mental relaxation techniques, and time is up before you know it. I discovered early on that when I tried to look at my phone or listen to music I had a harder time than just laying back and zoning out/accepting the sensation.
 

i usually just bring the body part thats getting tattooed

http://instagram.com/chrisadamek

I can see the headphone thing working,I try and "zone out" when getting worked on too,I put myself in Hawaii with my wife and my dog,that's my happy place.

so thigh tattoos heal like shit
but its a great spot to be tattooed imo
front row seat to the action
not too painful imo
and lots of size / placement options  
i have 3 thigh pieces
lava lamp (which my wife calls my teenage girl tattoo :)
fish in an espresso pot
and a smoking frog
have fun
 

I'v booked with Thys at Fallen Heroes :) http://www.fallenheroes.co.za/artist/thys

However, it's a long wait - nearly a year and I may end up having another piece done earlier, either by Bryan, La, (at the same studio) or both :o

The piece I have planned with Thys is a detail from Henri Rousseau's painting, 'The Dream' and it's in memory of someone who passed away 2 and a half months ago.

It seems to have triggered a tattoo-fever...

@Tiresius so who'd you book in with
i enjoyed checking out the work being done by those tattooers you identified in your original post
i say if you want to get some funky watercolor design then get it
dont worry about 20 years, 10 years - listen - you're only promised today - so go get your tattoo and enjoy it - who knows where your tattoo journey will take you - you may end up becoming attracted to a variety of styles and designs - who knows
good luck - keep us posted
now go get tattooed! 

http://www.epicthings.com/tattoos-heal-before-after/
thanks Bill Loika