losParanoyas

have an appointment tomorrow with Greg Christian during his visit at Elm Street in Dallas.

Blackworkers on Instagram showcase a lot of work that falls under that category: https://instagram.com/blackworkers/

I think the piece you're missing is that you don't need to find anyone that can draw. You need to find the tattoo artist/shop you want to have do the piece and work with that person to draw it for you and ultimately tattoo it for you. It's what they do... The "someone" you find who can draw, might be great at drawing but will have no clue how to draw it to be tattooed. They wont know how it needs to flow or lend itself to the particular spot you want it tattooed on your body. So first, find the tattoo artist/shop...then go talk to them in person and they'll work it out with you. Do you already have a shop in mind? If not, I'm sure someone can give you a few suggestions if you tell us where you're located. Good luck.

Started some dot shading last weekend. Quick 2-hour session with Thomas Hooper until next time, which will be in August. I need to take a month or so off so I can swim with the kids over their summer break. Once we're done with shading this section, we're gonna hammer out whats going on in the lower belly area and right ribs. crap...sorry the pic is loading horizontally. I'll see if I can fix that.

@Wilhell - Did that blast over from Chad really only take 2 and a half hours?? It's awesome man..as is the filler from Tony. I'm going to be down at ROA this Sunday with Thomas. Unfortunately, I have more than 2.5 hours left...

Tony Hundahl just posted dates on his Instagram for the end of this month for when he's doing a guest spot at Invictus! Welcome to the forum!

Next session with Kore Flatmo is 2 weeks away! Then I start stomach/rib pieces with Thomas Hooper a few weeks after that! Super pumped!

Here's the existing thread you could use: http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/5952-thread-posting-while-getting-tattooed.html

I have my kid's names, but I didn't dwell on any meaning or specific reference to their personality or interests. I got my son's name before we even knew we wanted another kid. I was down in Austin visiting a friend and went to Diablo Rojo and picked a sacred heart off the wall. Leo changed it a bit based on things we talked about and threw "Ethan" in the banner. Really just because I like catholic imagery. And then when my daughter was about 4 years old she started giving me crap about having Ethan and not Ruby, so when Kore Flatmo was drawing up my cover up, I asked him if he could just toss in a banner with "Ruby" on it...bam...problem solved. I actually really like how it turned out. She was floored then...and still thinks its the best thing ever.

My friend, Jay Ryan, does some screen printing workshops at his studio in Chicago (the bird machine) and my wife and i went up last year for a weekend visit. We were lucky enough to get to do it on the same weekend when he had a show opening at Rotofugi of his paintings. Also, Aaron Horkey was Jay's special guest at the workshop and the print we made was a collab between the two of them. It was very awesome to be able to learn the screen printing process, watch Jay and Aaron cut rubylith, and take turns with 8 other workshop students manually pulling the screens and working a semi-automatic press. The print is titled, "Ouroburos".

Thanks and no worries about using my post as an example. It's a valid concern, just not one that I have. I have thought about it a little, but it wasn't enough to slow me down. My chest rarely sees the sun. When it does, it's when I'm swimming with my kids...and we're super careful with the sunscreen with them, which makes it easy to remember to protect myself.

Thanks @Iwar ! My last session is in mid March and I'll try harder then to get a picture of both in the same picture together.

Had my 2nd session with Thomas Hooper yesterday. Mostly dot shading and mostly sat okay for it. Much easier than the line work during our first session.

Marie Sena does this here in Dallas on her days off from the tattoo shop. She has a link to the office she works at from her main website: Marie Sena Tattooing and Illustrative Works About DMT

If you're in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, Train Wreck opens today at 5...featuring new works by Daniel Higgs: Current I'll be there with the wife and kids...unless they flake on me.

I told him I wanted butterfly wings and that I wasn't set on a lady head, tiger head, etc... And that I just wanted to leave with something that looked like a Theo tattoo. I was stalking your knee on here last week. Actually the only direction I had to give him was just that my wife veto'd a devil. He thought that was pretty funny.

Got this from Theo Mindell while he was visiting Austin for a few days. The guy might be the straight up nicest dude I've met in a long time. And Paco Cendon at electric13 was super nice too and has an awesome shop. I very much underestimated the pain on the back of the thigh, just above the ditch of my knee. It's 3 days later and I'm still limping around.

Oh, if the Dallas/Fort Worth area is an option, I'd suggest Marie Sena. Marie works at Saints and Sinners in Oak Cliff and I have 3 things from her so far. She did a large piece on my leg and some blast over work for me and I couldn't be happier with it. Here's her site...she also has quite a bit more on instagram: Tattooing Instagram I also like Mark Thompson's work. A friend of mine has a half sleeve from him and it looks great! He works out of Obscurities in Dallas. I don't think he's on instagram and has a very small web presence. Dallas Tattoo Artist | Mark Thompson And if you're willing to drive to DFW, then maybe you're willing to drive to Austin...which then opens up more options. The Star of Texas convention is coming up in January down in Austin. If you're not in a rush, you could just go down there and check out a ton of folks in person.

Welcome to LST! I've been going up to that area to get work from Kore Flatmo for the past few years. I would love to get something from Mike Dorsey one day. Also, Mason Williams does awesome work too, but Mike fits what you're describing better. If I lived in walking distance to that studio, I probably wouldn't go any place else. I ran into someone at Sidewinders Coffee shop wearing a Mike Dorsey shirt while I was up there. Not something I see everyday walking around the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Next time you have some time, you should watch Kore Flatmo's interview on here. It's pretty great. Mason's site: ArcLight Tattoo Studio, Ltd. | Mason Williams Tattooist | Cincinnati, OH Kore's site: PluraBella

Thanks! I can't wait to get back up there!

Oh, it would just bum me out that anyone could print out posters and shirts of my tattoo as inspiration for their event and/or business. It's like the Stay Calm stuff...to me. I've also worked in a corporate environment for nearly 20 years now and the inspirational posters that hang in the break areas are anything but... just my opinion from my personal experiences with inspirational quotes. I would get a big ass eagle across my chest or a panther with a kettle bell (nod to the crossfit stuff) hanging from its mouth. Good luck with the weight loss man...

Got back on Saturday from my latest session with Kore Flatmo. We added all that color to the dagger, snake, and flames. These pictures do not do those blue jewels justice. Next time we're adding black and grey work to the bottom shin area, the knee, and back of thigh. Had a great time up there as usual.

This would bum me out and is why I personally would stay away from inspirational quotes. To strive to seek to find and not to yield #4348 - Behappy.me

I have a consult with Thomas Hooper next Friday and my next visit with Kore Flatmo the following week. Cant wait!

You guys know if they sell the convention tshirts online at all? Like maybe when it's over or something?