rozone

Foo dog sleeve progress by Will Lollie. Peonies colored.

Chippin' away at the ol' front.
https://instagram.com/p/3pzXp1MVGD/

I think there needs to be more than two entrants in a given month - even though one of the above two will end up the winner.
I'll throw my chest in and hope to have a chance at the 'best one-shot tattoo of the month' ;)
edit: Done by Steve Byrne at Rock of Ages in Austin.

I'm getting tattooed by Eddy Deutsche on Saturday.
I can't wait!

Shaolin Session #9 - 3 hrs (32 hrs total, wtf?)
This was actually a very difficult session.
It began with some drawing on the detail patterns in the monk's robe trim.
Tattooing started with a 7 liner.
Followed by a really tight shader for all the edging.
The trim ended up being these lil singular flames going from a rich green to black to a rich blue, light blue flames. Very tight details.
Then white in the sleeve cuffs.
And finish it off with skin tones, the shaved head and the expression in the eyes!
It was a very sharp session. Steve had to jump all around a lot and he is quite heavy and his machines hit hard maan (I like it !). These remaining spots were direct spine hits and bbq back ribs. Felt like he was tattooing my lung at one point. Brutal, but hey, keep your feet relaxed and the body will follow, find the clarity. Yeah man, this tattoo shit friggin hurts now, I've used up a most of my 'tattoo credits' over the years.
So...my back tattoo is substantially complete. A bittersweet feeling, however I'm so pumped at how it all turned out. Size of the image, the blackground, the fine details, the colour palette, the butt waves. Nailed the expression, especially the Shaolin eyes. Most excellent. Steve Batt is the god damn guru.
Full donburi bro !!!
Pictures will come once the bruising and redness in the skin tones and white come down.
Now time to relax, heal, enjoy the summer sunshine and lakes.
I'll be back on the table in September for Session #10 to re-hit all the black and saturate the shit out of it and clean up the transitions into the other tattoos in my suit. Then the mini-banger and tattoos over tattoos begins. Booya!

Round 1 of my eagle/dragon.
Tattoo By Chris Garver (thanks fairgreen) at Invisible NYC

Session #8 ...a respectable 2.5hrs (27.5hrs total...what the seriously?).
I was a bit anxious about this session. It was the first session that deviated from our regular routine (Mondays @12pm, take the day off work, wake up early, workout/train/stretch, eat big-large, pack my thermos and meal). I worked a really intense half day at my day job in engineering. Slammed a coffee, ate a sandwich, arrived at 3pm and ate a bunch of rice and beets.
Steve took some time to draw-on the dragon into the monk robe directly.

Dragon was quickly outlined.
Coloured in with gold and yellow.
The robe was coloured in with a dark cherry red.
I made it through a heavy 2.5hrs on the spine, shoulder blades and bbq-back-ribs. Damn, my right side hurts more than the left! We were both happy to call it for the day. I'm still bruised from the section below 2 weeks ago too...
I'm feeling very connected to the details of this piece. The symbolism of the good luck dragon in the robe - I've been part of my kung fu school's dragon team for the last 10 years. Before Sifu passed, he reminded me that the Dragon is the signature form of his kung fu school and to keep his legacy going. It is with great honour that I carry the image and power of the Shaolin monk on my back. And as I was getting this work done, I drew strength from some of my junior kung fu brothers and sisters who are presently over in China training at Shao Lin. We came close to busting the needle bar at the end of the sitting, joking about my iron shirt technique haha. No seriously though, you could hear a nasally phase shift in the sound of the machine response, sounded like a jews harp!
I'm back at it in early-June for Session #9 ...likely the final session in which Steve will tackle the robe trim details and skin tones and eyes on the monk.
Then it's time to relax and enjoy what is looking like a busy exciting summer for me. Go lake swimming, camping and burn my shirt in any fire pit that crosses my path haha. Steve and I will regroup in the fall after the ink has settled in for touchups and we will hit ALL the black again to really saturate the shit out of it. Then the real fun begins...filling the remaining small openings in my suit with fun little tattoos.
"Eric, I'm bummed we are almost done! I'm never gonna see ya again...I really enjoy tattooin ya man!"
Shout out to Steve Batt in Edmonton, AB. One of the most underrated and skilled tattooers in Canada...seriously this cat is on a different level, constantly striving to improve and progress his drawing, composition and tattooing.
amituofo
:cool:

2 and a half more hours. Still didn't do the black in the tail lol.
been FOR EHHH VEEERRR since being under the needle. Glad to get the time in.
EDIT: sorry about my sideways pics

Session #7 down with another 4 hours (25 total).
First colour session!
Did the details in the boots and pants on the monk. The sash is now a vibrant purple which I'm particularly stoked about - my claim to fame is that I was the first purple belt at our kung fu school.
The boots just run over a tattoo Steve did on me 10 years ago lol.
Damn A LOT of white ink went in the pants, with some dark and mint greens in the pattern. Going to look mighty against the saturation of the heavy black once the tattoo settles in.
It was a very difficult session pain wise. Lots of motion over the kidneys, spine, and bbq ribs. The session started with 30 minutes of re-lining and stylizing the lines in the clothes. zOuch!
And once again, the session finishes with a Ramones song :cool:
Back in 2 weeks for another big colour sesh...the monk's robe and pattern.
And then 1 or 2 sessions after that to go over the blackground again, tighten up the seams. Also throw in a mini banger (hehe) in this 2"x2" spot under my butt I requested to leave open for the victory lap.
So yeah, the plan is to wrap my Shaolin backpiece up in June so I can enjoy the rest of my summer. WICKED

I'm getting tattooed by Eddy Deutsche on Saturday.
I can't wait!

I'm getting tattooed by Eddy Deutsche on Saturday.
I can't wait!

I'm getting tattooed by Eddy Deutsche on Saturday.
I can't wait!

I'm getting tattooed by Eddy Deutsche on Saturday.
I can't wait!

I'm glad to see a thread about money come up on here, and stay on track with reasonable questions and reasonable answers. We have always avoided the topic, but it is a big part of getting tattooed, and new people come here to educate themselves on all aspects of tattooing. I think we have avoided it for so long because we didn't want it to turn into a big gossip thread about what specific tattooers charge. I personally have never asked ahead of time about the price, but I do think it is a good idea. Especially if you are new to getting tattooed. The ones of us that have been getting tattooed for a decade or more usually have some idea of what we might get charged. Even though we don't talk about it on open public forums we do share this type of information privately. When you are travelling across the country or across the world to get tattooed by someone you have never met before it is a huge help to have friends that have been tattooed by them. They let you know what to expect when you get there. Where to get a good pre-tattoo meal and post-tattoo drink, where the closest ATM is, how fast or slow the tattooer is, and what to expect on the money side. If you don't have friends like that as a resource then you need to talk about the price beforehand no matter how uncomfortable it makes you. I honestly believe that most really good tattooers are very fair with their pricing. That has been my experience over the last twelve years, but I also know that there are a few famous tattooers out there that charge ridiculous prices, and a couple of my friends found out the hard way. It sucks when that happens because it can really sour a person on getting tattooed.

The value of my arguing time is also subjective!! :)
But you're probably right.

The backpiece is done (for now at least) and i couldn't be more happy with it. Unfortunately i managed to pick up a chest infection which put a bit of a dampener on my trip to Oslo but there's no taking the smile off my face right now.

Pretty much all the colour is fresh as well as a couple of the darker parts of the skull so it'll look a lot different once everything has settled down i'm sure. I don't mind admitting i barely made it through this session, definitely the hardest one i've had (certainly not helped by illness) but i'm so fucking glad we got to the end.
By the legendary Marius Meyer.
Now we await the healing process.... Also that left arm is looking pretty damn bare isn't it... fuck.

just extended my half sleeve with a snake from Johan Svahn
i attached some pics
skull by rg
dragon by danh vu

Soo good, @Graeme!! I've yet to see something from Dave C that I haven't totally loved.

Dave is amazing. There was a guy in the shop when I was there who was getting tattooed by Will and he had an almost complete Dave backpiece of a Tengu fighting a Nue and it was amazing. You should really make the trip sometime to get something from Dave, he's such a good tattooer and it's been the best experience.

Sneaked this cheeky filler in today with Nicholas from Blue Arms, Oslo. Nice little warm up for the back piece session tomorrow!

More badassery for you. Starting to see the finish line on this one. By Dave C., PSC Tattoo.

Just got this beauty from Josh Peters at High Tides in Saint John, New Brunswick.
So stoked! Im a little paranoid about the healing atm, like I am with every tattoo I get, but We'll see when its healed haha

Surfing Mahakala (WIP–lines and shading done) on rib by the inimitable Eddy Deutsche

Sending through a teaser of sorts . . .
Just a small portion of my music themed leg-work by Hooper;

The 6th and (hopefully) last session is June 1st, so I'll likely be able to post the fully completed leg sometime in July. Lower leg is healing REAL slow.

Here ya go: By Jeff Rassier Tattoo Picture | Last Sparrow Tattoo