Graeme

Also try to get the book Flash From The Past published by Hardy Marks.

I am no expert here, but solid information on tattooing in that era is really hard to come by. I don't think that really anybody was doing any documentation of tattooing, so I think most of what we're left with is photographs and business cards. I think it is in the introduction to the Tattootime reissues that Ed Hardy notes that prior to I think the 1980s, there had only been two books about tattooing published in the English language. That said, for Internet sources, check out Chuck Eldridge's Tattoo Archive. He's been documenting tattoo history for decades and is probably the single best source about this kind of stuff. For books, Margot Mifflin's Bodies of Subversion is essential. It's about women and tattoos, and she writes a fair bit about circus sideshows, and the book is just excellent. She recently published a new edition of it too. Stoney Knows How by Leonard "Stoney" St. Clair and Alan Govenar is a delight. Stoney started off tattooing in the circuses so there's plenty of circus stories in there. There's also a documentary of this, check the Ed Hardy thread for a link to it. It is hard to come by and usually extremely expensive, but George Burchett's Memoirs of a Tattooist is about European and American tattooing in the earlier part of the 20th century. It's a bit sensational, but is a cool read.

Hate the Brand, Love the Man: Why Ed Hardy Matters | Here's Margot Mifflin's review of his memoir from the Los Angeles Review of Books. It's well worth the read.

Yeah, that one is SO good! I didn't really give him any direction other than saying that I wanted something a hybrid rose/panther sort of like that Hardy backpiece, but I figure that whatever he draws is going to KILL IT. I am super stoked. @Mark Bee I haven't had much trouble with my lower legs so far, but I only have three about fist-sized tattoos on them now so I have no idea what something larger is going to be like. I have seen Chad tattooing at the convention a couple of years ago and it looks pretty brutal, but it's only going to be for a couple of hours so I'll deal. I would rather take a rough tattoo session over a good day at work. @mtlsam I suppose I will see you next Friday night!

You know that Ed Hardy backpiece that's a rose with a panther face in the petals and all sorts of other crazy stuff? I asked him for something like that but on my lower leg. I was thinking shin but we'll see what he thinks.

When's your appointment? Mine is Friday at 6pm. Hopefully I will be able to fit my legs into my work boots by Monday.

Most of you probably saw this on my instagram, but in addition to drinks, I propose that we meet beforehand at Poutineville (1365 rue Ontario E) and share the Crise Cardiaque, pictured above, which is fifteen pounds of poutine...five pounds of fries topped with chicken, bacon, smoked sausage, ground beef, ham, onion, peppers, tomatos, mushrooms, mozzarella cheese and cheese curds, and gravy. And then we will drink beer! We are all going to fucking die, but it could be a fun LST bonding moment. Who is down?

Your sleeve looks like it's coming together super well, and welcome to LST! There's a thread here about tattoo silhouettes and negative space that you should read before deciding one way or the other about background.

Welcome! Tell us about your tattoos.

This is what eating at Au Pied de Cochon is like:

Seth is so damned good.

Shit man, best of luck to you and your wife. Nice tattoo too.

Welcome and let's see your tattoos.

I like this thread idea and I'm interested in what people have to say. I think that if I was to do it over again, I'd probably get tattooed pretty much exactly how I have been so far. I don't want to get into what my tattoos mean to me here, but all tattoos have stories and experiences that go along with them and I'd rather keep those than have tattoos that maybe go better together or whatever.

Well, you tried to be a good friend.

There's a saying attributed to Bob Roberts about how a tattoo should look great when it's just lines, finished with the shading, and any colour is a bonus. I think that's a good rule of thumb about how a design is going to age, because the colour is going to be the first to go. Beyond that you're starting to get into trade secret territory and nobody with any worthwhile knowledge is going to give that out.

I'm getting tattooed by Chad Koeplinger at the Montreal Convention and I'm getting something fucking awesome that I am so stoked about.

If you want something that's going to last and not change, get a nice archival quality print of one of those botanical drawings you like. Don't get a tattoo.

@eisen777 That sucks, bummed to not meet you and the wife. There will for sure be pictures posted here.

I've had scabs come off tattoos and they look light like that but then settled in just fine. Give it some time.

Those backs. Goddamn I love tattoos.

I'd also say that with regard to filling in a swallow's body that sometimes tattoos are designed in a certain way for a reason, even if you don't know that reason.

Chris Brand in LA. He is up in Northern California but based on the pictures on his Instagram, Brian Kaneko does some really staggering Japanese tattoos and since you'd be travelling anyway...

I would just get more tattoos and not stress out about small things.

This guy has really good technique too. Do I want to listen to him? Fuck no, give me some Sabbath.