kingofcosta

Hallo. My opinion about tattoo is - panther head with dagger > panther head > every other tattoo > birds exploding from a feather Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Greetings dude. I can't help you with choosing a great shop in Boston as I'm located in the cold north east of England, but I'm sure someone will be along soon to advise. What I will say though, as a tattooist, is, don't be offended if your tattooer asks to change your design a bit to make it work perfectly as a tattoo. Many things that look great on paper simply don't transfer to a tattoo. You should still be able to get a great tattoo based on your design, just don't be too precious about keeping it exactly as you drew it. Unless you draw something that perfectly suits the medium. In which case, well done! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I wouldn't dream of going to Sausage, mainly because he said in one of the episodes that he had recently found Jesus. I spent ages trying to lose the self-righteous 'son of God' and I wouldn't want anyone pointing out where he was.

'Established' or 'hotshot' tattooists are booked up months in advance. They also tend to be tattooers because they respect and love the craft. So they would have to sacrifice both their loyal and waiting customers and their professional integrity to compete on the show. You live and die by your reputation in tattooing and the best of the best simply wouldn't entertain taking part in something that would diminish their reputation in any way. It's only my opinion, of course, but appearing as a contestant on these shows is a fast way to sacrifice a chunk of your integrity. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

If the pigment they use is so amazing I'm sure we'd be using it in our shops. Truth is, we probably are. I'm certainly not an expert in cosmetic tattooing (if it's really that different) but tattooing is thousands of years old, and a constant has always been that you inject ink a certain depth into the dermis and the body holds it there. It's a simple concept. The spin and propaganda is the only thing that changes. Sorry I can't be much more help than that. :-) Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I managed to get two hours of my hip-hop (old school - obviously) playlist past the boss today. He suddenly realized what was happening and now we're being subjected to big band classics. Which I hate. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'll spend my time drawing nice lettering for customers who want and appreciate it. If someone comes in and wants the name of their sixth child added to the already shopping-list sized scribble on them, and their first question is "how much will it cost"? then I'm sure as hell printing some script font off Word. I love designing script for people, but on a time vs money scale, the majority of work that walks through our door is minimum-charge names, 'mum' or some inane five letter quote. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I read that the Nazis only tattooed numbers on the people they weren't intending for the gas chambers. They (nazis) would not waste time nor ink on those who they intended to kill. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

It's her fault for continually translating the Latin for whoever enquires. She could just say it meant that she liked sunny days or something equally innocuous and avoid all the philosophical bullshit that follows the real meaning. Pretentious idiocy. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Damn. That printer pushes cleaner lines than me. Sad face. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Dude, they're not called 'job stoppers' for nothing! I often turn kids (18-21) away from my shop who are looking for hand or neck tattoos (usually as their first tattoo). When they inevitably get in a huff and ask why I usually tell them that I pay tax, and I don't want that tax to be supporting them for the rest of their life when they find they can't get a job because they are being judged on their hand or neck tattoos. Sometimes I can't be bothered with them and just tell them they haven't earned the right to have hand tattoos. This confuses them, and they just go to a scratcher shop down the road and get a really badly executed hand tattoo anyway. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Don't get us wrong, feel free to keep fucking up your own skin, that's your prerogative. Just don't tattoo anyone else. Ever. Never ever. Encouraging enough? Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

No you won't. You'll make the same mistakes over and over again. Because you have no respect for the craft. I'm sure there's a forum called 'teach me to tattoo' so I think you should head over there, because this just ain't for you, bud. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'd imagine it bleaches the colour out of the pigment so it looks really faded. I'm not sure how wise it is to tattoo something as nasty as hydrogen peroxide into your skin though. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I agree that the name is ridiculous, but I think the product is spot on. I've used it while tattooing people and it is great for keeping the skin perfect, it helps prevent swelling and keeps reddening to a minimum. It smells awesome (if you like coconut - if you don't, then you'll hate it)! My major complaint is that it is really expensive, and seems to try really hard to be 'cool'. I dry heal most of my tattoos and have not tried this as a healing balm, but as an alternative to Vaseline during the tattoo process it is excellent. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

This is a disaster. I used to think my dog was cool. That was until I knew there were dogs rocking trad-heart tattoos. Now my dog is just boring. I can't even bring myself to pet him anymore. Stupid, uncool dog. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

The main issue I have (as a tattooist) with certain slang terms is that they instantly identify someone as a kitchen wizard, or someone who is happy to frequent scratcher shops. I've worked hard to get where I am, damn hard, and a large part of that was learning about the history and tradition of the craft. Through this, I've developed an overwhelming respect for the ancientness and significance of what we do, as both tattooists and tattoo enthusiasts. This respect makes it impossible for me to use terms such as 'inked' 'tatted up' and 'tat gun', simply because it demeans what I have worked so hard for (and continue to bust my balls at). I'm not really bothered when customers use them because the majority know no better as they haven't had the insight and learning I have, nor do the majority care (they just want to get tatted up). That's cool with me. They've just accidentally come to a decent tattooer and will end up with a better tattoo than they probably deserve. They pays their money, they makes their choice! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Dude. I think you need to take life, and yourself, a little less seriously. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The 'hacks' greatest tool is that they are cheap. Dirt cheap. And this appeals to the type of people who don't care about the quality of their tattoos. So in essence the problem is not that much of a problem. The type of people that good tattooers don't want to tattoo go to scratchers, leaving the people who want good tattoos to come to good tattooers. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yep. I think a ratio of 8 out of 10 is being a bit generous. It is a bit presumptious to say that people want good tattoos. The majority of people who walk through our door (a street shop, admittedly) just want a 'tattoo'. That's it. Good or bad, they don't know and they don't care. There is a huge number of people who don't see tattoos as art, and they don't have the same requirements as a collector, or someone who loves the art/craft of tattooing. They want their mum's date of birth, or some bird silhouettes, or their boyfriends name. They honestly do not possess that filter in their brain that can identify a good tattoo or a bad one. These people neither want nor require education. It is a bit elitist of us to assume they do. There's too much information out there already, as I'm sure fellow tattooists will attest to, and indeed they have in various threads on here. I'm currently in the middle of a full sleeve on a customer who didn't ever want a tattoo until he started watching Miami Ink, so you can imagine the pain of dealing with him (it's a whole other story in itself). We recently had to sit through three episodes of Ink Master that a customer had on his iPad whilst being tattooed. Too much information. Do you want a nice tattoo? Yes. Then here is some of my work, if you like it, let's get you booked in. That should be the long and short of it. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

It'll be great when it all goes back underground. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You're not from England are you? All we do here in the UK is talk disrespectfully to each other! I'd call my best friend all the names under the sun before I'd even look blackly at a complete stranger. This thread has restored my faith in internet forums. I love it when a thread degenerates into abusive nonsense, and feel the complete opposite to Stewart as I think it's entertaining ad infinitum. You muppets. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Ha! The guy who taught me to tattoo once did a tattoo on a semi-famous band member when they were both fairly blitzed (he had specifically said at the start of the evening 'don't get me drunk and make me tattoo'). Anyhow, the tattoo was drawn on and the guy checked it in the mirror and liked it, so it was permanently inked on. It wasn't until the next day that someone noticed the banner on it proclaimed 'Tatoos don't hurt'. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I am currently trading tattoo time for getting my roof fixed. It's a cracking deal for me, I have to tattoo the simplest cloudwork for a few hours and he has the pleasure of scrambling around 40 feet up on my Victorian slate roof plugging holes and fixing brickwork. It was his idea too (which I cunningly planted in his mind as soon as I knew he was a roofer)! Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Breathing life into old threads here..... Music is a constant source of conflict in our shop. At least, it would be, if boss man was inclined to give a shit what any of us think. He is a great proponent of the old school 'find out what their weaknesses are and keep attacking right where it hurts'. Therefore the music he selects becomes a weapon in his antagonistic war. I especially hate the 'Songs from Disney' days, don't really know how I survive the 'Great musicals of the 50s, 60's and 70's' days, and want to kill myself the next time he puts 'Tiptoe through the Tulips' on repeat. But showing that it is annoying me is to admit to the weakness, so I suck it up and tattoo on. He can often be swayed to put Vietnam-era playlists on spotify and likes a bit of 80s pop, so if I get to the music before he does I put that on, knowing that it will distract him for a few hours. Still love the evil old bastard, mind. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk