Mark Bee

I just download it onto my iPad. Gotta say, it looks slick on a tablet.

Yes! Thank you!

Its been a while since I joined a forum and took an active part in discussions. My previous forays in to the world of forums typically revolved around video gaming. For many years I was a very active poster on a clan website based around the seminal FPS UT'99. I made tons of friends there and met many of them during my trips to the UK and the USA. Eventually, though, new games came along and the community dried up. I have remained in contact with many of the friends I made there though we talk very little about gaming anymore. The World of Warcraft drained many of the remaining UT players, myself included, and so my participation in the forum dwindled, mirroring the decline in the game's numbers. I tried to get involved in the WoW forums, but I quickly discovered they were a rather nasty place, where people were more concerned about trashing each other than developing a community. And that's fine too. It just wasn't my bag. I'd rather focus on the more positive aspects of the game (or whatever the topic might be.) After lurking for a little while at LST, I felt that I had discovered an interesting online community that seemed determined to be positive place to post, discuss, learn, and generally talk about tattooing. Since joining the forum (ok, it was only yesterday) my initial impressions are being confirmed. So I jumped right in. Its the way I do things. Whole hog. I also hope that over the coming weeks and months I will have a few things to contribute to this community. My thoughts and interjections will likely not be to everyone's taste. But that's life. I'm probably going to say some stupid things from time to time, and I fully expect to be called out for those missteps. But my errors will likely come from ignorance and I hope it will be understood that I am here to learn as much as I am here to offer my opinions. I am going to post my new tattoos as they happen. I've enjoyed seeing how people here have been tattooed. I find it fascinating to hear why people choose the art that they do. I am interested in hearing about the experiences people have had both as the tattooer and the tattooed. I suspect there are as many reasons for getting tattooed as there are tattoos. I am constantly interested in my own evolving views on the art (how's that for some navel gazing?) I also love that there is so much attention to history here. The links to the various documentaries, books, etc are invaluable. I'll use this space to post my thoughts that do not fit neatly into forum threads. This is a long weekend in Ontario and thus I have had a lot of extra time to surf and post on LST. I'll leave it here for now. Thanks for reading! Up Next: On Waiting for the next tattoo - time stands still

The longest I've been tattooed is about 4 hours. That included a ten minute break. I was pretty "jangly" by then. I don't think I'd want to do longer than that in one session. Of course, if I were visiting a shop in another town, or was being tattooed by someone who wasn't going to be available again soon, I'd suck it up and do a longer session.

Cool - Thanks, Johannes. I'll look for it. You're absolutely right. Stoney was a great storyteller. I wish I'd met him.

Hey - Let me just say how awesome Glennie and Tim are. I've spent the last couple of years getting work done exclusively at The Pearl. Glennie did a great schooner for me a few weeks ago and Tim is doing my forearm. Its a great shop, awesome staff, and crazy-talented tattooers. Not only that, the Market is a great place to whittle away a sunny afternoon. Good luck with your tattooing. But yeah, check out The Pearl.

I'm all over the place with this. I've brought in designs and my tattooer has suggested modifications and I've been very happy with the results. I've also picked a couple of classic American pieces and dropped them on my skin. As I move into the more visible areas, like my forearms, I've become more concerned about creating a cohesive design that links things together more carefully. But to do this I had to draw on the skill and talent of the folks at The Pearl. I've sent long emails with pics and designs and ideas, and had in person consultations. I want to get this right. I'm discovering that I'm happiest with the work when I step back and let the artists do the work unimpeded. This was a hard place for me to get to. I always felt I had to come in with fully formed ideas. Then I had the problem of trying to communicate these ideas. Because I cannot draw even decent stick-figures, this was a huge obstacle. The more familiar I became with the tattooer's work, personality, and shop, the more comfortable I became with letting them design the work with only broad guidelines from me. In short, I got to the point where I fully trusted the people who do this work on me. Like any relationship, this took some time. But the results have been brilliant.

I've got an appointment in March with Tim Pausinger at The Pearl in Toronto. He is putting a tiger head on my elbow and an eagle on my forearm. That's about all I'll have time for in that appointment. Back again in April. I'll probably sneak a walk-in or two to fill in a few spots in the meantime.

Very cool. I love old footage like that. I never get tired of hearing people talk about why they get tattooed or what it means to them. Endlessly fascinating. I watched another old video the other day called "Stoney Knows How," and it was similarly intriguing. Think it was shot in the late 1960s. I was alive in the early 70s but it seems like another era completely. Sadly, on YouTube I could only find parts 1 & 3. Thanks for posting this find.

Thanks, Duffa! Its a pleasure to be here.

Wow. That is spectacular. I love the differences in the color between the flower and the butterfly - not to mention the butterfly pattern is stunning. Very cool.

Great pieces! I'm glad you posted with this concern. Its something I have struggled with as well, trying to come up with an arm that looks like it was planned out in advance. I'm sure many people out there have carefully put together a perfectly planned sleeve. I was not one of them. The more tattoos I get, the better I get at arranging things that work well together. I think people often get tattoos in bursts, and tastes change with time. For me, at least, having some different styles simply reminds me of where I was in my life at the time I got each tattoo. In a way, the differences map out a particular story of my life. Having a mix of styles can look really great. That said, because I do not have particularly well developed artistic skills (read: no skill at all!) when I decided to do my forearms I sought the help of the artists at the shop I frequent. Together we mapped out my right forearm. I'll post the pics as the work gets done. My suggestion would be to have chat with the tattooer you are going to have do the work and think it through together. There are plenty of examples of great tattooed arms (and legs, etc) that are a mix of styles. I'm new on this forum, so take my words as those of a neophyte. I'm certain that you will get some good advice on these pages. At any rate, I don't think you need to feel remorse. They look great.

Thanks, Hogg. I've been fortunate - that's for sure. They do have some excellent guests. Last one I saw was Mario Desa (from Chicago I think). I watched him doing an awesome pin-up girl on a guy's forearm. Classic.

Thanks, Johannes!

Thanks, RoryQ. Kensington Market is a really great, vibrant part of the city. So much good food, coffee, shops, and people. It represents most of the things I love about living in a big city.

Thanks, Kylegrey. I hope to fit in like a well-used barcalounger. By the way, that is a killer skull in your gallery.

Thanks, Brock. I'm thoroughly enjoying reading all the various threads.

I've been really impressed with The Pearl. Every piece I've had from that shop has been a great experience. I've got a two appointments booked in March and April, but hopefully I'll get in earlier if someone cancels. My fiance just had a lovely hummingbird done there on Friday. I was totally jealous! I'd be there every two weeks, if I could.

Hi Graeme, I've been getting tattooed by Glennie and Tim at Pearl Harbor Gift Shop in Toronto. Thanks for the welcome!

Very cool design. I love the idea of maps as tattoos. Given your field of work, this makes a lot of sense. I can't speak to the difficulty of turning that design into a tattoo, but I really like the idea of connecting yourself to the framework of your hometown. I have often thought of saving some space for a rendition of a transit map of my city somewhere on my back. (I'm a transit and infrastructure nerd). Good luck on this project. I hope you'll post the results.

Hello everyone. My name is Mark and I am from Toronto, Canada. A bit of background...I got my first tattoo back in 1992 or so. (I'm 42 now). I recall the tattooer telling me the experience was akin to applying a sunburn. He was right. What he didn't tell me was what an amazing, life-long experience it was going to be. I didn't get another for several years but the idea was never far from my consciousness. I got a few more simple designs done over the next decade, continually looking for designs and artists that drew my attention. In the late 2000s I started to get more serious about tattooing. In a couple of years I added about ten new pieces. Sometimes it was because I was drawn to a particular design, and other times simply because I wanted to get tattooed. I had a few custom pieces done, but I also had some taken from flash that really caught my eye. For me, there is no greater way to feel really and truly alive than getting tattooed. I continued to be struck by the stunning artwork I saw on people's arms as I walked around town. However, while I appreciate art, I lack any and all talent in that department. I decided that if I was ever going to have the sort of tattooing I really loved and admired I needed to get serious about finding a shop and artist(s) I truly appreciated and felt comfortable visiting regularly. After months of poking around I finally found the perfect shop for me deep in the heart of Toronto. (I'm new at this forum and at this point I'm not mentioning names because I'm not sure of the etiquette surrounding naming shops and artists yet, especially for new posters like myself.) Once I found the shop I turned to figuring out how I wanted my arms/back/legs to look. With the help of artists at this shop I began to explore the history of American tattooing. I found that I was particularly interested in traditional-styled tattoos and I began collecting some work that reflected the early days in the Bowery and nautical themes in particular. That interest led me to neo-traditional art, which for me at least, blends beautifully with the older style. A historian by trade, I was drawn to old documentaries (Sailor Jerry, Stoney Knows How) and I spent (spend!) hours pouring over the shop's books of flash, design, and booklets (from the Tattoo Archive.) I'm currently beginning work on a full sleeve for my right arm that is based on traditional designs and patterns. Next, the left arm, which I hope to do in a new-traditional style. I hope that the contrast between the two styles will make for an interesting visual spectacle while acknowledging the history of the art form. Most of my time has been spent doing this on my own, poking around and figuring things out. There are all kinds of fascinating questions that tattooing raises for me that I hope taking part in these forums will help me explore. And, I'm sure I'm not the only one who is working their way through this world and finds themselves wondering what other people are up to. Anyway, that's my long-winded introduction. Thanks for reading it! M.