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How did people get tattoos before the internet?


Graeme
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Don't tell me that people walked into a shop or picked up a phone, talked to a human being, looked through a portfolio and then made up his or her mind and booked something (or not), because that's obviously crazy.

I actually tried that recently, asked if I could come take a look at a portfolio, and was informed to just look at the artist's website. (Which I had already done, of course). There's something different and special about looking at a real portfolio and seeing someone in person. It's not just clients that have changed.

I know everyone is different, and each to their own.

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@Graeme Your thread made me laugh and feel a little nostalgic at the same time.

You see, I'm rapidly approaching my 49th birthday. February 13th (which also falls on a Friday the 13th for the first time in ages! WOOHOO!) will mark the 30th year since I got my first tattoo. The tattoo shop was inside of a biker bar in Waynesville, N.C. It was named J.B's Tattoo & Tavern.

You could get anything you wanted... As long as you picked it from the flash on the wall.

He used an acetate stencil, graphite powder and Speedstick deodorant to transfer the design, and I remember very clearly that he didn't use gloves (this was 1985 after all).

I've been hooked ever since, and that tattoo is still there. There's also an appointment already scheduled to mark this little milestone.

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Don't tell me that people walked into a shop or picked up a phone, talked to a human being, looked through a portfolio and then made up his or her mind and booked something (or not), because that's obviously crazy.

The crazy thing is how people traveled to get tattooed w/o the Internet. Big yellow phone books, handwritten correspondence, etc. Rubendall getting tattooed by Leu immediately comes to mind.

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Ha! I remember the first step in clearing a shop (for friends or what not) use to be the smell. Perfection Tattoo had a certain smell (looking back, I think it may have been Green Soap?) and if a shop did not have that certain smell I would tell my friends "Noooo WAAAY! Don't go there" :p ...But really, there is a "good tattoo shop" version of the hospital smell and it indicates rightness. I don't know how to explain it...anyone?

Also, I remember the good old days of xeroxing reference material at the university libraries to take with me to my consultation. Two copies...one for my folder and one for the tattooer's :D

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@MGblues have fun on your tattoo anniversary. I'm going to ask my tattooists every time I'm in from April, when will they have January ready. Next year will be my 40th, and already have a tattoo planned, want to get it done on my birthday, if possible.

@KBeee ah! If only I had thought of photocopying. I painstakingly copy drew out the designs, I wanted for reference. Mind you I still doodle out designs, to give my tattooist an idea of what is in my head.

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I think the internet is responsible for the proliferation of many things in modern life. Some are very good and some are unspeakable.

What it does do is give the impression that something is more common in society than it really is. LST is a fine example of an online community where people share and enjoy their love of tattoos. Within this forum it's possible to be surrounded by beautiful imagery and be inspired to become more involved.

I discovered LST after a google search. It was around the time I got my single and very discrete tattoo. I wanted to know more about getting something bigger.

I'm really glad I did. It stopped me going and getting some crappy thing off the highstreet or on holiday.

I also now realise that I want something awesome and head turning. Something that can't be rushed.

So the internet surely does help promote quality tattoos. It can be an inspiration.

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