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Nobody in the world cares about my tattoos. But I really like them. I've got a bird friend on my shoulder who will be with me always. Poor little Squeaky, the real bird, died when I was away. I never got to say good-bye and now I don't have to because Squeaky is always there on my shoulder. I've got a story of hiking a long trail on my leg. If I ever get Alzheimer's I will probably at least remember that experience since it's right there on my leg to remind me of all that I saw and did out there. I've got big blue roses. Lots of color. I was hated and criticized mercilessly all my life for being ugly but now I have pretty colors on my skin to make me happy. And finally, my butterfly. First time I went to a tattoo shop the artist there told me of giving an old lady a tattoo of a butterfly on her arm because she had always wanted one. There are so many things in life I've always wanted to do and it took me a while to realize that someday never comes. Do it now. And even though a barely-graduated apprentice did my butterfly, he cleverly mirrored the motif of the leaves of my roses and tied it all together. I feel like I carry a flower garden and a little bit of spring around with me wherever I go. I claimed my body from those who had prior claims, defined it my own way, not theirs, and made it my own. Nobody cares about my tattoos, some people probably scorn me for them, and for that I even feel more grateful because against their disapproval, here I am, taking up space with my garden and my memories, just being me.

Totally! Great tattoo and adopting a pet? Doesn't get much better than that. Congratulations on both. - - - Updated - - - I went to The Pearl today with my wife to keep her company as she was finally getting the Buddha tattoo she's wanted for ages from Daniel Innes. It looks amazing! I'll post the first pic of it, but Dan is having her back in a few weeks to do some of the fine detail on the Buddha's garments. And since I was there anyway... I picked up a cool little boxer I'd been meaning to get for a while. Typically, Tim Pausinger did a brilliant job.

here is a better example:

It's her fifth tattoo. She got her first back in 1990. We Went for our first tattoo together last week when I got my ankle done. Erin got a swallow on her forearm that trip. And although we each got two in the last week, she assures me if I continue on the run I've been on, I'll be doing it on my own! My own run is winding done. I have a few more appointments booked then I'll be taking a long break. I've been running through a very long list of tattoos I've been wanting for a long time, and in the last year I have had both the time and the money to pursue this interest. Its been a great run and I've loved the entire experience.

A giant dagger with wings going through a stack of 100 hundred dollar bills.

Am I the only one who cringes when someone uses the word tat?

The only thing I can think of is Tegaderm. It is made by 3M and could provide with the waterproof barrier, but also adds another risk of breeding infection inside of the bandage. We all know that tattoos are just giant open wounds which need to breathe. When you trap bacteria in with water proof/air tight bandages you are susceptible to all sorts of infections. You know whats worse than a shitty tattoo? Staph infection from a pool full of dirty kids and nasty adults in an under developed country. But I'm not a medic or anything.

And also "tatted up" or "sleeved up". I also heard "I want to get proper sleevified" once. I swear to god.

I am excited to see you again pal. LST meet up? Maybe we can con @Scott Sylvia , @steve1461686340 @tammy and others to join us for a little dinner thang.

Good tattoos are designed by people and made by people.

Hanging out near reputable shops in NYC and wondering if the tattooed people you are on the street are fellow LSTers... Lol

that was such an amazing episode, my favorite by far! Marcus is going to be guesting here starting this weekend, I can't wait to talk to him about it.....

This smells Bubbleberry.

This has been a fun for everyone. Now I suggest we let sleeping dogs lie. Or at least thick headed ones.

It was worse for me before I watched the Oliver Peck interview (he uses 'tat' repeatedly). I find 'get some ink' and 'canvas' to be more cringeworthy.

How about dollar bills flying past sweaty men hauling a fridge up three flights of stairs? Fuck a moving tattoo, that shit sucks. (Not trying to discourage your ideas @BrookR70 but I moved about a month ago and I hate moving)

You got a tattoo that sucks because you didn't listen to your artist's advice to make it bigger. It's going to heal up poorly because you aren't going to follow your artist's aftercare instructions, nor are you going to listen to the people here who have a lot of experience in healing tattoos because you're instead going to cherrypick whatever sounds right to you, whether or not it's actually sound advice. And now you aren't interested in listening to suggestions that an artist should draw a tattoo. All of this is to help *you* to get a better tattoo--it doesn't benefit any of us--and if you're content with shit, that's fine, but this isn't the place for you. Good luck with that attitude, pal.

U haul truck with palm tree or lighthouse on the side of it! Or maybe some flying dollar bills; that's all I see when the idea of moving comes up.

Collecting tattoos is the greatest!

As some of you might already know I'm heading out your way for some tat action in September, and I'd love to hang out with some fellow LSTers whilst visiting. The schedule so far is: 15-18 Los Angeles 18-22 San Francisco 22-27 Los Angeles I'll be hooking up with @ian for the San Francisco trip, and there's also been some talk about an official LST get together/3 year anniversary around that time, but that's still up in the air. Either way, it would be really cool to meet some of ya'll in person! Already looking forward to seeing @hogg and @dcostello again :) I have nothing planned when I return to Los Angeles, so tips on cool shit do do in LA is also welcome!

Every time I get tattooed I wonder if anyone in the shop is an LSTer

Perhaps this is true, but from what I have seen most people here attempt to treat the art with respect. I can't imagine anyone here walking up to horiyoshi and yelling, "tat me up! I need to be sleevified bro!" I think the people who typically use certain slang aren't treating it with that same respect, and that is what is being criticized more than anything. Regardless, this is a safe place for sharing, and please forgive people for playing valley girl and poking fun.

For someone who only get black and gray work: I have had quite a few nightmares about artists by accident or miscommunication applying a super colorful piece on me. Last time this happened I found my left outer thigh to have a big and multicolored octopus on it, even though it's already covered with tattoos.

Was at the Visionary Arts Fest this past weekend in Asbury Park and decided i just had to have this: http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/gallery/member/14690-hot-stuff.html&imageuser=1019 I couldn't believe so few people know what it is when asked by friends.

Hopefully she doesn't read this forum.

I actually had some tears in my eyes a few times during this episode. I feel so honored to have even the tiniest fraction of a place in the tattoo world. Absolutely humbled.

I've never been to the UK, but when I hear "Japanese" and "UK" only one name comes to mind, Stewart Robson @ Frith St.

I like the lighthouse or the island/palm tree ideas. Both are traditional and cool. Have you considered going bigger? Maybe a full back piece that ties in the existing pieces? Rock of Ages?

As I see things, your body is going to undergo a lot of changes over the course of your life. You'll gain and lose weight, you may get pregnant and your body will undergo changes then, as you get old your skin and your muscles are going to slacken and sag, and your tattoos along with it all. That's just bodies, and it isn't a reason to not get tattooed. So what I'm saying is that you should get the tattoos you want to get regardless of how you feel about your weight. A well-designed, well-executed tattoo is going to fit your body and age gracefully with it, so make sure you get a good one. The list @BrianH gave above is a great start, I'd add Saved Tattoo in Brooklyn to it (Seth Wood works there and he rules), and if you're going to move to LA there are plenty of great shops there too. That tiger you posted is by Bryan Burk in LA, some people here have gotten incredible work at Memoir Tattoo, and I'm sure somebody who knows LA better could recommend plenty of other great shops there.

I haven't been lurking around here as much over the last month or so, so I have a ton of backlog that I'm looking forward to reading and seeing...but it has been a pretty awesome week. Got this lady from Bert Krak on Thursday: And then adopted this lady from the shelter on Sunday: Both are mending well.

There are some really great gorillas in this thread. Here is a shot of me and my ape hanging out on a Saturday afternoon. This was done a while back by Tim Pausinger at The Pearl.

I have been wearing this for awhile, but this was done by Ross Carlson from Artwork Rebels awhile back, before the AWR days.

welp heres a few filler pieces i got yesterday from lowercase j.. i had no idea what i wanted to do when i got there i just showed him the spot and we went through some books of smaller flash and made some shit work. sorry if the pictures are big. my girlfriend is way tougher than i and got this big fuckin eagle on her chest by timmy tatts. took about 2 hours.

Have you watched the Vice Horiyoshi 3 video that's been posted here in another thread? It's in a similar vein and also really mind-blowing. I'd also love more of this, this is the sort of thing that makes me proud to be tattooed and to have a connection, however small and tenuous, to all of this.

Oliver is one of the few who can genuinely pull it off.

tick . . . tick . . . tick . . .

Was awesome hearing about Horiyoshi's early inspiration and really brought to mind how everything is interconnected. The zen philosophy on tattooing and life was mind blowing. I could listen to hours of him speaking. (smiles for days)

We watched this last night! It was awesome and gave me so much food for thought. Wise dudes.

^seconded. To be fair, people actually tried to give sound advice to that fellow. He just didn't want to listen; which is completely fine. Just don't keep asking for advice and then pick only the things you want to hear.

BRO DO YOU EVEN GORGUTS?

@a1steaks Oh, cool! What are you getting? I'll keep you in the loop. @cltattooing Likewise! :) @Avery Taylor I'll be staying in Hollywood. Just a short stroll from Dark Horse Tattoo actually. @CultExciter Ha! @Wilhell and I have already talked about this as we're both huge fans of Brian's work. Maybe next year!

I don't live in LA anymore, but I have a ton of recommendations for you. Do you know what part of LA you will be staying in?

Thought I would revive the thread with some more pics:-) As you know I am trying to document the aging process of fine detailed tattoos using my own one. Not very professional lol but I hope we can see any changes if and when they happen Taken these photos at the intervals on the picture, used the same camera on the last 2, first one was on my phone though and roughly in the same position. windows automatic screenshot

Hm, have you thought about going with an artist who specializes in Japanese tattooing? Just being that the imagery you're looking for has strong roots in Japan, my initial thought is that it would probably look best rendered with a distinctively Japanese aesthetic, as opposed to a painterly realistic style. If you have 40 minutes, I recommend watching this: Marcus Kuhn's - The Gypsy Gentlemen - Home I think it will illustrate what I mean better than I could explain it.

Not meant to be a dig. Reading that just got me thinking of Stuart.

Are you any one of these people?

People are honestly just trying to help you out. You might find some responses perhaps a little snarky, but I would hope you can see it from their side. People on this site are passionate about their work, trying to make sure that people are educated enough to take care of their current and future art. If you ask a question and then dismiss the response, that seems disrespectful, not only to them but to the art itself. Go to reddit if you just want to ignore people. Tattoing isn't just a fad to them, some shiny object to be picked up one second only to be discarded and forgotten the next. If you are willing to put something on your body, it shouldn't be for you either. You may have yolo'd your way into this tattoo, but respect it enough to take care of it so that it doesn't look like crud down the road. Best of luck, have fun playing blackjack.

Amazing week!

Im sure your "tatted up" buddy has better knowledge than the person who tattooed you right? He would probably know more about how a tattoo heals than someone who actually tattoos. Seriously guy, the person with the answers you needed gave you the correct answer and because you didn't like the answer, you ignored it. When you only listen to the things you want to hear, you miss the things you need to hear.

Done by Steve Byrne at Rock of Ages Austin, Texas.