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@InkedMumma Outlines and some shading done, but I can't seem to get a good picture of the whole thing so I will save it for later! Here's a teaser from Marius Meyer's IG account though: :cool:

Ed tattooing a sweet unicorn on a dude's hand. Cause Ed Hardy + Unicorns = Magic.

First off, it's hard for us to determine if you are a quality "at home" tattooer since we have yet to see one tattoo. Also, listing a relative and a professional as tattooers you know does not answer the question of who have you been tattooed by and who you aspire to. Some people may respond negatively, but that is only because this forum is NOT a forum that teaches how to tattoo or discusses the inside of the trade. This is a forum for PROFESSIONAL tattooers and collectors to immerse themselves in the culture. And tattoo culture is in shops and conventions, not any one's home. Yes, many tattooers started tattooing in their homes at a young age, but all of them will admit that it was stupid and where they really learned how to tattoo was through an apprenticeship at a reputable shop. That was also a different time. Yes, it is 2013... Tattooing is way more accepted nowadays and there are shops everywhere. I urge you to read through the newbie guidelines and watch the interviews. I think bullying you off of this forum is the wrong approach. This forum could open your eyes to the real tattoo culture and help your artwork and ambitions. Also, I hate to play devil's advocate, but if you have an illness that prevents you from working outside of the home, then tattooing is most likely not for you. Not for the basic fact that you should be working out of a shop (since they are licensed, for one), but also because it is a grueling, fast-paced line of work.

This exists somewhere else on here but I'm stoked on this thread! Here's my left thigh from last year from Nash Hogan, great dude. I'll be doing something bigger on the other one soon! Soonish. When I can. So.. at some point. - - - Updated - - - I've also had a couple other things added around it on the knee and inside of the thigh but don't have a picture. Probably for the best, nobody needs to see all up in my business.

I can't tell is she, or the 4764846578 others trying the same thing, is genuinely convinced she will somehow do it different than anyone before her (because surely nobody else before her has ever done it 'right') and it will last forever, or if she doesn't care and just wants to get paid. Gogue said something that I can't recall to quote word for word but it was something to the effect of knowing that his tattoos fall apart in just a few years, and I still give him 10000% more credit than this other tattooer.

You just made an amazing point. It's true, I personally do not celebrate watercolor tattoos because it is a bit of a lie to the client. Because she posts it publicly on her website, I don't think it is a problem saying this, but she charges $300/hour for something that isn't going to be there in 5 years. That, to me, is a travesty. Same with Bose! You can spend the same amount of scratch on an audio receiver that is superior quality and with more longevity.

Well considering that she didn't invent color blobs, I don't see how its copying her style if someone does it. I have no clue who this person is and I imagine that whatever fame is created is based in some type of internet parallel reality. I was prepared to write some profound thoughts regarding ones personal style and influences and the relationship to the ego but I think that its not important what I think. People are more worried about their opinions and seeking clarification or validation in their views. Its been said, their is nothing new. If someone appears to be breaking new ground it is part of a seemless formula of blending their influences and how they build on their inspirations. The only thing that makes someone truly special isn't contained in their renderings but in their willingness to continue to improve their abilities and their interactions with others on this plane of existence. The tattoo experience isn't about just some unique design applied to make you feel special. It was being part of something bigger than yourself and the person giving you this experience having the ability to do more than apply a nice tattoo. My favorite tattoo experiences have been the conversations and the stories exchanged as well as the persons ability to entertain, educate, and share that experience. Those other elements aren't something that show up in pictures on the intervebs. You can't craft personality the same way as your drawing abilities and application of tattoos. The tattoos I have from these folks are a permanent reminder of that interaction and the impact that moment in time had on my life. But now I babbling and rambling. And I said I wasn't going to say a bunch of stuff...so yeah. Haha. Carry on!

I don't believe you because anybody who actually spent some time here, watched the interview videos, read the threads and so on, wouldn't then start an account saying that they're butchering people out of their kitchens but that they hope this place can help them fulfill their tattoo dreams. Stop tattooing.

I am lucky enough to have a tattoo done by Scott Harrison that is two pieces of Devita flash mashed together. One of them Thom tattooed on Scott. I don't know if it carries any thing spiritual or transcendental, but i love the tattoo, and I am extremely proud to have it.

Who have you been tattooed by? Which contemporary tattooers do you like these days? Which tattooers from the past do you look up to? It's 2013. There is no reason to tattoo out of your home. If you can't get an apprenticeship from a respectable shop and learn to tattoo the right way, from the start, you shouldn't do it, period.

;) Hello LST. I am Steve Johns from Huntington Beach,Ca. I work and own Black Umbrella Art Studio (Tattoo) in Huntington Beach, Ca. Before that I was in a few different shops but mostly at Goodfellas Tattoo in Orange,ca with Steve Soto. Been tattooing for over 7 years now. Love the Website and the community of artist and topics. Awesome stuff. I will try to attach some of my work. I usually work in the realm of traditional with surrealism mixed in.

It means you're magic

this :)

Got to catch up with Austin Maples when he was back in town @ third eye, he squeezed me in for this fun little gap filler, if you are in SF he's at idle hands.

Well, at least you're humble.

I've thought about this plenty of times. I want a Devita piece, but obviously I won't be able to get that. I've always thought the next best thing is to get someone that knows him, understands him, etc. to do it. Granted, I know I can't get Scott Harrison to do it (maybe I can?) but if he were still actively tattooing, I'd ask to get something similar to a Devita tattoo. While it won't be a Devita tattoo, I know it'll have the essence of a Devita tattoo since someone that knows and appreciates Devita is doing it.

I'm just curious, did you spend any time lurking here to get a sense of what this place is about before you created an account?

Is this a reference to Amanda Wachob? Because I don't take her seriously.

You know where there are better references than the internet? Tattoo shops. You know who has a shit ton of flash/books? Tattoo shops. You know who is well acquainted with these collections? Tattooers. Do some initial poking around, then find a tattooer or shop, then go say, "Hey, I saw this Jerry wolf, the full body one with his tongue hanging out," or whatever you want, and they'll say, "Oh yeah, lemme see, was it this one?" And more than likely, they'll pick out one of the SJ books they've undoubtedly got and flip to the page and you'll say, "Oh yeah, that's it, that line drawing is way better than the one I found online."

I spoke to another Veteran at my work yesterday. He was pretty covered, and out of curiosity I asked him politely where he got his tattoos (or pieces of crap, as he called them) done at. He couldn't remember the artists who did most of them, but he pointed out two specific ones. He told me that he got two (on his outer biceps) done by Charlie Wagner in Portsmouth, Virginia. He told me Charlie mixed the ink with his spit then said "tattooing has changed a lot from those days". I wish I could have spoke with him a little more, but I didn't want to keep him from going about his day.

General tattoo news that's worth sharing, but doesn't necessarily fit in any of the existing threads (or deserve a new one) Like this... I checked out Black Heart's official website/blog today, and was suprised to see that it had gotten a big overhaul since I last visited. It looks really nice, and it had some pictures of tattoos that I had never seen before. Check it out: Black Heart Tattoo |Black Heart Tattoo | » Bad Ass Tattooery | Bad Ass Tattooery

Oh, what the hell. I'll post mine here, too: By Paul Dobleman at Spider Murphy's. I didn't give him a ton of room to work with, but he still pulled a great, unique take on an iconic image.

It can hardly be all pinterest, as bad tattoos existed long, long before it. But I agree that pinterest helps them spread at an incredible rate. And I know pinterest isn't really 'for guys', or whatever - but I'm just trying to do my part to stop/slow the madness with this board. Good tattoos only - artists always credited.

hey guyths.. I think it was this thread I remember someone talking about a sort of satanic version of ROA well this one was started at Saints and Sinners in Dallas not mine but I Just thought I'd share. Artist: James Yocum

recent ones! forest gump flash cast away flash and some other sheets i did for fun

I had the exact same reaction as you. Goddamn that is going to be incredible.

i think i just saw the outline drawn on on instagram??? holyshit

No rest from healing this winter...got more work coming up in 2 weeks from some guest artists coming to my city. Getting hilarious with Bryan Turnbull (Gov Street Tattoo Victoria) and getting weird with Jon Gray (Mata Mata Hamilton). And some touchups on my neck piece and mini insect tattoo. My wife is pissed I will be sidelined from the hot tub at her work christmas party. I will gladly stay dry on my colouring book quest!

The general public......and the tattoo community are two separate concepts. I don't try and push people around with what they should and shouldn't get, I'm not a social worker...... But I do try to present them with options when I can. I still give em the haircut they ask for....... I just try and comb it real nice for em.

Yes, I can imagine that... in fact, I have this very one! I found the original design (of course, doh!) on the Internet. Turns-out that the person running the website had apprenticed with Tattoo Ted Nelson (who gave me my first tattoo on my 21st birthday, back in late-January 1972, in Fairfield, IA), and Ted had apprenticed with Bert Grimm. Small world. Anyway, this piece was inked on me by "Painless Jimmy" Hankins (yet another "old timer"), at Louie Lombi's Tattoo Paradise, in 2005/6. I'm pleased with it. Jimmy's still slingin' ink here in South Florida, but Louie Lombi retired and gave the shop to his long-time apprentice and worker, Clark O'Dell... it's now called Tattoo Paradise of West Palm Beach.

Myself, I go to whichever tattooers I'm familiar with and whichever tattooers who's quality of work I think is good. I've been tattooed by 16 different guys with 160hrs (and counting) over ten years. Tattooers with different style/vibe, different equipment, different processes, different touch. Hammer hands and gentle-gentleman. I've gone to most of my tattooers for more than one piece. This has really expanded my experiences and journey becoming an illustrated man. By going to different tattooers I've had the opportunities to be tattooed in new shops, old established shops, local shops, travels, private home studios, different shop setups and so now I know what I like, who I like and where I like to go to receive a tattoo. I've been tattooed by apprentices and I've been tattooed by some legit people that have been doing it for decades. Having Some tattooers are great to just slap on a banger and have some fun. Some I know will squeeze me in at the end of a day and sharpie one of my ridiculous ideas on. Some I know give that little bit extra in terms of refining a design/idea and being very particular about placement. I am lucky to say I have had nothing but positive experiences and NO REGRETS which is an important thing I attach to being a tattooed person. If you have one tattooer you trust, that's great and enjoy it. I like to think that variety can lend itself to a wider range of opportunity and experiences.

Well it looks I'm going to start following Chad Koeplinger on IG now. Woohoo! That back looks amazing.

i travel a lot to get tattooed. sometimes i get tattooed by someone multiple times, sometimes i get tattooed once by someone and then don't really have the opportunity to get tattooed by them again because they live across the country.

Well said!! It's with most professions that people straight out of school want to be CEOs . That how kids are these days ! When they start working at whatever job they see that it take a lot of hard work and years to be successful. I just feel that it's not really our jobs to say what is correct and not correct since most of us really know nothing about tattooing. Getting tattooed is one thing but having knowledge about the industry can only be told by those who tattoo.. Most of us have the respect for those artist and that's why we get tattooed by them. Let's just leave it at that. Some people watch these show that are on and instantly they think they are experts !! Most of the well respected people that are interviewed on this site started at home, you have to start somewhere right? That being said you have a very LONG way to go learn some history get tattooed (Inksmith & Rogers is in your town and there one of the best shops in the world) and for fucks sake don't call it a tattoo gun! I respect anyone who will follow their dreams even if it starts out the wrong way, but before you think of owning a shop, you better get in a shop, learn the culture and respect those who came before you.

Thanks for all the replies guys. I've honestly never really looked into the flash side of the industry too much, I was always more interested in custom stuff until recently. Now I'm really giving flash some thought and it's kind of confusing what's considered appropriate and what's not.

Well... I might push a little.... Lol

When I got a portrait on leg, I told Josh Brown (tattooer) I wanted it to be loose and Higgs-esque. I trusted Josh because, I knew what his tattoos looked liked. I also liked the fact that his full back is from Dan, one of a handful that I know exist (I haven't seen it, because he refuses to show it to anyone, it is that sacred to him). Good mojo all around.

When I wanted something higgs influenced I had an idea of people I thought would do it justice. I waited a little bit just to see whats what. When I meet Jason Scott I found out Dan Higgs worked with/for him...did a bunch of tattoos on him including a fucking GREAT back piece. THEN he told me he had a book of a bunch of rare higgs flash,drawings and pictures etc and then it was obvious who I would get to do these higgs influenced tattoos. I told him my general idea and he came up with something heavily influenced but "new" with integrity. Certainly hes not the only one in the world to have this kind of contact but I think hes a great person/tattooer. Is he into as much of the mystical ideas behind the tattoos....NO...but he speaks the language via his tattoos stronger then those who have no contact with higgs. Hes more a fan of tattooing and strongly looked up to higgs. I think its a BIG factor when it comes to something like getting a higgs flash or something based on his style. I would have been bummed just walking in with a print out of some higgs flash and asking someone with little knowledge to pop it on me....but your free to do as you wish. Plus the great stories you get from a tattooer who knows the guy make it worth the going out of your way.... Good luck. ps. I could just be a fan boy....but I dont care. Everyones a critc.

Interesting discussion, kinda wish Dan Higgs would weigh in.....

Tomorrow! I'm getting my back (back of the neck to back of the knees) tattooed by Chad Koeplinger...SOOOOOOO FUCKEN STOKED!!!!!!!!!!!!

@hogg @TrixieFaux @jpm06 @dirbab @RoryQ @LastOrders @MadeIndelible Mindblowing stuff!

Not really traditional, but a friend of mine has a roll of film around his ankle with Milo, the Minor Threat black sheep, the bars, and one or two other classic punk/hardcore logos.

Nice! I am digging this by Thomas Hooper...only in my case if I did something like this I would have to stop at the wristbone:

Here are a couple of shots of my ankle collar done by Nathan Draper at The Pearl in Toronto. I'll post the chest pics when Tim gets a little more done in the next few weeks. Sadly they are upside down and I have no idea why. No one is rushing to hire me for an IT position, that's for sure.

I hadn't seen anything James Yocum did until James Clements introduced me to him and I got tattooed by him the last day of the convention. It's awesome finding new artists! And yes, James Clements is a great tattooer. I have quite a bit of work from him and I love it all.

Oneshot from Marius Meyer. Pretty happy about this one.

My first tattoo was a big thigh piece, and I just got my other thigh done this weekend. Experienced twitching both times. However, the first time was much more painful than this past one. The outline wasn't fun but the shading was a breeze. Here they are, the first one isn't in a style I'm super into anymore, and I'm not too crazy about it anymore, it's not bad it just doesn't fit with what I'm going for anymore. Maybe one day I'll have it covered or reworked or something. I don't regret getting it, because it helped get me into tattoos, and really it's not a bad tattoo, just not what I would get now. Here is my latest one, which I've already posted in 2 other threads in the past couple of days, but whatever, done by Phil Hatchet Yau:

Welcome dude, lots of Bay Area folks on here.

My home shops are NY Adorned and Kings Ave., so i'm not sure i'll have any skin left by the time i've run through all the options at those shops. I never realized how lucky i was to have those two in my backyard until i started coming here.