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I had these done last November. It was a fun tattoo to honor my kid.

There are a lot of little known people out there doing spectacular tattoos. The tattooer doesn't have to have a 'name' for me to say "wow that's a great tattoo".

Fun little Impala on my forearm from yesterday. Artist is Clare Hampshire at Korpus in Brunswick, Melbourne AUS. Photo from her Instagram.

2nd sesh with Seth Wood on my dragon 3/4 sleeve. Knocked out about half the background today, which he first drew on by hand with a Sharpie. Prob won't post any pics until there's a little more progress tho.

My signed Horitomo cat prints just came in the mail ::happy dance:: Have to get to Michaels for some frames tomorrow. :D

******** IREZUMI MADE AN IMPORTANT POST EVERYONE!!! ********* There is ALWAYS someone better you have never heard of........You DON"t have to go to people who have a "name" just because they have a name! I think most people here don't do anything like that because everyone here usually posts about liking the style of the tattoo artists they seem to be choosing! It's like in music when you see an incredible musician BUT you know there is some kids sitting in his/her basement jamming away who could probably already blow that other guy off the stage! It's like that with anything....including tattooing! My heroes.....especially now that i am tattooing....are those people who just go to their shop everyday and tattoo for the love of tattooing! They put in their time....make beautiful tattoos that last.....if someone walks in and wants a name they do it....if some one wants kanji they do it....and if someone what's a full on dragon back piece then they do it! Usually no egos.....just a humble person who loves what he does and has been blessed with the talent and skill to pull it off! ;)

Here's my buddy Stanley...a 12-year old Sun Conure. And, of course, the matching tattoo...

I had a not the same, but similar type of experience with a tattoo I was kind of embarrassed of after joining LST--because it was a stereotypical printed-out-from-google-images solid black stock image of a lotus...certainly nothing that would get anyone excited here... But when I went to Spider Murphy's last summer, 3 of the tattooers were looking at my tattoos and I had to show them that one because it was directly under what I was going to get from Paul. Paul --and the other guys specifically said they liked that one. I was like, "really??" They liked that it was solid black and the simplicity of it and thought the placement was good. They liked my arms, too, with my more recent work from Memoir, but it just surprised me that they said such nice things about that one. That's one of the things that makes the shop experiences so good. If you are only on this forum, you might think all your work has to be this or that...but the more time spent in different shops you realize, it's all good. My black lotus was done at an L.A. street shop and the guy did a solid job.

I have one really bad tattoo... It's on my ankle, it's small, old, faded, fuzzy and almost impossible to recognize. I got it as a skate punk kid way back when I was underage, in a biker shop, in 1990. It was destined to be questionable. Needless to say I was surprised when I hesitantly showed it/ talked about it to the artists at the Pearl (while @Mark Bee and I were getting work done) not only were they enthusiastic about my weird little blotch but told me to never cover it - because old crappy tattoos (depending on subject matter of course) are their own kind of awesome. Funny that they appreciated my youthful folly - which I'm sure is helped by my acquisition of several new and particularly awesome tattoos. Or I suppose I could always blast over it with a panther :)

Hahahahahahahaha, holy fuck this is such blarney. I dunno if any of you noticed how they cut out the video right before the circle was joined but if anyone did notice, it was because the line trajectory didn't come to the origin point. I honestly don't think that anything like this will ever take off. Tattooing involves such an immense amount of critical thinking and on-the-spot decision making. Not to mention adjusting technique for various skin types, stretching the skin, adjusting needle depth per area of the body, and any other number of important variables. Waste of money.

I never get too concerned about other people's tattoos. I don't know their story or how they came to have their tattoos. I also never crap on anyone about their tattoos (or clothes, or taste in music, etc). Life is too short to waste time and energy harshing on other people. Historically, I look at older tattoos and appreciate the tattooer and the client for paving the way for the things that came next. I have enormous respect for people who blazed the trail and made things easier for me. (Full disclosure - I got my first tattoo in '91 or '92. And yes, there are times that I shake my head and wonder what people were thinking - I just keep it to myself) Interesting question - thanks for posting it.

Happy to oblige! My first tattoo was a long time coming. I'd been watching my friends get tattooed in the 1980s and was fascinated by them. Unfortunately, this was an era when everything (around my crowd, anyway) was wizards and vikings. Black and gray. Never really appealed to me, though the artistry and talent was clear. I kept thinking about getting one, but kept failing to find a design that really appealed to me. I kept visiting shops (there were not nearly so many back then) and I finally just said "fuck it" I'm getting one. I walked into a shop that recently opened near my home and pointed at a tribal armband and said "I'll have that one." I didn't look at his portfolio, I didn't know what questions to ask either. I knew even then I wasn't getting exactly what I wanted in terms of design, but more important to me was the act of getting tattooed. I never covered the tribal up. I simply got lots of tattoos surrounding it. Its dated, but the artist did a good job and its held up very nicely.

The thing about this is.......the people I have mostly chosen have put their time in, in the craft/business of tattooing! It would be very hard to get a bad tattoo from some of them honestly......but then some of these guys are getting up in their years and the tattoo i get now may not be the one I would have gotten 10-15 years ago! Some never were the most technically great tattooers maybe BUT like I said....I am honored to have their work on me because they tattooed in a time when it wasn't mainstream and they made a good honorable living from it....it was their profession and they did it not only for the money but because they truly loved what they did! And on the flip side of this....the tattoo I got from them now will never be replicated again because if these guys didn;t share some of their "tricks"....it dies with them! ;)

First - I love this thread - thank you for starting it! When I read this, I felt exactly the same way! I have 1 little tattoo (my first and only other one) that has *lots* of personal meaning, but at LST there have been many comments about hipsters, etc., needing to explain all the personal meaning behind the tattoo and that tattooers just don't want to hear out it, blah blah blah. So I never posted that tattoo, even though it means more to me than the full back I am doing. And seeing the work here, I've found myself not saying who my artist is, in case he's not considered up-to-par around here. So, I certainly understand the shame part - but a lot of that is on ME, who is sensitive to being judged as lacking in any way. Thank you for voicing that, @Zillah But ... then @Bunny Switchblade comes along and says this ... Thank you for saying that. I get nervous about being judged by my tattoos because no one in my family has any and I don't share at work or with many friends (yet). I don't want to be the person anyone is standing behind in the grocery line thinking my work is unfortunate. Thank you for saying this as well. Is this why I feel like I need to get a tattoo from one of these "names" in order to feel fully accepted here? My guy has some great stuff out there (in my inexperienced opinion) but jeez I find myself worried that my work wouldn't be considered a quality tattoo. So, I just have to buck up and say fuck it, even if people here don't think I'm getting something "good". Eh, I'm rambling, but like @Zillah, I'm kinda going through the little wondering-if-I-should-be-ashamed thing. But everyone here has been really nice and helpful, and for that I appreciate LST very much. And my post is not directed at anyone. Thank you for listening. It's actually pretty cathartic for me to share this.

What's up everyone ? Happy to be here an meet some fellow people involved in this tattoo society. I'll introduce myself as Mandy. I'm 21 and I've just moved to Las Vegas from California... Bring on the heat! Well I've been getting tattooed ever since my "secret behind-my-parents-back" Chinese symbol tattoo at 16. And then went on to tattooing my entire back with a guy who would tattoo a minor and I'm sure we ALL know how that turned out... I did learn my lesson tho putting my trust and love for tattoos in to a friend of mine who had been tattooing for fun for years. I allowed him to tattoo a Hendrix portrait on my thigh and well, it ended up being one of the best Hendrix portraits I've yet to see, especially considering it was his second black and grey portrait. He has now moved on to winning many first place portraits and is an expert is black and grey and color portraits. (David hamburg) Becoming friends with my artist today is really what launched me into this tattoo world. I was blessed to be in the right place at the right time, asking for the right piece from the right artist. Coty vondrachek created an amazing Indian girl thigh piece and there I went traveling the US to conventions and showing his work. During those years I grew an incredible love for this industry, understanding the history and dedication that created what it is today. I was lucky enough to me my boyfriend at ink n iron two years ago, a true traditional artist and machine builder, and have learned a great deal about machines and tattooing itself. I don't plan to tattoo professionally myself but it's always fun to buy apoundofflesh and screw around with some ideas. Today at 21, I stand with 3/4 of my body covered with random ideas, personal memories, and artists creations. I deal with the normal stares, gasps, and judgmental jokes and comments but part of me enjoys it and I'm sure some of you can agree to this that tattoos help ward people off that you shouldn't be associating with in general. I'm not one for people judging others, so if you run away when you see me, I'll wave you goodbye ;) I'm not sure what else to say here, but I am glad to be meeting fellow tattooed individuals. Currently healing my calf, need more Advil! lmaooo xxo Amanda

Hi everyone my name is Peter I'm 31 years old and i'm from Sweden. So far i only have 3 tattoos one of which (my first one) will be covered starting next week when I'll start on my Japanese style full sleeve. I'll be happy to post pictures as we move along if I can find a decent camera, my phone one is whack.

I try not to judge people on the way they look including tattoos, but we're all guilty of this to some extent because we're only human. But "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it at all" is a pretty good rule to follow, and saying shit behind people's backs isn't very nice either but I'm sure I've done that too.

only good tattoos* ;) a point of view that I fully agree with, sidenote

uffgghhfhghgnnnhggh piercing guns are the equivalent of walkman tattoo machines

That is so true. When I was younger (I must have been 10.. 11?) and got my ears pierced for the first time we went to Claire's or an equivalent at the time. I don't know how they train their workers to give ear piercings, but... I was nervous, so my mom (who was trained to pierce) held one gun on my right ear and the woman working at Claire's held the other gun on my left ear. Let's just say my left earring hole is forever set significantly lower on my ear than my right. It bothered me a lot when I was younger, but I've since gotten over it. It's more noticeable when I wear dangle-y earrings that pull on my lobes. F-in Scratchers... or Pokers? Haha

I agree with this 100%. As a whole we have a tendency to mostly recommend a select group of well known tattooers/shops even though there are plenty of other experienced professional artists that do solid quality work. I think this is a good definition of a "quality tattoo". We should all be getting quality tattoos. Maybe they lack the "wow factor" or don't have a name brand artist attached to them but it is still a quality tattoo.

Got my shin and knee done by Marie Sena in Dallas at Saints and Sinners. Can't say enough nice stuff about Marie and my experience with her. She's doing some 2nd layer/blast over stuff on one of my arms next and then she's doing the side and back of that thigh. Can't get a good picture of my leg...its either too dark in the house, too weird outside, or has to be too far away to get it all in the shot. You get the idea though.

Last one by Hugo from Siha Tattoos (barcelona) the pain was bearable and it was about 3 hours of line. shading and colours at the end of the month! Teapot by Mors from Chiale Baby (Lille) and calf by Servadio from AKA London the lettering reads "DOOM"

Just got back in from another session...knocked off the top section of the koi, Oniwakamaru's hair, and a few maple leaves. Next session in two weeks on the 18th. Mike

And here's my progress picture of today. It doesn't seem like much has happened, but my ass thinks otherwise :) Today the shading on my leg was finished, the black 'diamonds' in the clothes, and that large patch of black on my ass :) Next time (in two weeks) we are going to start with some color :cool:

Battered and bruised! Had my first session on my back with Chris over at Kings Ave this past Thursday. I managed to get through 4 hours to complete the basic outline with the exception of the hair on the severed heads. Saving that for the next session along with the remaining background. I'm super excited to continue to work on this and see it progress over time as this is what I've been busting my hump at work for the past year now and it's absolutely completely worth it.

So you failed to get a perfect tattoo*! Stop worrying about it, and go fail better...by getting more tattoos. If you want to add more colour, go ahead. I think it looks fine as is though. *is there even such a thing?

OH they've got bigger problems than her. Even if they won the lawsuit, they're still Nickelback.......and no lasering can erase that...

I have a hard time laughing at most garden-variety bad tattoos, it's not really my bag. As for judging the person, it depends on how s/he's behaving. I will admit to shaking my head a bit at very young people with very visible, not-so-good-tattoos. But these are usually the sort that are small enough to be covered. It's interesting what you said in your original post about choosing tattooers over quality tattoos. As a newcomer to this whole thing I feel like a bit of a poseur saying this, but I would be pretty happy to get a tattoo from someone I admired just because I liked that person, or from a friend starting out in tattooing. I'm pretty into the meeting-people side of things (not that they're necessarily into meeting me, but hey). I really enjoyed getting tattooed by Greg Christian not only because I love my tattoo, but because it was just a cool and subtly different experience to be tattooed by someone who's been doing this for a little while.

Just to clarify......when I say "poor choices"....I am speaking more toward home-made done tattoos! (the super bad ones) But even with me using those words "poor choices" you can see what I am talking about.....even I am not immune to making comments like that I guess without even realizing it! This site is about helping and sometimes I think we try so hard to help that we don't always accomplish that goal! @Zillah......don't ever feel ashamed or let someone make you feel ashamed of your tattoos! If I did just now then I apologize as I am struggling with myself to not be part of the problem but hoping to maybe be part of the solution? If you don't know....then you don't know! BUT.....if you come here and you see what is out there and you don't seek to get something better then at least you can't say you didn't know that better work can be done! Some people still aren't worried about that though......and honestly.....as long as they are going to a clean shop where the people have been trained properly....then it really shouldn't matter as long as they are happy with their tattoos!

@cltattooing is finishing my Saint Death tattoo on Wednesday. Been waiting rather impatiently for this.

@Fala, it's funny how it works out that way. I "only" added background to my left sleeve, added a second sleeve, and had my backpiece done because my Office temporarily sent me to work in SF. I sometimes wonder what tattoos I'd have or even how many tattoos I'd have if I hadn't been able to continue going to SOG. Sometimes I look back and think about and wonder, "Who got the better deal? My Office's SF branch office or myself?". Hmmmm...Suckers! Ha ha!

I really want a Nickelback tattoo, but this thread, it's made me rethink everything.

Shirts and Destroy just started carrying shirts designed by Tim Lehi. You can get one with a tiger on it and pretend that you're @hogg: Tim Lehi | Webstore If you're not up on S&D, they print t-shirts designed by your favourite tattooers and illustrators. I've had some of their shirts for years and they're comfortable and high quality and the designs fucking rule.

And here we are again :) Today/tonight was the 4th session, this time 3 hours, I could have gone longer but my artist needed to pick up a guest artist from the airport. Anyway we still made good progress, my other side is now completely shaded as is my right left. Next session we are going to do the rest of the shading on my left leg, and on my ass (ouch! : ) ) and put some black in the clothing, and then we're done with the black and its onto color!

Sixth session, almost done! By Grez. Said goodbye to my old and very odd lower back tattoo yesterday, too.

Cheers :-) Alright then, there is still loads to go, even just planning certain bits out we haven't finished yet, need to get the fingers finished, bloody loads to go on the lantern, try to fit the background into the Jess Yen work on the left thigh, then put lots of sweeping hair across the face - but here's our start! Will be full colour in the face/hand/lantern, and loads more black in the background. Will take quite awhile, trust me! I will update as we go if people are interested, cheers :-)

Second session yesterday. Was a lot easier this time around, not so apprehensive I guess and also made a point to just focus on my breathing for the few lines that needed finishing. Looking forward to the next session! Thanks again Stewart.

About 4 more hours on my back today with Max. I'm going to try to make another trip down to Richmond before the end of the year. Sorry if it's huge but I'm on my phone right now.

@9Years I actually did not want to get a back piece done initially as my thought was, how the hell will I get to see and enjoy it. But since I was getting comfortable with my artist and also the process of tattooing, it was natural to move on and have at it with the biggest canvas on my body. I had looked at various Japanese/Asian themes, Quan Yin with Dragon, Tiger and Snake, General Gwon, etc. Eventually decided on the Dragon and Phoenix motif (balance, yin and yang, female and male, etc.) I got extremely lucky in that I was able to get two fantastic artists to agree on a collaboration. They decided who was going to do what and we've worked everything out so far. Been a FANTASTIC experience.

My love handle. My poor poor love handle.

This was the guys first tattoo! program to take screenshots - - - Updated - - - This was my first tattoo:-) screen cap

Those both look cool. I'm not really a fan of the first one just because it seems very heavy on the right side and it sort of looks off balance. He needs a heavy sleeve on the left arm to achieve bodysuit homeostasis.

Jeff Gogue: Pretty damned spectacular.

Tanners dragon and koi full back piece by Ben Lucas. Professional Tattooing & Piercing | Chico, Ca | Eye Of Jade Tattoo

Here's the next day, Marcus tattooing the same piece...

My back. Finished with Chris O'Donnell. Couldn't be more stoked on it.

I kind of like "by threat" better :D

4th hit on my back. 7 hours on veil and leaves. Once healed veil will be an opaque grey to distinguish from the black and grey background, everything under the veil will be boosted once healed aswell,Thanks.