Leaderboard

Cross posting from the latest tattoo thread, this is after session 1 of... i don't know how many... with Marius Meyer

Just got back to the hotel in Oslo after having Marius Meyer blast me for 4 hours or so. Shout out to @Iwar for being an awesome tour guide, host, driver... really the only way he could have made me more welcome is by offering some hand relief. Maybe on the next trip!

So we have finally started the shading on my back piece. It's a great feeling to be filling in all those lines. There's a long way to go but here is a picture of the first bit of shading we have done on the back of my leg.

After I had 7 laser sessions I finally could get a cover up I wanted. I booked in with rob Richardson months ago when he opened his books. This is what I came back with after 3 sessions in a row full days :).. I will post healed pics later and if anyone wants to see the before pics let me know! Iphone camera used nothing fancy. hope you like it! adult image sharing

Oh it gets better than that. I was just informed by my artist on Saturday (prefaced with a "I don't want to scare you, but...") that when we're done my back we're going to have an extra full day session to reline it. Now that I've been through it once, I think full day lining sessions are only a thing because the client really doesn't know any better at that point. I felt like I'd been hit by a cement mixer after the first one, no idea how I'm going to get through the second. The answer may be alcohol.

That looks very nice. You should check out Rob Mopar (and the crew) at Lucky 13 as well. He's a rad individual.

Dragons have been cool as fuck like forever

My latest, first in a few months. Small piece but so nice and easy to sit for. Done by Jovic at Eternal Ink in Sunbury, Melbourne, Australia. I seem to be leaning towards the idea of filling up my legs with lots of small pieces rather than one large cohesive one. @ItsNewport that is an amazing piece, can't wait to see more progress on it.

The Golden Age of Hong Kong Tattooing | VICE | United Kingdom At work so I can't watch this at the moment.. but thought i'd put it here for those who can!

Hey there all, I've been lurking around reading threads, interviews, and videos for awhile now and am finally getting around to introducing myself. My name is Erin, and I've been tattooing at shops in the Hudson Valley of NY for a little over 13 years and piercing for 14 years. I work at Hudson River Tattoo, in Hudson, NY and you can check out my some of my work via the shop's website here or see my most current stuff on Instagram, @LeftyLucille. I'm 33, wife, mother, knitter, and am always interested in art swaps and guest spots. Thanks for checking out my stuff!

Shaman, I will follow you anywhere.

if the shading is there to cover something else up... is the shading preferable to whatever its covering? Not sure I have any answers for you, Looks like the artists went pretty hard on the edges of the owl. Maybe some color will make it pop some more, but I have a tattoo on my foot and it has faded a lot on its own and I never went back to it, I just don't think ink holds well on the foot IMHO. I'd leave it alone and move on.

Hahaha! Bring extra padded gloves and a sleeping mask next time, and I'll see what I can do. It was great meeting you Gareth. Needless to say, your back turned out awesome! I hope you had a safe trip back home, and we look forward to seeing you again on future visits.

You guys all amaze me with the first session(s) of lining your entire back. My back was not lined. My first session was the size of a saucer or small dinner plate, and nearly every session after that has just been moving that dinner plate all around to different locations and chipping away at it session by session session. You have my awe sitting through that. And, for the whole searing ass part.

@CultExciter just checked out his work on the website, I'd love to get a bigger piece done by him in the future. Thanks :)

I am totally going to Chicago in June. :cool:

Success! Thanks. Right thigh. - - - Updated - - - And the left..

So far we've got either a dragon or tighty whities. I also like the idea of the backwards robe (I have one with my initials), knee high ski socks, and a stocking cap. Pair this with a sherlock style bubble pipe and the look will be complete.

I know that @MrsGougeTheEyes has one on her forearm that I believe she got from Cody Miller and I'll vouch for it being super rad. Also @polliwog won a Tattoo of the a Month contest with a big rad fuck off Chad eagle. I think Chad's eagles are the best, they're so powerful. I don't know how much my opinion counts for here, but I'm going to say that eagles on women (or on men) are pretty fucking badass.

For those heavy flow back pieces.

This has been a great thread - I realize I need to be more appreciative of how my folks and family have reacted to my ink! When I first started getting tattooed (almost 20 years ago now) my Mom hated them. We had to have the "why are you doing this to me" and "I don't see why you want to deface your body" conversations where I had to explain that none of my tattoos were about HER and that I didn't see it as defacement. Over the years, and many more tattoos (big hiatus in the middle where I got an eyebrow piercing instead, ha!) she now understands that this is a form of my own self expression and it's not a reflection of her. I've proven that I make good decisions on placement, style and content and that they don't hurt my life opportunities. My Dad is slowly coming around, but he will never like them. My brother and sister in law show them to my nephews (4 and 2 now) and we play "what is this? yes, bird! what sound does the bird make?" with the younger one. My other nephews show me their press on Spidermans when we Skype. None of my family would ever get one. And some don't 'understand' them. Which is fine. They don't have to. But nobody should make you feel BAD about them. Or ashamed. And look at all these stories of parents who came around to some understanding in the end. I think there is something burned into our psyches (especially us girls) that want our Moms to be proud. And those of us with tattoos know that our tattoos are part of us and it feels like a rejection of ALL of who we are when someone is just nasty. Never forget you are more than your skin. Good luck. :) (that got a little rambley! sorry)

I think this pretty well sums up why I still like my bad tattoos. I got them at a time when "fuck it" was kind of my motto, and even if they suck they remind me of that awesome carefree period of time.

show is bumming me out lately - i power watched the first four seasons this summer and this rivals thing just has come up lame for me - i will still watch though - ha - its a family affair - my kids love it and wife too - so its fun but yeah the drama being the focal point is too bad more ink - less nonsense would be better would rather see them do a weekly profile of a contestant - showing footage and work and interviews - i dont know - anything but that ultra contrived couch talk setup where they film what seems to be a pretty scripted drama fest

Honestly......I really don't see the huge deal with this "I won't do them" posts If the people know up front that they may need some maintenance then what is the big deal? Customer walks in....you tell them up front the deal....they still want it....make them sign something saying you told them.....do the tattoo! My thumbs....including the sides have held up perfectly fine for 3 years now....and I am not talking script...i am talking images..... If done by the right person then fingers can hold up....maybe not forever.....but just go get them touched up every year or two or three when they need it! If you work with your hands it is less likely to hold up....of course! But if you sit behind a keyboard and take care of your tattoos then they will hold up longer! There are ways of making them last longer......techniques that were shared with me before I even started tattooing to make tattoos hold longer! If you want it done and you know the possibility is there you'll have to pay to get it touched up in the future......(prob shop min)....then go get it done! Just my opinion of course! - - - Updated - - - Sorry.....this may be based on "science and society" but this is not in every case.....and I don't think it's all that constructive or helpful! It basically is trying to talk people out of getting tattooed in areas this artist doesn't want to tattoo anymore.....at least it reads that way to me! Tell people up front and let them make the decision! Now if you don't have the skill to put it in without blowing it out.....that's another story! Send them to someone with more experience! Sending them to someone who has the experience to do it shows the customer you truly care about their tattoo and not the money in their pocket! Society moves forward by those willing to push the boundaries......not falling in line with the rest of the sheeple! Yes.....inform the people what COULD happen to them.....and let them make their own minds! If this was written by someone with 30+ years in the craft.....I'd consider the advice! I was told 30 years ago the same thing.....society won't like it!!! guess what...they didn't....LOL......and I still have a better job than most of my friends who didn't get tattooed in 1984!

Rob Mopar is doing a guest spot at FTW through Saturday. Neither of us were doing much yesterday so he made these ladies for me. His instagram is @rwmopar if anyone is wondering.

"Rules" might be the wrong term.....but I would need to respectfully disagree with your "Just go for it" statement! Although the views on tattoos have definitely changed over the last 7-10 years we are not out of the woods yet! Trust me I have been tattooed for almost 30 years and those of us who have been tattooed that long know how a tattoo can keep you out of certain jobs and in my case stopped me from getting a promotion into management! Some cities in the U.S. (all I can speak too) are more "tattoo friendly" but there are still people who will not hire people with visible tattoos! I also grew up in a time where you had to "earn" those spaces (hands and neck) by being pretty heavily covered! I know it is an artists job to put on what the client wants but i guess i am just a little "old school" maybe when it comes to those spots! I think it's silly to see someone with their hands done and just about nothing else on their forearms (same with necks but no sleeves). People definitely looked at me differently after getting my hands and especially my neck done and although after you have been stared at for so long you tend not to notice it BUT they still stare....LOL It's sad......but there is still prejudice out there and if you aren't a tattoo artist or work in the craft then it is a bit more difficult to climb the corporate ladder with visible tattoos. I hope that does become a thing of the past.....but we aren't there quite yet! While I do understand it is an artists job to do what the client asks....I tend to respect more the artists who in the back of their minds at least think twice before they tattoo someones hands or neck! Just my humble opinion and stating it as respectfully as I can! :)