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got my hand tattooed by max kuhn yesterday

done by Chris O'Donnell at his private studio happy new year to all

my back piece by Chris O'Donnell

Welllllllll....if it makes you happy get another one, right?! Went and saw Paul Dobleman at Spider Murphy's last week...please excuse the inflammation Hope everyone is having a great New Year so far!

I've been really enjoying getting lots of little fillers done recently, as I work on my left leg. This weekend I went to The Okey Doke to see Franz Stefanik. He did the mace, the tooth, and the chain link around the bulldog that he did for me in the summer.

Marius Meyer in January - knee/shin/ and backround on the entire leg. Dragon with a ridin reaper. And Eddy Deutsche in February I think

Myself and the lovely @MrsGougeTheEyes visited Maine over the summer and we're heading back this month. And possibly this spring.. possibly full time. So: tattoo shops in Portland?! What goes on up there? I popped into one (the name of which I can't even remember) and the work looked prettaaay prettayyy... prettayy.. not good. So get at me about Portland and also Maine in general if you know anything!

too many good tattoos in these contests lately. everyone deserves a high five, a trophy, a participation ribbon, and a hug.

Whoa, with all the awesome tattoos posted in the Lowdown thread recently I'm surprised no one's posted here yet. I'll kick it off! Here's my thigh by Seth Wood, started at Temple and finished at Saved.

Here's a photo of my winged lion by Valerie Vargas, its quite big so a little distorted and wraps a lot, it's only a start but I love it was such a great experience and a lovely shop and atmosphere, plus it's like the first tattoo I've had in six years that's needed more than one sitting, looks like il be visiting home again sooner rather than later

Above is a picture of me laying like a passed out pale seal on Iain Mullens table. Today was the second to last session on my back. Can't wait to see it finished. We're doing the last bit and touch ups with Rudy Fritsch at the Scottish Convention in the end of March. Going to be fun/hell. Todays session was nice except for a few bits. I can't believe how quick this piece has been. I got the idea to start my back in April last year, asked Iain about it and then we started in mid June. It really helps that both him and Rudy work super quick and make for good company + conversations during the sessions. Secret bit of knowledge exclusively for LST (I know people love that exclusiveness, I sure do): that ain't a dark red, but actually a light gray wash looking bloodied and irritated. Haven't got a piece of color on me, except for a few patches of gray and white.

Hello everyone. I've been lurking for a while after deciding to get a tattoo and I just scheduled some time with Tony Talbert at Golden Monkey in Fredericksburg, VA. I'm planning on getting a eagle; half as a memorial piece and half because I think they look bad ass. I'm not quite sold yet on where on my body I'd like to get it, so I'm open to opinions about optimal placement or other advice.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Matt Riemenschneider and I'm currently residing in Indianapolis, Indiana. Been a collector of tattoos for the past 14 years, and started apprenticing about a year ago now at the old age of 31. I've been tattooed by: Harlan Thompson of Chicago (Deluxe and Pioneer Tattoo) Junior Purvis of Indianapolis (also my mentor) Paul Timmon of "The" Sunset Strip tattoo in Hollywood, Ca. Jerry Frost in Indiana Big Meas! Billy Hill of Envy in Columbus Ohio Jason Fritz in Indianapolis at New Breed Tattoo. I really credit Jason for exposing me to the traditional side of tattoo culture. And a couple of other jokers who shall remain nameless; I was young and stupid. I'm a big fan of a lot of California tattooers like Ed Hardy, Freddy Corbin, Grime, Greg James, Mike Giant, Bob Roberts, Jack Rudy, Tim Hendricks and yes, Dan Higgs. Through searching out those guys work I stumbled upon Last Sparrow Tattoo here. I'm a fan of traditional (or as some would say "neo" traditional, but I think it's all just a continuation), American style Japanese stuff like Hardys, realistic Black and Grey, graffiti, and skate influenced tattoos. I feel like my tastes are pretty much the status quo around here so I think I should fit it pretty well. If you wanna ask me anything just hit me up!

The best tiger flash is by Pinky Yun.

What is this "neo" you speak of?

Five star dinner to anyone that can land us a job! ;) Thanks for the rec's everyone!

@ThatGuy Thank you! @jimmyirish Thanks so much man, I'm glad you too are getting something good out of this :) Well, it's not done yet. There will be one more session to do shading on the bits bellow the face. Then when it heals we'll make some proper nice photos of it so you can preach the tattoo gospel to everybody you meet ;)

@falco4758 check out Erin Chance. You may like her work and she is located in Richmond I believe. Erin Chance Tattoo | Tattoo

Hello and welcome @guacamole! An eagle is a solid choice for a first tattoo. Your tattooer should have some good recommendations for the placement of whatever design he comes up with. Upper arms are always a good place to start. It's pretty easy to heal, not a super painful place to get tattooed, won't destroy any future employment options and you get to look at it. My first one was on my back. While I wouldn't trade it for anything: 1) It made it complicated to design a full backpiece which is something I am now interested in pursuing 2) I NEVER get to see it. When I got my second one (on my arm years after) it was like having a tattoo for the first time. It sounds silly but I highly recommend getting your first one someplace you can see it. It's just more fun to see it and obsess on how freaking cool it is! :D Also, for the sake of detail and having an impactful tattoo, don't be afraid to go a little larger than you think, maybe. Be sure to post some pics! Good luck, have fun and again, welcome!

Big eagle on the chest always awesome

Holy shit this is good! (cod - BEST snakes).

Booked what will probably be my final trip to Japan for a few years... Tomo is sure he can finish my front-piece this visit, so...I'm going over next September. Flights and hotel booked. It'll be an interesting trip. He's finished up in Yellow Blaze by then and I'll be getting the shinkansen from Tokyo to his home city (1.5 hours) to his new studio. I'm really bummed out to be finishing, in many ways. When I started this front piece I remember feeling like "oh my god, what have I done - this thing will never be finished". Now that it's within my grasp it's all a bit anti-climactic - I almost wish there was more to do. This will be my last big piece, I have room for no more big work.

Thanks for all the likes, folks! I'm having trouble comprehending that it's over. I thought of it in the past tense yesterday and surprised myself. @Bmore - yeah, sharks. Sharks are many times misunderstood creatures. Most we encounter either don't care for us and just leave (often because photographers and videographers are chasing them for the shot), and others either ignore us or check us out with a drive-by and wander off. I only had one near-wetsuit-soiling event but hey, we're in their ocean and not the other way around. @Mush - thanks! Yeah, I'll take your vote going up against all those spectacular Japanese pieces! There are just soooo many awesome pieces around this place. If I had another back I'd love a Battle Royale, and if I had another back I'd love something with a lot of negative space that included my butt, and if I had another back ... I have learned so much here. @KBeee - funny! It took me a couple tries to accurately list all the critters in my last post. I kept leaving things out so I had to stare at the tattoo to list everything! Thanks! @pidjones - if I continued around and did a torso, that 3D app thing would be really cool. Thanks! @OutOfIdeas - ::SMACK:: Smartass. :p @Pugilist - yeah, holy hell is right. This finished in a thundering climax of 4 long sessions in 7 weeks. I'm not yet right in the head. Thanks! @graybones - thank you! @HettyKet - thanks! Actually, I didn't know Zee was Sea in Dutch. An online translator even says it means a large body of salt water. Wow - I had no idea, but the irony is wonderful! Thanks for sharing that. @marley mission and @sophistre - yeah, I know? Is this the year of the back or something? @scubaron - thanks! I didn't originally think about the stories, I just chose a bunch of pictures because I loved them. It was only after it was completed that the deeper meaning of the entire piece came through.

I just bought a new house. Bit of a downsize from current home but I dontt need all that space. About 10 minutes from where I am now in a super small town, bigger lot, no back yard neighbours and cheaper taxes. Just need to sell my current home now... fun

Finished my back on Friday night (well, Saturday at 5:30 am). It was a hell of a ride - it took almost exactly a year of sessions every 2-3 weeks. We'll do a final session after this heals to tie the bow on it. This tattoo was made by Sean Zee out of Brick, NJ from pictures I've taken while scuba diving. I gave him 50-some pictures and a wish list, and he selected about 15 shots to create this scene. These pics were taken on 4 continents from 1998 through 2013 using (mostly) a Nikonos V underwater camera with an SB-105 strobe, UW Nikkor 35mm, 28mm, and 15mm f2.8 fisheye lenses, Sea & Sea (no relation) macro kit and Nikonos closeup kit. Sean is a great guy, dedicated and amazingly creative. It boggles my mind how artists just "see" stuff like this and make it happen. He put up with a lot of questions and "what ifs" and "why nots" from this nearly virgin canvas (as he likes to say, "this woman only had lil kitty paw prints on her shoulder before this"), explaining to me all the ways this tattoo would NOT work, and ended up just putting it on the table that it really needed to be a full back if I wanted so many references. And to prove it, he designed the whole thing superimposed on a picture of my bare back and emailed it to me. I remember the moment I saw it for the first time and it shorted out my brain. I committed to the full back about 20 minutes after I got the email. (And I admit at the time I did not understand in the least what I was in for...) Kinda funny, thinking back on it, how all the chatter and uncertainty and 14 years of wanting some sort of tattoo with my eagle rays were completely silenced and resolved in a heart beat. Anyway... So, the critters making appearances, starting at the top right and going clockwise are: two moon jellyfish, two Moorish idols, two clownfish and anemone, a batwing coral crab and mustard tube sponges just behind him, a leopard moray eel, two squirrelfish hiding in red sea fans that cross my lower back, a sea snake in lettuce coral (very poisonous, which I didn't realize until after I'd crawled up in his face to take the picture and then been admonished by the divemaster after the picture was developed), a queen angelfish and a hammerhead shark. In the center are two spotted eagle rays and the broken mast of the Nippo Maru, a Japanese supply ship sunk during WWII by US forces in Truk Lagoon, Micronesia. When I look at this, I don't just see a tattoo of fish. It's a diary of my favorite diving experiences. Each part has such different memories of the location, the people I was with, and the experience on that dive. (Yeah, poisonous sea snake. Whoopsie on that one. And the clownfish was actually guarding a little ring of day-old eggs. And trying to photograph moon jellies in a surge without being hit is like playing a 3D video game. And that I really really wanted my spotted moray eels but Sean said the pattern wouldn't age well, so with resigned sadness, my handsome spotted moray had to morph into a leopard moray. Sniff Sniff.) All of this flooding my brain at the same time. And then I get this goofy grin on my face thinking about walking around with this huge awesome back piece that anyone I know would be shocked to learn I have. He put up a little video where you can see the ribs, too: Video of SeeSea's Back. Healed pics coming to an LST contest near you. I want a T-shirt, dammit :D

In the meantime, there is LST. :)

I've been looking for an image to go on my center upper back. I've been scouring images of snakes vs. tigers for a few days, but I keep coming back to this one. I've seen some amazing tigers done by some amazing artists. For some reason, I keep coming back to this one. It's cartoonish. The nose is funny looking. It's not particularly detailed. But what I like about it is that it's bold, simple, and has a very 70s feel to it...like my other tattoos. It was done by Papa Joe in Boise. What say you?

Nice intro--welcome!

Are there really no new chest pieces to show off? It's getting close to my consultation and I'm still looking for ideas/inspiration. Have pretty much decided on an eagle/snake combo, but not sure on what size/coverage to go with. My front is completely empty at the moment.

@mmikaoj, I know I've said this before but this really is one of my all time favourite tattoos. Looks even more stunning now it's finished, you must be absolutely over joyed with having that on your back! I hope you don't mind but I've even saved the tattoo on my phone and intend to show it to people when they ask why I love tattooing so much. Also, just on a side note, it really goes to show the wisdom of trusting your artist(s). I can't believe you hadn't seen it before the day and they gave you this! Congratulations one final time!

Thanks for all the likes and comments, @marley mission, @Russ, @sophistre and everybody else! @SeeSea Amazing to see this one finished, looks grea! I really loved reading your story behind it, very ambitious and fun project! @Cork Haha no I'm sticking to the black and gray-theme, FOREVER! Last session is to put shading on the lower part, under the face, and then do some touch ups. And at last I'm done, can't believe it! @majorpenalty Wooow! Good choice!

According to Google, Portsmouth NH is less than a hour's drive from Portland and you have Jason Scott and Hobo's and Congress Street. Jason Scott rules, Jeb Riley tattoos there and he rules, and Chad Koeplinger guests there regularly. Portsmouth is a really nice town too.

JEEBUS, @majorpenalty. I'll like that one 10 times out of 10. And I'm so into your PAD set, @KBeee!

i like it already - i vote keep it

Hinges in the ditches - love it! Don't forget to oil those babies.

Well I was waiting to post a healed pic of my finished Seth Wood thigh, but since I can't seem to take a decent pic of my own leg, here's when it was half-fresh: http://s16.postimg.org/lelsgz5qt/Untitled_1.jpg I started it at Temple in Oakland in June and finished at Saved in NYC in December. I live in North Carolina so both locations meant a trip for me. Really awesome experience getting to see two different shops and travel all across the country to get this done, made some awesome memories, hung out with friends new and old, and just overall had an adventure. Seth is an awesome dude as well and I hope I can get something else from him in the future. (posted this in the contest thread too, hope it's okay to post it twice!)

@CShaw I love how beautiful and feminine those bats are! You don't usually see bats being depicted in such an elegant way. Lovely! @beez Is there anything more badass than a dragon and eagle fighting?? So nice! I love the colors!

@beez, DAMN, girl! :D

Was looking like a slow start to 2015 for me but things changed quickly. Coming up between now and end of March: Bryan Randolph Jeff Rassier Tim Lehi Theo Mindell We are spoiled in the Bay Area...

Well said. Tattoo script and font are two completely different subjects. The principles of flow & placement. That's the shit. I don't have any script, not my style. Not heavy enough. But there's individual reasoning behind any tattoo and its meaning. Not all script is meant to be so eligible to the non reader. Just like my back tattoo design. Its significance and meaning isn't as obvious as the design may represent. Exactly what it was designed for. That's the spirit of tattooing for me. Only the wearer knows it's true significance. That's why we should never judge another persons interpretation of their own. The meaning far out weighs reasoning.

I could not disagree more on the font thing above. Above all, take your tattooer's advice about what is going to work best. That said, fonts are for the screen and the printed page. I'm not saying you necessarily need something super ornate and fancy but you should at least be looking at some nice hand-drawn script. Text tattoos are still tattoos and should follow the same principles as good non-text tattoos in terms of placement and flow and you won't get that from something printed from a computer.

I've accidentally been getting tattooed pretty regularly lately… I got tattooed by Marco Hernandez at the Liberty party in Seattle a few weeks back, I got tattooed by Cheyenne Sawyer again at Atlas in Portland just over a week ago, I'm getting more work done on my back this weekend with Chad Woodley, and I just made an appointment to get tattooed by Matt Arriola again toward the end of January. The last few empty spots I have left seem to be filling up rather quickly...

You'll do fine :) I just did my back in three consecutive days, and although it was tough it is definitely doable. The way we did it, was to split up the areas being worked on so we didn't have to go over open skin on the second and third days, I would definitely recommend that approach as even getting close to previously worked on areas really really sucked. Stupid back of my ribs began to bruise up and working over them wasn't fun. Pretty much, just eat well, rest up beforehand, plenty of fluids, and some form of distraction is always helpful, willpower is the one thing you'll need. I put my head down in some parts and just tried to imagine I was a big piece of paper that had to hold still so she could draw (a big, meaty, piece of paper lol). Oh, and allow your body to heal afterwards. I went into mild shock the night after my third day.. And I admittedly did try to push myself a bit hard with commitments outside of tattoo sessions on my trip. My mum is a nurse, and the way she phrased it was "the amount of pain you've just put your body through with that many hours tattooing, you've effectively run a marathon.. So just allow yourself to fucking rest!" Haha. Anyway, I feel like I have rambled enough - sorry everyone! Side note; @SeeSea .. How's your progress??

ok well it has occurred to me the best way to forget about your rough healing itchy scratchy hazy mess of your healing tattoo is... ...getting a new tattoo while the other is still healing totally diverts the attention away from your healing tattoo before you know it your other tattoo is all good but then of course you're back in the process of healing another tattoo oh the tangled web...

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.

A couple sessions into my back, I found the wonders of brownies as tattoo food. Since then, I have been making brownies and giving the rest to my tattoo artist. Until this summer, when I realized that I had started to associate the taste of delicious fudge brownies with tattoo pain. O.O Turns out my tattoo artist was getting tired of brownies too! So I branched out. I've made chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, and tonight I am making cut out Christmas sugar cookies. I never intended for this to become a ritual, but every Thursday before my Friday session has become Baking Time! Bizarrely, it's kind of calming.

Throwing the hat in. Newbie getting his second tattoo, 4 months after his first. I got this skull and dagger from Luke Wessman in NYC @ Wooster Street Social.

Already mentioned this in a thread i started in the "get togethers" section, but i'm scheduled to start my backpiece with Marius Meyer in December. Flights and hotel booked, no backing out now! Nothing concrete yet but it's going to be a battle royale type piece, definitely involving an eagle and perhaps a snake/skull, depending on size, placement etc. Feels great to be finally getting it all started, i've been slowly putting the money away to one side to make sure i get used to not having it and left it a good amount of time to be 100% certain it's financially viable. Now my only concern (although not a huge one) is the healing process. I live alone so it's not going to be particularly easy to clean and apply cream etc.