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I don't have any back work done,but this was a 9 hour one shot,and I made it through,a little endorphin high,but I made it,like was said,if you have your back done,you will be fine with a side/rib piece.

Yeah just had my first rib session yesterday I tapped at 5 hours. Usually do 8 on my back. It's a whole other world of sensitivity. Don't plan a whole day. Why torture yourself?

Hello! Finally decided to register and make a first post after lurking here for at least a couple years now. :) I'm a lawyer by day and tattoo lover by night. Also, cats. :D I got my first tattoo on my 18th birthday, and never looked back. Here are my two most recent tattoos: The cat matryoshka was done at last year's Minneapolis Tattoo Expo by Shawn Patton. The photo was taken immediately after completion. The next two are of my space cats. These are cartoons of my four fur-children. Of course, prior to finishing the piece, our family expanded to add another cat and a dog. Good thing there's space on my forearm. That was done by Dan Dittmer. One photo is after my second to last sitting, and the other is after the last sitting. Finished this about 6 months ago. No formal healed pics yet. I have some other random stuff, but probably nothing else worth posting pictures of. I'll be at the Minneapolis Tattoo Expo this coming weekend possibly looking for something to fill some blank space on my upper outer arm. :D Given my occupation in particular, getting any potentially visible tattoo is a fairly large commitment. I'm more or less restricted to always wearing long sleeves at the office, although on quiet days, I can get away with partially-sheer sleeves, or 3/4 length sleeves. I know for me, deciding to get a half-sleeve marked the point in time where I decided I was going to be a tattooed person rather than a person with tattoos. I'm curious if others - particularly other tattooed women - had this experience - that of knowing that they were committing to being a "tattooed person." Thanks all!

Thank you very much :) - - - Updated - - - Thank you very much :)

http://instagram.com/mariesena

It also seems like people just literally do not know what a good tattoo even looks like, or why it's a good tattoo vs. some other tattoo that they've seen. They get impressed by the wrong things, and they don't really know better. I'd blame this on social media, but I'm really not sure that's possible, given that, as you say, bad shops seem to outnumber the good ones, anyway. But I've had good friends of mine -- people who have a pretty good eye for fine art/other mediums -- ask me about portfolios from shops that have made me go 'eeuuussgghh.' They just don't know. It's harder to find places like LST than it is to find terrible advice, unfortunately. - - - Updated - - - It also seems like people just literally do not know what a good tattoo even looks like, or why it's a good tattoo vs. some other tattoo that they've seen. They get impressed by the wrong things, and they don't really know better. I'd blame this on social media, but I'm really not sure that's possible, given that, as you say, bad shops seem to outnumber the good ones, anyway. But I've had good friends of mine -- people who have a pretty good eye for fine art/other mediums -- ask me about portfolios from shops that have made me go 'eeuuussgghh.' They just don't know. It's harder to find places like LST than it is to find terrible advice, unfortunately.

ribs will hurt but you got your whole back done - i think you'll manage - - - Updated - - - ribs will hurt but you got your whole back done - i think you'll manage

I get asked to do a ton of cancer ribbons and death dates. I usually try to steer folks into ideas that reflect their loved ones more than what killed them.

Heey this forum is about getting tattoos. Not to discuss how to tattoo

Just got this San Jose tribute, from my buddy Matt Wes.

@rufio i suppose, although i put a dragon on R hand a few months ago. There's already a dragonfly on my L wrist that creeps onto the hand so i'm adding the snake to make the tattoo cuts symmetrical and fill in the underside of my wrist so my sleeve drops down to the crease. I guess not that bold since i've got wings creeping my collar and a butterfly on the back of my head! cheers

Couldn't we argue that in a way tattoos are a commitment to not changing our appearance? I can cut my hair or shave my beard without giving it two thoughts. I can but different clothing and decorative glasses on my lunch break today- no big deal, right? But these tattoos, these damn tattoo, those are staring to seem kind of permanent.

Funny, when I read that question, my first thought was no, which I suppose is an odd response since I am tattooed - isn't that changing my appearance? I guess for me, changing my appearance would be things like being taller, or changing the shape of my face - something really fundamental. I see tattooing as "enhancement" of appearance, not "change." But back to @Guerillaneedles original question: I'd never thought of it that way, but my getting tattooed was definitely a commitment to something that can't be changed. I very consciously thought about that before my first tattoo, and I was deeply attracted to that aspect of it. I do think that I'm a person who accepts things that can't be changed. When situations come along in my life where something happens or goes wrong, I'm more likely to move ahead than look back and wish something hadn't happened. "Ok, how can we fix this?" Rather than "how did this happen?" It happened, you can't change it, so move ahead.

Jereme Galloway, https://www.instagram.com/jeremegalloway/ , I'm sure that being based in southern Indiana makes it a bit more difficult to reach a larger audience than if he were based in a larger city. I think his stuff would still do well in that environment though.

BAM

Gotten a few fun ones over the last six months or so: Steve Byrne at Temple before the Bay Area Convention of the Arts: Healed Robert Ryan at the Convention: Crappy healed photo: - - - Updated - - - Got a couple from Miguel Montgomery aka Uzi to start the year Healed - - - Updated - - - And most recent is a little one shot by Alex Petty based off of some old Milton Zeis flash Flash Piece (still healing)

This is a masterful quote. Reading it brought me back to the entire experience. Never a fan of that F--King Liner, I would hear the shader get disconnected and I thought "not again". It did get to the point where I would hear "sorry" after my tattooer realized he needed lines to complete.... But it's a great experience and I do miss it. Planning the appointments and watching the piece come together. It only happens once.....ENJOY @sophistre

Got this panther/rose from Juan Puente a few weeks ago. photo by Juan that day.

made a trip to michigan over the weekend jeff zuck @ name brand tattoo. not sure why the picture looks weird at the top of the flames alex boyko @ sunhouse then today on my way home i swung by old soul and got this from john hill

A little twist on a classic. Picked from the incredibly twisted, but amazing, sketch book of Matt Kerley.

so we went to the Fresno,CA tattoo expo yesterday and had all saturday afternoon with Oliver Peck. Central Valley Tattoo . I got these two, . . . . and this one on my left lower thigh,it's a little bruised now. and Saniderm on it. . . . and my wife got this . . . . we had a really great day getting tattooed together at a convention,it was awesome.

Just got this from David Parker at Black Heart Tattoo in San Francisco. Do I really need to say how I feel about this tattoo?

I got this done today by Dan Climan, real stoked on it! I'm pretty sure it's based off a Owen Jensen design but I haven't found the original yet. I'd love to see it if anyone knows where to find it.

Love that. Everyone here who's been tattooed by him has gotten an amazing tattoo.

deified my shin a bit with Eddy Deutsche on friday, been waiting for this one a while, stoked! What a great dude Eddy is, and totally mesmerizing to watch him work.

Robert Ryan Asbury Park NJ - on the knee good times as usual

From yesterday by the the all mighty Marius Meyer. Super rad guy with a burning passion for tattooing. Everybody should get something from him. As for me, this means I'll be going to job interviews in turtleneck sweaters for the rest of my life.

Thanks for the kind welcome! This is an interesting thing - particularly for women. Unless I'm at a funeral, I don't worry about covering my tattoos for the most part. I recently attended a very formal fundraising event in conjunction with my work, and I wore a sleeveless gown. I had positive feedback from a few people that made a point to comment at the event. At the after-event get together that was a group primarily of uppity, uber-rich corporate types, I think I was viewed as sort of exotic (?). It was strange. I had a pleasant conversation with one woman who showed me her tiny "secret" thigh tattoo. But then, of course, there was a big wig who walked up to me, uninvited, pointed to my tiny paw print wrist tattoo out of all my visible tattoos, and said "that's the only good one." :rolleyes: I've had a conversation with my boss about visible tattoos at work-related social events, and to his credit, he has no qualms with it. I really like that tattoo! Interesting that you perceive the shoulder to elbow as more of a commitment than the forearm. I've decided that my forearms are no longer off limits. That didn't take long. LOL. This! Seems like a very slippery slope LOL! Five years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of having full sleeves because of my job, but now I find myself thinking about whether I could ever get away with tattooed hands in my line of work. Haha! And last but not least, here's what I found at the Minneapolis Tattoo Convention yesterday. By Ryan Thomas of Black13.

The pain creates vulnerability, it reveals your true self. Through the pain you can receive clarity. My tattooer and I were talking about the tattoo pain threshold yesterday actually. We were discussing how everybody receives 'X' amount of tattoo credits, some receive more than others. But once you're credits are used up, they are used up and tattoo pain will be worse for you moving forward. So tattoo and spend your credits wisely!

Selfishly, I wish tattoos didn't hurt because I am not into the pain aspect of it all. :D But if I really think about it, I agree that I'm glad they do hurt. It helps weed out "undesirables." If you're not willing to handle even a few minutes of pain to get your upside down wrist script, then you clearly aren't invested in it. Tattoos should be seen as a commitment...that's the part of it I'm addicted to. You do your research on artists, styles, subject matter...you sit through the pain and pay hard earned money for it...and you live with the consequences of your action as you're now "a tattooed person" or a more "heavily tattooed person." If you're not really committed to every aspect of that process, you're not ready to be tattooed. It's just another test to prove how much you want it. And honestly, you feel so much more accomplished and proud of yourself when you make it through a tough session, it makes the experience more fond and meaningful.