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I got this Filipino tribal collar/chest from Melissa Manuel at Humble Beginnings in San Jose, CA. I feel so much more complete! This is how it was lookin' before, after the two chest pieces from Walter McDonald.

Hi all- I thought I'd start a little discussion about something I sometimes think about. Essentially this question boils down to the question of the extent to which a spending money on a tattoo equates to spending money on a thing or an experience? I'll frame it this way- to what extent is the experience of getting a tattoo important to the overall product? Would you rather get a tattoo that is perfect in everyway from an artist that is no fun to spend a few hours with (maybe even actively an asshole) or are you willing to wear a tattoo that is a little lesser in quality from an artist that you have a great time enjoying your time with? Obviously the idea is to get great quality AND have a great time- and I have been fortunate to hit this ideal many times. I guess I'm just more curious how others here think about this issue- if you do at all. Getting a tattoo is an intimate experience in a lot of ways but it also produces a piece of art that we carry with us for the rest of our lives. What do you think? Bonus topics: 1) Have you discovered any new music lately? 2) Who do you like in the NBA playoffs?

Robert Ryan flash

That's not a "shitty thing", @JAC1961😀

https://saniderm.com/product/personal-size-10-2-in-x-2-yd-roll/ I use this stuff all the time. makes healing a breeze, they ship fast.

I wouldn't go boxing the day after a tattoo, but I usually resume my workouts no more than two days after the tattoo. I've never had a problem. How exactly does anyone think that working out is going to hurt a tattoo?

Had a colonoscopy this morning (TMI?). Not a lot of fun, but cleared for future tattoos! 😆

Ed Hardy’s new book at his Museum and Afterlife Volume 2 are out. The timing is terrible and my wallet hates me but, I ordered Afterlife and got a friend to go pick up a copy of Ed’s book.

I drove 2.5 hours after getting my lower leg done. Fatigue was more an issue than pain. Now the next day you might have some swelling - and those 1st 10 minutes after getting out of bed are going to be fun!!

driving and working should be no problem. keep it clean, you will be fine.

Just finished my first portion of the lower part of my sleeve! Can’t wait for it to heal... I figured I’d wait until it healed to post photos! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Got a little Robert Ryan 2012 flash today when Josh had a cancellation. I need to take a photo when I unwrap. Forgot to take one before he wrapped it up. Elbow on my left arm is next (later in August unless he has another cancellation before then), and we're adding some filler. Then my arms will be complete!

i must say, this is the first "different" topic i've seen LST for a while. thanks! We can all agree that getting tattooed results in both a product and an experience. For me, the experience edges out the product, just slightly. I guess this is because I'm picking a tattooer whose product I've already vetted by viewing their portfolio of prior work... I'm going to them coz I know they do work I dig. This way, even if the experience is bad, the tattoo should be good. But if you don't already know the artist and didn't meet with them beforehand, you have no idea what their personality is like or how the experience will be. Tattooing involves a lot of exchange of energy. If you get a good piece of art that was put on with bad energy, you feel that more than skin deep and it sticks with you. Granted, if you didn't do your homework and you got a bad looking tattoo from a good person, looking at that bad tattoo could potentially bring you down. But that's more of a self reflection on you for choosing a bad artist and not due to the artist being a bad person. I feel like i'm rambling, but hopefully you get my point. 1) I've recently gotten into searching random cultural instrumentals to listen to while i work. This came after a conversation with a Jewish friend of mine... I mentioned that I listen to traditional Filipino tribal percussion and he said it's like my klezmer. I had no idea what that was, so I looked it up and BOOM... my new genre... traditional cultural instrumentals. I like having background noise that doesn't have lyrics that tend to distract me. So far, I've looked up music from Peru, Thailand, Japan, Ethiopia, Egypt, Iceland, Hawaii, and Tibet. More to come! 2) I've been living in the Bay Area for almost 20yrs and have become a fan of the Warriors... but I feel like the Bay has been spoiled and didn't deserve this title. - I appreciated how the Raptors played and think Kawhi deserved it after the Zaza foul a couple yrs back. - Canada deserved it too, with all their fans sitting out the in cold! Good for them. - I'm a fan of the game. Some super interesting trades so far this off season! - I wouldn't mind Kawhi repeating with the Clips - LA vs LA is going to be MADNESS. - I hate Chris Paul and I'm glad he got traded to OKC to hopefully wither away.

Finally pulled the trigger and am finishing my sleeve. Session 1 of 3 down. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Great subject. I really enjoy a talkative, friendly artist. I really enjoying talking to the artist while they work, it really helps keep my mind off the pain and makes the time fly by. I also like getting to know someone with completely different skills and abilities than I could ever hope to have. That being said, I guess if I had that choice, I'd take the quality work. The artist that did my japanese half sleeve told me during the consultation that he doesn't like to chat while he works, preferring to concentrate on what he's doing. At first I was a little put off, but he was friendly and chatted while putting on the stencil and sketching. I appreciated his committed attitude and his work is the best that I've gotten so far. Music. I've been listening to indie folk and bluegrass on Spotify lately... Dead South, Trampled by Turtles, Colter Wall, The Devil makes Three, Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, The Bridge City Sinners, etc. When I'm feeling especially neanderthalic I listen to Heilung.