LanaZellner

About a month ago, I went to the Portland Tattoo Expo where I got two large tattoos in one day. I don't know what I was thinking when I scheduled this, but it was BRUTAL. First one - was about 5 hours of work on my upper back, then the second was 3.5 hours of work, an hour (and a lot of hamburgers and french-fries) later. 5 days later, I sat for another five hours for a session on my leg... It was a terrible week and a really fuckin stupid idea.

But I now have a LOT of awesome tattoos! No regrets.

This is the best thread!

This picture was taken a few months ago at my sister-in-law's wedding and I was immediately struck by how much I LOVE the way the tattoo looks with the flowers and the floral print dress. I would like my whole body to look like a floral dress one day -- Since taking this picture I've gotten a few more big flowery pieces and I am slowly inching toward the goal :)

My friend taught me how to spit-shade yesterday :) I basically sucked at it... but it was Day 1 so I won't judge myself to harshly yet.

I definitely have "My Tattoo Artist" at home, but I like to travel and get tattoos from other people as well. I enjoy collecting the different styles and meeting new artists.

I've used Tegaderm for four of my more recent tattoos .... and I have a pretty dramatic love/hate relationship with it.

I love that I can feel like I don't have a giant open wound on my body, and that I am not leaking ink all over my sheets at night... but I hate that it never seems to stick properly on areas of increased movement (neck, wrists, elbow ditch). The only truly successful Tegaderm experience I have had was on my thigh, where the tattoo had a lot of space around it and the Tegaderm could get a solid seal around the edges. All other locations, it started to peal up at the edges after it was on for a couple days -OR- my skin would start to get irritated from having it pull my skin around as my body moved (ditch). Both times, I ended up just taking it off and doing a traditional lotion/washing healing method after a couple days.

Honestly, even though I rarely stuck through a whole week of healing with Tegaderm, it was kind of nice to use for even just a few days. I liked having it on when the tattoo was the most sensitive and awkward in my clothes.

Welcome! Hell of intro.. Sounds like you're doing it right! What's your nombre de instagram?

Thanks, that's good to hear :)

Here's my instagram - Instagram

Thanks a lot @SeeSea

Hey dude! Happy to find a familiar face so soon!

I'm not a tattoo artist... I just like drawing like one.

I am currently designing a deck of tarot cards - "78 Cards". Here are a few of my favorite cards so far :)

The Empress

The Devil

Ten of Swords

Five of Pentacles

Hey All,

I've been into tattoos for as long as I guess I could be.... I'm 29 years old, and I got my first one at 18. Style wise, I'm into traditional and neo-traditional work the most, but I also really like sacred geometry and heavy black work as well. Most of the tattoos I have fall within these categories. Perhaps more than actual tattoos, I absolutely love the drawing style of tattoos - heavy lines, bright colors, big patterns. It's great.

I'm an architect, and have been for about 8 years. Though, about six months ago I decided to start working toward acquiring a tattoo apprenticeship. Consequently, I've been reading about the industry a lot more and found myself on these forums quite often.... So, I made an account. I've been drawing my ass off, building my portfolio (drawing an entire deck of tarot cards). I've been working on it every single night after I get finished with work, and most weekends it's all I do.

Once I realized I wanted to tattoo, I just dove into my artwork head first. It has been non-stop and very intense. I don't think I've ever wanted anything as bad as I want this apprenticeship, but it's super awkward to work so hard with so little idea of if your efforts are paying off. Slowly, I am feeling more confident that it is going to happen.... I'm building a better relationship with the artist I am hoping to be mentored by, as well as the owner of his shop. Regardless, it's all super weird, and feels like hazing, but... I understand why.

Here's a link to my tumblr if you want to check out my drawings - feel free to give me some feedback. I would love it. -- Lana Zellner

Anyway... that's probably way more about me than any of you care to read, but enjoy! See you all around on the forums :)

I love this thread... it's super interesting to see what kind of work holds the best.

Has anyone purchased the Spider Murphy's tattoo flash book? First or Second edition? Thoughts?