Mel Noir

JAllen, if you change "peace out" to "peacethefuckoutthomassss", it's perfect.

If you shoot that, you've fucked over any chance of being The Penguin on Halloween.

Haha, that isn't even the craziest thing he's done, it was just all I could find on the Internet! If we all ever end up at the same convention, I'll bring this book along and we'll have some crazy fucking trip, haha. I actually took this book from my grandfather's book case when he died- I was only 7. I don't even want to think about what weird books he had that I wasn't allowed to have, haha.

What the hell is going on in this? You could look at it for hours.

Anyway, enough of me being a geek, you can get back to posting silly pictures now. :)

This thread is my favourite thing ever.

Hey have you guys ever seen the artist who did the Judas Priest cover up there, Patrick Woodroffe? His stuff is great, but it's so weird. I have one of his books, and I never feel the need to do drugs, since looking through that seems to do the job. Wait there, I'll find some pictures...

Hey Peter- I think the best thing you could do is to visit a good studio and let the know what you want- they can do the rest. A lot of people think they have to come up with how the tattoo will look, and that's not really true, so don't worry about not knowing how to create anything! They'll know what works, and what looks good.

As for artists in Jersey (NJ, right?), I think everyone else will have a better grasp for who's the best for this, since a lot of people live closer. I like Scott Terry's work, though.

Yeah, I have to agree with Ursula here- I know cake makers who are up at 4.30AM every morning!

I don't know if you guys in America are familiar with the Daily Mail, but that was the link I was shown- I was pretty surprised to see their coverage of this is quite pleasant as well! Usually they're saying we're all scumbags, haha! :)

Also, just because a tattooer doesn't want to preform a certain tattoo that doesn't make them any less of a tattooer or person.

Y'know, I couldn't agree more with this. I think if someone comes into a studio with the worst idea possible, and someone tattoos it anyway, without at the very least trying to make it better or showing them how it should be done, then I don't think I'd think that highly of the tattooer. Those around my area who would do that are the ones that need the money. I'm not saying Shannon is like this, by the way, just speaking generally.

Not a band, but... BATMAN LIVE. SATURDAY. IT'S HAPPENING.

I'm so excited you'd think I was 12.

Seriously, if I ever get a car, I'm getting the shittest car I can justify having- and this is why. If some idiot crashed into me and I had an expensive car like that, I'd cry my eyes out!

You can't. It's as simple as that. No simulation, no dry runs. Just the real deal.

Oh yeah of course man, I mean I agree with you, but it's like talking to a brick wall if you have a conversation with someone who's giving that excuse. To be honest, I don't think I know many good tattooers who would even take on an apprentice who's had the "practice" on their friends, over someone who hands in a portfolio of great drawings and paintings, so I don't get why they're bothering to use the excuse.

Well Stewart, colour me corrected. Don't get me wrong though, I wasn't saying you should treat tattooing like some arts and crafts project, it was just a reaction to the many times I've heard people say, "how can I tattoo without knowing what it's like away from paper?"- the majority of those people have been those butchering up their friends, of course. I mean, of course it's not the same thing.

Anyway, I agree that most of this stuff people should listen to tattooers about. Some more than others.

Y'know, I couldn't agree more with you, David. I'm sure I was a right annoying little pleb not even too long ago when I started getting tattooed! I mean, yeah, it's really annoying when people ask stupid questions and tell you about stuff you don't care about, but those people were probably going to annoy you about something else if you weren't tattooed.

Getting back to the Barbie doll, I think it's cool, to be honest. Kids love tattoos, just look at how nuts they go over the transfers in bubblegum. I worked in a nursery for a couple of months last year, and the kids really loved my tattoos. On the last day, we even got some face paints and gave the kids their own "tattoos"! Obviously you have to ask parents about that kind of thing first, in case someone's allergic to the paint, and they told me they thought it was absolutely fantastic, and really funny! I did a lot of mom "tattoos" that day, haha.

To be honest, I think people should always go for apprenticeships, and I realise I'm quite stubborn with that. I get that loads of great artists didn't have the opportunities, but that doesn't mean that they didn't receive guidance, as everyone else has said. Tattooing isn't something you can do on your own. Besides, my dad's pretty technical- I bet he could take apart a tattoo machine and put it back together- if he got a crap one he'd probably even make it better- but would I fuck get a tattoo from him, haha!

I think, instead of guiding people into the whole "self taught" stuff, people should be thinking about what to do to improve their chances of getting an apprenticeship. Learning how to draw, in my opinion, should have been at the top of your list. If you think you can draw, and you don't get an apprenticeship, start over again. If you really have to "get the feel" for tattooing, like so many tattooing at home, why not paint tattoos on a mannequin or something? You'd get a slight feel for how it is like away from a flat piece of paper- you could even take pictures and put them in your portfolio!

Well, at least that means they won't be having babies! The thought of that makes me shudder.

My collections are usually kind of small, but I do love to collect old cameras and cassette tapes. I also have every episode of the X Men cartoons from the 90s on DVD- does that count? Haha. Oh and of course, the ticket stubs from pretty much everything- sometimes signed by the band, which I always love.

Honestly though, I think everyone should collect something, even if it's something small.

Got the preview link this evening from the lovely Juliette- Shawn's right, it's really great! Dan comes across as someone who's really humble and who cares a lot about what he does, rather than having the whole "rock star attitude" people are used to with other shows, and I think it's really awesome.

Grime next week- can't wait!

I just think people can be horrible regardless of what they're being cruel about. I was in a bar in town when Michael Jackson died, and these blokes were so horrible about the fact I was sad they made me cry and go home. Amy Winehouse may have had a shit ton of demons, but she never came across as a horrible person though, so I don't get why people would want to be so mean.

To be honest, I've already seen two apprentices leave my friend's studio, and another leave another friend's, because it was "too hard" in the end. Actually, one was asked to leave, because they hadn't bothered to draw anything they said they'd been doing at home, but it still goes back to the "too hard" excuse- maybe apprenticeships are enough.

I mean, this is just from what I've seen, though, I've never had an apprenticeship myself of course!

Oooooooo, you should be sorry! We're mint, man! And even when we're not doing great... well, at least we're not 5under1and. ;)

Stay safe, man. Glad you're okay! I hope Black Metal Robin shows up soon.

Y'know, through all the shit reports I tried to read about this, I've learned the most from this forum!

i don't get why anyone would target Norway? i suppose it will be answered over the next 24 hours or so.

If you think about it, somewhere like Norway is the ideal place for this kind of disgusting thing, because you DON'T expect it. Terror is making you think you're not safe anywhere, even somewhere like Norway.

Sounds like you've bounced right back, mate! Good on you, man.

Pat, I'm always a pussy with things like this. Us writers are so damn sensitive, hahaha.

It worked for me too, there. Maybe it's something to do with your computer? I couldn't even begin to think of what, though.

Rockelman, that all sounds good on paper, but I think maybe you haven't taken into account the fact that those taking on an apprentice are also doing their jobs at the same time. It's fine saying, "yeah, we should do a certain amount of time for each thing, an hour on this a week, five on that, etc.", but pretty much every day is different in a studio, so you honestly don't know how much you'd be able to get done.

Besides, who would test the apprentice at the end? If they're not a good tattooer to begin with, they'll probably pass the apprentice, even if everyone else can see they're bad.

I see what you're getting at, though.