Beans

I havent hit the elbow or the ditch yet but the funny bone just sucked, and in-between the two was pretty hard. But

he then graciously followed it up with the under arm all to close to the pit. I started getting uncontrollable deep chest shakes for the last 45 minutes....THat sucked.

I also had alot of reservations about the sleeve I have always wanted. I just turned 43 (plain skin girl) and said to hell with everyone else. I trusted in my artists skills to create from my inspration and had my fisrt sit yesterday. We/I had a great time and I am so happy with the results so far. This morning, I have ZERO regrets! Im in LOVE with my new arm. Take your time, let the artist guide you and trust the advice of the knowledgable people here on LST. Good Luck!

Nina

I didnt want to punch anyone necessarily but i had to keep schooching back towards my artists. while my arm was perfectly still, my body kept trying to leave.

Well, I am no longer a plain skin gal. I made it 4 1/2 hours minus 1 potty break and 3 1minute stretch sessions. All while on the dreaded (.) and I now have the begenning of an awsome 3/4 sleeve. The worse part was the funny bone and under the arm pit. I think i may have been levitating about 6 inches off the bench the last half hour, but I never complained!!!!!! Im feeling really great about the session and I love my artists. Yay!

Holy shit. I just did an all day sit for my back while on the rag and hot damn it was horrible! Last sit was no problemo but this made a thousand percent difference!

Nooo! I have my first sleeve sitting on friday and i just started. :( Feeling like shit now AND Im terrified to boot. To make things worse, im scheduled this way for the next 5 months......Sigh

I just keep telling myself its gonna be beautiful. Jen, your a rock star!

***warning, gross***

Best I could tell it was a damaged hair follicle. Not an ingrown hair, but like the whole follicle/sweat gland had said "fuck you, I quit." I was able to tweeze it out (highly scientific) and it seems to have healed up fine with no damage to the tattoo. Everything seems to heal differently and there's a new surprise every other tattoo.

Hair dye is scary. Paraphenylenediamine & hair dye contact allergy. DermNet NZ

Scary, but im glad its better.

Yikes! Yes its bad. Fortunately I have never had a reaction on my face. But the back of my ears and entire scalp are a mess!

If I can piggyback on this thread, I currently have a few itchy bumps under one of my tattoos - consulting with the artist isn't possible because of distance/nothing's visible in pictures. It's probably just irritation but I'm concerned enough to want to check with a doctor. But it seems like dermatologists can be hit-and-miss when it comes to their knowledge of tattoos and how to treat them when there's a concern (for example, prescribing antibiotics for tattoos that are scabbed and angry-looking but not infected). I'm wondering if anyone has tips or stories about advocating for yourself/communicating across what might be a cultural divide - or finding a tattoo-friendly dermatologist.

I was just wondering how the bumps are faring, have you had any improvement?

Ive been following the thread for a while now. I have gotten Contact dermatitis monthly over the last 8years on my scalp from hair dye. It sucks, and tends to be very severe for the first 4 weeks. When it calms again, I apply another coat to thoses damn grays.

I know it can take MONTHS to completely heal and benedhryl (if you can take it) is your best bet. I hope everyone is healing well.

Your gonna do great tomorrow! Just think how wonderful it will all be when its done. But i completely understand the nerves. My first sitting is a week form tomorrow and Im all pins and needles ;)

Makes me feel much better knowing all this. I read a bunch of stuff online about people taking their drawings home weeks before the sitting and putting them on the wall, to make sure they liked the design.... :rolleyes: So I wanst sure if thats generaly how it worked. Personally, Im grown and already know my mind. Though, I am giving him HUGE amounts of artistic freedom. LOL, so he's inching his way down my arm. Origionaly it was to be a 1\2 sleeve :o

Mines creeping up on me. April 10th 3/4 sleeve, @ Painless Steel Montana, Lee. Art work based off Richard Doyle Illustrations ca1890

Seriously I had NO idea they could do that, it gives me a whole new appreciation for what they do.... I just saw a few of his new pieces and OMG. Drawing that up on the spot? Just mind blowing.....I cant wait!

Thanks everyone! Im totaly at ease now. Yes we "clicked" and I was over the moon after our consultation. I just HAD to check in with you folks since you know your stuff!

Hi everyone, I'm currently 12 days out from my first sitting for a 3/4 sleeve and Im wondering if this seems within the norm for a tattoo artists. Firstly, I LOVE my artists. Ive chosen him because of his quality of art work, style of art and 26 year of experience. I feel VERY good about my choice. My only worry, my husband also chose him for his back piece. So I went to his consultation with him on Friday and planed on seeing any progress on my drawing. However, the artists let me know that he is VERY busy (he is, it takes MONTHS and MONTHS and MONTHS to sit with him) and most likely will not start my drawing till my apt day. He did let me know that I have the entire day so we will have time to design and I can still sit for the outline with no problems.

We did talk in length about my design during my consultation and his first impressions and ideas were a perfect match with my vision. I loved his natural flow. He said it was something he would really love doing and thought it would turn out beautifully. So my question is, Is this to be expected from a busy artists? Again I TRUST him. I just want to get the best work afforded to me by his tallent.

Thanks for your advice!

I'm so impressed, it's absoultely beautiful. Had you not shown the side by side, you'd never notice any shadows. I had to strain to see any difference at all.

Wow, I had a completely different picture of him in my head. He looks like a sweet guy IMHO. And Hell, with two cats, of course he's swell.

EWWW! At first I thought a misplaced heartfelt sentiment. After reading her quotes and then seeing that she got another new tattoo at the same time. She seems like a self serving narcissists to me :/. Really, what they did was make a point that the child was blemished and would never be good enough. All the while, she goes public and gets the greatest mom award for being selfless Strategic if you ask me.

Not all religion frowns on tattoos. I worship with a congregation that has three members of the praise team all with tattoos (visible), and I know several ministers with tattoos. There is one verse in Leviticus that forbids tattoos for the dead. That same chapter forbids cutting the hair at the sides of your head or edges of your beard, harvesting from a fruit tree less than five years old, or wearing clothing of two kinds of material. There were reasons - good reasons at the time - for each of these. Doesn't mean it all applies today.

Your absolutely correct! But so many people misunderstand or twist that, for me it's just easier to go with religion VS Christianity than to try to explain. :) Unfortunately, I'm not sure how my tattoos will even go over at the mission I volunteer with. I'm just hoping my character and work outwardly expresses where my heart is at, and it won't hurt my position there.

Your correct, that's who JC is :) Yep, we all have our beliefs, mine.....Just love one another and TRY to make the world a better place, and if all else fails.....Hubby and I keep plenty of loaded guns ;)

Bravo! I love your work!

But doesnt your religion gets in the way of getting a tattoo? or the other way around?

Religion DOES frown apon tattoos, lucky for me, I HATE religion ;) I do NOT at all identify with being religious. I believe in God. I believe we should treat others the way we want to be treated. Not to get all Bibley but JC hated the church and religion too. :)

That's rough, I suppose I'm extremely lucky. I'm currently a plain skin gal but am starting my fisrt 3/4 sleeve in one months time. (life long dream) Hubby is SO excited for me but he's getting a little green too, so he's making himself a conseltation to start his back piece. :) We are both fairly conservative as well as Christians. I think it's such a shame people should be made to feel bad for their personal choices, that DO NOT hurt anyone else. I might be naive, at this point but no one has a right to judge.

Hi thanks! Lee Burns in Missoula. I love what he does.

Contain the excitement pre tattoo? Hi all, My name is Nina and I'm so happy to fianlly be here. I'm a bit of a weirdo, so I've been planing my double 3/4 sleeve tattoos for about 23 years now. Sounds extreme but that's how I roll :). Actually, I have (with much pain) purposefully kept virgin skin for THIS one endeavor. Unfortunately severe health issues took over my 20's, paying off said medical bills took over my 30's. So now at 43, I have the health, time and money for a great artists. My first sitting is April 10th and I can hardly concentrate on ANYthing else. I am obsessed now that MY time is finally here. Lucky me!

Any ways, thanks for listening to my newbie babble.