The Tig

I guess I should post the piece. Had a hell of a time getting a good pic. I am planning on hiring a photographer in the future.

One word comes to mind and stays there: Beautiful

How many times has Japan shunned/criminalized tattooing now?

Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right.

Keeping it all black and grey is worth considering.

Does anyone else have any suggestions?

Just a thought here. It is yours and only what you think counts.

Looking at your eagle, I'd keep any flag background below it's head so that it doesn't get lost in any way. By keeping the head (most of the white part) above/without a background, it remains visually prominent.

I like it as is, so the only thing I'd consider if it were mine would be to add a flag background. I always liked tight end Jeremy Shockey's eagle and flag, but the styling likely wouldn't work with yours unless the flag was a little more traditional.

A google image search with "eagle and flag tattoo" might give you some ideas.

Work with your artist and read what has already been discussed about scars and tattoos. The age of a scar may make a difference. Let us know how it turns out.

http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/tattoo-advice/1098-tattooing-over-scars.html

http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/5489-our-imperfect-skin-scars-stretch-marks-more.html

Outstanding! Excellent work, sir.

I'm booked for the end of the month to polish out my backpiece and cap my wrist with a good luck dragon before the end of the year.

Hooray. Great timing actually - I can focus on work, enjoy Xmas with my family, slam dance and stage dive with my bros on Boxing Day, hit the waterpark on my week off work and then blam spend a holi-day in Steve's secret battcave. Wash the tattoo the next morning and get drunk on New Year's Eve. boosh

Pretty ambivalent about and even afraid of smart phones, but so far it's all been positive.

I prefer a tablet for Instagram.

I finally broke down and replace my old mini flip phone with a smaller than normal and cheap smartphone. I refuse to become yet another zombie, pulling it out at the first sign of boredom, however. If I can do the smartphone thing, so can you!

To be honest, I've never seen bird silhouette tattoos like yours and I like them. They remind me a little of PRS fret board bird inlays.

Most artist should have no problem with a request to slightly modify their work like you are wanting, especially if asked nicely.

I will ask my artist to brighten up the eye area around the tiger he created since there is a little blowout there and it needs the contrast. (he had to shrink his artwork to fit my leg better so the line work was compressed slightly together)

I almost forgot our kittehs.

George is the eldest.

We adopted him from a family member who named him "Convict" because of his orange color and his escape attempts. We fixed him but he still loved the outdoors so we let him roam in and out of the house until he was severely injured by a tomcat. He is now an indoor only cat after an almost $1000 vet bill. We nursed him through the healing process at home. He likes to lick my head sometimes.

Sophie and Sasha were adopted strays 3 years ago. They grew up together and are great buddies. Sophie the tortoise on the left was born in an abandoned car. She actually walked up to me in a parking lot and claimed me. She is a little shy but very sweet and calm. She loves Andy dog.

Sasha followed our grandson home when he was running on our street's sidewalk. She claimed him quickly. She craves attention and turned out to be a huge cat.

Hello and welcome!

Thanks for already uploading the photos. You have some fantastic tattoos. :cool:

So many good ideas here already.

My wife's mother's name was Rose, so my wife got a small rose tattoo years ago. She plans on a larger, more detailed rose with a pink breast cancer ribbon for a future tattoo.

My mother loved magnolia trees and flowers, so I'll get a flower tattoo for her. I lost her 21 years ago.

Hello and welcome!

Even when you are on the same wavelength as your artist when you are discussing the design, the tattoo may not come out as you expected. This is not exactly a bad thing but a little disappointment is understandable. Step back and look at your tattoo as if through another's eyes as if it was the first time.

Also realize that as the tattoo settles in it will change slightly. Some areas like shading will soften.

Hello and welcome!

There are so many great artists in the UK, it might be difficult to choose from.

Hello and welcome! Nice collection you have.

How "fun" were the finger tattoos?

Hello and welcome!

Here's a link to your back piece post for those interested (check it out, it is incredible).

http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/tattoo-designs-books-flash/492-full-back-piece-thread-post122759.html#post122759

I figured it was time to contribute! I've really enjoyed all your pics/post the last couple years...good stuff.

This is my mountain goat piece. I'm into it 60 of estimated 70hrs but who we kidding...I'll keep going. I've been flying down to Guru Tattoo in San Diego from the Pacific Northwest every other month since March. The artist is Aaron Della Vedova. I've been doing two 6 hour sessions each visit accompanied by a miserable flight home. I had an existing shoulder piece/mountain scene that he tied into.

I'm heading down next week for another beating. This is where I'm at so far...

Incredible work, and likely the best second post on LST ever!

Everything Shiryu has posted.

https://www.instagram.com/shiryutattoo/

I'll cross post here since I haven't added to this thread yet.

I used saniderm for 4 days after my recent tattoos. I removed the original wrap after 5 hours since it was leaking out. After washing with Hibiclens Antiseptic/Antimicrobial Skin Cleanser and air drying, I put on saniderm overnight and replaced it the next day with another saniderm after washing. It worked great and never stank or became infected. I use aquaphor after that until it is healed.

The cool thing about membranes is that they don't stick to the inked sections of skin since it is weeping. Removal is a bit scary at first because it does stick to every skin break and gap in and near the tattoo. I slowly remove it in the shower and all is fine.

Welcome back! Sounds like life is looking good for you.

The hardest part of the paramedic written test for me was the ECG strip interpretation. In Texas, a paramedic is roughly equivalent to an RN. None of it is easy so don't feel bad!

I used saniderm for 4 days after my recent tattoos. I removed the original wrap after 5 hours since it was leaking out. After washing with Hibiclens Antiseptic/Antimicrobial Skin Cleanser and air drying, I put on saniderm overnight and replaced it the next day with another saniderm after washing. It worked great and never stank or became infected. I use aquaphor after that until it is healed.

The cool thing about membranes is that they don't stick to the inked sections of skin since it is weeping. Removal is a bit scary at first because it does stick to every skin break and gap in and near the tattoo. I slowly remove it in the shower and all is fine.

planning to get both knees done at some point - i'm guessing they are tough spots - and probably even tougher to heal

My plan is for a hannya on the knee of my Japanese themed leg, and a sugar skull on the other knee. Well, you know what they say about "plans"!

Hello and welcome!

I've seen a angel's wings framing a memoriam script that looked very nice.