The Tig

Today I learned that the posterior of my body is home to multiple portals to hell! Seriously, I kept expecting cenobites to show up and drag me off with hook chains.
Whoever said the butt crease is magical sure knew what they were talking about. But the most surprising thing for me (and for Greg, actually) is that there were a couple of spots near my shoulder blades that actually made me burst into tears instantly! It was the strangest thing...it wasn't like I just bottomed out and couldn't take it anymore, it was a huge surge of adrenaline and emotion that felt completely involuntary. And just in those spots! We tattooed well into armpit territory and it was honestly a relief after those other spots. So strange.
I would post the Instagram but I'm on my phone. :( it's on his page, though, butt crack towel and everything.

@Naiemh
If you are collapsing and having some pretty adverse symptoms multiple times after big tattoo sittings...it's your body telling you you're putting it under too much stress and to take it easy. Try eating a simple healthy meal mid-way through the session, that may help. Or talk to your tattooer and perhaps you can schedule more shorter sessions.
Being impatient may be your other problem. Finishing a back tattoo in under a month is biting off more than most can chew, especially if you're having adverse symptoms like fainting and blurred vision. Finishing a big tattoo project in 3-4 months is still very quick and respectable. You need to give your body enough time to recover from the tattoo session and deal with healing the areas.
The numbing gel isn't going to solve your problem.
It may help you get through the last 1 hr if you and your tattooer are strategic about where/when to apply it. But you're still going to have to sit through some times of feeling everything. After the numbing wears off it is going to hurt waaay worse.
good luck

I have 5 right now, 3 small ones and 2 larger ones. I've become obsessed with tattoos recently and have been lurking here for a little while and joined another site recently. Well here are a few of my tattoos.

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Here is my most recent, I love her! I have some background I need to go get done on her. Just some bats, tombstones and stuff to go with her. I would love some suggestions on what to get on the inside of my arm. Me and my artist have talked about putting a haunted house there but I'm not sold just yet. So any suggestions would be appreciated.

If you go big and bold it's going to look fucking rad. Tattooed flesh looks better than non-tattooed flesh. Fat doesn't figure into it at all.

I might answer in hours.
I've noticed that since both calves are mostly covered, drivers don't hassle me as much when on the bike.

I've followed Kelly for a while and finally got to meet him Saturday at the Houston Tattoo Extravaganza. He had a few hours open and I couldn't pass up the opportunity. He is all that you mention above and very humble. I'll certainly have him create something special for me in the future.
Here's a photo of the very fresh, drawn on hanya he tattooed above my knee. It looks like it will settle in nicely when the grey wash lightens up.

After calf and shin tattoos, I've had ankle and upper foot swelling for about 4 or 5 days, but mostly because I was sitting upright or walking while at work.
Elevating the leg will slightly counter the effects of gravity swelling. If you don't have a lazyboy chair, propping the leg up above the heart with pillows will help. Occasionally lie on your back with your legs vertical against the back of a couch or wall to form an upper case "L".

I might answer in hours.
I've noticed that since both calves are mostly covered, drivers don't hassle me as much when on the bike.

i dont mind stares, comments or questions generally
my pet peeve is the "how much" question
i typically wont give a sincere answer to that one

I came from a rough background, drinking & drugs (don't ask what I did for a living between 1977 and 1981), fixing cars for a living, motorcycles, street racing and ultimately stock cars. So a lot of people I knew had tattoos and it was totally accepted. I was the first with big pieces done. With all I went through with some really close calls, I still give my wife (RIP) credit for saving my life.
Now I'm 61, 6' tall, 255 lbs and am in the gym 3 days most weeks, I'm kind of hard to miss. As I said earlier, people now look the other way and give me lots of room. Partly which is fine since I pretty much keep to myself when I'm out and about. It does bug me how quickly others judge, I'm actually pretty nice most of the time.

Actually I never realized about someone staring (in the bad way) my tattoos. I think it's more about don't thinking about it and then you will not realize about people staring the bad way to your tattoos. Just change your mind and stop worrying!
I never worried about people staring or judging my tattoos, and that's why I think I never watched nobody doing so!
I just realized about compliments and admiring glances!
I have a funny and cute tattoo on my leg (a pile of kawaii cats. You can check it on my instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/BDfk1qNvAYD/?taken-by=polymernai ), and, even when I know it's not the best tattoo ever (and it's not perfectly done, I have to touch up the colours soon) , I had A LOT of kids loving my tattoo, saying that this is super cute and funny!!! I'm super happy when I make children smile :D
So, just listen to the compliments and forget about the bad words!

They just don't know... A nurse was measuring my blood pressure, touched my skin and asked: would that wash off?
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I got a 3 hour Samoan tatau all the way around my knee this past weekend. The knee cap, the sides, the ditch... all of it. As I walked back to my convention booth, a lady stopped me to look at it. My knee looked like a bloody watermelon. She actually said, "Did you feel it?" I said, "What?" She replied, "I know some tattoos hurt, but could you even feel this kind of tattoo?" I told her that it felt like they were trying to cut my leg off... and hobbled away.
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I spent 26 years on active duty in the Army, retired in 2004, as an officer. During the majority of my career, officers did not have tattoos...at least any that showed unless they had come up through the ranks (there were some Vietnam vets who had done that during the first third or so of my career). Then I entered the civilian workforce in private higher education. Over the past 12 years I've been with the college, we've had more employees get inked and have hired some who showed their tattoos during interviews. For me, even before I got my first...10 days ago...that wasn't an issue. We expect people to be clean and neat - at least as much as their job allows - and showing their artwork is not an issue. I wish I could say that is the case at all colleges and universities.

I prefer the company of animals to humans. I have one cat, one dog, one hamster.

I used to cover up at work, but I recently just said fuck it.
Literally no one cared.
lol.

Yeah, cats, they are all the same, aren't they?

Although I currently only have a single small tattoo that's well out of sight I am starting on a sleeve in June. I'm intending it to extend to being visible even when wearing a long sleeve shirt eventually.
Even though I don't need to worry about work, we are currently mid way through the process of registering as foster parents.
My wife was concerned about me having tattoos getting in the way of that.
So early in the process I asked if visible tattoos would be a problem and was told a resounding "no". Not even worthy of further discussion apparently :-)
Even so I'll be keeping everything coverable until we are through the process. Just to be sure.
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I've followed Kelly for a while and finally got to meet him Saturday at the Houston Tattoo Extravaganza. He had a few hours open and I couldn't pass up the opportunity. He is all that you mention above and very humble. I'll certainly have him create something special for me in the future.
Here's a photo of the very fresh, drawn on hanya he tattooed above my knee. It looks like it will settle in nicely when the grey wash lightens up.

Managing $5M worth of construction and just wrapping up another $1M design. High voltage electrical projects. And to counterbalance that I just got the go ahead on a small contract to do engineered drawings for a new commercial space...for cosmetic tattooing. This is really amusing that I am overlapping my professional life and deviant lifestyle. Make dat green lol

Unfortunately the contestants have discovered that by being obnoxious assholes, they get more screen time. As long as it works, they'll continue to do it. I'm not sure why someone thinks it's good to be famous for being a butthole, but that's the new reality.

lots to learn here
best place to start is the interviews section
awesome awesome stuff
latest lowdown is a great thread
there is good discussion here too just randomly occuring in the various threads and topics
welcome

Client: I'd like some ink in my arm and chest.
Tattooer: say no more.

1st, I would find an artist - not just any tattooist.