Jump to content

smiling.politely

Member
  • Posts

    375
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    11

Reputation Activity

  1. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    I knew what he meant, and I passed it off jokingly. I made it clear what tattooing is to myself, my coworkers, and those who take it seriously. As I said, some people don't know how to phrase what they mean, and I helped him learn, hopefully.
    Also, whenever I hear someone say "Do something you love, and you'll never work a day in your life" it strikes me as infinitely uninformed... I love drawing, painting, and tattooing, but it's very hard work. Who knew that all those nights with two hours sleep drawing the same thing 20 times in a row didn't count as work? And it implies that you're supposed to hate your job (and, of course, usually do it to a subpar level because you don't care about it), which is a poor mindset to have as a standard bearer.
  2. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    It's more that it's a disrespectful and ignorant statement, due to how hard we all do work. A hobby is a passing interest... Playing guitar is a hobby I really enjoy. Just because you're having fun, doesn't mean you're not working extremely hard.
  3. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    "Tattoos are not an addiction; they are a collection. A tattoo collector is just like a conventional art collector who buys a painting, hangs it on the wall, and then moves on to acquire the next, unique piece. Tattoo collecting is a spiritual pursuit, while addiction is a physiological need. Addicts repeatedly take the same drug over and over without limit. A tattoo collection has variety, and it has an end. Once you collect the whole set, you're done."
    -Horiyoshi III
    Side note: I also have a Hello Kitty. It was done by my fiancée, is about an inch and a half wide, and took her about an hour. It's just lines, aside from color in the bow and nose. She was really trying.
  4. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    Creativity only goes as far as what you can make work in the skin, which is all craft. AKA- creativity means nothing without a foundation, which is what is protected in tattooing. I usually try to think of all of the art side ending on paper, while trying to think of actually tattoo as craft. There are parallels and connections between both mindsets, of course, but it helps my mindset in both to think that way.
    Another silly statement, when explaining how to improve a design recently... upon explaining why something being too small would cause issues down the line as it aged in the skin, I was told by the client "Well, it doesn't have to be good or anything..." I was flabbergasted.
  5. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    The prevailing opinion, which is correct in my view, is that said knowledge must be earned the hard way. I know I appreciate what little I do know and thirst to know more because that info wasn't just given to me.
  6. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    Good one while tattooing a girl's arm today, from one of her friends. "I mean, I know you have to have a steady hand, but tattooing doesn't look that hard."
    Told him it was the hardest thing I've ever done, with each day being both easier and harder than the day before, a really quick list of about twenty things you have to think about the whole time, and ended it after 10 seconds of awkward silence with "If tattooing were easy, there wouldn't be so many bad tattoos out there," followed by a laugh to make it obvious I wasn't mad at him or anything. He just didn't know.
    Still... wow.
  7. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JBluewind in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    In our state, we have a yearly inspector visit to make sure we're keeping up to code. The last time she came through, she had a trainee with her to start splitting up the state between a few people. The new one thought the same thing. It was also her first time in a tattoo shop.
    At least they're getting people who are well acquainted with the process to take care of that stuff.
  8. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from ShyGypsy in Face/Head Tattoo   
    In terms of rules and such, Charlie Cartwright tattooed both of my dad's hands in the early '80s, when he only had a few pork chops on each arm, and some work on his chest (that I'm not sure was finished). He was 23 or 24 at the time. Just as an example, the "rules" that we all think of weren't as set in stone as we may think, especially before some of the mainstream exposure began to come along in the late '60s and '70s, bringing more regular people in, asking for outlandish things to ruin their lives.
    Much like my dad, I'd imagine a lot of people got their hands done because it was outside enough that tattooers recognized that the people back then weren't going to get hands blasted, then go try to get a job as a lawyer. Unlike now, when someone asks about getting a hand done while they work as a receptionist or some low level office position. I personally got one and my knuckles done by Dennis McPhail while still in college, and the other hand recently from Steve Byrne. Back and thighs are completely bare still... but, just like with my dad, Dennis knew me well enough to know I wanted to tattoo (before I did), and was willing to be a janitor or welder with two college degrees if tattooing didn't work out. Thankfully, it has so far (provided my hands don't befall some unfortunate fate), and I'm not looking back now.
    That all being said, I'm all for not doing any sort of visible work on someone who doesn't fully understand the ramifications, and try to talk young kids out of it all the time. Half may listen, most seem to go get it somewhere else to someone that will just stick them in the chair. If someone has a sack of crap (literal or figurative) on their hand, though, I support covering it up or blasting over, if possible. If their life is going to be ruined, it might as well be ruined by something that looks semi-decent.
  9. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from polliwog in 2015 Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts   
    Unfortunately, I'm missing the opening... I won't be in town until tomorrow a bit before noon (then leaving just after midnight... life in the fast lane). My parents are there on their first trip further than Oklahoma or Missouri, having the honeymoon they never had, so if you see a lady with red hair with a long haired fellow with a wolf on his throat, he will definitely be happy to talk your ear off about getting tattooed by Charlie Cartwright 30 years ago!
  10. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from hogg in 2015 Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts   
    Unfortunately, I'm missing the opening... I won't be in town until tomorrow a bit before noon (then leaving just after midnight... life in the fast lane). My parents are there on their first trip further than Oklahoma or Missouri, having the honeymoon they never had, so if you see a lady with red hair with a long haired fellow with a wolf on his throat, he will definitely be happy to talk your ear off about getting tattooed by Charlie Cartwright 30 years ago!
  11. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Cork in 2015 Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts   
    Had planned a week long vacation for this, my first time to California as well... but life happens and that is no longer an option. But I already had an appointment booked, and couldn't bear to cancel that in addition to all the other fun stuff that already had to go away. So, I'm flying out the morning of Friday the 30th, getting tattooed that night by Stewart, then flying back to Kansas just after midnight. Before the doors open, I'm hoping to check out the Visionary Subversive show, grab some sushi somewhere, spend what money I have left as irresponsibly as possible post tattoo, before scuttling off into the night. Wish I had more time to spend there, but it just means that I have no choice but to go back and properly see the Bay Area as soon as I can!
  12. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from soraya in Are there way too many tattoos, especially on ...   
    Not sure about anyone else here, but I've had to tattoo over too many long-healed upper thigh scars on girls in my generation to gloss over body image issues so easily. Or heard girls that can't weigh more than 125 pounds talk about how they want to lose weight before they tattoo their ribs or belly. Or been asked about covering stretch marks from when they had kids, despite that being a completely normal and natural thing. Etc., etc., etc.
    So, rather than think you're entirely the victim and getting attacked here (which I would say has gone a bit overboard, based on misunderstanding of some of your original points due to poor phrasing and explanation), realize that you do have a warped understanding of how deeply body image can affect women who have been conditioned by society to hate their bodies.
    Also, you should worry far more about poorly done tattoos than tattoos that don't fit the body.
  13. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Pete tattoo freak in 2015 Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts   
    Had planned a week long vacation for this, my first time to California as well... but life happens and that is no longer an option. But I already had an appointment booked, and couldn't bear to cancel that in addition to all the other fun stuff that already had to go away. So, I'm flying out the morning of Friday the 30th, getting tattooed that night by Stewart, then flying back to Kansas just after midnight. Before the doors open, I'm hoping to check out the Visionary Subversive show, grab some sushi somewhere, spend what money I have left as irresponsibly as possible post tattoo, before scuttling off into the night. Wish I had more time to spend there, but it just means that I have no choice but to go back and properly see the Bay Area as soon as I can!
  14. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Hands On in 2015 Bay Area Convention of the Tattoo Arts   
    Had planned a week long vacation for this, my first time to California as well... but life happens and that is no longer an option. But I already had an appointment booked, and couldn't bear to cancel that in addition to all the other fun stuff that already had to go away. So, I'm flying out the morning of Friday the 30th, getting tattooed that night by Stewart, then flying back to Kansas just after midnight. Before the doors open, I'm hoping to check out the Visionary Subversive show, grab some sushi somewhere, spend what money I have left as irresponsibly as possible post tattoo, before scuttling off into the night. Wish I had more time to spend there, but it just means that I have no choice but to go back and properly see the Bay Area as soon as I can!
  15. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from The Tig in Fueling the culture / getting tattooed by big names   
    "All opinions are not equal. Some are a very great deal more robust, sophisticated, and well supported in logic and arguement than others" -Douglas Adams (in reference to some of the discussions of a few of the older generation)
    As for the collector idea being a positive or a negative, the same could be said for any other type of collection. We all knew that one guy who had $3,000 worth of guitars and amps, but couldn't play to save his life... or the guy with an original pressing of some band's album that he actually can't tell you a thing about. Some people get it and seek it for that reason. Some people seek it because they want to seem like they get it, and they're supposed to.
    For a personal story... my first two favorite tattooers (as in could see their work and know it was theirs' somehow) were Steve Byrne and Chris O'Donnell. Two years in a row I've gotten tattooed at the West Texas Convention. The first year, Steve Byrne stopped tattooing and asked myself and my coworker if we had any questions, and if we did to ask him, since Dreyfuss wasn't in yet. And he did the same for everyone that came by, including answering questions while tattooing. When I got my hand tattooed by him this year, he asked me various questions, asked how I enjoyed entering my second year as a tattooer after it came up, told me about why he has regular roses and not Tudor/geometric roses on his hands, made Gorilla Biscuits and CIV lyric jokes with me about my Civ appointment the next day ("I don't want him to mess up... I better stand still." "I bet you can't wait one minute more for it, huh?"), and was nicer than almost anyone I've met in any circumstance. He also easily took the stress of the convention, the poor lighting (Thomas Hooper broke his lamp the night before), and dealing with potential clients or box-set purchasers the whole time. And the next day, he saw me walking around, called out to me, and asked if I had a travel lightpad, before suggesting I get one since I didn't. And asked how my dad liked his new rose tattoo from Bobby Padron a little later. My right hand is absolutely my favorite tattoo, not just because of who did it and what it represents, but also all of those aspects about the experience. When I was looking at his booth when he wasn't there, Forrest Cavacco yelled from 50 feet away that, if I had questions, to come see him. Adam Hays had me check out the Lando tattoo he was doing when I bought prints from him, since he figured I liked Star Wars from what I was buying. Ben Cheese and Clayton James have been among the nicest people I've talked to as well, even when we couldn't afford to get tattooed and just grabbed prints from them. I plan on getting tattooed by Ben this February when we go.
    That being said, I stood at a few people's tables for almost 15 or 20 minutes, even when they were taking an Instagram break mid-tattoo, waiting to buy a shirt. After they had looked and made eye-contact me. And ignored everyone else that was there, even the person in their chair. I unfollowed a few very well known folks on IG and decided I'd take my business to others. At least a quick "Hey man, I'm kinda busy, can you give me X minutes" would have made all of the difference. I'd imagine there are lots of folks who would still throw money at them and get whatever would get the most likes on IG or Tumblr, but that's what separates the mindsets, as everyone here has already explained in was far less rambling, far more concise, and far less fanboy-ish.
    EDIT: Slight addendum... my hand has a few blow outs. One spot took over a month to fully heal. A few lines are a bit thin in places compared to the overall average. One line on a wave between my fingers has a 1/16" gap that doesn't connect. But it is absolutely my favorite tattoo.
  16. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from The Tig in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    "Tattoos are not an addiction; they are a collection. A tattoo collector is just like a conventional art collector who buys a painting, hangs it on the wall, and then moves on to acquire the next, unique piece. Tattoo collecting is a spiritual pursuit, while addiction is a physiological need. Addicts repeatedly take the same drug over and over without limit. A tattoo collection has variety, and it has an end. Once you collect the whole set, you're done."
    -Horiyoshi III
    Side note: I also have a Hello Kitty. It was done by my fiancée, is about an inch and a half wide, and took her about an hour. It's just lines, aside from color in the bow and nose. She was really trying.
  17. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from PopsBdog in Plainskins say the darndest things...   
    And some people don't really know how to articulate their compliments and phrase what they want to say well. This was a case of that.
    "Man, it's cool you guys found something you're passionate about."
    "Man, it's rad how much fun you have at work."
    "Man, this doesn't even seem like a career, just a hobby."
    One of those doesn't fit the other two in terms of how it sounds. Also, if you think I'm looking for something wrong in what people say to me, or have a negative disposition, then you don't know anything about me. My signature and my username sum me up pretty well.
  18. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from bongsau in New to the site with concept questions!   
    Possibly the greatest advice ever given, in the history of anything.
  19. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from bongsau in Is your tattoo infected and aftercare FAQ   
    Linework is generally very easy to heal. At most, if you have itching, a tiny amount of lotion might be helpful. Ointment/lotion is really more for when you have large areas of tattooed skin, and even then, not much is needed. Your body will heal it on it's own if it's clean, anything you put on it is just to keep it comfortable for you, or to keep it from getting overly dry.
  20. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Dennis in Perspective on Koi   
    Always good to also look for the source...

  21. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Rob I in Latest tattoo lowdown.....   
    Fun times in New York with my newly immigrated fiancée. Bug is on her by Bert Krak, torch and rose are on me by Eli Quinters and Beau Brady, respectively.
  22. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from JoshRoss in Perspective on Koi   
    Always good to also look for the source...

  23. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from Tesseracts in Perspective on Koi   
    Always good to also look for the source...

  24. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from CultExciter in Perspective on Koi   
    Always good to also look for the source...

  25. Like
    smiling.politely got a reaction from exume in Perspective on Koi   
    Always good to also look for the source...

×
×
  • Create New...