andrea

My boss has a neverending supply of Ed Hardy/Christian Audigier shirts. He also drives his "lambo" (lamborghini) to and from work each day. He also has no tattoos, but "has designed some" for friends. He also doesn't know anything about the actual Ed Hardy. At first, I thought, "Oh, maybe not a douchebag indicat––– oh.. yeah. Yeah, it is. Always. Without fail."

i wear ed hardy, because i like to party

But dude if you buy the perfume you get a free handbag!!!!!!!

David,
I'd probably make you nuts, I intentionally overuse awesome all day long. It's actually intentional, it's like a personal joke between me and myself, I do know that it drives some people crazy. It's almost like how some people judged and discounted me 25 yrs ago when I got my nose pierced, I know that some people make a judgement about me for saying "that's totally awesome" all day long. Got to keep the haters away somehow. I also like to say hecka. You should try it, just for one day, you might find that you also enjoy the awesome lifestyle.

how about traddy tatty. makes me think crabby patty

I got this Baphomet head from Tim Lehi last month. Why? Easily my favorite tattooist, and I think he understands what I am going for. He has tattooed me a few times and always gives me suitable tattoos for me, like he knows me, ha.

Chris Smith, Deluxe Tattoo in Chicago. The ship itself was done last year, just finished the background and flowers this time around ... Last Thursday.

I'm getting tattooed by Robert Ryan on Monday and Deno on Tuesday.
Both are in hellish (inner thigh and armpit) spots that I expect to leave me crying like a wee baby. This whole painting myself into a corner thing was dumb. I should have started with the shit spots and ended up 36 years old and making appointments for my forearms.

I'm also leaning in this direction, to not give it any further attention. Scott and I haven't even discussed it with eachother because there's no need to give it any more power.
I also 100% understand Perez's point of view. I very much understand the concept of bearing witness, and have committed large chunks of my life to causes that I support and believe in. But I also think that TLC just sees dollar signs when their stupid show, before it even airs, causes this much of a stir. Tim might as well make a statement against MacDonalds or Big Oil or whoever else runs commercials during NY Ink.
But I have to say, regarding this statement on Tim "but the average fan of NY Ink doesn't hold him in such regard," I think I disagree. I've watched two episodes of the show, I've made it through a dead baby, three dead dads, the shop helpers fighting about mopping, and a smeared eyebrow. Now I'm no expert on tattoo reality TV, I only saw 2 or 3 Miami Inks (and was told the cable would get turned off and the TV thrown in the street if I watched LA Ink), but I've heard that they never really show the person getting tattooed visibly hurting. In the last episode, the guy getting tattooed was done and crying, and Tim had an awesome bedside manner. Yes, it's true that I love him already, but he's certainly the only highlight on the show for me, so if someone is a fan of the show, they are a fan of Tim.

There is now a boycott petition, but I can't take anything serious that has so much random capitalization.
Artist and Collectors Boycotting TLC's Tattoo School

In answer to someone who was wondering why some of us from the 'OTHER' shows don't use their social networking to comment: why would I want point out to tens of thousands of people about a terrible thing and make them look, it gives TLC more power and free advertising, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna do that. The best thing to do is not watch, hell don't watch any reality tv for that matter. None of us knew about this new show, it's not like we talk to TLC unless it's for a legal purpose now and then. TLC is owned by Discovery Chanel and is a monstrous, soulless network. They buy episodes from a production company who pitches the idea and then makes it happen. Find the production company who made this atrocity and you will then find the source and creator of this. They probably pitched it to several networks but TLC paid them the most for it.

This not coming from an artist myself but...
Isn't saying you can learn a skill in 2 weeks regardless of subject matter, offering the damned near impossible? I point this out especially because tattooing in my eyes, other than the art it really is minor surgery! As a tattoo artist regardless if your are the all-seasoned master at creating amazing images on the skin, all tattoo artists are using a needle to inject foreign substances into the bodies biggest organ. The level of sanitation I would hold higher than that of a places that draws blood, since they are removing not adding. To add to that I've never heard of a two week crash course at blood drawing!

some new knuckle tattoo designs sent my way.....

that taz was awesome!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkM5cEGWzso&feature=youtu.be"

I'm wondering if this is a big troll on TLC's part to generate publicity. Definitely has gotten a HUGE response from people online. What if that was the plan? Next week they announce "Okay, the people have spoken, so here's the real show "Apprenticeship Stories", that focuses on five people going through their apprenticeships." The show would quickly breakdown into the usual TLC drama. I'm just connecting dots with all these characters they're introducing on "NY Ink" wanting apprenticeships. Just a theory.

I enrolled for the fall semester.
FTW.

lay of the chrome virgin mary woman...it was the 90s and eddy did it.

That was "Paulie Tattoos" from Brooklyn, He's got a backpiece from Mike Ledger and then like, a tribal armband. Super weird.

So Dari, Scott won't tattoo your face until you get full sleeves? :)

And regarding "safe" inks looking like shit and fading, I have some experience with this in relation to "permanent make-up." A lot of people think that the same pigments are used, but they're not the same, the molecules in cosmetic tattoo pigments make up larger molecules than traditional tattoo pigments. When cosmetic tattooing began, the pigments were designed and administered by doctors only, and they did take "safety" into account. The woman who tattooed on my eyebrows ($800) learned from a doctor as doctors were pushing to make it legal for "licensed" practitioners to do it, (licensed by them) because it was not proving to be profitable. (Weird? Who knew someone could make more money practicing medicine than tattooing?)
Anyway, the larger, "safer" cosmetic tattoo molecules push themselves out of the skin, so even if you liked exactly what you had, it will be gone in 5 or so years. The lady who did my eyebrows was the best, and she included 3 free touch-ups BECAUSE the pigments almost always CHANGE COLOR in your skin. The taupe brown turned reddish orange in me, and now it's faded to look like the color of a faint scar. I didn't go back after my first touch up, fuck it, like Stewart said, "that shit hurt enough the first time." I'm cool drawing on my own eyebrows everyday, thanks.
Hopefully, we all get tattoos that are superior to what we could draw on ourselves quickly each morning, we certainly don't want them changing colors and disappearing in a few years. (Or if you do, that's a whole 'nother issue.)

There's your one-liner!

This is sadly very true.
The day we are forced to use pigments that have passed a safety test is the same day we tattoo with food dye.
Six months later, your tattoo will look like shit.
Maybe it will seem to someone that this is a good idea - just pay for regular touch-ups, but it isn't. keep tattooing the same patch regularly and it will be an inflexible scar in a couple of years or so. It hurt enough the first time too, thanks.
The reason tattoos are permanent is because the ink is NOT safe for the body. The skin protects the body (organs, muscles etc) by holding the ink/pigment where it entered.
Yeah, we don't want to use pigment that corrodes the skin and we don't want to use ink that's contaminated. But I like my tattoos to look good. I know they are not 'safe', I paid someone to break my skin and draw skulls, tits, devils, dragons an' shit.
Sadly, in mainland Europe Shawn's scenario has began to be real. Certain brands of ink are blacklisted and approved brand's bottles must have batch numbers and expiry dates etc. An un-announced visit by the health board that discovers blacklisted ink can result in your shop being shut down.
The brands are not blacklisted because they make shitty tattoos, nor because they are dangerous. Almost anyone reading this will have some of that ink in their skin.
Personally, as a tattooer, I like the idea of a craftsman using tools and materials that are the result of another craftsman's passion, experience and expertise.
Some of the highest quality materials in tattooing (ink, machines, grips, pens, power supplies etc.) are made by individuals or at least 'cottage industries'.
I love being able to speak to the guy who made my equipment and buy it directly from him. Giving him/her feedback about it improves the product too.
Demanding that your tattooer use government approved equipment will harm the end result. Not to mention inflate the price drastically.
Lets not even get into the discussion of working across different states, countries or continents with 'approved' equipment.
Jeez. I need to lighten up and post more one-liners.

i wonder how many times he's been stabbed in the face before he decided to get that tattoo.

I'd like to know why there are at least 3 pictures of the dude being taken at the same time. Was there a line behind them with everyone in the ER getting there cameras ready?
Oh and as far as a story, he is accident prone and this sorta thing happens to him monthly bases. After a few years he got that tattoo, still holds true... so far.