jimmyirish

Picked up this lil' thigh giblet while on vacation in Japan in 2013 from the (then) Hiroshi Hirakawa at Three Tides Tattoo, Osaka

Its been a busy month for me, got my 3/4 sleeve finished and was incredibly lucky to get a cancellation eagle with Valerie Vargas. So here is the first one...

Valerie Vargas, Frith Street Tattoo, London.

Three absolutely great tattoos so far! will add this into the mix just for fun. My 3/4 peacock sleeve by Mie at Nine Tails Tattoo in East London. Its a cover up of an old black and grey piece that I had 6 laser sessions on over a couple of years. Final touch up finished last week.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

@hogg - I think that pretty much represents my parents' views of tattoos actually, except they don't think it is goofy...
@jimmyirish - I appreciate your grandfather's sentiments with his tattoos. I only want three more tattoos, then I'll be done.

Throw me L side in. Crocodile (from my Croc fighting days :)) & my ugly looking bat. Tattooer CP, Australia.
@polliwog. I love that Eagle. F_uck_ing rad.

I'll enter this one because I love my eagle. Happy to see her every day, and she has a name :o

By Chad Koeplinger at Congress St. Photo from his Instagram.

Keepcalm, it's entirely possible you won't be a lucky as to have an artist or situation where you feel you don't need some input. Like above people said, personally I have never changed a design simply because I approached them for their style.
99% of most clients are not like that. That's a special breed. Ok maybe 97%.
I have been stuck redrawing something a bit too many times and it does get aggravating in some cases. It happens but thankfully not often. It's kind if part if the deal; we try to make you what you want, with the exception of professional judgement calls of technical aspects such as design structure. But if it's as simple as "I'm not sure I like the way those wings look, it's too ____ for me" then it's part of the job to try to make it more appealing to you, without the ego of "this is what I wanted to do so that I can get a picture of it.". I would rather re-draw the wings and make you happy than have you go to a different shop later and say "this isn't what I wanted".
The other day I drew up a bird and roses and banner for someone brought in some shitty JPEG that they liked. I took down what they wanted, made an appointment, and then spend some time making a drawing for that tattoo. When he came in for a follow-up before the actual tattoo he looked at it and I could tell something bothered him. Apparently the bird I used (thanks Jerry) wasn't to his liking, he wanted it closer to the lame one on the JPEG. To me it looked rad because it was a classic looking bird. To him he just wanted a different style, and there's nothing wrong with that, it's just a matter of personal taste. I was a little bummed, but I gave him the kind of bird he wanted. And he left super happy. Which means he'll be coming back and bring his friends and maybe one of them want the 'cooler' bird.
Don't be scared to speak up. You live with this tattoo until you're dead. I will see that tattoo maybe once in my life at the most. You should be comfortable with what you wear, I often hear that they didn't want what the artist wanted to do. Well if you don't speak up then it's not our fault!
Be assertive and make sure that if you don't like it then don't get it.
Edit; Siri made all kind of blunders here, Apologies for odd sentence structure or the use of wrong words.

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.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

Had a nice little walk in not knowing what the fuck we were gonna do until after a couple of ales again.
I'm enjoying these little pieces ATM. Keeping us interested before we get back to slamming fields of colour on my right thigh/ arse cheek.
Anyway, eagles..skulls..daggers? fuck it, throw em all together mate! :)

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

It took me 10 years to bite the bullet and breach the collar. I thought neck tattoos would be a big change in the way I am perceived...by my family, friends, clients, strangers...overall it has been very positive and has complimented my personality and confidence. I mean the majority of my body is tattooed and covered. Why? Because I love tattoos, the commitment, the experience getting them, the healing and the aging. So why should I be afraid to let that show and hide who I am - an illustrated person.
We use our hands for so much in our daily lives. I think hand tattoos are a very expressive piece of real estate (as is the neck line) - as a lot of these hand tattoos in this thread demonstrate. I am not sure for myself at the moment however, I feel it would be distracting for me to wear...not ready for the big stuff yet haha and I think personally the wait to get hand-blasted will be all the more rewarding. I think the outside-in approach of the younger generation...well...I think it trivializes the overall experience of getting tattooed. But everybody has their own opinions and reasons for getting tattooed.
My feelings toward tattooing my own hands will likely change in the years to come as my tattoos age, my coverage increases (real estate decreases!) and my life-situation develops. Patience and waiting is part of the tattoo experience for me, much in the same way that spontaneous tattoos have their place as well. And there will be something satisfying when my skull and hands (in that order lol) are made. I think I will likely drop my sleeve cuffs down onto my wrists first and then maybe consider a smaller standalone pieces on my hands (instead of a full mitt style).
I work as an professional engineer. I work for a smaller consulting company and have a flexible job. I am happy I waited, I don't think breaching the shirt line earlier on in my career would have been a wise decision. I didn't have the life experience and leadership qualities to backup my eng work and overshadow a rogue appearance. Now I am older, more experienced and have the respect of my peers in the industry for the good work and professionalism I have demonstrated.
It is only recently that my clients and work contacts have started noticing and I have not been shy in asking about my tattoos (but, god, why does everyone have to refer to them as 'taaaaattz'?!?, really dumbs it down yknow) There is a time and place however and that is where you say "yknow I'd love to discuss tattooing with you at a later time, but perhaps right now this project meeting is not the appropriate forum". You'd be surprised how much respect you get as a young tattooed person from normals when you take charge of poorly timed conversation like that. On the flip side, when I am on a construction site for an inspection, the trades people comment on the tattooed engineer and frankly make me feel more welcome than say the engineer dork in pleated dockers who is too proud to get his shirt dirty.
Tattoos make you an interesting person "maaan I bet that cat has got some stories mhmmm" but generally that is because you were an interesting person already before the tattoos.
/and now...back to the thread...post some more great pics of hand tattoos ! :cool:
- - - Updated - - -
Awesome! love the space and size around your tattoos. Nice placement, and the tattoos are grrreat

That reminds me of a quote from the late great Rollo Banks: "...the basic premise of tattooing is pretty goofy. It's like, here you have this human body, like a beautiful piece of sculpture...like somebody owns Michelangelo's David and goes 'I just bought this and I want to get some fire and devils and things on it.'"

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

I don't think she's saying to apologize for it in anyway. But styles change, and even though traditional tattoos do have a staying power, certain elements won't be as accepted. I think it was Catcher in the Rye that said something along the lines of "no matter how cool it looks now, years down the line we'll all just look like those old people doing the Charleston."
Should we apologize for that or let it sway what we get? Fuck no. But I'd be curious to see what collectors/tattooers/whoever think of my tattoos in ten-twenty-fifty years.

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time.
He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there.
Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time.
I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more...
That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed.
Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.