Androosh

Victorian Dolphin by R.J. Hitchcock at American Graffiti Tattoo in Sacramento, CA.

I looooove that, @Androosh!

it's so colorful! makes me happy!

Victorian Dolphin by R.J. Hitchcock at American Graffiti Tattoo in Sacramento, CA.

Victorian Dolphin by R.J. Hitchcock at American Graffiti Tattoo in Sacramento, CA.

I just got this from Aaron Hodges at Idle Hand SF:

Aaron's a really great guy, and I was stoked to get something from him. Two days ago, I realized that a torch would fit really well in that little spot, so I hit him up yesterday and he said he'd have time today. A great experience, and I'm really happy with it.

I am more than happy with what came out of my trip to Amsterdam. Kim-Anh Nguyen did this tattoo at the wonderful Salon Serpent. Photo taken by her and stolen by me.

Thanks for your comments! I'm very excited with the piece. I forgot to include another part of my experience that I think you all would appreciate...
So when I was going crazy with anticipation waiting to see a drawing for the piece and checking my email a billion times a day, Eddy sends an email saying that his "old friend Dan Higgs" said "whoa" three times in a row when he saw the drawing and that that was a very good omen. And then my head almost exploded ;)

Alex Knierer

Calling a tattoo on your shoulder a half-sleeve...

This was done last month by Eric Jones at Port City Tattoo. It's finally all healed up. Sorry for the minor glare near the front of her crown.

Here's what Iain Mullen @ Imperial Tattoo in Stockholm created for me today. Side of thigh. Black n gray, red is from swelling.

Got this rad dragon head tadoo from my Aussie pal Jake Fraser the other day who is in town from Melbourne. Weird spot but fun nonetheless! Look how happy that dragon is! Decided to go with slightly different colors than usual since it's surrounded by more traditional looking ones. Didn't even notice the little blue tips on the horns til I cleaned it off later that night. Really stoked on it! (Kinda reminds me of the Clay Smith Cams logo..

I tried taking a photo of my latest from Javi Rodriguez but unfortunately i have my right arm in a cast at the moment so it wasn't easy. I've settled for pilfering one from his instagram instead.

Done at the fantastic frith street on Tuesday.

Love them 80's heart shaped face girls that came of GTC this is by Mike Brown

New little one I picked up from Mil Martinez at the Tattoo Tea Party in Manchester. He works out of 13 Diamonds in London. Super cool guy. Sorry about the crappy picture, i'll get a better one soon!

Finished up this thigh fight yesterday, from Nash at Thicker Than Water

Sage advice.

Sage advice.

Got this from Tomas Garcia at Sid's in Santa Ana, CA. He has a special book of line drawings that he'd love to do. I had trouble deciding between two designs in particular, so he took both designs and made it into one.
It was definitely a great experience over at Sid's. The entire crew is extremely hospitable. Very down to earth crew. I'm a fan for life. Tomas even drew up some hand made lettering for me too.

Thanks @SStu, It was still more fun than going to work today!

I just healed my elbow with Desert Essence (mentioned in the article @Dan S linked to) and it worked a charm. It is available at most health stores out here on the west coast. It works extremely well for healing tattoos and also everyday moisturizing of faces and bodies. Good stuff.
Once I'm in the healing homestretch I've been using plain old jojoba oil to help itching.
@Mike Panic - tell your clients about Udo's 3-6-9 blend of essential acids. I'd recommend these to anyone, Vegan or not. The health of my skin, nails and hair has noticeably improved since I've started taking them. Well worth the $30. These should be available at Whole Foods and fine health stores.

Thanks everyone.
@else - I'm not vegan, I'm looking to help a client out who is. I'm also lucky enough to be friends with some amazing people who happen to be very in-tune with the Vegan community, one of theme operates a premiere East Coast Bakery (Welcome to Vegan Treats!).
It's no hassle, I can explain the problem with harvesting lanolin for you. Most vegans are so because they despise cruelty of any kind to animals. More often than not, sheep are not kept in great conditions and their quality of life, simply for the harvest of wool, is terrible. The sheering process can also be rather horrific on them. Furthermore, the carbon dioxide output of cattle, sheep and other livestock in American alone is said to be upwards of 4x worse than all the cars in America. Info: Which Is Worse: 1000 Cars or 1000 Cows? | Green Living Tips and Ideas
This is why vegans abstain from all animal and animal by-products, including wool, lanolin, honey, eggs, silk and so on.

The blue one is fresh. Done by RJ Hitchcock at American Graffiti.
He also did the red one...both are from Higgs flash. The crappy pic doesn't do it justice.