a_beukeveld

See that's the thing - I originally asked for an Oni mask and to include daffodils as a symbol of my nation - which is not too bizarre as it represents respect in Japan. The guy said he would rather do a skull of some sort and it went from there.... it was probably a mistake on my behalf for not just going to the artist I wanted the tattoo done by. The reason it was free because there was a delay in the design getting to me!

Just find a tattooer who does good japanese work and get them to come up with the design for you. Adding a middle man just complicates things, and frankly, the design that artist did for you for free (which I dont understand why they would) is mediocre at best.
As for my opinion on the concept its kind of just lame. It seems like a desperate attempt to be "original". There are so many great classic Japanese designs, I dont see why youd want to add a dull celtic theme to it. Personally Id suggest a hannya or namakubi. They fit well as upper arm pieces, and have great stories behind them. Thats just me tho. Ive never liked the celtic/viking/norse stuff. They seem trite.
I also dont think a "1/4 sleeve" is a thing. Thats just a shoulder tattoo.
 

Just find a tattooer who does good japanese work and get them to come up with the design for you. Adding a middle man just complicates things, and frankly, the design that artist did for you for free (which I dont understand why they would) is mediocre at best.
As for my opinion on the concept its kind of just lame. It seems like a desperate attempt to be "original". There are so many great classic Japanese designs, I dont see why youd want to add a dull celtic theme to it. Personally Id suggest a hannya or namakubi. They fit well as upper arm pieces, and have great stories behind them. Thats just me tho. Ive never liked the celtic/viking/norse stuff. They seem trite.
I also dont think a "1/4 sleeve" is a thing. Thats just a shoulder tattoo.
 

I've never been tattooed by him but a friend of mine has. He does good realistic and his shop is pretty well respected in Toronto. The other shop I've heard talked about in TO for realism is The Black Pearl on The Danforth. If you are looking for cool black and grey check out Jennifer at the Pearl https://www.instagram.com/jenniferlawes/  or Alex Snelgrove at the Okey Doke https://www.instagram.com/snelgrove/ she not currently taking new work but her books will open up in a few months.

Getting those mandatory posts out of the way I see...

Not making a very strong case for yourself on here, friendo.
As for the tattoo, personally, I think words are lame. Pictures are symbols and they speak to people. Adding a "meaningful" quote to it just sucks all the mystery and flavour out from it. Its like getting a tattoo of a sick dragon and stamping a big "LUCKY" ontop of it. Also, every person I know who has gotten "kid font" tattoos or "my child's hand writting" tattoos have regretted it, and it just looks awful. The tattoo design itself should never take back seat to the "meaning". Keep that in mind. 
And dont get it upside down. 

Not making a very strong case for yourself on here, friendo.
As for the tattoo, personally, I think words are lame. Pictures are symbols and they speak to people. Adding a "meaningful" quote to it just sucks all the mystery and flavour out from it. Its like getting a tattoo of a sick dragon and stamping a big "LUCKY" ontop of it. Also, every person I know who has gotten "kid font" tattoos or "my child's hand writting" tattoos have regretted it, and it just looks awful. The tattoo design itself should never take back seat to the "meaning". Keep that in mind. 
And dont get it upside down. 

Not making a very strong case for yourself on here, friendo.
As for the tattoo, personally, I think words are lame. Pictures are symbols and they speak to people. Adding a "meaningful" quote to it just sucks all the mystery and flavour out from it. Its like getting a tattoo of a sick dragon and stamping a big "LUCKY" ontop of it. Also, every person I know who has gotten "kid font" tattoos or "my child's hand writting" tattoos have regretted it, and it just looks awful. The tattoo design itself should never take back seat to the "meaning". Keep that in mind. 
And dont get it upside down. 

Thanks for the feedback a_beukeveld

I'm not sure I'd want to mix in Celtic with Japanese. It just doesn't make a ton of sense. 
Graeme is right though. Best to go to an artist who does solid Japanese work and have them design something for you, perhaps based on what you are showing us here, but more appropriate for the style.  
 
 

Bless your heart.  Just noticed that you started four threads here and four threads on another tattoo board. I have a job where I'm in front of computer all day. You see, we all have different kinds of jobs. NEAT!

You're approaching this all wrong. Instead of asking what's the minimum you can do to have an acceptable tattoo, maybe think about asking what you can do to get the best possible tattoo.  Either way, it's on you for life, so you might as well go for the good option.

If you're going to get a different design from a different artist why are you showing us this?  If you go to a good artist you'll get a good tattoo.  If you go to a dogshit artist you'll get a dogshit tattoo.  Concept doesn't matter.  Simple as.

You're not going to get a more favourable response by reposting the same thing.
 
I think you got what you paid for with the design.  If you want Japanese, even with non-Japanese elements like you want, at the very least go to somebody who understands and has experience with Japanese tattoos, because it looks really bad if you get it wrong.

It shouldnt be more difficult to tattoo than any other design out there. Typically they will take the image you give them and use it as a stencil, so they dont need to actually "understand" the language in order to tattoo it.

Mr. Dave Cummings just sent me this sketch for my arm in Montreal. The 2 x's are my elbow and ditch.
Beyond stoked.

Mr. Dave Cummings just sent me this sketch for my arm in Montreal. The 2 x's are my elbow and ditch.
Beyond stoked.

a 1/4 sleeve ? isn't that pretty much just a tattoo ?  

Its not rude to ask your tattooer for their rate. It is rude to ask various artists for prices on a design and price hunt. Show that you intent to get tattooed by the artist you want and ask for price once everything else is done. 
I always ask how much the tattoo will be, but I do it last. If you hear artists complain, its from people who price hunt and dont really want a tattoo, they just want a deal.
Tattoo prices vary, based on so many different factors. Only the artist doing the tattoo can tell you how much a design will be.

Sounds like a question for your tattoo artist.

Its not rude to ask your tattooer for their rate. It is rude to ask various artists for prices on a design and price hunt. Show that you intent to get tattooed by the artist you want and ask for price once everything else is done. 
I always ask how much the tattoo will be, but I do it last. If you hear artists complain, its from people who price hunt and dont really want a tattoo, they just want a deal.
Tattoo prices vary, based on so many different factors. Only the artist doing the tattoo can tell you how much a design will be.

@AddisonHawke
just remember one thing
\/

find a good artist and don't try and "save" money.

For sure!
Its interesting, because your dilemma is the dilemma that many Japanese people face. Tattoos are still demonized is allot of Japanese circles, especially within the world of business and government. I can imagine allot of the people featured in these photos would love to be fully covered, but are unable to. We are a bit more fortunate here in the west.

Hey, @a_beukeveld! First of all, great pictures, especially of the vintage Japanese pieces!
Interesting perspective! I get your point, and on some days I would agree! I am very aware of two conflicting ideas in my head. One is the aesthetics of the tattoo, and I love the Japanese aesthetics. In that regard, I might agree with your preference for the "modest" body suit. But I am also very fascinated with the the "idea" of tattooing — of changing the skin, changing the body. That part of me is attracted to the idea of near-total coverage - front and back, full sleeves to the wrists, legs covered to the ankles. The "idea" of changing as much skin as possible is just really attractive to me, hence the attraction to full sleeves. I do like the sharp cutoffs, and for myself, would not go onto hands, feet, neck or head. 
Having said that, I just realistically could never, never, NEV-ER go that far in my world for professional reasons, and because I do have some discomfort about displaying my tattoos in public. So the modest route is more realistic for me if I decide to go further.
I love the Japanese style. I started out accumulating a handful of one-point style pieces scattered around, but by chance I selected an artist who worked in a Japanese style, so when I decided that I wanted to get Japanese half sleeves, I was able to make it work pretty well. I'd like to get a back piece, but that may be a long way off. As much as I like the total coverage, realistically the absolute farthest I would ever go would be 3/4 sleeves, back piece, and coverage on the front of my torso in the Munewari style (the style with the "river" down the center that you referred to). So I guess in the end we are are on the same page!

This is so killer! You get the best stuff. Fucking awesome. Carry on!