JazzyMac

I'm Rae. I have long hair, a few piercings, a few tattoos and I work in animal medicine. I like tattoos. This is my lameass introductory post.
 
Here's my bigger pieces done by Liz Gruesome in Fayetteville, NC at Smokin' Guns. Next appt is scheduled with Johnny Awesome on the 29th from the same shop for my thigh.

 
 
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Finally got around to getting a descent, healed picture of mine. posted it on IG earlier, it constrained it till you cant see it all. It was done by Paul Pearson at Tried & True Tattoo in Smyrna , Tn

Thank you. As for the guys saying I posted those shots to get some "cool" points or to get awws from the ladies, sorry to disappoint you, tattoos are not what i'm counting on to be cool. I have been with plenty of girls when I was Inkless and I did not get inked to be more cool. Neither do I prefer quantity over quality in my ink.
I did not post those shots because I was trying to picture myself as a model, neither did I try to model the parking lot. A friend of mine which is a photographer wanted to take some shots of people with ink and the parking lot was the location he chose for the shots. When posting my Initiation thread I didn't have any other photos that catches my ink, so I used those, which weirdly enough got some of you offended... The only purpose of this photos was to share my ink with you.
In response to try and join a community of ink lovers I received a "warm" welcome of "your tattoos suck" so some might understand my pissed off respond.
Bottom line before you go and assume a person's reason for posting something might wanna check it with them first.
Gal.

So only women's bodies decline after the age of 35ish? Hmmm. Guess I should stop getting tattooed, worry about what my body looks like, and leave it to the men to get all the sweet tats.
Sorry, had to go there.

Around the 12-hour mark and I'm liking the way my Japanese-American-Japanese backpiece is coming together. 
I seem to have fallen into a steady-ish rhythm re: the sessions. Beforehand: A bowl of ramen and gyoza beneath Tokyo Station and then the ride to InkRat, Koenji. The studio's kickarse blues tunes to get through the session. (Work has been so hectic recently that I've actually grown to look forward to these sessions and the lack of need to do anything for a solid three hours.) A can of IPA on the train home, undress the wrap, a hot-then-cold shower and air-dry with a glass of Penderyn. Finally some after-care cream and to bed in a shirt stained multi-coloured from past tattoos.
Will post an update as the colours come in... tj

It started with an old piece of Huck Spaulding flash from the 70's.  Where it ends up is yet to be determined.
 

I just got my first tattoo done 3 weeks ago. It's a memorial tattoo for my dad who passed back in August. It was done by Ashlie Layne at Cherry Street Ink in Macon, GA (@ashlietattoos on instagram). I am very happy with the shop, and love Ashlie. Her style is awesome - killer script work and detail. That's why I chose her - the zipper is a huge focal point for the tattoo and very important, and it is highly detailed, so I definitely wanted it to be done right.
This is it freshly finished:

 
And this is the idea I have been working on to add to it:

 

I actually have a true story about this very thing, that happened today. I SWEAR, THIS HAPPENED AT 12:30 THIS AFTERNOON. I SWEAR!! I went to a shop that lists 4 artists on their website, so I decided I would stop and talk to someone. The receptionist greeted us, I explained about wanting a T Rex skeleton. She showed me where the portfolios were and told me to pick someones art that I liked. There were about 6 books there, but only two had the artists name. Well I picked out two and went to the desk. The one guy wasn't in today, but she would ask the other one if it was ok if I talked to him. She went down a hallway, came back, said to follow her, the guy would talk to me. Well, when I walked in, the artist was coloring in a customers forearm tattoo. It was a good size tattoo. The artist (I'm gonna call him Tom) listened to what I wanted and where. He flatly said that I probably don't have enough room on my arm. I asked about maybe just a skull with some vertebrae, he agreed to that. In the mean time, the customer started talking to me, and showed me something he had on his other arm, and how he wished he'd done it differently, as in the working area and design. The customers wife was in the room, too, and even jokingly said to me "you need to gain a whole lot of weight before a skeleton will fit on your arm". They were all cool, no problems. Tom said he had time to do the skull at 4:00 today. Well, wanting to kinda get a feeling for the guy, I asked if he would do a trilobite, on my forearm below my other one, about 3 inches long. Then, while tattooing that one, we could discuss the T Rex skull. He agreed. I went back at 4 and got the trilobite, which I like. But I don't know if I want Tom to do any other. He had a TV going while he worked, which was rather loud. A few times I was talking to him he would have to say "huh?", as he was busy listening to the tv and wasn't paying attention to me. Also, I took my wife in with me, and the guy was pretty course, letting the F bomb fly a lot. Also kinda crude comments about some woman on the tv. F*** (that's the F bomb!) we're no prudes, and I realize that it's a tattoo shop, but I was kinda put off by him. Kinda unprofessional. Then, too, maybe that's what some people like. 
Sorry for the long reply.

Maybe I shouldn't post here since I am still in the planning/saving stage for my back piece and otherwise have only one tiny hidden tattoo. So I don't know how I will react to stares. But I admit that I have been guilty of "staring" sometimes, because when I see a great tattoo, I want to really soak it up. (Maybe "stare" is too strong of a word. I keep a respectful distance, and my eyes don't bug out of my head, and I keep my mouth closed).
But I think my experience as one who has "stared" will inform my future reaction to people who stare. I'm probably going to keep covered most of the time, but sometimes I'd like to be able to show my half sleeves, and I suppose some will stare. My current theory is that they can stare all they want, as long as they don't say something obnoxious or disrespectful within earshot. If they ask me a respectful question, I will gladly talk, because I have greatly appreciated it when I have politely commented on people's tattoos, and they engaged me in conversation about them. It is amazing what a polite and respectful, "Excuse me, I want to tell you that I think that is a really nice tattoo," will do. I have had people react with their faces lighting up, thanking me, and then without being asked rolling up their sleeve and showing the rest of their piece, and talking animatedly about it. I want to be that person.

What a great discussion! As a new guy on the block - first tattoo 6 months ago and second 3 weeks ago - I can comment on this from both sides. I was always fascinated with tattoos - don't think I ever consciously stared but definitely looked. I was intrigued by the designs, the colors, the placement. I didn't ever approach someone to ask about them though - I knew nothing about the culture or the process and so I didn't intrude. I also never judged someone based on their having tattoos. My father had one that he got while in the Marines at the end of WWII - he went on to be a college professor and electrical engineer so I learned as a kid that having tattoos doesn't tell you who a person is.
Now at age 61, retired from the Army and serving as the president of a college, I work with many people on my staff who have tattoos and see many students with them as well. I have a mix of friends, family, students and colleagues both past and present on my FB page and I openly post pictures the show my tattoos. I wear sleeveless shirts that expose them so now I get the stares. Although I've had a few negative comments from friends along the lines of "What were you thinking?" the majority of reactions have been positive. I enjoy a bit of breaking the mold of expectation of what an Army Colonel or College President are "expected" to be. And, when I see someone with great tattoos I compliment them and ask who did their work. I'm always looking for an interesting design or great artist.
I hate the question "Did it hurt?". Pain is relative and everyone experiences it differently. How do you explain your own pain to someone that makes sense or know that the person has the same level of pain tolerance? So, I always just answer that "It feels like being kissed by a baby unicorn."
At my age, I don't have to worry about what my tattoos will look like in 50 years. I'll be happy if I'm still here in 30.

Hello, all, I'll try not to be long winded. Well, I have good intentions, but it never works out that way, as I seem to ramble on. Anyways, I'm in my fifties and got my first tattoo a month ago. I live near Kalamazoo, MI, and decided to just stop at a few shops and get some advice on my ideas. I had a book with some drawings of what I wanted (a trilobite) so I could show the artist. I had also looked at portfolios online to get an idea of what the different artists/shops were doing. I narrowed my search to about three shops and set off. It was Saturday, right about noon and I stopped at the first shop off the highway. The owner was the only one there, and told me he had a last minute cancellation and could do a tattoo right then. He looked at my ideas, said give him a few minutes so he could get something ready, and if I liked it he would do it. My book of trilobites had pretty much simple line drawings. Well, the image the guy showed me was awesome, well drawn with great shading, so 
I got the tattoo, and I love it. I went back a few weeks later and got another! While getting my second one, I inquired about a T Rex skeleton, but I don't think he was much interested in doing it. I really liked the owner/artist, and have no ill feelings towards him, but am now thinking of getting someone else in Kalamazoo. I have emailed someone else whose portfolio I saw online and really liked. They agreed to do the T rex skeleton. I told all this because, as you see, I never really had to deal with appointments or q&a, I walked in and that was it.
 Now, finally, my questions!  About time, huh? Is it bad form to just show up to talk to an artist? I mean, if they are in the middle of a job, I feel guilty just stopping to talk. I know there are consultations but I live about 40 miles from Kalamazoo and work six days a week, getting off around noon on Saturdays. It is hard for me to keep appointments, sometimes. It's not like I wanna hang around for a half hour, just kinda get a feeling for the shop and artist(s). Once I've talked to an artist in the shop (and online), is it bad form to ask if someone else in shop could get me in sooner, not having to wait a couple months? Is it alright to ask to see what my design will look like before I make an appointment? I wouldn't mind paying for this, as I don't expect them to work for free, only to have someone end up going to another artist/shop. Thanks, sorry for the loooooooong post.

our black friends are not limited to a tattooed life in black & grey - 
there are certain (limited) colour pallets that will work quite well and others that just won't show up well or hold well on dark skin. I discussed this in some detail with one of my tattooers a few years ago but I can't remember which colours he avoids. but it also has to do with the design composition - keeping the design bold and simple and achieving appropriate contrast for the colours to show.
colour ink aside, tattooing african and asian skin is much different than the caucasian skin - seek out a skilled tattooer who is experienced with dark / black skin that knows how build the design composition and contrast accordingly and physically tattoo your skin type.

A lot of the issues stated here seem to be caused by that joint problem area of "assumptions" and "communication breakdown." I always always always talk to my clients before we sit down about what their budget is. To be fair, I don't have a big name or a reputation that precedes me (to the best of my knowledge) like some folks do. However, I still like to have that talk beforehand to forego any hurt feelings at the end.  I don't think it's terribly unreasonable for someone on the other end of the transaction to initiate that conversation either.  In tattooing as in most things, I've found that thorough communication almost always spares uncomfortable situations and hurt feelers. 
In this specific instance, I would let it go. If you're really upset about it (which it doesn't sound like you are) then I would bring it up if you plan on going back to them again before you sit down, but only if you can think of a tactful way to bring it up.  A friend of mine would frequently get tattooed by a Big Name in California, and the last time he got his back worked on was charged for four hours work, but about an hour and a half of that was purportedly taken up with smoke breaks, a consultation, and a personal phone call.  When he brought that up to him during the next session things didn't go so smoothly and he was recommended to have someone else finish his back if he didn't like the way things were.  Now, that is an isolated and second-hand incident, but it's the best example I have of the worst-case-scenario.

No tattoo artist worth his salt is going to just tattoo this on you. You need to give him your ideas, and let him draw it. Please, please, please listen to us. I don't want you to end up with a big old mess on your back.

Maybe, but he's not that busy, since he's filling spots before the end of the year.
 
I was being  kind with my "blah blah" above. He was very uninterested in what I had to say, and he made it very clear.  I can't say he was very personable at the convention either. I'd rather get tattooed by a nice dude ?

This is a beautiful tattoo.  Please post more photos when it heals fully.

Thank you! It makes me happy every time i see it. Here are pics at about 2.5 months healed. Honestly doesn't look that different than day 1.

This is a beautiful tattoo.  Please post more photos when it heals fully.

Hi guys, nice to be here :) I got stuck with my first calf tattoo and was hoping someone could help me with an idea how to continue. My story is, I wanted a Dove with sun, some trees and natural theme to put on whole calf. Without any filling or colors, just lines :) When we were thinking with an artist, we spent several hours and I've decided it will be better to quit that day to not make a mistake :) Now I'm a bit frustrated what to do - i know it was a mistake to go for it without any exact ideas. What do you think, how to complete this around the whole calf?
I was thinking about some fileds / paper plane / patterns to fill an empty places and stay in "natural" topic
All ideas would be much appreciated! :)
Martin

Welcome to the forum! What are you planning for your first tattoo?
Yes, you'll need to have a post count of 10 before you can start new threads in any of the subforums other than here. Use this one to ask questions but you can also respond in other areas - just don't flit around posting things like "Great!", "Cool!" to drive up your count. 

Welcome! Where are you located? Are you willing to travel? You'll find recommendations posted in various sections - and I'm confident some of the more experienced members will offer some suggestions once we know where you live.

I hate pinterest because they never link or credit the actual artist. it's filled with annoying buzzfeed links

HI there! I'm Nicole. I just recently got my fourth tattoo and am currently planning a fifth (plus a cover up). I look forward to getting to know you fine folk.

Here's a side-by-side of my first tattoo about a week into healing (it was so icky then...) and today, two and a half months after I got it. The pupil of the eye took what felt like forever to heal - I am not a patient person. The color is now a perfect even color. Next to the new tattoo I got today it's slightly faded, but in two months they'll both match.




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Some blackwork roses in a shoulder cap by Jacob Kearney at Metamorph in Chicago :)