Wolf13

@Gingerninja - Yes, on and off - funds permitting. I still speak to a lot of artists I came up with and even the ones I worked with. My start was very much less than ideal - but I've worked on my art a lot while I've been out of shop work. @Hands On - I don't see it as seven years of practice that I've lost out on, I see it as more time away from an industry where (at the time) there was nothing positive keeping me there. I needed some time out, so I took it and it made me a better person and allowed me to view this all with a renewed perspective. Thanks for the replies - it means a lot 🙂

I would personally be led to believe it's one of the following: a.) Possible infection - if the symptoms of this still persist, speak to a doc b.) Skin trauma - this can be caused by over-working the skin thanks to poor technique c.) Poor application - for example, the ink hasn't hit the skin layer where it should be and has 'pulled out' d.) Cheap/knock-off ink - the horror stories on this are endless (I've witnessed a fair few) Either way, I agree with Hogrider and would suggest seeing a dermatologist - or maybe go back to the artist who did the work and show them what's happened. The most common allergic reactions with inks/pigments come from Red - if that does happen, in some cases the onset of rejection is almost instant. Some skin can take it, some can't - sadly, it is what it is - everyone's skin is completely different. I hope you're doing well and have been fixed up - keep us updated. All the best, Wolf

Hi everyone - Wolf here (not my real name, obviously). I'm a newbie here on the LST Forum, but I've followed the Artist Video series for a while and really enjoy hearing all the great stories from the industry veterans and find myself agreeing with them nine times out of ten with a lot of subjects, so I figured I'd come here and see what I could pick up and learn. Life's all about learning and moving forward, right? Long story short - I used to tattoo back in my early 20s (I'm now almost 30). I haven't picked up a machine for about seven years. My apprenticeship wasn't even what I'd consider a real apprenticeship (if anyone wants to hear that horror story, I'll happily post about it in the appropriate section). I got screwed out of a lot both financially and mentally, so I threw all my tattoo gear into a box and stashed it away. It's still there... because something tells me that I'm not done, but the industry seems to have changed and this honestly scares me. I think that's enough about me for now. Thanks to everyone involved in this forum's upkeep for the opportunity to meet and talk to people who share a common interest. Thanks for reading, Wolf \m/