keepcalm

Amazing! Is it on the front or on the side? Really pretty @keepcalm

Thanks, guys! :) It's on the front of my right thigh.

I sat for Dennis at Providence Tattoo for about 4.5 hours on Saturday afternoon. It was a bit shorter of a sitting than I thought it might be, and thank god. I was still miserable the last hour, and I'm pretty sure Dennis wanted to kill me, haha. But I LOVE the result, and of course it was worth it! I have been waiting for this tattoo since January, and really for even longer than that.

There are two shops, and we were at the one on Atwells Ave, which is just a beautiful shop -- I love it. Dennis was fantastic to work with and so kind. We had a really fun chat, and he even drove me back to my AirBnB when we were done! (I was visiting Providence to get the tattoo.)

I posted a photo from my phone as well as the shot Dennis posted on Instagram. It's swelling a lot more than any of my other tattoos ever have, but I'm thinking that's because it's on my thigh. Otherwise, it seems to be healing fine. I'm so stoked on it!

I remember Dennis being very meticulous (and quite stoic). But with great results; he does some really killer stuff. What are you getting done?

Yeah I kind of dig his whole vibe. I've only met him once before, and he struck me as really conscientious. I definitely trust him. STOKED to see the drawing tomorrow! I'm getting a lady head... kinda. I'll be sure to post photos! :)

Welcome! I'm getting a tattoo from Dennis tomorrow! So excited and nervous! Your eye of Providence looks awesome - I think I've seen it before in my obsessive stalking of his work.

Love the idea! I joined the group. I'll be in Europe this fall -- any LSTers in Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Croatia, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Berlin, or the U.K. (London, then mostly Cornwall) -- I'd love to meet up! :)

Having tattoos doesn't make you less friendly or approachable, only a 'bad' attitude towards tattoos (of the other person (or perhaps even you ;-) ) does that...

I agree with you, theoretically, of course! -- but I'm just going off what @KBeee said about the reactions she's had personally since becoming more visibly covered!

@Rawok, haha indeed! I won't argue ;)

I'm visiting Sweden kind of on a whim -- I'll already be in Europe this fall, and I have a friend here in the states who's from Stockholm, and he promised me free lodging with friends and family of his who are still in Stockholm -- I never pass up a free place to stay in an otherwise expensive place, haha! Looking forward to exploring a bit as it will be my first time to a Scandinavian country.

@Rawok - I'm getting my thigh tattooed here in the states this weekend, and I'll be visiting Sweden in late October! Looking forward to it. :) Your clothing ideas sound good to me.

@KBeee - I'm not very visibly covered. Partly because I think about this very thing sometimes -- there is a happy medium as to how tough I actually am and how tough I'd like to appear to strangers. Specifically, at what point will visible tattoos make me appear less friendly/approachable than I really am, and do I want to project that kind of image? I dunno. As much as I envy those who say, "Fuck what other people think - do what you want!", I have always been a pretty approachable person, and I think I would miss that aspect of my life if I became so covered that people thought twice about me before they even got a chance to talk to me.

Incidentally, it's stupid that some people still associate tattoos with tough guys/gals/whatever, but the fact is, they do. Either way, I'm glad you're enjoying your extra space in public, @KBeee!

Dude how's the rock climbing going??!! It's my fitness passion too. Been into it for a year or so now and into it a lot, so much more fun than the gym, I'm in much better shape for it

It's going well! I'm worried I'll lose some of the progress/fitness I made over the next few months because I'll be traveling til December, and likely won't have as many opportunities to find gyms. I'm going to make an effort, though, and then just get back into it when I'm back in the states at the holidays.

Have you been climbing outside at all, or just in gyms? I've still yet to venture outside. I want to, though!

I should not be reading this thread! I'm worried about my session next weekend being longer than I can handle. Hoping my tattooer is fast! :)

A week from tomorrow I'm getting tattooed in Providence, RI, then I'm leaving for Europe til mid-December. Packing will be complicated since my journeys span multiple climates, but I'm excited to be traveling again!

Let me be the first to say welcome! Looks good!

I started running via Couch to 5k back in 2007. It totally works! I felt bad at the beginning, not being able to run more than 30 seconds at a time without feeling totally overwhelmed, but in 2012, I ran a marathon. I always recommend Couch to 5k to anyone who tells me they want to get into running. I think it's the perfect way to start, because you can start as slow as you need (for example, intervals of 30 seconds running, 3 minutes walking).

I also picked up cycling a year or so ago as some cross-training. My latest obsession -- as of this summer -- is rock climbing. I've never done anything to work or strengthen my upper body, mostly because I LOATHE the gym, and I LOATHE the idea of picking up weights and doing "reps" -- seems so boring to me. But rock climbing is actually an amazing full-body workout, and it's fun! I'm totally geeking out about it right now :)

Three more weeks until I go see Dennis at Providence Tattoo -- very excited!

Been waiting for this since January. Also a little nervous. Originally we booked two sessions (he's covering the top of my right thigh), but my travel plans have gotten in the way a bit, so now we just have one day to get it all done. It will likely be the longest I've ever sat in one go -- hoping I make it through!

I'm so glad you said this, because it's often what comes to my mind when I see a bunch of tiny outline-only tattoos on a person and then I sort of feel like a jerk for thinking it. It shouldn't matter what other people choose to get tattooed, it's just a bummer that a lot of it isn't more interesting to look at.

Yeah, I agree, I feel like a dick judging people and their tattoos like that, but the thing is, that kind of work all over the place is visually challenging to look at, ha. I've said this before I think, but I think of tattoos as permanent accessories, like jewelry or a scarf or something, and one of the things I dig about them is how amazing it can look when a tattoo flows perfectly with the shape of the body, or fits nicely into its spot. And honestly, everything else just looks messy. (at least to me, haha)

Unofficial observations about tattoos on folks of my generation (roughly ages 21-35) in Portland, Oregon after spending a week there:

Freaking EVERYONE has tattoos.

Everyone has a bunch of small and randomly placed tattoos all over the place on their limbs.

Often it looks like they just enjoy doodling on themselves. Most people look like walking sketchbooks.

50% of the tattoos any given person has seem to be ironic.

Approximately 1% of the tattoos I saw would be considered American Traditional.

Conclusions:

Go big. Be bold. None of this wimpy "arrow on my forearm" bullshit.

Side note:

Getting even more excited for my appointment with Dennis del Prete in September! Lady head allllll over my right thigh. #winning

So great to meet some LSTers in real life -- really fun night, guys! :) Glad you made it back safely, @CultExciter!

Divorced. Moving in with my mom in VT. Had to cancel all of my tattoo appointments in NYC. Probably won't be getting tattooed until I can afford to travel. Sucks. Sucks. Sucks.

I probably will be preoccupied with life stuff and melancholy over not being able to get tattooed... so I will be fairly absent from here for some time. Thanks everyone for being so cool and getting rad tattoos. I shall return...

Really sorry to hear it -- I sympathize. It will suck for a while, but then it will get better. Hang in there!

Try thinking of your interactions with women as something other than transaction-based, to start.

good god this

Usually I will be somewhat physical from the start because it tells me right away if the girl is into me or not.

Just as a heads up, at least in the U.S., I think you'll find a decent percentage of women view this as pushy.

That only happens to women. And that would happen whether you were tattooed or not as long as you're (semi)attractive. Men are the sex that have to do the approaching. We have to seek out female sex and companionship. A man will find any excuse to talk to and touch a woman he finds attractive. It just so happens that your tattoos are an excuse for him to touch you and speak to you. It really has little to do with your personally or him being a "creep". If he was Brad Pitt or whatever male stereotype/archetype you find extremely attractive he would cease being a "creep" and you would probably find it charming or flattering. I wouldn't get too worked up about a stranger of the opposite sex trying to speak to you or talk to you unless they are being extremely inappropriate. They probably just think you're attractive and want a reason to try and flirt with you. If you don't like it just tell them.

There is so much wrong with this I can't even. A stranger grabbing you IS creepy and invasive, no matter why they are doing it, or the genders of either person. Fact.

Thanks! I hear you on upper body strength, I still can't do proper push-ups or unassisted pull ups. My dad is a climber (indoor/outdoor) and has tried to get me into it, but heights and myself don't mix too well.

It was definitely scary at first, and it's still scary, but I've pretty much just been doing bouldering so far, and you're never TOO far off the ground in bouldering, so I am slowly getting used to it. I might try to learn a bit about top-roping soon, though, because I've been on a couple of climbing dates with a cute Swede who is keen to teach me :cool:

Been working out, eating well, getting my health on. I think I've lost about 10lbs the last two month. Looking forward to when I've shed enough to see the muscles I've been trying to grow.

Nice, congrats! I just started going to a climbing gym, and I'm looking forward to one day soon finally having more upper body strength than a 6-year-old.

@keepcalm you should stop by the shop even if you don't get tattooed, it would be rad to meet you! Also FTW is just a really fun and rad shop to check out, flash from floor to ceiling.

And last week I called Tattoo City and put my name on Kahlil's list to start my back. Wee!

Would love to, thanks! What days are you there?

Also, congrats on getting the ball rolling for your back!