keepcalm

You'd be a smart lady to do so. She's great. I also am a big fan of Vinse One!

!! Yeah, the artist I've been going to at TP (Scott M) just moved to Florida, so I'm looking around for a new local person I like. I always hear good things about Nikki (inside and outside TP) and I like her portfolio a lot!

I've decided I want a la-la-lady head from Nikki Lugo at Tattoo Paradise. I feel like my arms are too puny to put one there, though that's kind of where I want it. Lady heads are one thing I would consider getting in color because they look so awesome in color, but I think I'll keep sticking with all black & gray for now. Nikki has done some pretty black & gray ones -- I really like this one:

Nikki at Tattoo Paradise

Has anyone ever drawn on themselves to get used to it or am I just totally mental ?

If I had any artistic talent at all, I would totally do this before each of my tattoos, mental or not!

I'm also interested in the replies you'll get because, though it is probably a while away, I'm thinking my next spot to cover might be on the front of me.

(Fight.....the....urge...)

Bah! So hard! Today is Day 10 and they've been itchy since about Day 5 :( They seem to be mostly healed up, though - they're smooth and the skin looks good. When can I scratch with abandon?! Haha

My recent pair of tattoos are the first ones I've been able to heal without having to keep them covered for the first week or so because of clothing complications (ribcage - bra strap, and hip - underwear/waistband). That alone has made this a better healing experience, haha.

I kept the bandages on overnight, and since then have washed and lotioned up twice a day (Aquaphor a couple of times, Aveeno mostly). Mine never swell, get red, or feel too sore, but they flake like mad and itch fairly badly.

I'm at the itchy part now. :(

This post brought to you by the need to do something else with my hands other than be tempted to scratch.

and I also heard that excessive sweating could push a little bit of the ink out :/

Interesting. I've taken it easy for a week or so after getting inked because I wondered if the stinging from sweat meant that color could be at risk. I like to keep a regular exercise routine going but don't want to risk compromising a healing tattoo.

Yeah I'm wondering a little about this, too. I got two tattoos on the backs of my shoulders on Friday night, and I went for a 4-mile run the next morning in a misty rain and muggy conditions. I felt a tiny bit of stinging on my back as I started to sweat, but it's now four days later, (I've run twice again since then), and I haven't noticed anything amiss with my tattoos. They seem fine. They're just black and gray, though - not sure if color would act any differently.

Anyone else have any knowledge about/experience with sweating with healing tattoos?

Wow, that turned out really nice!

Thank you so much! I love them!

Those came out great! Very solid. They work great together and separately. Congrats!

Thank you, thank you! I'm very happy :D

I finally got my ship + lion on Friday. I put this picture in my post about the design, but I will put it here too because it will probably be my last opportunity to contribute to this thread for a little while. I totally love these, but I am going to give myself some time to get used to having such plainly visible tattoos (compared to my other, well-hidden ones) before I start thinking about getting anything else. This was a big step for me, haha!

Scott M (I can never remember how to spell his last name) at Tattoo Paradise in DC did these for me. He is great, and he did my elephant, too, so I was very sad when he told me he was moving to FL.

Got it done on Friday - very happy!

Scott M at Tattoo Paradise in DC did it. He is moving to Florida, which makes me sad. He's great! He got these done faster than I anticipated, and the healing seems to be going well so far. Please forgive the lines from my sports bra in the picture - I'll be wearing racerbacks for a few more days, haha :p

Some really nice stuff on your site - I like it!

Here's my entry!!

Done by Joseph (Jet) Diprojetto at Love Hate Tattoo in Rochester, NY:

Okay, @scrock25, that's actually pretty awesome.

Am finally going in to get this tomorrow! Will try really hard to remember to take a picture before the bandage goes on. So ready for this!

also when I get out of the shower I find myself staring at my body for ages just thinking "how fucking cool do I look" which usually results in me being late for work.

Hahahah awesome.

To answer the main question of this post: They've made my mom love me less (I'm pretty sure).

Just kidding.

Mostly. :D

Well... This marks 6 months since I took my daughters and left an angry wee man who had a hold over me for 10 years of my life. I guess leaving an abusive relationship is pretty awesome. I think a couple of drinks tonight, whilst packing up the house to move tomorrow ,is in order !

Sounds well-deserved! Congrats! Hope you guys are doing well.

A few months ago marked two years since I left my ex-husband. He wasn't abusive, but it was hard to bring up the divorce discussion (I'm the one who wanted to). My life has been totally and completely awesome since then, though, so I'm so glad I did it! Cheers to moving on, @hollyjoybee!

Keep calm @keepcalm

Zing!

So... I have no news, no pictures, no nothing. I'm just here to complain about how impatient I get when waiting for my appointment for a new tattoo. I know what I want and I want it now! I am beginning to see the appeal of walk-ins and spur-of-the-moment decisions, haha.

::whine::

This post brought to you by boredom and a couple of hours of looking at pictures of tattoos on the internet.

Great stories in here! I'll add mine since I enjoyed reading this thread so much.

I was 22 when I got my first (a small ibis on my ribs), and I hadn't told anyone I was getting it, not even my boyfriend at the time. Obviously he saw it shortly thereafter, and the following summer, he went with me to spend time with my family at our lake house. (I don't live anywhere near my parents.) I knew mom would see it once I was in a swimsuit, but my then-boyfriend (now ex-husband) was a bit of an ass and preempted me, saying, "keepcalm has something to show you." Well jesus. Mom made the "I'm disappointed and I disapprove" face and didn't say much else. Dad said nothing, really. Mom has since -- ONE time -- expressed some vague interest in seeing it closer up and/or touching it (people are always touching!). Otherwise, it's never discussed (for good OR bad).

It then took me five years to decide on the elephant I got on my hip/top of thigh last year. Only the outline was done when I ended up at the lake house again with family. I managed to hide it from mom as it was only for a couple of days. Now it's done, and by the time I am in a swim suit in front of my parents again, I'll also have a ship and a lion on the back of my left and right shoulders. Whoops, haha! Three at once might be a bit much for dear old mom, but I'm 28, and she knows what she can do with her opinions. :) Dad, on the other hand, seems to have a non-opinion. My extended family members are more outspoken on my tattoos than my parents have been! In fact, I have one cousin who told me she is living vicariously through me because her father (my uncle) would kill her if she got a bunch of big tattoos. He even gave ME a stern look when he saw the ibis! #YOLO, amirite?!?! (<-- just kidding about that last bit ;))

Hey @beez and other folks who had suggestions -- got to stop by the shop today, and Scott suggested breaking the illustration up into two: putting the ship on the back on my left shoulder and the lion on the back of my right. Leaving them unconnected, and just swinging the "water" down and toward the middle at the bottom of each.

I dig it. Can't wait to get these done as I am quite stoked on them.

@keepcalm Your artist will work with the existing image but will probably have suggestions for how to turn it into a proper tattoo, so as far as the funky shape goes, hopefully your artist is already on top of it!

Which end do you want up, the ship or the lion? I think I initially saw the lion on your flank (side butt haha) which would put the ship up on your shoulder. It would be kinda neat to get your whole shoulder in there and continue on down the side of the body to the flank. But looking at it now it could make an excellent backpiece, again starting on your flank on one side and wrapping around across your butt and up to your opposite shoulder.

Err...I'm not really sure if any of that was too clear or helpful. I am not an artist, only a collector!

So I started to look for cool side pieces to post for inspiration...and it appears there is a dearth of good side tattoos on the internets...or today I am bad at searching. Help, LST! Show me some good side pieces, stat!

And actually, while we're it at: Is it "sidepiece", "side piece", or "side-piece"? All of the above? Remember, I'm bad at searching today so if any idiot could google it, please remember that THIS idiot cannot. Today.

This post is brought to you by cold meds. Huzzah!

Hahaha that was such an awesome post. Thank you for that.

Yeah my artist is currently sketching out a more smooshed together design to try in a couple of places. And I agree that the lion lower and the ship higher makes sense. :) Also I think I am just laughing at the word "flank" -- I tend not to think of my own body using that term... just like, lambs or cows or something, hahaha.

I hope your cold goes away soon!

You're talking about this with your artist, which is what you should be doing. Soliciting advice from complete strangers on the internet is weird, and quite frankly, if you need to do that you probably shouldn't be getting tattooed anyway.

:( Was just looking for some alternate ideas, though I have my own. Sorry if you think that's weird? ::shrug::

Shoulder to shoulder - ship on one side, lion wave on the other.

Not sure if it's what you meant, but I think it would work even better on the chest, ship on one pec, lion head on the other. I think the wave filler would need to be altered a little, but I'm sure the right artist could make it work, just make sure your artist knows what they are doing.

Is it cool to ask who is doing it? Not sure about the etiquette, but if you don't mind sharing I'd be interested.

Thanks guys - this is one of the ideas I'm considering, only it would be on my back (not looking to tattoo near the boobs at the moment, haha). I guess I just wasn't sure if it would look funny if it's the only thing back there.

And @heathenist, I don't mind saying at all! It's Scott M at Paradise Tattoo in DC. He did one of my other two existing tattoos. Not sure if you know him, but I liked working with him and he's a cool guy.

- - - Updated - - -

@keepcalm could make an interesting side piece, lion head on the flank and ship up top somewhere? maybe even incorporating you shoulder into it.

Thanks, @beez! I am intrigued by your idea but am not sure I understand it completely. You mean the lion on my side/back and the ship creeping up onto my shoulder/arm? I had also thought of putting the ship a bit higher to compress the design some and make it less linear. It's kind of a funky shape as-is.

Enough posts to start a new thread - woot!

So, I've sent the image below to my artist, and he's stoked about it (yay!) -- now we're just discussing placement and size. I was wondering if I could get some opinions on what YOU would do with this design. Where would you put it? Where do you think it would look best? I know one obvious answer is straight across the back, but I just think that's kind of boring. I'm completely fine with altering its shape, like squeezing it closer together, making one side higher, lower or whatever.

Legs/stomach/chest are off limits. I'm ready to entertain all other suggestions, though. Thanks in advance!

Hey, thanks @mtlsam! I figured that was probably the case, but I'm not super savvy in the tattoo world yet so I'm never sure what's "typical." Only time will tell if I get brave up to "use up" more of that arm real estate! :) If I do, I know I'll want more straightforward designs in black and gray, so hopefully they would all meld together/harmonize with no problem.

Thanks again for the reply!

Sorry to drag up an old thread (not sure if that's bad form, but I don't believe I'm able to start new ones yet) -- I just had a little question that relates to this.

At some point soon, I'll be getting my third tattoo on the back/top of my shoulder, possibly onto my upper arm. It's gonna be a reworked design of the concept in the illustration below. It's possible that afterward, I'll get brave enough to head down my arm with some other nautical-themed stuff (other ship/shipwrecked stuff, an octopus, a mermaid), but I would want them to be "stand-alone" pieces, like the left arm of that guy in the image that @Kev posted up there ^^ (i.e., no filler, just negative space around them).

So my question is, if I don't want an entire integrated sleeve, is it necessary to talk through the possibilities for my entire arm with my artist before I get this first one at the top of my shoulder/back done? Or can I just go for it, and figure out what fits where for the rest later?

I don't want to overthink it since it's possible I won't get a bunch more after all, but I also want to make sure I have at least thought ahead a little if I do decide to keep going.

Sorry for the rambling, and thanks in advance for your thoughts!