Just Alex

I have all but booked 2 tattoos in Melbourne next January (maddeningly excited, screw Christmas, I have two 'tattoosdays' to look forward to) I am from England so had no idea about Aus rates, much less the specific artists I hope to book with. As it happens, one of them sent me their pricing structure when my 'application' was potentially accepted and the other was fine with telling me when I asked... I needed to know as spending two days being poked is always an expensive prospect and that is after spending thousands getting there. Incidentally, the artists I have spoken with in Melbourne and Sydney all seem to have the same rates. Perhaps this is a guild thing?

This is an interesting thread. I am planning to get a neotraditional lady head heavily influenced by "hollywood voodoo"... I say Hollywood because as far as I know, real voodoo is quite subtle by comparison... I'm talking about having skulls and bones and magic involved. Is this cultural appropriation or simple fantasy?

Blue tiger/dragon by Danny Rossiter of Rain City, Manchester, UK. Fell in love with the painting when he posted it on Instagram so had to snaffle it up :) pleased and sore.

I have a fairly large piece with thick black outlines like this... upside - I think it looks cool and is a bit different, downside - it effectively doubled the lining time as the tattooist basically double outlined the piece and then filled it in. It's a kind of new school trad piece based on Fontinha flash.

Who: Jamie Greaves What: Awesome snakiness When: Today - 12.13.13 Where: Real Art Tattoo, Leicester, UK. Why: I love snakes...and this is my third snake tattoo. I wanted something traditional and this is my most traditional piece yet. Gotta say though...It hurt like a bitch and I felt like a real pussy for a lot of the time, really struggled to get through it! Hope you guys like! P.S. Photo courtesy of Jamie as well, taken from his instagram.

That sounds mint, any pics?

I kinda have the same issue as this, I live in West Yorkshire... close to good studios in and near Leeds and Manchester - but I spend the working week in London. Not many places would have time for walk-ins at the weekends, and the places in London I would consider are just too highly priced for a spur of the moment job!

The closest I have come to being impulsive about a tattoo is knowing for a while I wanted a cat head, but not a tiger, panther or lion.....and deciding to book a consultation on the spur of the moment. 1 month wait for the consult, followed by another several months on a wait list. Oh yes, very impulsive. haha!

He's just one of those type of celebrities whose presence is so pervasive that somehow he is unavoidable (here, at least). I don't understand how it happens...osmosis I guess is as good an explanation as any.

Do you really not know? Oh, to live in Virginia...*drifts off wistfully*

Obviously anybody bringing awareness to the perils of "home tattooing" is a good thing, but citing Harry Styles as a tattoo collector when he has a bunch of scratcher/prison grade work is a bit wide of the mark and doesn't help any kind of cause. And who is Kevin Paul? I've been following tattooers obsessively for some time now and never heard of him...

I would never do my face, I'm sorry to anyone who has facial work and I mean no offence, but I have yet to see a facial tattoo I like. Then there are the social and economic limitations it could impose! I'd also never do my hands simply because my fiance doesn't even want me to get fully sleeved, and I think hand tattoos when you have blank spaces on your arms look odd (again, no offence meant, just opinion. If ever my career was 100% safe and not going to be affected by it I would consider my neck though, I have seen a lot of neck pieces I like the look of. I would also consider my head, as I wear my head shaved now and have done for years, but I could easily grow my hair if needed and I don't think I am genetically disposed to baldness. Anywhere else (except genitals) is fair game though, and I have so much blank space I am happy to not even think about the more "extreme"(?) spots yet!

My order so far has been right upper arm, back, right thigh, left upper arm. Next piece will hopefully be my stomach, between just underneath my 'pecks' (or skinny moobs might be more apt) to just above my navel. Then left chest plate. Completely unstructured progress, but I am just getting what I like, as and when it appeals. No grand plan, but getting more focus on getting high quality work as I get older and learn more!

My missus isn't tattooed, but I was when we met and I have had two fairly large pieces since. I am also planning my third and she has offered to buy my fourth (since we met) on our honeymoon (just so happens an artist I LOVE now works in a city SHE loves!). I don't think she will ever get tattooed, and as attractive as I find it I could never push her to make that decision either. We like what we like and part of what makes our relationship work as smoothly as it does is that we accept everything about each other. Happiness reigns! haha..

Would Rain City have anyone good at/interested in that?