Pugilist

I totally agree with this and posted elsewhere that it is ironic that she accused him of sexism, because to me this smacks of classism, i.e. "how dare YOU, a lowly tattooer, give ME advice". I think normals might be getting tattooed these days, but they still see tattooers as some sort of savages who are beneath them, and certainly wouldn't have years of training and expertise that might just be worth listening to.
But mostly I feel annoyed that I got sucked into commenting on this at all, because it is indeed total clickbait, and so we are playing right into these idiots' hands. GAH.

I totally agree with this and posted elsewhere that it is ironic that she accused him of sexism, because to me this smacks of classism, i.e. "how dare YOU, a lowly tattooer, give ME advice". I think normals might be getting tattooed these days, but they still see tattooers as some sort of savages who are beneath them, and certainly wouldn't have years of training and expertise that might just be worth listening to.
But mostly I feel annoyed that I got sucked into commenting on this at all, because it is indeed total clickbait, and so we are playing right into these idiots' hands. GAH.

I totally agree with this and posted elsewhere that it is ironic that she accused him of sexism, because to me this smacks of classism, i.e. "how dare YOU, a lowly tattooer, give ME advice". I think normals might be getting tattooed these days, but they still see tattooers as some sort of savages who are beneath them, and certainly wouldn't have years of training and expertise that might just be worth listening to.
But mostly I feel annoyed that I got sucked into commenting on this at all, because it is indeed total clickbait, and so we are playing right into these idiots' hands. GAH.

sailor jerry sick day fun
by Shannon Pagliarini
Crown and Anchor
Pt Pleasant NJ

Chippin' away at the ol' front.
https://instagram.com/p/3pzXp1MVGD/

I totally agree with this and posted elsewhere that it is ironic that she accused him of sexism, because to me this smacks of classism, i.e. "how dare YOU, a lowly tattooer, give ME advice". I think normals might be getting tattooed these days, but they still see tattooers as some sort of savages who are beneath them, and certainly wouldn't have years of training and expertise that might just be worth listening to.
But mostly I feel annoyed that I got sucked into commenting on this at all, because it is indeed total clickbait, and so we are playing right into these idiots' hands. GAH.

That article made my blood boil. I've only ever had awesome experiences at NY Adorned (and Josh is the best). I've seen people walk in with mighty horrible ideas for tattoos and the staff at NYA be nothing but gracious and helpful. Agree with @bongsau. Poor lady, she walked into one of the best shops in the city and got told "no" for the most general tattoo one can get, wah-wah-wah (or weh-weh-weh). Not to be as petty as her - but her tattoo looks awful placed where it is.

You know what would be a fantastic way of getting a tattoo that honors both your daughter and your commitment to feminism? How about putting your trust in one of NYC's many amazing female tattooers and taking her advice on design and placement? If you want to support women, that can certainly include supporting female artists and craftspeople by paying them for their work. It seems like this turned into a feminist issue after she didn't get what she wanted...when it could've been a really cool and memorable experience had a little more thought gone into it. No comment on whether she was or wasn't condescended to, but public shaming of the artist doesn't strike me as a good or productive way of dealing with it.

@polliwog - I agree with you that "A lot of the most fervent defining seems to be done by people looking at the tattoos, rather than the actual tattooed person." The article is a thoughtful read, but it also needs to be understood in the context of what the vast majority of tattoos are, i.e. those tiny infinity symbols and whatever. The kind of work folks on this board get is not the norm, and so our reasons and attachment to tattoos is probably not going to conform to that data super well either.
I do often get tattooed to mark particular moments in my life or transitions. I have many tattoos that to me did feel like alternative rites of passage where there were no "mainstream" ones (getting a tattoo to mark finishing my PhD, for example), so I can relate to some of what the article is saying. But I have two principal issues with it nonetheless. First of all, I hate these strange studies of "identity" because they make it seem like this rigid, easily defined concept. I mean, I feel like I have a strong sense of who I am and am searching for who I am at the very same time, and I imagine that is true for most people. I find their discussion of that stuff very over-simplified. Second, I am fucking sick of all these millenials articles, and I am not even a millenial! But like seriously, the desire to cast each new generation as a bunch of iconoclasts with no connection to the past is insane. Millenials are not a fundamentally different kind of person than the rest of us, and writing like they are some kind of alien culture that must be studied makes me crazy.
Like we live in a weird world where we are increasingly less and less attached to communities that traditionally defined us. So yeah, we're all searching, and maybe tattoos help us with some of that searching and maybe they don't. We invest a huge amount of time and money (and blood!) into them, so obviously they mean a lot to us and impact our identities. DUH; I would have a hard time disputing any of that. But trying to turn it into some kind of "definition of a generation" psychobabble is a bit much.

:)
made a trip to belgium last weekend and got this funny thing from https://instagram.com/burtonursaeminoris/ (stole the picture).

@Killercook76 WOW!!!!!!!!!!!
So. 4 days and then IT BEGINS. Very nervous, very excited. The drawing is out of control, I almost cried when I saw it and left the shop a mess of nerves. I'm told that Kahlil is gentle and efficient so that's some small iota of comfort. Hopefully the age-old tactic of building it up in my head to be the worst thing in life serves me well. Yeah, super excited. I'll be sure to DM pics to the LST folks on instagram when the first session is done but I probably won't post anything here (sorry) as I'm sure it won't go over well.

Get a room, you nerds

Dudes, sometimes I feel like it would be nice to date someone who wasn't into tattoos, because as it is, my partner and I feed off of each other in the worst ways possible. He only started getting tattooed recently, but caught the bug hard, and initially I thought that watching him get tattooed constantly would take the edge off for me, as I'd be living vicariously through him. As it turns out, it doesn't work that way--each time one of us gets work, it leaves the other jonesing for more--such that I think we're both acquiring tattoos at a much quicker rate than we would if we were not in relationships with total enablers. We brainstorm ideas together a lot, so in that sense we do "approve" of each other's tattoos, but it's not really so much about asking for permission, but rather that we trust each other's opinions and rely on each other to work through ideas together.
And of course I am totally joking in "complaining" about this--it's actually pretty fucking awesome.

Itchy? Oh yes. When I outlined my back I tried to staple a swatch of carpeting to the corner of a wall so that I could rub up against it (like my cat would). However, ElDolmago vetoed my idea.

I just had an apple turnover and a chocolate milkshake.
It was glorious.
But I'm lactose intolerant, so I may be posting an update in the "Post shitty things you have been doing recently" thread LOL.

Anyone who follows me on Instagram has seen this, but here's a little teaser shot of my arm from Grez. I said from the beginning that I wasn't going to post progress shots much because I love that feeling of just seeing the whole completed piece, and I'm amazed I mostly stuck to that. Haha. Now that next month is likely the last sitting, I can see end in sight and can't wait to share it.

I'm glad to see a thread about money come up on here, and stay on track with reasonable questions and reasonable answers. We have always avoided the topic, but it is a big part of getting tattooed, and new people come here to educate themselves on all aspects of tattooing. I think we have avoided it for so long because we didn't want it to turn into a big gossip thread about what specific tattooers charge. I personally have never asked ahead of time about the price, but I do think it is a good idea. Especially if you are new to getting tattooed. The ones of us that have been getting tattooed for a decade or more usually have some idea of what we might get charged. Even though we don't talk about it on open public forums we do share this type of information privately. When you are travelling across the country or across the world to get tattooed by someone you have never met before it is a huge help to have friends that have been tattooed by them. They let you know what to expect when you get there. Where to get a good pre-tattoo meal and post-tattoo drink, where the closest ATM is, how fast or slow the tattooer is, and what to expect on the money side. If you don't have friends like that as a resource then you need to talk about the price beforehand no matter how uncomfortable it makes you. I honestly believe that most really good tattooers are very fair with their pricing. That has been my experience over the last twelve years, but I also know that there are a few famous tattooers out there that charge ridiculous prices, and a couple of my friends found out the hard way. It sucks when that happens because it can really sour a person on getting tattooed.

Haha! Well, I don't think I paid too much at all. I am quite certain none of you guys would think so either.
My friends who think I pay absurd prices are either have no tattoos or actually choose their tattooer based on the low hourly rate she has because she has a studio in her basement. True story.
And for the most part I don't even tell them the real price. I just give a vague round-number answer. Because they won't get it anyway. Value is subjective!
Further reading, because I'm an Austrian economics nerd in addition to being a tattoo nerd:
The subjective theory of value is a theory of value which advances the idea that the value of a good is not determined by any inherent property of the good, nor by the amount of labor required to produce the good, but instead value is determined by the importance an acting individual places on a good for the achievement of their desired ends. This theory is one of the core concepts of the Austrian School of Economics. While the modern version of this theory was created independently and nearly simultaneously by William Stanley Jevons, Léon Walras, and Carl Menger in the late 19th century it had in fact been advanced in the Middle Ages and Renaissance but did not gain widespread acceptance at that time. (from wikipedia)

So I added this hand and flower while the brilliant and hilarious Nikki Balls was guesting in Toronto at the Pearl. Next to a butterfly lady head by Glennie Whittal

I know it's hard to not think like this especially if you are new to getting tattooed or prone to getting star-struck (me), but you shouldn't! Tattooers are just people with a specialized skill set. We owe our lives to the clients and have no valid reason to think that we are better than you. Don't get tattooed by people who think that you owe them something, can't stress that enough. You will find that the more you get tattooed, the experience is just as important as the art. Get tattooed by people who not only do awesome work, but who are friendly and humble people that you will want to spend however many hours in close proximity with. If you aren't comfortable in your tattooer's presence, you probably shouldn't get tattooed by that person. Hope that helps :)

I'm not sure what brain bug got me started on tattoos in porn this morning, but somehow I got to thinking about it, and then I thought "well, maybe there are some good tattoos out there" and navigated over to (what looks to be) a well-trafficked porn site, and typed "tattoos" in the search box.
Sure enough, I see plenty of tattoos. I'm looking at this girl's thigh piece when all of the sudden: vagina! I blinked and resumed looking at the tattoos, and then: butt hole! This kept happening and annoying me for awhile before I fully realized that I was watching porn and not looking at a tattoo website.
Facepalm to the nth degree, because I totally knowingly went to a porn site to look at tattoos, and then got annoyed at all the T & A ruining my tattoo experience, and then realized T & A *was* the experience, and I had just trolled myself.
PS - I also read playboy for the articles. ;) <drops mic> Val out.

Dude, it's not cool to out the kinkier aspects of our marriage to the entire internet...

@TrixieFaux Awesome! Zzzzzzt. ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzZZZZzzzzzt.

I had a couple of little fillers done by Nikki Balls from Tattoo Paradise in D.C. while she was in Toronto at The Pearl. I got a pig and a heart. Filling in them sticks. I met Nikki a couple of years ago when she tattooed an octopus on the inside of my bicep. Good people.

Some people's tattoo worlds seem really small... (In my own world, there are lots of cool different ways to get tattooed.)