Heidi

You mean a hipster cross--note the thick-rimmed glasses.

Strange how an area that should be accustomed to sensation/pain (the palm) hurts so bad. I don't intend to get hand tattoos so I'll never find this out for myself though.

Fun topic....I got my first tattoo at age 21 (32 now). I was in college and had been planning on it for quite some time, so I tried to soften the blow beforehand by asking my mom if I could get a tattoo, or talking about them, or saying things like "aren't rose tattoos cute?". Her response each time was "I don't think so, Heidi". But of course I went ahead and got one. I decided to just tell her about it right away, and showed it to her the next time I visited home for the weekend. I said, "Isn't it cuuuute?!" when I showed her and she just made a face then said, "That's your last one right?" She still says that every time she realizes/finds out I've gotten more work (which is progressively difficult now because I'm pretty well covered). "That's your last one, right Heidi?" I just laugh and say 'I don't know about that'. My brother also has a lot of work, but she seems more accepting of his tattoos...maybe because he's younger, or maybe because he's a military veteran. My dad is from the UK and very "proper British gent". I never talk about my tattoos with him and leave it up to my mother to tell him (if she wishes) when I get new tattoos. He ignores them but that's fine with me...he still treats me like his little girl (aka, no differently!)

Maybe he'll remember me then. I see he is a member here. The tattoo is a 3 x 3" black and white rose on one hip.

I gotta get a pic of mine...I was browsing my photos and realized I don't have any photos of the entire completed backpiece. Some great work here from what I've seen so far!

That's true--Ben will still get my patronage. I'll ask him about it at a later date. Not only do I love Ben's work, but I guess at this point he and I know each other well and work together well. I know his routine with tattooing and what to expect, and he's pretty much the same with me. Using someone new after being accustomed to the familiar can be a little jarring. In 2009 I used two different artists--Robin King at Metamorph to do a specialty cover-up/re-do tattoo and Cameron Sweet at Electric Ladyland in NOLA while on vacation, and I had to get accustomed to their mannerisms, routines, etc. Speaking of Nick Colella, he did my first-ever tattoo, in March 2002. Then I wrote about it on BMEzine.com and the next time I went into his shop, he mentioned that...I was thinking "shit, he read that?!" :o

Heh, I'm being steered away from Detroit, ain't I?! - - - Updated - - - I'll have to take another look at her portfolio to see what she can do. It's been a long time since I checked it. It would be convenient to go to the same shop....but I can tell you, it will be very WEIRD to be tattooed by someone besides Ben there!

Oh yes, can't forget Texas Chainsaw Massacre....love that one as well. I love that whole 70s/80s period. It seems like most movies now just try to recreate or reinvent the wheel (the horror wheel in this instance). It's hard to find good ones, but it doesn't stop me from trying. And like I said, I even enjoy the very bad ones....including the ones that are purposefully bad (like Dead Alive--LOVE that one!) Good point about Alien--you're right. It feeds upon the unknown. I love the movie so much that I have an accurate/true-to-life tattoo of the queen fetus from the Alien 3 box art on my back. My parents allowed me to watch the original film when I was 7, 8 years old and it clearly stuck with me. The first movie I remember watching is the black and white version of The Blob with my mom and little brother. Yes, mom's movie choices rubbed off on me! I know some people hate them, but for modern movies, I also like the Paranormal Activity movies--the first in particular. But I have to confess that if I hadn't lived in a haunted apartment at one time, the movies wouldn't have the same feel for me....they are so much more believable with that experience under my belt. While we're at it, I'll throw out a few foreign horror flicks I liked...more modern ones anyway, haven't come across any old subtitled ones on Netflix yet. -Cold Fish (possibly one of the most disgusting movies I've ever seen--makes Saw look like Disney--but brilliantly done, really enjoyed it) -The Descent (UK but still counts!) -I Saw the Devil -REC (kinda like Quarantine but better IMO) -The Shrine I was trying to remember the names of a few others but can't....sadly I watch so many that I don't remember most of their titles :(

Technically sci-fi but my favorite movie, period, is Ridley Scott's Alien. After that, I love the 70s/80s classics--Jaws, The Exorcist (directors cut), The Thing, The Changeling, Amityville Horror, The Shining, and more. I prefer those over the old slashers, although those are fun too. For modern movies, I love Rob Zombie's movies, and think there are some wonderful foreign horror films these days. I also like good ole slashers such as the Saw series, but learned to not eat spaghetti while watching those. Spaghetti and slashers isn't a great combo. I could go on but...enough about me, how about you?

My husband and I are big fans of horse racing...we decided, almost on a whim, to get this particular mare off the track and retired to a good home. We had been following her for three years and she was quickly disappearing into the cracks, so I felt compelled to at least TRY to get her. Local writer for the Daily Racing Form caught wind of our project and did a little piece on it, it was really cool, and I hope it inspires other people: Retired racehorses: One fan does her part to find mare a home | Daily Racing Form

Figured I would add a pic of the most recent piece finished.

Yes!

I haven't seen much mention of them in this thread--does anyone else get shooting nerve pain during tattoos? Those are always the worst for me. IE, when I had my back done, I had nerve pain shooting into my chest, so my chest hurt during parts of my back. Then other sections had nerve pain going down to my elbows. When I had the top of my foot done, the actual tattoo wasn't bad at all (got caught up on a novel I was reading during the session), but again the nerve pain shooting up my leg wasn't too pleasant. As for actual area being tattooed, my lower center back over the spine was the worst for me, personally. So far, anyway :)

Never been called a tattoo snob to my face, but I know I am one. That said, I never diss anyone's tattoo, even if they ask me for my opinion. Everyone's tattoo has meaning to them, even if it's a piece of shit. Who am I to take away from that? I will diss tattoos in the privacy of my own home/vehicle/whatnot with my husband, however (also a tattoo snob). I've also emailed my artist a couple particularly bad tattoos for fun too...... :)

Yeah, he does great work...but I have not seen many animal portraits from him. I am being extremely choosy about who does this particular tattoo, unfortunately. This cat meant the world to me and he will always have a special place in my heart, so I feel that I need to find someone with a lot of experience doing pet portraits. Hope that isn't too corny.

Thank you.... @hawk, I guess a part of the problem is who I want to tattoo my ribs--I want a realistic b/w portrait of a childhood cat, which is totally not Ben's style, so I need to find someone who specializes in this. So far the only person I have found that I would trust to do a good job is Tom Renshaw. And yes, I saw the joke about how Detroit hurts the worst :D RoryQ, yeah I made that mistake with my back tattoo. Did the whole outline in one sitting, then Ben started shading the lower center spine and I was dying inside. I had to call it quits after only 45 minutes of shading. From then on I went in expecting the worst on my back, and the sessions weren't as bad.

My dad is from the UK and we would visit his hometown every other year when I was young. It was around 1986 and little ole me was sitting in the lower level of one of those red double decker buses, waiting at a red light in London traffic. Outside on the sidewalk were some punk kids--crazy hair, skinny jeans. What I remember most of all were their tattoos--each kid had multiple small tattoos scattered all over their arms. I thought it the most amazing thing.

I guess I'm forced to make an introduction here! I googled "most painful area to get a tattoo" the other day because I want to get my ribs done someday, but am 110% sure it will be a nightmare (but then again I'm always 110% sure each tattoo will be a killer, when in reality most of the the hours in the chair aren't that bad). Google led me to a thread on this forum and I found it a great read....and all the votes for full back as one of the worst gave me a little confidence :) I have ~50 hours of work and am a longtime regular at Deluxe Tattoo (Ben Wahhh). My husband also has work from him. Maybe I'll convince him to register and post photos of his lower legs--they are amazing! We live in the western suburbs with four cats, a lot of aquariums and a horse at a boarding barn up the road. I write reports on laboratory work as my job and make jewelry as a hobby. I also enjoy running...I ran ultra-marathons in 2009-2010 but lately have focused more on horseback riding since my mare isn't getting any younger at age 21, and I want to enjoy the years I have with her. I also LOVE horror movies!!! Good, bad, everything in between. I hope this was enough of an intro!