vPooch

@vPooch pic work this time?

I seem to process pain differently from a lot of people - that said, no, the forearm is not particularly bad at all!

Remember to breathe while you are being tattooed, it helps a lot! I find that if you really concentrate on breathing deeply, filling your lungs from the bottom up, it helps center you, prepare your mind and body, and make it through the pain. The more it hurts, the more you should concentrate on your breathing. Literally breathe *through* the pain. This is my trick! I use it in all aspects of life. It absolutely helps.

You can make it through 4.5 hours! If you really want it it won't hurt nearly as badly as it might otherwise ;). The end result makes it all worth it.

Yeah the pic worked and wow that looks really good! And thanks for the advice I will try that out. I have a bunch of piercings and can handle those pretty well

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@vPooch my artist is completing the pair of Karajishi that I started a few weeks ago - we were going to do both but ran out of time! I travel to see her, so we try to get as much done in one go round as possible. On the 12th (which is also my bday - holla!) I am not sure what we are doing! i know she has an idea of what's coming next, and I assume we'll talk about that when I come in on the 11th. Here's a pic I scraped from their instagram...hope the link works? Ack, the link seems to work but the image is so big! Sorry!

Anyway, that's what we did last time, and that's on my back. We started with peonies on my flank and are working our way up the body! The second karajishi is going to go on my front thigh. I will post pics!

The pic didnt work but it sounds sick! The artist said it will take him between 4 and 4 1/2 hours I hope I can make it through that long. How painful is the forearm to get tattooed I heard it isn't unbearable.

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@Mark Bee: a man after my own heart! @vPooch I literally obsess over tattoos. I stare at every tattoo I see (and people think I'm creepy...). I stare at my own tattoos! I flip through all tattoo art books I have. I hover outside of tattoo shops. So...perhaps I don't handle it very well, but I saturate my brain with everything tattoo! That waiting period is brutal sometimes! :)

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@vPooch I just went through and read the thread from the beginning. I started getting tattooed when I was 17 (on a fake ID in NY! Oh, the days before 9/11 when you could literally walk into a shop and walk out with a fake ID without it being treason! oy vey!). I started small, and I'm really glad I did, because my tattoo aesthetic did not really round out for another...8 years or so? I'm still learning and refining to this day because there is so much great art out there!

Anyway - it's awesome that you're going with a cool Japanese piece and that the artist is stoked about it! That said, heed what the others are saying. There is a LOT that happens between 16 & 18, 18 & 20, 20 & 22, 22 -25....things start calming down a bit around 25, but your aesthetic, your life, your ideas - all are still forming and changing and a work in progress...just much less so than when you're in your late teens. (life is ALWAYS and FOREVER a work in progress...don't forget that!)

The main problem is that you'll discover more (and better) artists as the years go by...don't want to run out of room for them, do you?!?

Anyway - post the pic when you're done! I'm excited to see how it turns out! I'm also getting tattooed on the 11th (& 12th! super stoked!)...we can have picture day! :)

Thanks for the advice and I'm definitely worried about running out of room already because i have been looking at some of the great artists people have been recommending on this site that I want to get work done by. I have also been taking in what the other people have been saying and having that on my mind. What are you getting on the 11th and 12th ? :D

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Ahhh 8 days so stoked...Wish I could travel forward in time to get it done :p . How do you guys deal with the dreaded waiting period after booking a tattoo?

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Yeah the first design I wasn't 100% sure about so I told him what needed to be changed and he changed it really fast. I will diffinitly be tipping he has made a lot of really helpful suggestions and gave me great advice on design and placement and I LOVE the design. Thank you and I will be posting pictures ASAP.

Hi vPooch,

I am an older gal (45) that just got her first tattoo a couple of weeks ago and I wanted to give you some advice about your appointment. I don't know the driving age where you are but try to have someone take you and pick you up. It's an exhausting yet exciting time for you and you will just want to breath when it's done. Take bottled water with you and drink it during your session. I had to lie down for mine and the water gave me little breaks and kept the dry mouth away. Try to eat a decent meal before you go so nerves don't get to your tummy. Listen very carefully to your artist when you are done so that you know how to take care of your tattoo when you get home. Try to get that care in writing if you can so that you don't have to remember exactly what he said. I wish you nothing but the best, you sound like a great kid with a solid head on your shoulders and I am proud of you for being brave about coming on here and being polite in regards to what these fine folks said to you. They only mean the best for you. Be safe and share your experience with us.

Thanks A LOT for your advice first time I've hear "great kid with solid head on your shoulders" in awhile haha your reply along with the others are making me feel great about joining this forum thank you! I will definitely be posting my experience of getting it done along with pictures when it happens. By the way 14 days :D

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Ahh 17 more days until the big day any advice on how to kill time faster? :p or anything I should do maybe a week before the big day?

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Thanks! And I will for sure be posting pics when it is finished :) Now what to do during the long wait haha :P

Appointment is booked for April 11th because the artist is booked til then the artwork he showed me is easily 10x better than what I had showed him it looks like a more traditional piece of Japanese art. I did not want to take a picture of it because I wasn't sure if that was a bad idea or not. I am SO STOKED though :D

The artist called me today and said he was finished with the artwork and we are going to talk about placement and scheduling. SO EXCITED :D. I am going in tomorrow :D

Thanks I will definitely keep you guys posted!

Yeah I came here for advice that I will follow but I am still gunna get the tattoo I am going to get a smaller one and change the location I didn't want to cause anything by coming here I lurked for awhile and saw that people were giving other people great advice and I just wanted to see what advice you guys would give me. Again I reallly appreciate all of the input

honestly, i don't think it's all that bad. someone has to start somewhere. but this dude should without a doubt, 100% heed peoples warnings. if you're 16, and someone older than you that has tattoos is trying to advise you do something opposite what you are planning to do, it's for a good reason. i am so god damn glad i didn't get tattooed at 16, 18, or even 20 or 21. i probably would've gotten the lamest shit, and went to bunk tattooers.

Thanks for the advice honestly I dont think the design is bad at all I really like it and the artist is changing alot of it all of the advice that has been given I have been thinking about and appreciate all of it

Yes like @Johannes said watch the interviews. All of them. Twice. At least.

Yeah I've watched the Oliver Peck one twice already are the any that are "must watch"?

i can understand that but i personally think it's too much drama in those shows, but if you like, then fine! but if you wanna see good artwork...just check the instagram stream thing whatever right here ----->

i get stuck sometimes just sitting and watching the pics go by...

Yeah I looked at some of those I really enjoyed some of them and I watched an interview it was really good! Thanks for the recommendation!

never watch miami or la ink to get ideas or even to i don't know....just watch the interview vids on here instead....

Its not for ideas I dont know I just like the artwork

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@Rilla What were your experiences with your first tattoo? What age? if you don't mind me asking :)

Not at all, grew up in Red Deer, was your age, but it was 1997 and as a rule shops are a little friendlier now than they were even 15 years ago (can't imagine 30). I was a skinny, scared shitless teenager so they figured it was a good time for an "artist" to do their first tattoo. Luckily it's on my shoulder blade and doesn't get seen too often.

The patch can be a great place to work and make money, but it's not always for everybody, I've seen a lot of peoples plans change between 17-20. My 2 cents, I wouldn't recommend a first tattoo on a forearm. Take some time on this site, read as many of the threads as you can handle and make a decision from there. I'm 32 and this site has helped me reign some things in and go in more sensible directions, so it can probably keep helping you too. Good luck.

Thanks for the advice I really appreciate it I'm going to start reading some threads and I've been watching a lot of miami ink and la ink maybe I will stick with the same design but put it on my chest or side just in case. Thanks!

Ill second this.

Ive made three trips to Sanitary Electric since last September and have been beyond happy with all of my tattoos. Mind you I was going more traditional and only got work from Dax, but Ive hung out there multiple times outside tattoo time (to pop by, show the healed product, shoot the shit, etc) and seen Chad do many Japanese pieces and they were all amazing. I highly recommend paying the extra to get it from Chad. Seriously.

Not that you have to answer this, but may I ask who/or where your looking to get yours done? My first tattoo was a Japanese piece on my rib cage a while back. Not traditional Japanese, but heavily Ukiyo-e inspired. I got it at another shop in Van. To say the least, Im looking into having it faded/removed by laser and one day covered by a piece from Chad.

Also, I cant say enough about waiting like others have already. Especially at your age.

Thank you that is something i may have considered earlier but I already paid the 100$ no refund deposit/sitting fee last week. I am getting it done in abbotsford about an hour drive from Vancouver I looked at both of their work and they do an amazing job I am happy with the image and placement and the artists portfolio I know waiting would make sense but I have been interested and looking at tattoos and mainly Japanese designs and just talked about it with my parents and after awhile convinced them to sign for it. I know I wont regret it and I trust the artist to do a good job. Thank you all for your input I will post pictures when it is complete.

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@Rilla What were your experiences with your first tattoo? What age? if you don't mind me asking :)

If you look at his work, and you think it's good, that's what it's all about. I don't think a yard-n-a-half is radical cheap, even for the big city. You don't need to pay four-hundred an hour to get good work. As far as appointment times, if he means he can fit you in somewhere, well that isn't a warning signal to me. If he flat-out doesn't have any appointments, well that might be!

Hate to beat a dead horse, but I usually call Nick Colella like a week before I want to get tattooed, tops. Have gotten a lot of work at CTC just walking though the door. SOme street shops pride themselves on taking care of walk-ins and last-minute customers, and you may have found one of them.

Anyhow, look through his portfolio, look at any of his work you can find to look at in-person, people that work with him, his own ink, like that, and if you like it, and you are happy with his design, well, GO FOR IT!

Yeah for me i thought that it was expensive but I am new to tattoos so i didnt know forsure and yeah he has appointments I'm not to worried about that and the comment about it not being good cause hes tattooing a 16 year old im not sure if you know but its legal to tattoo at 16 in canada with parental consent

That isn't the final rendering is it?

Also @Graeme said it best. The fact that they can "get you in anytime" and their hourly rate, could suggest you may not end up with the quality of tattoo you want.

No that is not the final rendering and he is booked for the two weeks that he will be changing the picture. How much would a really good artists hourly rate be because I went to a couple shops and the prices were anywhere between 60 to 200$ an hour and the guy that is doing mine in my opinion had a really good portfolio.

A nice design - so hopefully the artist is up to it.

Honestly - myself, I wouldn't recommend anyone start with their 1st tattoo on their forearm - especially where the person in question is so far from knowing what kind of profession you're going to be in 17 years (a lifetime) from now.

The reason I chose the forearm because i was thinking that would be the best place to start for a sleeve. I realize it isn't necessarily the smartest choice given my age but I do have a strong idea of what I'm going to be doing as a profession (oil rigs of Alberta heavy equipment operator) but thank you for the input! And the artist was stoked when i showed him the picture :D

Hello I would just like to introduce myself I live in the lower mainland I am 16 (17 in 2 months) and have booked my first tattoo (With both of my parents signing the consent form). The artist is in the process of making the design I showed him his own which he said would take around 2 weeks then almost anytime after that I can go in. I am getting a Japanese koi with a dragon head on my forearm in black and grey. I am going to eventually build off of that and turn it into a sleeve. I have attached a picture of what the artist is changing into his own. He quoted 4 to 4 and a half hours at 125$ an hour. I was wondering what you guys think? Thanks!