Diehardonvhs

Just joking man, it is a good healing method, I just always think of the reaction I would have got from the boss of a studio I used to work in if I suggested we started ordering it for all the customers. It would have gone along the lines of "Shut the fuck up ballbag, go and clean some tubes".

I guess some studios could order some in and offer it as an alternative for regular customers, if they wanted to pay a little extra, for some areas of the body I might definitely order some for myself to use.

Hey! Good taste that man. Keep it up!

Which artist did the girl with the moon on your chest? The line around the edge of the moon is unreal.

You were the one who asked for downsides, those are the downsides. The cost is not negligible, for a large studio of full time artists it would be insane to order enough for everyone to use for every tattoo. Plus you have to use cling film for a variety of other things anyway, surfaces, chairs, armrests, spray bottles, you always have some very close to hand, it's always there, its much more convenient. It sounds like you are a lobbyist for one of these companies!

Yeah I think they have their own area upstairs, I'm honestly not sure, this is my first time with Valerie :-) I was very lucky to pick up a cancellation - she had 3 (!) this week - always worth following her twitter to see what comes up!

I'm in at 12:30, I have no idea how long we will be, hopefully catch you as we are finishing up, I definitely want to say hello to Frank anyway! Have fun anyway if I don't see you and happy birthday!

Yeah that's expensive, when you are using acres of the stuff every year! Cling film is £1 for 60 metres of the stuff, sometimes cheaper in bulk!

Also if you want to talk idiot factor, trust me, certain people will find a way to forget everything you just told them the second they leave the studio. There will never be an aftercare method that someone will not find a way to fuck up monumentally.

Haven't posted in quite some time but i've just booked an(other) appointment with Frank Carter on monday to fill in some space i have on my right forearm. Probably gonna be something knifey, which makes me happy. Bonus happy points because monday is my 30th birthday, i've always thought the best presents are the ones you buy yourself!

Nice one buddy!! I am in with Valerie on Monday - I'll say hi if our appointments overlap!

^ Its more expensive than just using cling film, and its a bit fiddly to get on correctly. If I was an artist I doubt I would buy it to use on every client, could get a bit pricey!

"I use being a woman to my advantage...especially because guys are dumb enough to do what I say."

Direct quote from ashley. Fucking ambassador for feminism right here.

I think I am the same as a lot of people here - If I book with an artist then I already know that I love their work, and I am happy to let them have the freedom to do a design as they think it should be done - not like how I may have had it stuck in my head. Nitpicking details would make me feel like I was acting like I know better than them, when I really, really don't.

I do a bit of both, one artist for my biggest work(full sleeves, full back and maybe ribs/stomach in future), and other artists for smaller single session or mid-sized tattoos. I learned after doing my thigh that I really didn't enjoy travelling over and over again for big multi session tattoos, and forget about sitting multiple days in a row on the same area, so now with conventions or overseas appointments with relatively big name artists I keep it simple and small(ish)! I've been tattooed by 8 artists I think...

I really, really enjoy meeting some of my favourite artists and getting tattooed by them, there's nothing like it, but my local studio is like my second home and family, no matter who I get tattooed by in the world the first thing I want to do is get back and show my friends there!

Hi there! Welcome! Do you have any pictures of your tattoos?

Never too early!! Yes, I am looking forward to it already - I have just secured an appointment with Horitomo, which is just, ridiculously exciting, I can't believe how lucky I am! I also talked to Filip Leu a couple of months ago about an appointment...but I will have to wait a couple months on that one, he didn't know if he has space and the person who deals with his convention appointments is off travelling, if he is full I totally understand - he must have people waiting a long time for a space with him! Last years convention was amazing, this looks like it might be even better!

Hello! I approve of your VHS collection. It's like the vinyl of movies - apart from literally nothing like vinyl.

Seriously! I used to sit really well, but I'm down to three, three and a half hours on my back and I'm barely functional at the end of it. 5 and 6 hours is pretty good in my book. The back has been the only tattoo to bring me to my quitting point nearly every session--this shit is hard.

Same with me buddy - the most I could handle on my back was 4. And that was a solid 4, no messing around, no breaks, just 4 solid hours of shading, and my artist has a heavy hand holding a 49 mag. Felt like death at the end of it. To the person saying they think they feel bad for tapping out - don't. Get back for the next session, do as much as you can, whether its two hours or eight, then keep going back and going back until it's done. You will be proud of yourself at the end, guarantee it!

Nah, she's really nice, if she thinks anything won't work or isn't tattooable, she will just tell you - trust me, if liv hated your ideas she would have never booked you in, I can promise you that!!

The first time I heard that was from Oliver Peck, in the video where he's getting his palm tattooed by Thomas Hopper at Frith Street. I say it every time I am getting a no-pants session done now.

Hi there, welcome to the site! I really don't mean to bum you out man, but the artist who did this has no business tattooing, everything about the execution is hugely lacking, the lines are very bad, shaky and uneven, and the shading is heinous. I would recommend never going back to the person who did this and never giving them money again. If you are tremendously lucky you may find a decent artist to fix this up, but be warned that a lot of artists do not fix or rework other peoples tattoos. On the plus side since it is so light it could be lasered or covered quite easily, compared to very dark tattoos anyway.

Awesome! I'm really excited to meet her. Nice to meet another Manchester resident here. Any UK artists you would recommend? Firth Street seems popular. Would you say it's worth going to that Manchester tattoo convention in August?

Yeah there's loads of great talent in the UK - Frith Street is a fantastic studio, I've been tattooed there before and definitely will get tattooed there again, also Rain City in Manchester is a really good studio, Danny Rossiter especially, he's a great artist and a great guy! I'm a big fan of Claudia DeSabe at Black Garden in London, as well as Cassandra Frances who just joined their team. Also Alex Reinke (Horikitsune) in London is another amazing artist. Sneaky Mitch at Dock Street studio in Leeds is also great, Sacred Electric in Leeds is a great studio too. These are just people and studios that I really like, but there's a lot of talent around in other styles too - Bez at Triplesix in Sunderland, Oddboy at Real Art, Nigel Kurt, Paul Naylor, Phatt German, not my thing but undeniably brilliant artists! There's loads I'm missing out, but should give you a good start!

The August Manchester convention has been absolutely pants the last couple of years, its a shame, it used to be quite good! I would recommend the "Tattoo tea party" convention in March next month, it was good fun last year, hopefully it will be the same this time! The Sacred Art guys will be there, and Olivia will be working the Sunday definitely, and maybe the Saturday too.

Dan Sinnes, Ron Henry Wells, Horitomo, Pino Cafaro, Sandor Jordan, El Monga....too many amazing artists, hopefully got enough skin left!!!

Hah! Nice one, I used to work with Olivia - she's a great artist and you are in good hands! Look forward to seeing what she comes up with!

Valium is great. ;)

Fuck yeah it is!!

I tried it once - I found it quite strange at first but it worked out very well! No bad reaction, everything healed great, it was more comfortable sleeping, especially since I was healing 3 different tattoos at once and there wasn't really a good position to sleep in! I wouldn't buy it or use it myself, simply because cling film works fine as well and I don't mind washing fresh tattoos, but if any other artists I go to want to use it I won't complain!

Hell yeah, Alex Reinke AKA Horikitsune always puts out fantastic work, he's a seriously nice dude as well, couldn't really recommend him any more highly. That dragon back piece he just finished completely blew my mind. Ever wish you had like, 4 backs??

Welcome! I was a huge fan of Jasons work, and was very sad to hear of his passing. I used to work with an artist who had both sleeves done by him, her arms were absolutely beautiful. Do you have any other ideas for artists currently? I am sure we could point you towards a huge amount of Japanese tattooing talent if you need help!!