Diehardonvhs

Thankyou, I asked specifically for the eyes to be like that, I love odd-eyed cats! The split tail comes from Japanese folklore, I've always loved the Nekomata especially, they supposedly are cats that were treated badly in life, and in death gain the powers of necromancy, murder and arson for their malevolent revenge. Bad kitties.

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Well since Stewart posted it on his instgram.....I will repost it here. Mine is top left. I will post a bigger pic when it heals.

I haven't posted this on here yet. Session four on my back, we shaded my butt and thigh.

Hey everyone. It's been a while so here are a couple new things.
Got the "born lost" skull from Ross K. Jones at Idle Hand's get what you want. The flash was redrawn by Austin Maples.
Also got this shishi head from Koji Ichimaru while he's at SOG.

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Corey that sucked

Done by Curt Baer while he was guesting at Dark Age Tattoo in Seattle. He is a big man with a sexy beard.
Sorry for the shiny pic!

I hear you. Believe it not, we're not all millionaires on this board. The most famous and/or expensive artists aren't necessarily the best, and there are some lesser-known artists out there who are incredible and don't charge an arm and a leg. You just have to find 'em.
The thing is, it's not like buying a Kia in hopes of affording a Mercedes someday. (Not that there's anything wrong with buying a cheap car if it gets you there.) You're stuck with that thing for life. So you may as well save up even if it takes a year or more -- which is how long it takes to get an appointment with some of these folks anyway. And we're just talking about local artists! Think about the people who travel to get tattooed – sometimes overseas. Not all of 'em are rich, just committed.
Like my new signature says:

Check out Jess Yen @ My Tattoo

Well I haven't posted in forever but I've been following along, anyway, started my back on the weekend, didn't finish the outline but after 7 hours I had to call it quits, Im pretty embarrassed I had to tap out. Anyway, Done by Scott Duncan at Sugar Shack Tattoo in Kincardine

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Tattoo number two today! With Greg Whitehead again, photo from his instagram...not a great shot but it's good enough!

Sounds like I'm coming back in a week to put a rose on my elbow, too. I'm guessing that one's gonna be fun.*
*not fun

great thread idea!
as a result of wanting my tattoos to heal nicely i've gotten into eating significantly healthier and crossfit/weightlifting so my ass will look nice on instagram #tattooedmanbutt #instamanbutt #buttgram
i'm more willing to travel if there are tattoos involved in the trip. visited nyc, austin, montreal, and burlington vt for the first time as a result of tattoo collecting.
i also hangout with more canadians than i did prior to tattoos

I'll admit that when I got in to tattooing, I was directed to Richard Stell without knowing a damn thing about him. The guest spot news was broken on this website, and I was pushed by several members to take the plunge and get something.
Should I feel dirty about that by going to a big name and not knowing his legacy? Maybe. I put my trust in the knowledge here on LST, and I never had a doubt I was making a poor decision. I wanted to be part of a community, and experience the things that other people were experiencing, so I just went with it. Was asking him to do something uncharacteristic of his style wrong? Some people may think so. Asking an artist to do a different style could be considered sacrilege to some. In my naivete I asked for something he doesn't generally do, but damn if he wasn't excited to do it.
I have no regrets, and I also learned that you don't really understand someone until you meet them. You could follow artists on Instagram, and hear about them in other shops from other people's experiences, but until you sit with Stell and hear him, first hand, talk about his old biker days and how he had pet alligators and all the other crazy stuff, you can't fully understand.
I would hope that people who seek out big names, solely for the name, have a better respect for that person afterwards instead of just, "Yeah I got XX to do this."

I am slammed at work, yet I just read this entire thread. And I'm glad that I did, because there's some great back and forth in it. Thanks to everyone who posted something good here.
I don't count my tattoos, but I do keep a list of who has tattooed me. Two weeks from today, I'm getting something from someone who's been on my wish list for a few years now. He'll be artist #42 for me. Then again, I started getting tattooed 20+ years ago. Some of the names on that list are very well-known. Some of them are complete unknowns. One of them is no longer alive, two of them have since stopped tattooing, and three of them were shit on in the this thread's first post. ;) Not a single name on that list makes me better (or worse) than anyone else who gets tattooed. But every one of them is a part of a story--my story. Just as every tattoo I have comes with a story of its own. I love meeting people and sharing stories, which is part of what I love so much about getting tattooed and hanging out with awesome people like so many of you.
I'll stop rambling now, but thanks again to those of you who made this thread worth reading.

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

My arm by Joel Madberg, Salvation Tattoo Stockholm:

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

Nekomata Monmon Cat - By Horitomo, State Of Grace.
Done at the London tattoo convention 2014!

This came from the shop that you said elsewhere puts out better work than Shige, Horiyoshi, and Eli Quinters? Nice tattoo, but I feel you may have oversold the shop a little bit.

I've seen work from "name" artists that wasn't the greatest, but I wouldn't say any of them have "lost" it. They are all human and have off days. I used to get bent out of shape if I noticed anything on a tattoo what wasn't perfect, but now I step back and look at the piece as a whole. It would be ridiculous to write off a whole suit based on a couple blow outs/poorly healed shading here and there.
I'm in the same boat as @Graeme , I've travelled for tattoos based on how the work connects with me, and how the interaction was with the artist themselves. Skill is irrelevant if the person is an asshole.
That being said, Horiyoshi III finished this piece up in July. Can't say I'd object to being the owner!