BrookR70

There's a very small area on my tattoo that should be red instead of green. It's not a big deal, but it's more for technical accuracy. Before I ask my artist if it can be done, I'd like to run it by the folks on this forum. It's my buoy tattoo in my profile and the area is the top of the buoy. It should be red like the base of the buoy instead of green.

Thanks.

I got this one finished today. I was told that the green in the buoy will settle down in a day or so.

The artist is Papa Joe in Boise, ID.

This is in progress and should be finished today.

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This was my stash of shaving gear about a year ago. Unfortunately, it's grown. I've since settled on 4 razors (Edwin Jagger is my favorite) and 3-4 blade types. I tried straights but didn't care for them (not sharp enough and too much maintenance). I've been working through my soaps and creams and I have about 3 more years to go assuming I don't make any new purchases, which is hard to do.

Here's my buddy Stanley...a 12-year old Sun Conure.

And, of course, the matching tattoo...

Not to sidetrack the thread, but I bet a lot of these tattoos were craigslist specials/barters. If you discovered that a good artist you knew about advertised on craigslist, would you think less of him/her?

I browse craiglist occasionally to see if I can score my next tapout special </sarcasm>. I've seen a few good artists post quality work (assuming it was their work) and actual shops that advertise in craigslist. I wouldn't go to any of them, but I can see how this would be tempting to people who can't afford good work or can only barter.

I had these done last November. It was a fun tattoo to honor my kid.

Playing in a dart league, I'm surrounded by lots of people with bad tattoos. A lot of them are working class folks that just can't afford to spend $200/hr. on an artist. That said, when I see scratch work, or when I see someone with a Nike logo tattooed on their leg, I get palm-to-forehead syndrome. I actually find it amusing, but I would never berate their tattoo to suggest to them that they need to find a better artist. For all I know, they could be prison tattoos, and I'd rather not mess with someone who has done time.

When I see someone with quality work, I'll go up to them and chat with them about it. It's a great icebreaker when talking to people because I'm normally pretty reserved.

I haven't been approached or judged by anyone because my tattoos are covered up 99% of the time. The tattoos I have are solid but not spectacular. I found an artist that I like and I'm beginning to understand his strengths and weaknesses. Right now I value consistency of style, so I'm going to continue seeing him until I decide to change things up. I only have 4 at the moment, but I'm going for my 5th on Tuesday.

I think I'll hold off on the razor until I get a couple of more pieces done unless he mentions razors himself or expresses curiosity about them. I'm picking up a sign tomorrow and will give him a 30% tip. I'm due to get another tattoo in November (when the wife goes out of town). Maybe then.

I stick with gifts: cash is always green, but objects as gifts should really be nail-on-the-head to their tastes. One of the reasons I no longer accept gifts from people (although booze for me is ok)

Yeah...I think it might be. The razor I'm thinking about giving him is a vintage 1940s Schick Injector (they used to issue them to the troops during WWII) and he specializes in traditional american, so I think it would be right up his alley.

My wife asked me if I would volunteer to be a canvas (hate that word) for that show. I thought about it, and NO...I would not. The artists seem to have way too much pressure to ever get into their zone. They're running on low sleep, they're getting harassed by their fellow artists, their getting harassed by the judges, and then they're getting it from their clients. On top of that, they may be assigned a bad tattoo by some dickhead who wants to get them kicked off the show.

I understand that they have to go through that BS just to make the show entertaining, but let's face it, tattooing in itself is a pretty boring activity. You're drawing on paper and then transferring that drawing onto skin. The clients are (mostly) cool, and if not, they leave and find someone else, or you kick them out. You set your own hours and work only when you want to get paid.

No wonder a lot of these artists on the show produce crap work. And would you volunteer to be a canvas knowing that you have a very good chance of getting a bad piece? I know tattooing is a craps shoot...there are no guarantees, but to me it's worth it to pay a few hundred bucks to stack the odds a little more in my favor. I would wash my artist's car, take his laundry to the dry cleaners, and bring him a cup of chamomile tea before bed if I thought it would improve my chances of getting a better tattoo.

I was thinking about giving my artist a vintage razor (and a $ tip) for a sign that he's painting for my father-in-law. I collect vintage razors and have about 50 of them. I use some, sell some, and display some.

What do you think...is this gift too personal?

For those that have given gifts, what did you give your artist and how many tattoos do you have by that artist?

I keep getting "but it's for life! (repeated 100 times)" remark from my wife...as if that thought had never dawned on me. Because, you know, I can be a little slow at times and perhaps the concept was completely above my head.

So my usual response is "well, it's not really for life because I've already lived over half my life and will only be around for another 22 years because I plan on dying at age 65."

...and then silence.

What the heck.

I know many of you have already seen this. Anyway, it's almost healed and was done by Papa Joe Dawson.

I'm kind of struggling with this. I have one on each shoulder blade and one is a bit larger than the other. I'm trying to think of filler designs for the smaller one to try to balance it out, but I'm afraid that it will look cluttered. But since I'm sticking with traditional american, I'm not overly worried because it seems most people with that style have that cluttered look.

I went and checked out the shop and loved it. You guys do the best pinups I've seen in the area.

I find women with good tattoos irresistible. It's also much easier to strike up a conversation with them since we have something in common.

But, my wife hates them, although she finds my 20-year old dolphin tattoo cute. In the last two months I've gotten 2 new tattoos and it has caused quite a stir. I've kept them on my back so she doesn't see them as often, but I'm planning on getting one more and then I will be done.

But she knows other than the tattoo thing, that I'm a good husband and father and she can see the big picture. But, no matter how many episodes of NY Ink, Tattoo Nightmares, or Ink Master I force her to watch, she doesn't like them. I even dragged her to the local tattoo fest.

She still doesn't appreciate them. Oh well, I guess I'll be sleeping in a t-shirt for as long as we are married.

Before I met my wife, I had a single dolphin tattoo on my hip that I got while I was in the Navy. We've known each other for about 7 years. She's just the girl next door type and doesn't like tattoos. She didn't speak to me for 3 days after I got my last one, which was actually a nice break.

Did you start getting tattooed before you got married? Not trying to point the finger at your relationship but my other half would never discourage me from doing something I loved despite his opinions. (He has no tattoos and no plans to get any).

- - - Updated - - -

Yeah...so maybe a U-Haul truck parked on an island dumping a bunch of crap (refrigerator, sofa, bird cages) next to a palm tree. I love it!

Trust me, left to my own devices, i would have a few more in other places, but the wife hates them. So this is a compromise. The bug has bitten me hard. I love getting tattooed...even when it starts to get painful, I love it.

But, I'm in no rush to get this one done. I'm just looking for ideas and inspiration.

Thanks for the replies.

I'm searching for some inspiration for a design that will be placed between my shoulder blades. The tattoo will be flanked by the two I already have and I have about 6 inches of horizontal space to play with.

Some of the themes I'm thinking about: road trips, home (North San Diego County, California), moving from place to place (I've moved 13 times in the last 20 years), isolation.

Some of the images I've thought about are: a lighthouse of the beach I used to frequent as a kid (although I think lighthouses have been overdone); a desert scene with a lonely road and mountains in the background that would extend past my current tattoos; two smaller flash tattoos to make my shoulder look like a trad american sleeve with small "filling" tattoos; a buoy getting tossed around around in waves that would extend across my shoulders; and island with a palm tree (too cliche?). Maybe a U-Haul truck?

The other image I attached because I like it, as well.

Thanks for any and all ideas.

I had/still have concerns with the anchor competing with the Sun Conure for attention. In the original sketch, there was a big circle at the "T" where the metal and wood meet. I went in two days before my appointment and had him edit that out. In the original sketch, my eye was stuck on the big circle right above the sun conure's head. It disrupted the basic "Z" flow of the design too much and would have competed too much with the red circle on the anchor and the conure's head.

I do think the bright colors on the anchor and rope compete with the sun conure. It would be nice if the anchor was a little more subdued so that the conure stands out a little more. The rope is a bit much, and the tattoo would have looked cleaner without it, but the red on the anchor frames the tattoo nicely.

I guess I could have given a whole lot more input, but I didn't want to be pain in ass and I wanted the artist to just do what he does best. I'm very happy with it. It's big and bold and colorful.

So anyway, the process was fun but exhausting.

I think what stands out most for me in terms of this being a really rad tattoo, is that there is no negative space left within the lines, all of the color is packed right to the edge. Most people can't pull that look off for shit, and I don't really care for the aesthetic. This one has a lot of continuity within the bird and within the anchor, so they really stand out from each other and you don't lose sight of the design amongst everything going on in the tattoo. I like it a lot.

Thanks for the kind words Graeme. After the first tattoo I got (I went in blindly and just got it before doing my research), I was rather upset that everything wasn't perfect, which caused me to reevaluate my artist and go to just about every single shop in my area to look at portfolios. After seeing more of his work and seeing everyone else's work, I really began to appreciate his style, and I love his coloring. So I felt really good going into this session and knew what to expect. With my expectations properly set, I'll have to say that I'm blown away by it every time I see it. There are a few flaws, but I like them. I feel very lucky that I landed in the right shop.

It's funny, because 2 months ago, I wasn't even considering a tattoo. I had a small conversation with him while getting my hair cut. He was in the barber chair next to me complaining about the tattoo reality shows. I'm really looking forward to getting more work done by him, but I don't have any pressing design ideas right now. I may just have to get some of his flash tattooed on me.

And now for something completely different.

I had this piece done on Saturday. It's a tribute to my pet Sun Conure. Done by Papa Joe Dawson. His lines can be a little quirky sometimes, but that's partly why I like his work.

So here is a sketch of the parrot and anchor and I'm going to get this Saturday. The only change I'm possibly having the artist do is to change the head of the parrot from a macaw to a sun conure. I'm not sure how this will work out, so I'm open to keeping it as a macaw but with sun conure colors (I own a sun conure and he is the inspiration behind this tattoo). So while I would like it to represent my pet as best as possible, my priority is having a solid design.

I do have one question about placement. The new tattoo is 30% larger than the one in my avatar. The artist thinks it would would look good on my opposite shoulder blade, but I'm worried it would look a little out of balance. Another option would be to place the new tattoo between my shoulder blades and then get another on my right shoulder that is roughly the same size as my original tattoo. And yet another option would be to scale down the tattoo so it's roughly the size of the original. My only hesitation is that I will lose detail.

Thoughts on both placement and design?

Thanks

I'm struggling with blank space too. I'm due to get my next tattoo on Saturday and can't decide if I should get it on my right shoulder to balance the tattoo on my left shoulder or if I should place it between my shoulders so I am committed to getting another one on my right shoulder. But, I feel lucky to have this problem.