HettyKet

Could you not just add on around the panther to make a full back piece? That would work really nicely. Bloody love a good panther.

You mean a Death's Head Hawmoth? They are cool little creatures, for sure. Plenty online about references to them in literature and art. 7 inches sounds pretty small for a stand alone chest piece unless you have a teeny, petite build or you'll be adding other elements around it.

Check this

@Tiresius getting tattooed has cured me of a lot of that too, like @Kurgana says. Well, helped a lot anyway. It's not really my cup of tea, but this guy does a lot of stuff along the lines of the style you like. He uses what many people here would probably consider 'enough' black but it's absolutely not traditional https://www.instagram.com/thedavidcote/

@rufio @ChrisvK ha. ik ook. Well, more or less.

Exactly. Is amazing stuff. No wonder we've been using it for healing for centuries eh ;) Belly (and the rest) are by this most excellent chap: https://www.instagram.com/willem666/

Oh, but I actually came over here because I'd linked to the thread and wanted to add my post pregnancy belly tattoo. Here

@polliwog I wish I'd seen this last year, have you had any of the areas tattooed now? I hope so. I found exposing my scars really very hard, even though I'd been 'out' with them for years. Same with my knackered belly skin. It'd been years since I'd done any damage but the urge did pop up now and again. I've had not a whiff of an urge since the tattoos. Nada. The actual tattooing, the process, seemed to really help somehow.

@Musashi yes, do go for it. I've made a good start on my belly and it looks so, so much better. The damage on the untattooed skin is less noticeable and I feel much better for it too. After two comedy-bellied pregnancies the skin was fucked. Crepey in places, stretch marks, weird stuff with the navel. I almost did't dare to get it out to see if it was tattoo-able but the women on the Ladies Thread helped me grow some ovaries and crack on with it. I think it was pretty hard work to tattoo, it'd probably have been quicker and easier if i'd been a bit heavier (like I am at the mome

Oh, yes, welcome! Sorry. Have you got photos of any of your tattoos? We love those here.

Was part of the design drawn on, or was it all stencil? I've heard it said that sometimes skin reacts like this for some people when they're tattooed over sharpie.

It breaks the itch / inflammation / over reactive cycle. If it's that itchy and ice doesn't work you're almost certainly having a reaction. Most likely not to the ink mind, just to something in your environment (or several things even). Sensitive skin that's 'upset' for whatever reason will often react to things that would normally be fine. Skin that's already reacting is even more susceptible to reactions, and so on until it reaches hysteria.

If it's that bad I'd just take an antihistamine. I'm an itchy person (eczema, highly reactive skin, random dryness) and in my overly varied experience it's very rare for ice not to kill an itch. When it doesn't antihistamine always will.

Thank you @Devious6, very kind!

@Gingerninja That's sweet, but no. Just fancied stabbing stuff ;)