spookysproul

Welcome aboard! I've been wanting to visit Scotland, possibly move there, for quite some time. What I'm saying is that I'm envious of you.

Also coming from a small town and moving directly to San Francisco, I can say that you're definitely not alone in the culture shock. There were a few art dorks in Fort Bragg, but barely any and they didn't really take themselves that seriously. Seeing these kids continues to be a new level of eye-rolling.

That Wiesbeck hand is stunning! I'm particularly fond of the big black right above it.

Somehow I doubt this will weed out bad tattooers, but I appreciate the novelty of this.

that guy is a really good tattooer. And i'd bet a million bucks he's taking precautions when doing these kinds of homie setups. The prices charged at the shop he apprenticed at are bk hipster high if you are trying to make nyc rent as an artist. He shouldn't be advertising this though. Bummed that he's doing that. That's just really stupid, but so new york...

I suppose there's solace in that he's most likely not taking a whole heap of business from a legitimate shop, as it sounds like these folk only want things for free. Here's hoping they share something more than the experience...

I wasn't trying to insult those who make a living in the Ink biz. If I like the artwork I wouldn't have a problem compensating whomever I choose. It's free trade and was a suggestion I probably should have elaborated on. My apologies and no harm no foul.

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I'm residing in San Luis Obispo County. North of Santa Barbara, South of Monterey.

Please keep in mind that I am in no way trying to attack you, as I don't get any sort of malice or any other such tone from your post.

The problem with this is that you're asking people to work on spec, and then maybe you'll pay one of the people involved. This is all going on your word, of which, keep in mind, no one here has any examples of the integrity.

For future reference, it rarely comes across as anything other than rude and condescending to suggest that an artist of any sort work on spec. It suggests that what they do is simple enough and that so little work goes into it that they shouldn't mind whipping something up on the off-chance that the prospective client likes it.

I, for one, won't begin a piece of art for a prospective new client without a significant deposit.

I m also going to blame pinterest. as addicted as I am to that fuckin site. there are so many shitty tattoos being repinned over and over. one sheila I knew went on a tattoo spree- getting about 7 really common pinterest tattoos in a very short time frame. think infinity symbol, peterpan and wendy and the crew flying out behind her ear, a small elephant family and sdome other dumb ones. nothing altered. just "here I found this on pinterest, put it on me" type thing.

I like pinterest and whatever- but I can see how its having a negative flow with tattoos too. im too tired to bother trying to make sense so I hope somebody out there is able to understand my drivel....

It can hardly be all pinterest, as bad tattoos existed long, long before it. But I agree that pinterest helps them spread at an incredible rate. And I know pinterest isn't really 'for guys', or whatever - but I'm just trying to do my part to stop/slow the madness with this board. Good tattoos only - artists always credited.

I would like to expand on this and say it's "social media" in general. Millions of people who have never set foot inside a tattoo shop, have only seen their cousin's "ink" that his friend did for him in his living room, and don't actually see the artwork beyond the social capitol of the tattoo suddenly have all of this emphasis on how cool they would be if they got any tattoo, regardless of content or quality.

So you end up with people like my coworker, who has an entire sleeve (shoulder to knuckles) of the space needle and skulls that appear to have been done with a shader exclusively, and very poorly as well. I believe he got it done at a shop in the mall (of all places) and it looks very much like the quality of tattoo you'd get from a shop in the mall (of all places). However, he's very happy with it. From what I've gathered his only tattoos are that arm, his other hand, his other forearm, and his neck. Usually when someone is peacocking that heavily they're not all that concerned with the overall quality of any of it.

No, my wife did. She is a vet tech and does id tattoos on animals at her clinic. My dog already had a 7yr old alphanumeric tattoo in one ear from the breeder...green ink and it is fading out and getting hard to read. So we took the opportunity to put an additional ID tattoo in the other ear while my dog was getting a dental and under full anesthetic.

/offtopic

My mom was a vet for years before she was an RN, and she did the same thing. Her dogs all had butterflies, though.

You know where there are better references than the internet? Tattoo shops. You know who has a shit ton of flash/books? Tattoo shops. You know who is well acquainted with these collections? Tattooers.

Do some initial poking around, then find a tattooer or shop, then go say, "Hey, I saw this Jerry wolf, the full body one with his tongue hanging out," or whatever you want, and they'll say, "Oh yeah, lemme see, was it this one?" And more than likely, they'll pick out one of the SJ books they've undoubtedly got and flip to the page and you'll say, "Oh yeah, that's it, that line drawing is way better than the one I found online."

I'll second this. And I'll add yet another echo of "If the shop doesn't have the flash, you shouldn't be getting tattooed there." @Synesthesia I personally don't see any qualm with you bringing in a print-out just in case, especially if you're going to a shop that would most likely have it anyways.

Well, since you asked, here are a few of my recent concoctions!

I'm still getting the hang of watercolors, but I'm pretty happy with my progress.

My wife and I have my (now our) family motto in the theban alphabet on our knuckles, I have the first half and she the second.

Other than that, I've had 4 "bro tats" and 4 matching falling-outs with the other folks. All are either covered or have plans to be so.

Just make sure you've known the folks for more than a few months!

I'm really jealous of your appointments. Be sure and post pictures!

Well, I didn't expect to see this today.

I'd like to second the sentiment on avoiding skimping on the piece. I've got some tattoos I paid through the nose for, but I'm much happier that I did that than went for a cheapo.

Also, keep in mind that you won't be paying that all at once. You'll most likely have to wait to get your first session, then wait again for your second session, then again for your third, etc.

I have a shark quoting Babe ("that'll do, pig") on the inside of my ankle, and a spiral from the opening credits of Dark City on my right palm. I'm very fond of entertainment tattoos (movies, music, or books), just - as mentioned before - avoid anything so bold as the logo of whatever you're getting.

I suppose I don't see the harm in it when using it as an accent to a visible tattoo ("Look, his eyes glow under black light" etc.) but it just seems so sketchy to me.

I like to tip 20% at least, but move that higher if at all possible. I like to let people who are putting things permanently into my body know that I appreciate what they do. A kind of investment in the future, I suppose.

I'm just over a week and my scabs just finished coming off today, but the skin is still pretty "fresh" where the scabs were. A friend of mine says his took just over 3 weeks to fully heal.

As for the knee ditch, over all it wasn't THAT bad. Mine both felt like the back of my calf until it got right in that crease in the center, and that's where it started getting a little too "vibrant" for my liking.

Legitimately 16 hours? Kudos to you, if so. How awful do you feel at the end of that?

Welcome aboard! You have some great tattooers down there that I'm certainly jealous of not having ready access to.

I've had this problem, but I never used any special cleaning products. After a few regular washes, it comes out. I have heard that hairspray works well, but not sure you'll have any of that kicking around haha :)

I'll second this motion. I've never really thought about it and they've always just gone away.

When I first went home after moving out, I was nervous about showing my mom my first visible tattoo (my first tattoo was inside my lip) - a zombie pin-up girl on my forearm (by Kahlil Rintye of Tattoo City, then of Mom's Body Shop). I decided on wearing short sleeves and to not bring it up and hope she wouldn't smack me silly.

She just looked at it and said "Well, at least you can't see her nipples."

I frequently have un- or barely-tattooed coworkers discussing my "ink" or "tats" with me. Those terms, or variations thereof, make my skin crawl. I think because it implies a familiarity - a "tight bros from way back when," if you will - that they very clearly don't have. Maybe I thought to much about it.

That being said, I enjoy saying "zaps." I think I'm using it in a tongue-in-cheek manner, but I imagine that doesn't make it any less obnoxious.

I do enjoy ass, but have I been missing out on payment opportunities?