Born Without a Face

At this point, I don't have too many exposed tattoos so I haven't had to deal with gawkers. I have had a girl once tell me that I looked "too normal" to work at a tattoo shop, to which I took offense.
Most of the people in my circle are very open to tattoos as most of them have tattoos. I do have an uncle who is in law enforcement who love to trash talk tattoos and people with them. He doesn't support my career or the art form. I can attribute the hostility towards tattoos to ignorance in most cases.

I dig your Deku Scrub Ducky ^.
Awesome thread! Here are three tattoos I have done. One is a Charmander from Poke'mon, one a helmet from the Dark Souls videogame for PS3 and one is a Papou fruit from Kingdom Hearts. I actually look forward to doing more tattoos like these.

I dig your Deku Scrub Ducky ^.
Awesome thread! Here are three tattoos I have done. One is a Charmander from Poke'mon, one a helmet from the Dark Souls videogame for PS3 and one is a Papou fruit from Kingdom Hearts. I actually look forward to doing more tattoos like these.

I got Kratos from God of War... 1st tattoo, about a year old. Not good to photograph. Quality of the tattoo itself is also a bit "eh", but who cares, first ones are allowed to :P

Very cool there @passive jay
Here's a few other as well.
Firstly some planets by Tim Kern and Gerry Carnelly respectively and then a Hammerhead with the Tree of life by Jason Corbett.

I am pretty sure my tattoo counts as a geeky tattoo.

Heres a geeky Tattoo I got last year of Deku Link and the ominous moon from the game Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask.

I was fortunate to have a tattooed mother who supported me in my choice to get tattooed. She even took me on my 16th birthday to get my first tattoo of an eagle on my bicep. The artist's name was Tasili. I have no idea what ever happened to him.

a bartender friend asked me to tattoo a mustache on her finger and her eyes got all big like it was such a great idea. so i got real excited and said "i gotta better idea, why dont we tattoo the words 'played out' on your finger instead"? she got mad but she also never got the tattoo done.

I haven't been tattooing very long, so I feel awkward replying to shit like this. But here goes.
I like the act of tattooing. I love watching pigment go in the skin, seeing the line as it's being pulled across the stencil. I love it. So when I get requests for annoying shit, or things I'm sick of,(and denying that you ever get sick of shit is fucking retarded. We're humans. We get sick of shit. Period.), I try to just get past it in my head and think about the application. Not that I'm applying a tattoo that I hate, but that I'm applying a tattoo at all. And get right back into that mindset of enjoying the work aspect of it.
Without trying to sound like a wagon jumper, I too like tribal. I love watchign the black just go in solid as fuck. I know this dude is just some dude looking to look just like his boys, but in my head I'm thinking, "man, this shit is going to make your buddies tribal look like shiiiiiiiiiiiiit!". I just try to get in that zone as much as I can.
The clients though....
None of us can control the chaos that is our client base. That is the unknown quantity part of the job. Lots of shitheads, and lots of people who don't actullay want tattoos. They just want their very own "me too, guys! I did it too! See!" story. They spend hours trying to find the least tattoo-ish, most benign design possible and stick it somewhere no one will ever see it, because to them it's just proof that they did it too when the stories start flying.
I try very hard to pick my battles, read clients and choose which ones would be receptive to some swaying. Not into something completely different to stroke my ego, but into a better planned out version of what they want. Just gotta pick the battles.
Can't do it with everyone or you burn out, and you can't responsibly be the guy who says "fuck it, I know this will look, age and heal like crap, but i'll take your cash." All the time banging rainbows up their ass telling them how good of an idea it is to keep them and their dumb friends coming back for more.
Regardless of how it will effect responsible tattooers who try to do a good, well thought out tattoo for the benefit of their clients. Just gotta do what I can to sleep at night, like trying to explain to people that upside down is upside down. I try. If they get it, awesome. If not, I'll at least try to do it clean.
Sorry for the ramble. I just felt it on this one. I felt that I need to make an ass of myself on the internet. Word.

People still come in asking for that beauty mark shit all the time at my shop in JC, I won't touch it with a 10 foot pole.
I also love it when girls come in wanting a cross on their wrist "facing them" \m/ o_0 \m/

do get a bit tired of doing pocket watches, i must have done ten this year (four in one week) most of them had a magpie on it, i'm still happy to do them but it's a pain trying to draw new watches as i'm not a fucking watchmaker!

Hey Folks, Thanks for this thread. Instead of it being a big ole bitchfest, it really has given me a good outlook, stuff to remember when I feel like I have to write a six paragraph bible verse the size of a postage stamp. I tattoo whatever walks through the door, and sometimes it is taxing to my soul, but what is more taxing is the thought of not tattooing.

Trees. In the last two years I've done about 100 of them.
Trees with hidden words or initials anywhere in the design (in the trunk, branches, or roots)
Hidden words or initials. If you've got something to say, SAY IT!
Arm bands. They break up the arm in such weird spots it makes it difficult "add to" or expand on with future tattoos.
Cherubs. Naked babies?! For reals?!
Art. You really need V. Van Gogh's "Starry Night" on your arm? Go buy a t shirt!!
Superman logos. You are from right here. Not Krypton
This list can go on forever. Sometimes it's not the what that you are tattooing but the who. Arrive on time, be respectful and don't figit around. Bring a good story to tell. Tattooers love em! Most of all, leave your tuff guy attitude at home. You ain't as tuff as us.

So many penises..

This is pretty funny. It's a shame that these guys are selling records, playing shows and just have notoriety at all. I'm willing to bet they aren't spitting anything profound in their lyrics.

This is pretty funny. It's a shame that these guys are selling records, playing shows and just have notoriety at all. I'm willing to bet they aren't spitting anything profound in their lyrics.

They couldn't give her proper sized gloves? Well probably because 7 year olds shouldn't tattoo!!! *smh*

Wtf... Gloryhole tattooing.

Can you train squirrels to scrub tubes? That could actually be an advantage in the situation.

Fallout 3 is one my favorite games ever. I think it was my #1 favorite until Skyrim came out. If you're into RPG's it's a must-have, and if you're not, it's still probably a must-have.
I've always been a PC gamer, but I'm tempted by the PS4. I've always been jealous of Sony's exclusives. Might cave and get one next year when they have some solid games out... played about 30 mins of Last of Us at a friend's house and wanted to get it real bad.

Different opinions I guess. Being a tattooer myself I see it as cheapening the craft.
Any other professional tattooers are free to agree or disagree with me. Sorry if I don't count customers as having as valid an opinion as a career tattooer does. No disrespect intented man, I'm not trying to insult anyone.

i knew about this thread before it was cool guys.....

Ask and ye shall receive my friend ;) in all its glory - The "Vans Warped Tour Body Suit"