sighthound

@rozone amazing! first time i've seen em

Yep, those are the ones - can't get over them!

Somewhat related to new tattoos, but did anyone see those 2 new sleeves that Stewart Robson just posted on Instagram? My god, those have to be some of the best pair of sleeves I've ever seen. Huge, super readable, very innovative design, simple yet detailed, solid, smooth, it's got everything. I can't even express how amazing they are. *swoon*

Now that's traveling in style @Eilin. Love all of them.

Yea, I feel tipping is a pretty personal thing. Tip if you are comfortable and for your own reasons, not because it is customary or expected. Like @nomadland already said, it's more of an institutional phenomena than a true 'custom'. And discussions like this perpetuate the fact that tipping is now expected rather than optional, at least in the US. Not trying to be a cheapskate or anything lol, I still tip my artists

@Haysman super jealous of that tiger, it's amazing. I was just in Richmond the other week for a wedding but didn't have tattoo plans. Brian's been on my bucket list for a long time now. Have gotten something from pretty much everyone around him from D.C. to N.C. and they all tell me that I need to get something from him. One of these days... The artist I go to in Asheville has a backpiece by Brian and the thing is as strong as they come.

haha ^, I really like the mirrored eagles at the bottom btw

That's a good way to put it - panic mode. I got my feet done at different times and even though the first sucked, I felt I sat better for it. When I went in to get foot #2 done I think I psyched myself out a little also, and it was worse than I remember #1 being. It was also really tough for me to "get in the zone" also because every single part of the foot brought about a whole new sensation of bliss haha. So, moral is try to relax as much as possible - maybe bring some music.

@Mick Weder I've heard mixed things about the ankle - had a girl friend get her first on the ankle and said she barely felt it, so guess it depends lol. As for the foot, I'm glad I only have 2 of them - it sucked big time. I had quite a bit of involuntary twitching whenever the needle hit that spot inbetween the toes near the knuckles. Artist had to curl my toes over the side of the bench and hold my foot down haha. I think that's fairly common, he seemed to be used to it.

Got this little guy from Nikki "Balls" Lugo at Tattoo Paradise over the weekend. She's awesome!

Cool, just kick your feet up all day and you should be good lol. I would still suggest the wrap though, cause your feet will swell no matter what. And it could just be my speculating (I wrapped one foot and didn't do the other), but it seemed like the one I kept from swelling so much healed much faster than the other one, and it was a lot less painful. Also, what are you planning to get for the ol' feet?

Do you work on your feet a lot at work? If not, then I'd say you could probably get em both done. Sounds like you have a solid plan. My one bit of advice from getting my feet done (at different times): Wrap your foot up with some kind of breathable medical (gauze) tape after you remove the initial bandage. It really really cuts down on the swelling. I put a gauze pad over the tattoo before wrapping it up to prevent chaffing. Everything is a breathable material so it still air drys.

this isn't your first season is it? Then you surely know about ringworm and the legion of other skin diseases you can get. I wrestled 125 at your age, and a healing tattoo is not something you want while in season. Don't get your weight class tattooed on you, that's dumb. If you continue to wrestle your weight will fluctuate and you will end up in different weight classes. And once you stop, say when you start college, you will gain weight - lots of it. Forget 103. Personally, I'd say no to the superman logo. It might be funny to you and your friends now. But just imagine explaining that to strangers out of school. Or ripping your shirt off in front of them. Anyways, everything that's been said is solid advice - follow it if you want to

Well, I decided to go with my gut and go for it in black and gray. My first purely black & gray piece, can't wait! Thanks for the reassurance @misterJ @Ditch Belgium. Mr. Yoni Zilber will be doing the tiger in Asheville, NC at the end of June - will update with pics and stuff.

So, I'm all set up for my next tattoo appointment. It's going to be a Tibetan tiger on the old rib panel. Now, usually I don't have this problem but for some reason I cannot seem to decide if I want it in color or b&g. All of my other work is full color, but I love the way well done b&g looks. The smooth gradients of grey, the contrast, all of it. And I want at least one really good b&g piece. It's just that every time I say "This will be the one," another part of me goes "but it'll look so good in color too." I've seen many amazing tigers done in both color and b&g. I just want to do this piece justice, and am leaning towards black and grey. So, given the subject matter, placement, and style (Tibetan inspired) what is the hive's opinion for such a tattoo? And I know, it's my tattoo and I should get it the way I want. But am the type of person who makes pro/con lists for things like this. I will say that I love how well the colors in Tibetan artwork compliment each other while producing a very muted appearance (without clashing). Anyways, I'll be making my decision in the next day or 2, am just fishing for some outside perspective.

^ Hells Yes, it's awesome!

good quote @deadsp0t Plagiarism, however unethical, transcends the tattooing world. It is an integral part of any, and every, form of artistic expression (music, cooking, drawing, sports, etc.). Greatness inspires and elicits imitation; no one is copying shitty work. It's a learning process that is built upon. Doesn't matter if it was copied directly from an instagram pic, it still inspired someone enough to go through all the trouble of doing it. And they probably learned a thing or two from it all. How much music is sampled, not just today but all throughout history? How many great chefs are constantly being imitated or having their recipes copied? I also don't doubt for a second, now that tattooing is mainstream, that people will try to profit from it via the legal system.

Native Virginian here, too. I used to live close to Richmond and didn't get a single tattoo while I was there - so stupid of me. That city is so packed full of talent. And welcome aboard!

As the saying goes: "Those who matter, don't mind - those who mind, don't matter." All the greats seem to echo the same sentiment in that they just don't let it get to them. They understand that it's just the nature of the beast, and would be lying if they claimed to have never done it themselves (in their growing years, probably not now).

welcome aboard - always been a fan of star wars tattoos. Maybe I'll get one some day.

I'm up in Charlotte, there are a few pretty good shops around here depending on your style preferences. Rodney Raines is here if you prefer his kind of work. For more traditional styles check out 510 Expert Tattoos - Ugly Tom and Jenn Small are really killing it there.

Also check out Anonymous Tattoo in Savannah, GA.

@Graeme that is absolutely perfect - i was mesmerized by it on instagram as well. Ron's ships are my all time favorite.

At the moment, crushing hard on Brian Kaneko - so powerful

yesss, awesome - love futurama