tammy

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Nothing wrong with your posts being authentic. If people here are so soft they can't handle that, then this might not be the right forum for them.

Of anyone here, you have more right to be preachy. You, Don and the rest of your family represent the kind of authenticity that cannot be faked, styled or imitated. A beacon for us all.

May as well give it a go as its healed at this stage. :)
By Ross Nagle @ Allstar Ink Limerick.

You guys know the drill...post up some insane tattoos you guys have been getting! Should be interesting to see if we get any tattoos from the Philly tattoo convention!
LST Monthly Contest
The tattoo picture that gets posted in this thread for February 2013 with the most 'likes' for the month wins! The contest starts on the first of the month and ends on the last day of the month.
Contest Guidelines

Your tattoo picture must be posted in this thread (both tattooers and tattoo customers can win) in order to qualify.
Include with your photo/post...tattoo artist name & tattoo shop.
You MUST be the one who has the tattoo or did the tattoo.
You can 'like' as many tattoos as you want.
It can be a finished or in progress tattoo.

To increase your 'likes' or to show off another's great tattoo share the link to the post in this thread on facebook, twitter, etc. - to get votes from your friends..
Lets do it.........

So, I know there's an Instagram thread around here were we are all sharing our usernames.
Being the social media feel that I am, I thought it might be useful for us to start using a hashtag on there so we can easily see one another photos on that network. So, any images you'd want to share with the community, you'd just add #lastsparrow to your image captions (you can add hashtags to your older images by adding them as a comment).
Just an idea ... Tagging my tattoo-related photos in a bit.
Mods: if y'all want to move those thread somewhere more appropriate, feel free!

Thanks for the continued awesomeness you guys priovide. I'm sure everyone appreciates all of the time, money and hard work that goes into LST.

I am new to this. I am still trying to figure out the format, so I have not dug very deep yet. Most of the things Ive read do sound like counter talk. I get enough of that and have nothing to add. Some of the threads i have read(the ones i get the most out of) are a little out of my league and if i had something to add, its already been added. I do have some things to discuss, but they seem to come too close to giving away information to whoever may be on here. I own and am the sole tattooer at my shop and I am at a turning point in my ten year career. I have a customer base that needs education, but shows potential. I have nobody around me to take advice from, but I know I have a chance to bring real tattoo culture to my town. I am hoping this site fills some of those gaps for me and, in turn, I can find folks I can trust with advice i have to give. I am a tattooer and i am here, learning the ropes and waiting for my turn to contribute. Thanks for this.

since i certainly know some shit....no not really. i like tattoos.
and i have to say, i do not like internet and such but i do check LST daily! I'm hooked. I wish i knew you all for real.
this is my facebook, instagram, whatever..

@Stewart Robson, thanks for chiming in. Apologies for the forum running slowly. We are hopefully moving to a newer and faster server this week!
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We have grown quite a bit on LST and that can be a good thing because we have had some great new members contribute, but like any situation, there are going to be some members you don't mesh with.
Our goal of LST is to help people understand how to get good tattoos. To do their research beforehand. To educate on the good artists vs. scratchers. Also educate that you sort of get what you pay for and tattoos are not something you want to start bargain shopping for.
We are going to get some noobs that do not know where to start but if we send them to Stewart, Valerie, shannon, Scott, Tim, etc. (too many to list) instead of some cheeseball, we have done a good thing.
Regarding noobs asking the same question: we have started to create a welcome PM that has some FAQ's directing them to more common noob threads like "is my tattoo infected?", "what lotion/ointment should I use?", etc.
Would love if we could get some input on this FAQ so we can put it in one place for noobs to read.

@Stewart Robson, thanks for chiming in. Apologies for the forum running slowly. We are hopefully moving to a newer and faster server this week!
------------------
We have grown quite a bit on LST and that can be a good thing because we have had some great new members contribute, but like any situation, there are going to be some members you don't mesh with.
Our goal of LST is to help people understand how to get good tattoos. To do their research beforehand. To educate on the good artists vs. scratchers. Also educate that you sort of get what you pay for and tattoos are not something you want to start bargain shopping for.
We are going to get some noobs that do not know where to start but if we send them to Stewart, Valerie, shannon, Scott, Tim, etc. (too many to list) instead of some cheeseball, we have done a good thing.
Regarding noobs asking the same question: we have started to create a welcome PM that has some FAQ's directing them to more common noob threads like "is my tattoo infected?", "what lotion/ointment should I use?", etc.
Would love if we could get some input on this FAQ so we can put it in one place for noobs to read.

@Stewart Robson, thanks for chiming in. Apologies for the forum running slowly. We are hopefully moving to a newer and faster server this week!
------------------
We have grown quite a bit on LST and that can be a good thing because we have had some great new members contribute, but like any situation, there are going to be some members you don't mesh with.
Our goal of LST is to help people understand how to get good tattoos. To do their research beforehand. To educate on the good artists vs. scratchers. Also educate that you sort of get what you pay for and tattoos are not something you want to start bargain shopping for.
We are going to get some noobs that do not know where to start but if we send them to Stewart, Valerie, shannon, Scott, Tim, etc. (too many to list) instead of some cheeseball, we have done a good thing.
Regarding noobs asking the same question: we have started to create a welcome PM that has some FAQ's directing them to more common noob threads like "is my tattoo infected?", "what lotion/ointment should I use?", etc.
Would love if we could get some input on this FAQ so we can put it in one place for noobs to read.

Thanks for bringing this up @Shannon Shirley while we've never met, people who I think are awesome tell me that you're awesome. Everyone here should pay attention to what this guy says.
I still check the forums every day but I told myself I'd try to only get involved if I could be constructive in some way (even being a dick in a particular way can have a positive outcome).
Lately there hasn't been much 'new' information or discussion where I felt my opinion would make any difference. Often someone else gets to the point before I do. I don't want every post I make to be a verbose "Me too."
On the other hand... The more help or insight we give, the more help or insight we're asked for.
Everyone likes to say they "Did their research" for their tattoo but that often just means looking at pictures in a Google search or checking Instagram. But what about the kind of research where you follow an idea that someone mentioned and find out for yourself? Learning and discovery is fun. Information discovered is more cherished and valuable than information that's spoon fed.
Everyone wants a book or website recommendation where the mysteries of life and everything will be explained, with pictures.
Explorers will eventually tire of conversing with tourists and consumers but they may feel nourished conversing with other explorers. (I use these terms with their proper, non-insulting intention) If more people try to be explorers (intelectual, spiritual or physical) this site, and the world will be a better place.
I've said it before but I don't come here to help with tattoo questions. We have a phone at Frith Street Tattoo. Helpful people are paid to answer it and answer questions. Most tattoo shops work with a similar system. You can get a helpful answer pretty quickly that way.
Even if you're in another country. International calls are not very expensive compared to the price of a tattoo.
I come here because I realised that it was a place where professional opinion meant something. I only started typing when I knew that nobody better qualified had answered. The turning point for me was Bryan Burk's post about Japanese tattoo politics. Finally we had first-hand, sensible and interesting information or opinion from a reliable source instead of conjecture or wiki-regurgitation. I knew then that I'd beter keep my mouth (or keyboard) shut unless I was sure I could contribute something worthwhile.
I'm aware this approach doesn't make for a lively forum but it was great to see it in action earlier this year when Bart Bingham put a halt to some whining about tattooers drawing directly on the skin with a simple, direct and thoughtful post.
Sorry for the lack of links to threads and @ mentions. LST seems to be loading extremely slowly so I couldn't check where stuff was.
Other that the fact that one of my favourite tattooers started this site, I still like it that real-world experience holds water over post-count here at LST. I also like it that the mods (well, the one's I've met) are heavily covered with genuinely great tattoos. That really makes a difference.

yeah, it's drawn by Chud Köpplinger. unknown german tattooer. has glasses and beard.

Supporting cancer is really important for what ever reason. I missed the event but did see a few posts on IG.
I was diagnosed with stage 4 testicular cancer last year in April 2012, with help from the public our race of humans is (phucking cancer) and when i found out I feared the worst but was amazed by the advances in science. Its been a year now and i back on my feet and back with the lads in my UK based shop that I started in 2007, There is always a chance of it coming back and i have to be all clear for 5 years before I can relax. Fingers crossed, all my treatment chemotherapy (which sucked like you would not believe) has totally killed the tumour in my lymph node.
If this was 5 years ago i would have not been here now, and this is due to people like you guys getting up and not just talking about it that has helped millions like me. We in the tattoo industry sit in a privileged position, directly in the public eye and we have such a large network of fellow colleges that getting the word around really works quick and effective. My self and my employes tattooed moustache for free at my shop for the day and we got coverage in the papers and the queue was down the road, it really was the talk of town. Seeing everyone here doing events like this makes me proud to be a tattooer.
My heart goes out to the family and friends of any one involved.
KEEP IT UP FOLKES IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE!
louis

sorry for always being late to the party. :)
Being on the west coast we get our shit 3 hours later than you east coasters....I need to get my RSS feeds, facebook memes, etc. delivered faster.
To answer your questions, us mods and admins arm wrestle in a secret portal to see who trumps who....

I'm disappointed, call outs to ban two different people and yet hours later, still no ban. Mods are getting soft.
But this raises a question, can a mod ban a admin?

Drop Thor's hammer on this shit!

There are two other threads about this. BAN! :)

This is insane.