scubaron

Not sure why some get so annoyed by this question. Options for responses: Tell them the truth. "Thought it was cool and I wanted it." Keep them guessing. "It's personal and I only tell certain people." Make up a fun story. "It's a reminder of the time I got separated from my group while on safari in lion country....." "I had a pet lion when growing up, but had to give him to the zoo when he got big."

Good advice. Sometimes the person at the entrance screens people for the artist. What you want might not interest the artist, or they might have a long wait list and not take any new appointments for a while.

Khuong Nguyen. Asian theme. I know his style is not popular on this site, but I think most can still appreciate his work. I like his black and grey and how smoothly he does shading. Instagram

Just started getting tattoos last year. In my limited experience, popular NYC artists have long wait lists and turn down work. However, they do go outside their preferred style if they have gaps in their schedule, get cancellations, do the occasional "walk in" day.

My wife does not want a tattoo. If she did, I think this would look good on her. Combination design, placement, flowing with the body.

Another vote for Jondix

The top finalists are very good artists, but all of the contestants are definitely not the best of the best. They always throw in some mid and lower level contestants for drama and ratings. To be fair, most top level artists specialize and keep to their preferred style. Not sure how they would do if forced to go out of their element.

3 great artists that do what you are looking for. Justin, Rose and Shaun, all located in 1 shop in Long Island. A visit to Kings Ave to discuss availability and interest of the 3 artists might be a good next step.

You might want to choose more than 1 artist. Many popular artists have long waiting lists, decline work due to being too busy, have no interest in your tattoo subject/style or are hard to get in touch with.

Maybe something like these ?

7 years is not a beginner. I have 2 tattoos by artists with 7 yrs experience and another with 4 yrs experience. They all look great to me. What kind of tattoo are you looking to get ?

I like the idea of the phoenix, but I would skip the initials. You could always add them later. Your 10 yr anniversary for example.

I've recently discovered utopian, fantasy, scifi, digital, biomech art. Similar to my taste in tattoos. Not tattoo books, but definitely can be used for references if you like the style: Fantastic Art of Beksinski The Art of Neckro Dead Moon: Luis Royo BioMech Art: Martin Sadaba

Nice. I like the no outline.

You cannot control people's opinions. I went from no tattoos to 5 in the past year. Shoulders and legs, so they are easily hidden. This past summer I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt. A casual friend told me I've changed a lot. I asked what he meant. He stated I didn't think you were the type to get tattoos. I asked him if this was winter and you never saw my tattoos would you say I've changed a lot ? He replied "I guess not " No one at work or any customers/clients know I have tattoos. Appearances do matter. How you dress, how you groom yourself, your tattoos. Look around to decide what your appearance should be and don't just look at your co-workers. Look at the supervisors, managers and bosses. I'm entitled to get tattoos if I want. But I don't expect people to share my point of view or opinion on things. I have a good job that pays well. It affords me to get good tattoos by good artists.