RockelMan

would be better with some blair's 3am reserve!

Owls are one of the most interesting (and cute) and intriguing animals alive...welcome to the forum!

yea ive seen you around Trixie and its nice that you decided to introduce yourself and to talk a little bit about yourself. who cares if there was an owl trend, you got it because you wanted it and thats all that matters!

it's the wearer's tattoo. if they're unhappy with the tattooer who started it, they have every right to have someone else finish it. if it happened to me, i'd probably be bummed for a minute and wonder why they didn't want me to finish it, but you move on. you can't be attached to every one you do.

Saw this and didn't want to start a new thread to just post a link, so thought to put it here.
BBC News - Today - In pictures: The Yakuza

I've been in several relationships with untattooed partners.
I don't seek out tattooed partners, but due to my social circles, that's just how things tend to work out.
Plus, tattooed chicks do ana.... err. Wrong thread.
One of my untattooed girlfriends had Dave Bruehl do a sleeve for her first tattoo.
My fiance (oh hey, I got engaged last week) has no tattoos but is talking large Thomas Hooper tattooing for her first tattoo.
I honestly rarely give it any thought.

Cosmo Kramer: The bus is outta control. So I grab him by the collar, I take him out of the seat, I get behind the wheel, and now I'm driving the bus.
Jerry: Wow.
George Costanza: You're Batman.
Cosmo Kramer: Yeah, yeah, I am Batman. Then the mugger, he comes to and he starts choking me. So I'm fighting him off with one hand and I kept driving the bus with the other, ya know. Then I managed to open up the door and I kicked him out the door, ya know, with my foot, ya know, at the next stop.
Jerry: You kept making all the stops?
Cosmo Kramer: Well, people kept ringing the bell!

I know how awkward it is for some artists to ask a client to undress, so I avoid that awkwardness by undressing completely before all tattoos, regardless of placement. Common courtesy, really.

This is an awesome one that I stumbled across the other day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x29l5eHHoXo&feature=youtu.be
David Ford - Go To Hell - YouTube

Yeah, I'm sure that Ed's clients were at the forefront, because he was always pushing boundaries. In my mind--and again, I'd love for someone who knows more than me to weigh in here--it was probably a gradual process that began with some variation of Japanese sleeves.

getting tattooed is a journey , enjoy the ride.

Wellllll. Since you said to be honest I will. Like the other I agree it looks stupid to have hand tattoos and not have the rest of your arms and actually the rest of your body done. It makes me wonder why you chose to get your hand tattooed before doing the rest. As far as the actual tattoo, it's by far not the worst I've seen. It's not something I would ever get and I wouldn't go to the artists. The reason is not the quality of the actual tattooing, it's the drawing. I'm not into new school or whatever people would call that style. Just isn't my thing.
Having said all that, if you like the drawing then there's no problem at all as it's your tattoo. If I was you I'd wait until I you have a lot more tattoos on your arm and then see how you feel about it. I have a couple tattoos that are actually really fucking awful, like I mean horrible. It used to bother me soooo much, I wouldn't wear short sleeves because I was so embarrassed by them. Then I started getting good tattoos and lots of them and now the bad ones aren't so embarrassing. It all just kind of blends in. A good friend of mine who is also a great tattooer once told me that he likes it when someone has a couple bad ones in there with the good ones because it shows that you love tattoos and wanted them before you knew about 'cool rockstar hipster shit' like a lot of the kids today who are just getting tattooed because it's the cool trendy thing to do.

Looks fine to me, now its time to fill up the rest of your arms.

Following this thread made me realize I may have the best Tech job on the planet.
I'm a Communications Technician for one of the big 4 class I freight railroads in the U.S.
I work with installing/maintaining everything from PC support, software, network, data, CCTV, satellite dishes, radios, on down to the humble telephone.
I'm not stuck with the same stuff very often, or for very long. I cover a large territory, so I'm not bound to an office all the time.
I've been on this job for 10 years as of this month. I got hired with visible tattoos and it has never been an issue. I kept on getting more as time went on ( the biggest amount in the last year).
I have to move equally between corporate types in the division office, and guys that turn wrenches and swing hammers all day, but now they got to use a computer to do their job.
I've been on the job long enough now (10 years this month) that everyone knows me and knows that I know my stuff, if they call me I can get your problem fixed.
I've never had a negative comment directed my way because of my tattoos (the ones that are visible go from the wrist to "outta sight").
The only dress code we have is T-shirts with 1/4 sleeves and no shorts, (besides hard hats, safety glasses, etc., when necessary).
The corporate types know I can fix their PC, so they don't hassle me, the wrench turners know the same, but they know I'm just a regular guy, and the other guys in my department know that I know my shit so the tattoos aren't an issue, they just take a peek when I get something new.
All that plus I'm payed hourly an outreagous sum and union.
Fuck Me Runnin'
you could'nt beat me with a stick hard enough to leave this job.

I like this topic. I got my first tattoo at age 22. Then it took me until I was 36 to get my second one... Third at 41. Fourth and fifth just this summer at 42. I'm getting them at an accelerated pace now. Maybe it's midlife crisis! Not really because I'm at a good place in my life. Maybe I'm trying to hold onto part of my former punk rock identity. Whatever it is, I don't care. I think it's just that I like tattoos and I'm settled in my career and so I feel free to do as I wish. People haven't said this to me personally--but when I hear or read about people saying things like, "She's going to regret those tattoos when she's old and wrinkled and they don't look so good", I just think that is just a lame way of saying "I don't like tattoos". Old and wrinkled is old and wrinkled... I don't think an old and wrinkled un-tattooed arm is going to look much better than an old and wrinkled tattooed one. If I live to be old and wrinkled I might just want to cover my arms with long-sleeved shirts if my skin has varicose veins and liver spots. But then, maybe tattoos can cover up liver spots and varicose veins. I think tattooed grandmas are cute and I hope to become one someday.

Both those tattoos are amazing!
If it was me it would have taken me probably 4 sitting a piece hahaha. Luckily since I'm a lady and not a very big one, and because of the way my back piece is, I won't have to endure more than 2-3 hours on each side!
I have my lower stomach done, I wouldn't call it public area but it starts about 2" below my belly button. It was a long time ago but I remember it hurting pretty bad. At this point I plan on leaving the rest of my stomach open until I'm out of room elsewhere for big stuff.

Okay, here's the update. Hotstuff and Panther by Scott Sylvia. Kewpie and White Tiger by Bryan Burke. Both tattoos were done in 2 sittings, black in one sitting, color in the next.
Scotts side was about 5 1/2 hours. Bryans side was 4 1/2 hours total. I started Bryans side first but finished Scotts side first. I lagged on Bryan and was procrastinating getting it finished a bit because Scotts side hurt so bad. Bryan actually had to call me up and be like, "we finishing this tattoo we started or what?". Sorry Bryan.
Both these guys are quick as can be and for a painful spot like the ribs I really appreciated that. I gotta say the second sitting with Scott i was feeling a little nauseous and almost ready to tap out towards the end. Scott hurt more!

I always enjoy these kind of conversations so thanks everyone for partaking and thanks in advance to those who will continue to. This topic has come up a few times on the site and this one is one of the more engaging times.
With that being said, I work as a consultant mainly in the world of psychology and have a fair amount of tattoos including hands and neck which can not be covered up easily. Up until more recently some psychologist used tattoos as a way of pathologizing and potentially distributing possible diagnoses to clients. Some may still do it and I know there are several research studies always going on looking for associations between tattoos and various diagnoses. But thank god more and more people are not relying so heavily on pathologies but rather more on the individual(s). And many of these individuals who rely on pathologies (fifty to seventy percent I believe) will be retiring within the next five years so us in the next generation get to really change how historically psychology has not been used in the best client centered, guided, and driven manner(s). So we get to infiltrate the system and change how services are delivered from the face-to-face work to policies to education to ???????
This I believe can translate to many other professions as we enter these trades or whatever linguistical word fancy's your excitement to work hard and get rid of various pathologies, stigmas, 'isms' and what have yous. The work we do is what matters but at first the older generation and maybe even our own generation are going to judge us so rather than kick in the front doors why don't we lead by the quality of our work and come in through the side door..... We are at a cool spot in history where we can potentially shape things in a much more inclusive and positive way for the future. This all includes pulling the strengths from the old and combining it with the strengths of the new creating a tailor made worker for these days. Anyways, I could go on and on, on this conversation but will cut it short with this.....I wear a suit to ninety percent of my contracts with hand and neck tattoos showing while traveling around from; speaking with agencies (non-profit and for-profit), students, colleges, politicians, doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, to what-have-yous. I get various looks and some comments on them but try not to talk too much about them and let my work speak for itself. Sure it may help when I am face-to-face with a youth or someone where it could improve the rapport but most of my days are spent with people where it could jeopardize the rapport as well. The flip side is, I get the opportunity to prove the people who could/would judge me wrong if I don't fall into their stereotypes of tattooed people. I do my job and stay respectful. If they want to be disrespectful that's their choice and if by the end of the contract they are still being disrespectful I don't do another contract with them. But my retention rate is good for contracts so I would draw the conclusion, quality of work and respect are speaking louder than tattoos these days.

I teach kindergarten and I have 5 tattoos so far, 2 of them are new as of this summer. There are a couple of other teachers at my school with tattoos that show and a high percentage of the parents in that community have tattoos as well (inner city Los Angeles). When I go back to work in a couple weeks my little owl on my forearm will show more often than any of the others. I highly doubt it will be offensive to anyone and we don't have a dress code rule about it. If I were teaching in small town USA things might be different but tattoos are a part of the culture here in LA. I think in general the times are changing--not just in regards to tattoos but everything seems to be heading in a more casual direction and I'm happy with that. Aside from being able to show tattoos, I'm glad I can wear jeans to work (nice ones) because I sit on the floor with my kids half the day and do messy art projects with them and skirts or dry-clean only type pants don't make sense with what I do. I am not going to showcase my tattoos at work but I am not going to hide them purposely either (none of them are scary though, if I get a skull for example, I would get it in a hidden place). Last year sometimes the cat on my back would show and the kids always liked it. I like how kids are open minded like that. I work hard, I love kids, I am a good teacher, and I have tattoos... I think people can deal with that.

New LST Contest!
Vote for your favorite pictures in the Tattoo Gallery.
The member whose picture has the most votes on 9/31/11 will win an LST t-shirt, and have their picture featured on the homepage.
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Get started here: LST Tattoo Gallery - and let the games begin!

Its a personal choice. I choose not to expose my tattoos. While they could not fire me for them, I certainly feel the old guard would not appreciate them a lot and it would limit my ability to make more money. I work to make money and feed my family, not to express myself. I wish I had a career that would allow me to express myself and be free, but that just is not my reality and I have come to piece with it. The major decision makers in corporate America these days are probably in their late 50's or 60's. Once they retire and the new guard take over, I don't think this will be as big of an issue as there has been a huge change in culture. Until then I will play it safe and keep making some loot without being judged, whether it is legit or not. Kudos to those who don't care about the judgement.

i think an improved response might have been to link to the previous thread and also to the new tattoo newbie guidelines. just my own .02 as i slowly come back here. i was impressed enough with how this thread was handled to sign back in (not that my opinion counts for much, but just wanted to say "good job!").
and i think i get Deb's point (maybe?), and possibly another point she didn't even mean for others to get. her friend is missing out on the whole experience worried about what others will think, and on top of it, she'll never completely understand the experience of African Americans or other races for that matter, simply based on her own ethnicity/race. tattooing is kind of similar. if you're not born or develop that drive to be tattooed, then you're never going to understand the full experience, and if you're worried all the time about what others think, then you're probably never going to have that innate drive.

Thought I'd chime in with my workplace experiences. Those of you who have met me or seen my photos know I have a lot of tattoos on my arms and legs, I don't have anything on my neck, face, or hands. I do have one on my chest that shows at work, my back piece shows with a tank top and I have some on the sides of my fingers that usually go unnoticed. I currently live in a very small town where I am the only heavily tattooed person around, there's a very small handful in the surrounding area who come through once in a while. Right now I run a gift store with my mother. I deal with mostly women aged 50+ in my day to day job. What I have found is that the more well dressed I am, the less shit I get for my tattoos. When I am dressed 'nicely' (button up shirt, or more of a dressy casual top and nice jeans or slacks usually) almost no one even comments. Sometimes I'll get 'are those tattoos real' 'did it hurt' or the other common non-rude questions and comments from people who are just curious because they've never seen someone, especially a woman who has so many. I have found that even with a tank top, if I look nice with my hair and makeup and nice shoes I usually don't have any problems. When I am not at work and dressed in a t shirt and motorcycle boots, or when I'm wearing more of a going out type of outfit (I have been described as having more of a 'rocker' look), that's when I get the shitty looks, rude/stupid comments, old ladies clutching purses, etc.
So basically I think it's all about how you present yourself at work. I think it also has a lot to do with your attitude. When someone comes into my store and sees me and maybe doesn't like my tattoos or clothes it becomes really hard for them to be shitty towards me when I'm being overly nice and helpful to them. I think I've even helped change a couple people's mind about tattooed women this way. I know even my own mother thought all heavily tattooed people were trashy before I started getting a lot of tattoos.

The place I show off I my tattoos the most is at work. Granted one of my jobs is a tattoo shop but my other job I do because I work in a warehouse its hot and they all know I have tattoos. Luckily I have worked there for awhile and I have already had all the 'I'm going to get a tattoo of this and that and the other and it means to me because of this bull shit" which translates to "I really am never going to get this tattoo but I want to talk about it so people think I am cool" with everyone. It bugs me sometimes, but I always try to give people the best advice about tattooing, not matter how bad their idea is or whether they are smart enough to listen to me. There are a couple guys I work with who have become regulars at the shop, so some people get it.
But on my day off, unless it is 90 degrees like today I will probably be in a long sleeve shirt, Levis and Boots.

I'm a secretary and I work at a university in an academic department. I have two small and discrete tattoos that are easily hidden under anything but a string bikini, and there's not much chance of my being caught dead in one since I stopped hitting the gym. I got them for myself, so I don't go out of my way to show them off to anyone. My "tramp stamp" shows if I'm bending over to pick something up but that's about it. My teenage daughter thinks its terrible that I have one at all, but hey! Mommy gets to have a life too. For the most part, I'm discrete about my tattoos and (when I was wearing jewelry) my belly button piercing. I'm getting a little old to have a belly button ring anyway. But I actually like the idea that most people would think I'm the LAST person to have any kind of body modification. When they find out that I have one they're usually really surprised. You can see that they look at you a little differently. I like that. Don't I get tired of trying to shock people, my husband asks. No, not really. I'm here to remind everyone that every single person you meet has a story, and it's usually not the one you expected they'd have.
Funny story: I went to the grocery store and was in the pharmacy department. I stooped down look for something on the bottom shelf, threw my selection in my basket and went on my way. A few aisles later, an older gentleman, probably in his 70's, stopped me. He was very polite but he said he had to tell me that he saw me back in the pharmacy. He was getting his blood pressure measured at the machine and when he saw me stoop down and saw my tattoo...well dammit if it didn't cause his blood pressure to jump up! I blushed 10 shades of red. It was really cute.