LadyGabe

@LadyGabe you should read this thread.
http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/general-tattoo-discussion/3844-do-we-really-need-apprentices.html

You can do whatever you want on your own...but there is nothing that says someone needs to help you via an apprenticeship. If you really care about tattooing, and want to see it become better, then you need to put aside your own desire to tattoo and do things the right way. Caring about tattooing as a "would be" tattooer, means you do anything to uphold the craft of tattooing. Sometimes that means putting aside your immediate wants and thinking about what is best for tattooing as a whole.
Also, just becasue someone "doesn't have time" or "doesn't know any tattooers" or are "struggling" doesn't mean that they need to be taught to tattoo. There is no point system here. Being a certain kind of person in a certain situation doesn't get you special treatment.
And before you say, "I work my ass off to get where I want to be"... So does EVERYONE who really wants to learn to tattoo and do it the right way.

My answer is yes we need apprentices...we just got a new apprentice at our shop...she got to know my boss before she got it...and she had already known tattooers...she moved from cali to texas just to learn how to tattoo...and thats what it takes, real commitment, not just bitchin about some shop down the street not taking you. to answer the question of teaching random strangers...its a NO...i dont know you, dont know what you really want with tattooing, probably just to mooch off of it like everyone else. those are my first thoughts for when strangers ask. if i get to know someone and know that they love it for the art...i would do it, but most people wanna be fukn cool, and wanna get rich. my apprenticeship took 4 years...no money, barely any tattoos done...most people dont wanna do that, they just wanna pick up a machine and start tattooing....bleh..my 2 cents as a tattoo artist.

one thing that i tell the people who come into the studio and want an apprenticeship is, that just because you want to learn to tattoo, doesn't mean you get to. The other thing i tell them is that the only way to learn is to know some tattooers. I'll help friends of mine, but not some random person who has walked into the studio or sent an email.

I read this earlier today and loved it! It highlights the reality to wannabe apprentices compared to the Kat Von D ideal of living like a rockstar.
Can't see that it has been shared already... hope this isn't a duplicate thread!
I am looking to gain an apprenticeship at present, and I know how difficult it is to get someone interested in my work! It isn't easy but would be worth it!
If you are thinking about getting into the industry, give this a read and a lot of thought!
Those of you already experienced and in the industry, it would be awesome if you'd like to add your thoughts along this subject too.
Click out the link / or continue reading below...
Brandon Collins: “So you wanna be a tattoo artist?” | TAM Blog
"With the invention of tattoo “reality” shows, the average un-tattooed or mildly tattooed person is led to believe that tattoo artists are superheroes: they can draw an entire back piece in 15 minutes, go out to the clubs all night and still come to work on time, able to tattoo whatever you want, wherever you want it.
That sounds awfully appealing to some kids–but it couldn’t be any further from the truth. Anyone who has spent time in a tattoo shop knows that most tattooers are your average hardworking dads and moms with mortgages, car payments and phone bills,not prima donna rockstars that get VIP everywhere and drive Lamborghini’s. Those TV shows make a mockery of our profession and because of them, our trade has been diluted by half-ass, mediocre tattooers. Not only have these hacks not paid their dues, but they pump out crappy $20 tattoos that the average joes doesn’t even realize are shit.
Before deciding you want to be a tattooer, think about this: Say my appointment for the day doesn’t show up, so that $400 I needed to pay rent and put food on my table will just have to wait. If YOU go to work and no one shows up, YOU still get paid and so you can afford to sit home home and watch “TATTOO SCHOOL” and say to your stoned roommate “bro, I can totally do that shit!”. You get breaks and paid holidays, insurance and an guaranteed paycheck every week. We don’t. We work 50-60 hours a week tattooing, drawing and painting with no medical benefits and no retirement funds.
Don’t listen to your family. That skull with the lightning bolts and a joint in its mouth you drew in the 8th grade ISN’T amazing. Your parents, close family members and friends are always going to tell you that you are a natural artist. Their biased encouragement will only give you the false confidence to go into a tattoo shop and get your feelings hurt. Tattooing isn’t a hobby or something just to pass the time. It is a profession and a sole mean of income, so if you think we will welcome you and your “tat guns” into our trade with open arms, you are sorely mistaken. Apprenticeships are meant to be hard–to weed out the undeserving. If you are lucky enough to get one (and I do mean lucky) you will be taught a skill that can carry you for the rest of your life and you are forever indebted to the person who taught you. There are those dip-shits that don’t have the balls to go into a tattoo shop and try to get an apprenticeship – or they did and were tossed out, just order some “guns” online and “do tats” out of their house. Not only is this completely disgusting, unsanitary and unethical, but also illegal. Don’t even think about doing that. Those fucktards can do some real and irreversible damage to someone not to mention potentially spread disease.
Most tattoo artists don’t make a lot of money. Tattooers get paid by the hour but that money isn’t dumped right into our pockets. We have to give a percentage to the shop and pay for supplies and what-not. In reality we only get a fraction of what we charge for your tattoo. So when you tell me, “Dannnng $100?… Thats a lot, you must be rich!” and I want to run a steel spike through your head, you will understand why. As I mentioned before, if an appointment doesn’t show up or you don’t have anything scheduled, you don’t get paid. Imagine going to your job at Home Depot or where ever and working a full day without pay.
So next time you have the urge to be like Kat Von D or whatever rockstar tattooer is the flavor of the week… remember this: Countless hours of work for minimal pay and no benefits is the life that we have chosen and will defend with extreme prejudice. Do yourself a favor: keep your day job, and leave our profession alone."
Written by Brandon Collins
Brandon owns and works at Nightmare Studios in Reno, NV.
Welcome to Nightmare Studios

I also especially love smiling and being really friendly to those who have obviously made a snap judgement on my appearance!
My boyfriend is a muscly, skin head with very vibrant traditional tattoos of a reaper, a devil and all sorts of dark things. But he is the biggest, kindest and cuddliest bear ever when you speak to him! So polite and thoughtful, a real gentleman. It still cracks me up when he holds the door for a little old lady and they look terrified of his kindness!! haha
EDIT: I am not so sure my BF would be so pleased that is how I described him come to think of it! Ruin his manly image ;)

Loved this thread!
I cannot wait to add to this thread in 3 weeks time! I am getting a Storm Trooper on my leg... and later in the year, The Doctor may also be making an appearance :D

I also especially love smiling and being really friendly to those who have obviously made a snap judgement on my appearance!
My boyfriend is a muscly, skin head with very vibrant traditional tattoos of a reaper, a devil and all sorts of dark things. But he is the biggest, kindest and cuddliest bear ever when you speak to him! So polite and thoughtful, a real gentleman. It still cracks me up when he holds the door for a little old lady and they look terrified of his kindness!! haha
EDIT: I am not so sure my BF would be so pleased that is how I described him come to think of it! Ruin his manly image ;)

Ships of sci-fi! Heh. I briefly thought of getting a space scene with the TARDIS, the Battlestar Galactica and Serenity it it...

I am so happy there is a geek thread. :) I just got a tardis tattoo not long ago and I'm trying to decide what else to add to that arm. I'm not sure if I want a DW theme or just scifi. I'm a big Star Trek fan (original & TNG, not the reboot) so maybe the Enterprise? But then I would want to work in Firefly and Alien and my arm isn't that big. lol

So would a large TARDIS count as a geek tattoo?

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

I also especially love smiling and being really friendly to those who have obviously made a snap judgement on my appearance!
My boyfriend is a muscly, skin head with very vibrant traditional tattoos of a reaper, a devil and all sorts of dark things. But he is the biggest, kindest and cuddliest bear ever when you speak to him! So polite and thoughtful, a real gentleman. It still cracks me up when he holds the door for a little old lady and they look terrified of his kindness!! haha
EDIT: I am not so sure my BF would be so pleased that is how I described him come to think of it! Ruin his manly image ;)

I also especially love smiling and being really friendly to those who have obviously made a snap judgement on my appearance!
My boyfriend is a muscly, skin head with very vibrant traditional tattoos of a reaper, a devil and all sorts of dark things. But he is the biggest, kindest and cuddliest bear ever when you speak to him! So polite and thoughtful, a real gentleman. It still cracks me up when he holds the door for a little old lady and they look terrified of his kindness!! haha
EDIT: I am not so sure my BF would be so pleased that is how I described him come to think of it! Ruin his manly image ;)

Welcome! @LadyGabe gave some solid advice there, but I'd also recommend looking at ways you can make the ideas you have a little more visually interesting. I'd suggest looking at traditional flash because a lot of those designs incorporate flags in interesting ways. There are hundreds of examples and variations on this, but here's one nice example that I found through Google. This is from Becca Genne-Bacon at Hand of Glory in Brooklyn:

Or you could look at other ideas entirely of how to represent the idea...can I suggest kangaroo fighting a beaver fighting a bowl of spaghetti?

I don't know why everyone is saying traditional isn't timeless , I mean it may have got a little unpopular at times but it's always been here and I think (hope) it will be for the next couple of hundred years. Same goes for japanese.

@TrixieFaux - thank you for the reminder that stares are not always hostile. I find this so tough, because it's hard to know if people are admiring or being creeps. I usually say that I never get comments or stares about my tattoos because we live in a very tattooed neighbourhood (that's also really gay, so I am pretty uninteresting to most, haha), but for some reason this past week I have been getting constant comments. Earlier, when I was walking the dog, a man stopped me to say, "you have beautiful legs" (I am wearing a dress that's short-ish so you can see a lot of my thigh tattoos). And like, I had no idea if he was saying it in an admiring or sleazy way... I mean that is kind of a weird thing to say to a stranger, even if you mean well! I don't want to be ungenerous when folks say stuff like that, but when it's ambiguous I also tend to opt for protecting myself and not engaging, which is kind of a shame if people mean well.
(That said, why is it that many of the comments I've gotten recently have been of the ambiguous nature above, and not like, "I love your tattoos", but instead commenting on the body part itself? I guess the comments sound ambiguous because they probably ARE, like these dudes are admiring my tattoos while assessing my body at the same time. I dunno.)
Of course, he could have been talking to my dog, who does indeed have a sweet set of gams.

There's defo some advantages.
When we take the kids to the beach and looking for a primo spot to sit, it's amazing how when I'll strip down to a pair of shorts, put up the umbrella, fold out the chair and crack a coldie, then the people who up and move ha!
Was it sumfink that I done? Thanks for the space.

@idyllsend my mom claims The Clan of the Cavebear books are her favorite. And I've heard the same from other people who have read them. Next on my list... I'd say if you have time to finish Game of Thrones this weekend, then you have plenty of time to read! Haha it took me around a month to finish each book in that series and I read often.
@LadyGabe whenever a 50 Shades of Grey groupie raves about 50 Shades, I recommend the Sleeping Beauty trilogy ;) Those books were tough to get through LOL

Hello all!
I am frequently here reading through the threads, but it is only today I have decided to set up an account to contribute. Quiet day at work!
Known as Gabe (artist name LadyGabe), 25, female, in the UK. Already a member of other forums, passionate collector, and especially love Traditional / Neo Trad work.
As a creative little spud I like to illustrate, paint, create eco crafts, upcycle and practice as a freelance Make up Artist. My full time job is an Account Manager (boo boring) but working hard to move into a self employed creative position. Starting to study web design, photography, and hope to be working as a tattoo apprentice soon.
Not here to try and gain any interest in my personal work / gain apprenticeship, so dont worry I wont be spamming you with my art!
I just want to chat to other collectors / artists, who especially appreciate solidly lined tattoos. I appreciate realism / watercolour etc... in their own way, but give me a solid line any day!
Here are some pictures of a few of my collection so far.


Much love and inky cuddles
Gabe

Hello LST! My name is Jade and I'm pretty fresh out of my apprenticeship, 2-3 months. I started tattooing 2 months into it, and it was for 3 years. I'm here to educate myself, to see what other amazing work is out there, and meet the minds behind the art. I'll be loading my tattoo/artwork on here, so any critique is more than welcome! There's always room for improvement.

Ooh, I would like to also suggest the Preacher series and "Air" by G. Willow Wilson. And Lynda Barry's Marlys and Freddie stories, which are published as approachable little books. The latter totally blew my mind recently. Lynda Barry is one of my all-time favorite humans.
The Best American Graphic Novels thing that comes out every year offers a taste of many graphic novels, some of them pretty great.
Have fun! You're making me want to read more comic books :)

Finally working through the last few Vampire Chronicles books by Anne Rice now that I finished the Mayfair Witches and could read Merrick (finished that 2 weeks ago, was a little slow going but a great read).
I finished the last book of a guilty pleasure YA trilogy (Can't remember the first two, but the last is 'Ruin and Rising').
Now I'm going to blast through the Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris. My mind needs a break this summer before starting my master's program in the fall. I think these books are great but only because I've seen all of True Blood. If someone were to read them without all the fleshed out characters and Louisiana accents, I think they would feel dull and childish. But with all of that visual content packed in my head, they are so much fun to read. Especially to have Sookie's narrative through everything. I think she is one of my favorite literary/TV characters of all time.

I got my first apprenticeship when I was 18 and had no idea what I was doing. (Funny, now I just don't know, but I know what I'm doing) I paid $1800 to a man and his wife who shall remain nameless. I'm drawing, cutting stencils, and all that stuff. They seemed like good folks. A little sleazy, but I was sorta sleazy then too.
I never got to tattoo in that shop either. Four months in...
I got to the shop Tuesday (closed Sun/Monday), early as always and stand around for a few hours. There was a pizza place across the street and I sit down and have a few .89 cent slices, and end up walking in the AC repair company office next door. I ask if they had seen them.
It was said that there was an attempted armed robbery on Saturday night after I left at nine, and _________ had shot the guy.
Turns out to be total BS. The wife, who worked there as well, had found out her husband was getting really good "tips" from dancers and had gone to town on his gear, pulled a knife on him, and scared him right out of the state.
Not my place to speak of others infidelities, but I'd signed a contract! And with that his Harley, with the blown head gasket that was oft used by all of us as a bench to sit on while we smoked cigarettes (have to give it to them, it was still the Speed Stick days, but they had a no smoking policy in the shop) disappeared as if into thin air.
I still that bike once and while... with him NOT on it. I have no idea what happened to these people but ___________ still owes me sleeves.

Cheers for the lovely welcome all!
@HaydenRose - The Scorpion is awesome, done by Miss Jo Black in Frome in the UK. I have a booking with Amy Kinsell at Cardiff Tattoo and Toy Convention in July. It is a Star Wars theme con, so I am having a realistic Storm Trooper on the inside of my thigh. Should be cool!
@JimmyS - The lion was by Gre Hale at Rain City Collective in Manchester UK. He is doing my boyfriends sleeve, so we go to visit a lot, and I fell in love with the flash of this Lion on the wall. He smashed it in within 1 hour! Had to pin me down as it hurt like a bitch :D