Tattoos... advice from those so adorned

[mdwest]

The single best piece of advice given has already been stated by several people many times…

Choose your artist wisely..

Know what sort of art you want done, then seek out the best artist you can find that specializes in that type of art…

Someone that does great classic Americana might suck at portraits or wildlife.. someone that’s awesome at traditional Asian styles may be terrible at black and grey work…

Make sure you know exactly what you want.. and then work with your artist to get it exactly right…

And then be prepared to wait..

Any artist that you can just drop in on and get them to work on you is NOT the artist you want…

The guy I use here in DFW is globally acclaimed and works out of a shop here and another in Colorado… he’s typically got a 6+ month wait.. sometimes it stretches out closer to 8-10 months..

 

[Wishfulthinker580]

No offense meant whatsoever but are you sure you really want to? It’s not related to your divorce at all? Again, no offense meant. If my buddy was going through/had gotten a divorce and was talking about a tattoo (or whatever) I’d ask him about it too.

 

[BryceM]

Make sure you look at stuff 5 years old, 10 years old, and 20 years old. Colors don’t hold up well. Basic designs do OK. It will change over time.

I have ruined many expensive tattoos by operating through them. A big scar through the middle usually doesn’t look right after.

 

[sureshot375]

I once represented a fella in a divorce whose wife was cheating on him with her ex boyfriend. Basically, the ex had been in prison and the two rekindled their romance as soon as he got out.

Anyways, the boyfriend had a huge tattoo across his stomach that said “It Ain’t Going To Suck Itself”. Not sure if he got it prison or whether he had it before he went in.

Something to consider.

I mean he’s not wrong.

 

[Milo]

The single best piece of advice given has already been stated by several people many times…

Choose your artist wisely..

Know what sort of art you want done, then seek out the best artist you can find that specializes in that type of art…

Someone that does great classic Americana might suck at portraits or wildlife.. someone that’s awesome at traditional Asian styles may be terrible at black and grey work…

Make sure you know exactly what you want.. and then work with your artist to get it exactly right…

And then be prepared to wait..

Any artist that you can just drop in on and get them to work on you is NOT the artist you want…

The guy I use here in DFW is globally acclaimed and works out of a shop here and another in Colorado… he’s typically got a 6+ month wait.. sometimes it stretches out closer to 8-10 months..

I wait 6 months to see mine. That seems to be the norm.

There are a ton of shops around Anchorage-Matsu, a few are good.

 

[Ravensview]

As has been said, choose an artist that does the type of work that you want, look at their work, some are better at certain styles than others, aftercare is important , pick your spot wisely, be sure the design you choose is what you really want, colors will fade

 

[Gemsbok45]

I’m not a tattoo guy but that buff looks sweet!

 

[DillonG]

Make sure you look at stuff 5 years old, 10 years old, and 20 years old. Colors don’t hold up well. Basic designs do OK. It will change over time.

I have ruined many expensive tattoos by operating through them. A big scar through the middle usually doesn’t look right after.

To your point, I have a 16 year old tattoo. It’s covered most of the time. So it hasn’t faded. Color is still very good and the lines aren’t blurred.

I guess something that no poster has mentioned is touch ups as you age. Again, size makes it easier. A basic design also is far easier to touch up. My father in law is an old Vietnam vet. He has 4, I believe, and they look pretty good for a guy in his early 80s. He had a couple touched up over the years to keep them sharp. Touch ups aren’t needed very often, or at all depending on the tattoo.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Never thought I would agree with Red Leg on anything. The pirate look never made much sense to me. When I look in the mirror after a shower it's sad enough without seeing a bunch of sagging body art that's fast becoming an unidentified blob.

Tattoos are often used to mark milestones in sailors lives. That’s the reason tattooing became popular with sailors not with pirates. Spend enough time around the water and you learn to gauge someone’s experience based on their ink. For example I’ve just about got enough sea miles to get my second sparrow. Sparrows represent 5000 sea miles traditionally that’s been bumped to 10000 now that ships are diesel powered instead of sail.

if your going to take the time to criticize try and have an idea what your talking about.

 

[bakerb]

Mine is almost 10 years old. I always wanted a tattoo, but never got one as I didn’t have anything meaningful to make forever part of my body.

On January 1, 2015 my 5 year old son passed away due to medical complications he suffered since birth. A couple months later my wife and I got tattoos to honor him.

The bear has a couple meanings. First, he was tough. God he was tough. And he was tender with his baby sister. Not a whole lot of things tougher than a grizzly bear. Second, our family of four has the first name initials of B, E, R, R. Bear.

We got ours on a trip. My wife researched and researched tattoo parlors. And we had our appointment scheduled and our tattoo wants to the artist well ahead of time.

Mine can be covered as it’s on my forearm. But I don’t really give a damn. I’m proud of my son. I’m proud to talk about him.

My wife also got a bear and his name on hit wrist. She works for a hospital and for a while they “made” her cover it (didn’t really enforce it). And eventually they relaxed their tattoo policy

 

[coreydb]

If you really want a tattoo, be prepared to spend $$$$; they're not cheap by any means. I have a couple from decades ago....prices went through the roof.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

I’ve never understood the fascination people have with ink. To each his or her own.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Tattoos are often used to mark milestones in sailors lives. That’s the reason tattooing became popular with sailors not with pirates. Spend enough time around the water and you learn to gauge someone’s experience based on their ink. For example I’ve just about got enough sea miles to get my second sparrow. Sparrows represent 5000 sea miles traditionally that’s been bumped to 10000 now that ships are diesel powered instead of sail.
View attachment 658189
if your going to take the time to criticize try and have an idea what your talking about.

Gee, I always thought pirates were sailors. They sail the seas right? The classic "pirate look" also includes face jewelry, shaved head, ear rings, goatee, man bun, etc. Not for me.

 

[Red Leg]

Tattoos are often used to mark milestones in sailors lives. That’s the reason tattooing became popular with sailors not with pirates. Spend enough time around the water and you learn to gauge someone’s experience based on their ink. For example I’ve just about got enough sea miles to get my second sparrow. Sparrows represent 5000 sea miles traditionally that’s been bumped to 10000 now that ships are diesel powered instead of sail.
View attachment 658189
if your going to take the time to criticize try and have an idea what your talking about.

Just like Russian prison inmates.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Just like Russian prison inmates.

Inmates in general not just Russians

 

[Pilgrim]

Me personally, I would take that money and get some nice prints made of hunts or other memorable times in your life and hang them on the wall where you'll actually see them.

 

[V.Veritas]

I will follow this post with great interest. I'm not interested in tattoos per se, but in the thought process on how people decide what to tattoo on their own body.
I really appreciate the question raised for discussion.

I enjoy wearing T-shirts with different messages that represent my interests/ beliefs/ passions at various stages of my life. All of them are changing in time for various reasons. (Funny example: "Truck off Trudeau". The recent events will make it obsolete in several month). So I already know that this message will fade in time. Colours and meaning equally and I have multiple options to deal with it.

But how would one select a tattoo that will stay meanigful throughout the life of the owner?

Don't get me wrong. Some of them are work of art. But even that goes out of style in time.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Gee, I always thought pirates were sailors. They sail the seas right? The classic "pirate look" also includes face jewelry, shaved head, ear rings, goatee, man bun, etc. Not for me.

What is for you ? For as long as you’ve darkened this forum you’ve hardly ever had a positive post unless it was to self praise your own abilities? At this point it would be far easier to post a list of the things you do like and will just assume you’ve got a negative view on everything else.

King George v of England was a sailor and had tattoos does that make him a pirate?

 

[Tundra Tiger]

Sounds like the "perfect" thing to do at this point in your life. After all, that nearly sixty year old, taught healthy skin really shows them off. Also, at our age, our resistance to infection isn't quite what it once was. I would strongly recommend a really good scotch instead.

How Can You Tell If a Tattoo Is Infected?

A tattoo can easily become infected if it is not properly cared for. Review the signs and symptoms of infected tattoos and find out how to treat them.

www.verywellhealth.com

Not an option. Don't drink and never have. I do appreciate hearing from both sides though, so thank you good sir.

 

[Lumaberpat]

For professional hunter:
5% for an average tip
6% for a better than average tip
7% for a very good tip
8% plus for a very generous tip

I would tip a good tattoo artist higher than the suggested tips for a PH, especially if you’re considering getting more than one tatto by the person!