Hi and welcome

That is some great ink and I believe that artist has done some work on my step father as well who has some sleeve work.

I will haul myself over as only in Leeds.

Looking forward to seeing more of your ink.

Take care
Matthew

Hi

Do you mean the kidneys or the sides of the ribs at the bottom?

Your skin stays fairly solid over the kidney area but can sag a bit where you can develop love handles as this is where the skin tends to stretch the most.

Been a bit of a fat git myself I am balancing the speed of my weight loss cos 1. I am lazy 😀 2. I dont want to be left…[Read more]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

That is quite a collection you have built up there.

I was just wondering about the fill on the hand ink is it supposed to end like that or you going to get the black part level off straight? (It seems to be a little uneven but wasn’t sure if it was the font style).

Looking forward to seeing you around the…[Read more]

Hi soreness and a bit of swelling are normal in the first few days and always best to keep an eye on it.

The key signs of infection are

Swelling that does not go down

Bruising or discolouration (that might also spread)

Red lines or what look like thin veins spreading from the tattoo usually feels hot and itchy.

Pus and oozing.

Looking at the…[Read more]

Hi

It is gonna be a while before you can gauge the true colour of tattoo until the surface and under skin heal. Most tribal (or large colour pieces) require extra fill as you will always get spots which are not visible to the naked eye until it starts to heal.

That said there are some wobbles but tell the artist to powerline them and fix it up -…[Read more]

KH is a forum member who has exactly that type of grin.

Take care
Matthew

Hi Fear

I have found from my own studies that tattooing is much more sociably acceptable in the USA and Canada than in the UK. I think a lot of it is we have a ‘small island’ attitude to a lot of things and it takes a long time to shift it.

Many UK still think in terms of tattooing being for the 1. Working Classes 2. Rock…[Read more]

Hi Arni

No there is no recorded Aryan Brotherhood in the UK and the White Power movement is not a shadow of that of the USA or say Germany/Italy.

We do have small groups such as Combat 18 but the National Front dissolved into the British Nationalist Party and the English Defence League.

All this said we are talking of a skin head culture in the…[Read more]

Hi

I love the detail in the work and looking forward to seeing the updates.
Who is the artist?

Take care
Matthew

Hi Arni

I am a bit torn on opinion here.

For myself I like his work and would have no problem getting a piece done as his style appeals to me (although not keen on his floral style). It is some solid work. I like his black n gray work especially.

However what appeals to me is not going to be the same for you. (Hence the division in…[Read more]

Hi

I take it you mean a simple line cross usually on the section between the thumb an forefinger or on the finger itself?

My step father (I am also UK) also had them (although not a skinhead) and it can have a number of meanings.

The orig skinhead movement in UK had roots in reggae and the cross was a symbol of unity and straight edge living…[Read more]

Hi

As with all things it depends on geographic location (some areas are more accepting than others), type of work/career you want and various other issues of peer acceptance and pressures.

Overall though yes getting your hands tattooed is a big decision – many people still find this to be a taboo and still continue to associate hand tattoos with…[Read more]

That is a nice piece and alwaysa boost to help ppl deal with grief.

Take care
Matthew

Hi

For a decent artist you should be looking at least $800-$1500 depending on sizing and artist

Yes you could get it done cheaper but you are wearing it for life so i would want to pay for the best to put it on rather than compromise.

Plus side is if you save and it is cheaper you have sapre cash in your pocket rather than going with an artist…[Read more]

Hi

Ink can take a long time to heal especially where there is a lot of close fill as the skin gets packed full of scar tissue.

This will take time to settle down and can be as long as 3-4 months in some cases before you see it go down. Just keep it clean and moisturise.

Also don’t panic if it gets bumpy when exposed to hot water/steam this is…[Read more]

I like floral and religious pieces so it certainly is something I like.
The linework is nice and a nice use of shading.

Since it is a wip are you filling in around the branches and with what?

Keep the pics flowing.

Take care
Matthew

Hi

As ink goes it is not a bad piece from the pic is it is well shaded and neat outline.
There is a lot you can do either by extending the piece (require a reshade of the orig) or adding to it.

You could have anything from floral wrapping through and around it to something more exotic it is a simple piece to incorporate.

The only limits are…[Read more]

Hi

You can always get a few laser hits to lighten it first if you wanted something beside tribal.
That said if you like tribal then get it done – there are plenty of decent artists who could do a nice design that you like.

The key is what makes you happy not what we prefer.

If you want something other than tribal and want to stay fairly local…[Read more]

Hi and welcome.

A reshade on your jedi symbol is not a big job and any experienced artist will work through that in no time.

My only suggestion is that on the right side of the pic the middle side point needs lengthening so it is equal to that on the left. Also to fatten up the top right point so equal thickness to the one on the left. (Unless…[Read more]

Hi

If you are gonna add some purple mist around I would also suggest maybe filling in those stars with a bit of colour.

Take a look at my backpiece and you get an idea on how purple clouds and shading looks.

I would also recommend some bolder relining on the black where it cuts through the blue and more blue shading where it runs over the…[Read more]