For me, a tattoo needs to have some significance. I'm definitely planning on properly representing my home city with a completely unjustified nod to sailboating, minus the text.
http://img229.imageshack.us/img229/2...tylogo1rw4.gif

When i want to not be a social smoker i think about getting a no smoking sign on me somewhere.

Also, my daughter's name in symbol form is always on the list too.

:lol:

"Excuse me sir, but look at my forearm. This is a no-smoking area. Please take your cigarette away from me."

That'll get you beat up pretty quickly...

:lol:

But seriously, it's only a matter of time before everywhere is a nonsmoking area. :paranoid:

Yeah......just be sure you have really reasearched the correct stroke of the brush.....this could easily translate to Beef and Broccoli!!!



Well she had a bad artist.......which is another point, if your serious about getting one and you have put serious thought into the design and placement then you should devout just as much time to finding the right artist.

I love them. A guy with full sleeves in insanely hot, same with ladies. I am planning on getting one on the back of my neck soon... but I'm still saving up.

thanks for the responses, good to get all the different thoughts on the topic :)...I guess I agree with some....I just can't think of anything that I know I'll be happy with years down the road, but one with sentimental meaning would be different...

-Will

I've got three ideas, none yet realized, and it's been ten years (and counting) since I came up with the idea for the first one. :(

The flip side is that I've decided to make the first one I get a reward for reaching one or two now-significant goals in my life. You can tell it's working fabulously, because I'm no closer to getting it now than I was a year ago. Ha.

I find tattoos marginally less ugly than scabs or open sores. Even if the design itself is aesthetically pleasing, it's out of place on a human body. Kind of like a nice pair of tits is are beautiful by themselves, or on a woman, but if they're man-boobs they suddenly become ugly.

I am a big fan of tattoos, always have been. I ended up getting my first this fall and I'm currently debating my next one. I'm having trouble pinning down a location and a design but it will either be on my thigh or my back and be something pulled from Buddhist scriptures. I'm lucky enough to currently be in a place that's somewhat of a hot spot for tattoo culture so I didn't have a problem finding a good artist.

Here I see a lot of really nice tattoos all the time but in most places I have to say that the majority of tattoos I see are no good. A woman that I met recently started telling me about her tattoos and it sounded like she had one for most of the guys she dated and she was trying to figure out how to cover them. Not smart if you ask me.

As for people looking for artists or something similar, the best way to find a good artist is to ask people who you see with great tattoos and go from there.

Miami Ink, LA Ink, and probably whatever other shows they might have suck. The difference between them and the top two places around here is that ours cost half as much and the artists haven't had a chance to let fame go to their heads. Yes, body art is a profession that allows you to make money, but when it becomes all about the money and fame rather than the art, I call it selling out.
Someone didn't get the memo (click for big)
http://content.imagesocket.com/thumb...244e4e90f5.gif
And that wasn't even a good Judas Priest album

And now I'm going to get up on my soapbox about terrible tattoos. I'm almost 100% sure that none of these belong to TFP members; if they do, sorry, but you deserve my ridicule and I will invite you to critique or make fun of any future piercings and/or tattoos if and when I get them.


Panther with elephantitis
http://content.imagesocket.com/images/IMG_2198d8b.jpg

Proofread your famous quotes before getting them permanently drawn on your skin.
http://content.imagesocket.com/image...4d22ee799f.jpg

Maybe he just plain forgot the fact that the dead man's hand is always four black cards and not a mix of black and red.
http://content.imagesocket.com/image...f180844944.jpg

Fortunately for him, the inside of the lip constantly rubs on the teeth, wearing these tattoos down to a faint purple blob over a period of about ten years.
http://content.imagesocket.com/thumbs/supf59.jpg

I've mentioned how much I hate Ayn Rand, right? Fortunately for this guy, 99% of the people who will even recognize this are probably objectivists who share his whacked-out philosophical views.
http://content.imagesocket.com/image...ooSmalle9c.jpg

Sometimes, on rare occasions, tattoos are so utterly stupid that they come around full circle back to awesome. These are two of them.
http://content.imagesocket.com/thumbs/burgerarm211.jpg
http://content.imagesocket.com/image...op_lol265f.jpg

To be fair, new inks and needles are enough better that the fading is prolonged past middle age if you give it proper care when it's fresh.

HAHAHAHA, NEVER FORGET!!! That's a truly awesome tattoo.

I don't really see the point of a tattoo on the inside of the lip, seems like a waste to me.

Also, I think many people get enough tattoos where it doesn't really matter what you add to it anymore. For instance, Kat Von D is pretty much covered at this point, so I don't think it really changes much to add a couple just for fun. Besides, you've gotta run out of ideas for great tattoos at some point.

And in all fairness the people on Miami Ink are pretty good artists, and they have their own styles which you don't see in the majority of tattoo artists IMO. That said, I'm not going to pay to fly to miami just to pay twice as much to get inked when I have some really good artists here to choose from.

As an artist, I have drawn tats for others, but like many here, I can't think of amything I'd be really happy with for life. Hell, I can't even think of a design I want to carve into an artificial pumpkin to have year after year, much less a tattoo.

Besides, when I do something I usually jump in with both feet. If I do get inked, it would be a mid-life crisis thing and I'd probably do a 3/4 back design. Something Irish, like some really intricate celtic interlace.

I love tattoos. I have always wanted one and two years ago I got my first one. Now I have 6; and I'm not done yet. I have this thing with "making things mine." I draw on stuff, add stickers, and personalize everything. I think that's one of the reasons that I love tattoos. I even like getting them, but then again I haven't had a truly painful one yet. Some people say that "your body is a temple;" I say that God made my body perfect and I am making it beautiful.

Edit: 4 of my 6 tattoos mean something to me. They are things that represent times of my life, things that (because they are fairly new) that I believe. When I get 80 I'll be able to look back on the tattoos that I have designed and remember more than just my life, but also my frame of mind. These tattoos are memories of things that I can't really take pictures of - things that I want something as simple as a picture to represent.

They are also fun conversational pieces. Smile.

My attitude toward tattoos is a simple one: I don't like them. I have seen some really cool ones, and even then I had a voice in the back of my head going "glad that ain't on me."

My wife has one, and I'm fine with it. It's in a place where it's not very obvious. I am glad she doesn't have piercings though.

I try very hard not to make hasty judgments when I see people with tattoos and piercings, but for whatever reason, it's not always easy. Maybe if I were 10 years younger, this would be a non-issue. But for some reason, when I see someone with a lot of obvious tattoos, it seems like a statement about a lifestyle choice. I'm not clear on why I see it that way.

This is just my opinion, but that's exactly what it is for many people. I think the same thing goes for people with many obvious piercings or anything else that's part of an alternative lifestyle.

Dont mind them one bit. One or a sleeve, its self expression and i truly appreciate that.

That being said. I love my tattoo. Its symbolic and filled with great memories.

I don't see the point of them personally.

And i reckon that young women getting lower back tattoos seems a bit sheeplike, no matter how sexy they look.

Personally, I hate that lower back tattoos are now a bad thing, yes many women get tattoos there for the wrong reasons but many women and men get tattoos everywhere for the wrong reasons.

The lower back is anatomically (if that's a word) the best place on a woman's body for a tattoo. It's least likely to change over time and many designs just wouldn't work well anywhere else.

/rant

everyone i know seems to think that lower back tats are "tramp stamps." which is just silly. I'm not a tramp and my next tat will be on my lower back.

and it is a great place to put a tat - not only because of the chances of it changing, but it's a nice, smooth (meaning shoulder blade free), large spot.

I love tattoos. Not all of them of course, they have to be well done.
I think they can be really sexy.
I have one myself and it was really hard to decide what to get. I want another but again... very hard for me to decide and I won't just pick one off the wall. It has to be at least partly my idea and then designed by the tattoo artist so its an original piece of art.

The one thing i can't stand is the old standby hatred that goes "you're gonna regret that when you're 60". WTF is that supposed to mean? Does anyone really think about that statement? When i'm old and gray I'm going to have a lot more to worry about than any tattoos and more than likely I will be showing a lot less skin... even being a guy. Plus I think it says something about how you lived your life.

Yeah i want a real tattoo.

ive got 2 piece of shit tattoos i regret.

One is an Operation Ivy tattoo on the inner part of my thigh on my left leg. I did it with a safety pin wrapped in string.

the other in an anarchy symbol on the back of my right arm, done with a guitar string. (i was 12, what do yah want)

I dont know, it might seem childish or awkward, but i would like invader zim on me somewhere. but who knows, that idea will probably fade.

damn i need an idea.

I like tattoos. On other people. I don't know if I'd ever get one.

But if I did, it would go a little somethin' like this:
http://cdnll.img1.imagechef.com/w/08...c40de56f41.jpg

Or:
http://cdnll.img1.imagechef.com/w/08...a06ed05ec9.jpg

I was never interested in tattoos, even during my teenage years. But suddenly this year, while in my early forties, I feel like doing just about every crazy thing I can to my body just to rid myself of the vestiges of my incredibly boring life.

And I'm not talking about getting a small patch of ink in an inconspicuous part of my body. Instead, I'm thinking of getting some Haida art applied on the sides and along the spine of my body, from my neck to my feet, pretty much where there's no excessive amount of body hair (that rules out my entire chest).

Here's an example of the style I'm considering, this one found at http://www.steve-a.co.uk.
http://www.steve-a.co.uk/main/images/neill2.jpg
If you do a Google search for "Haida tattoo", you'll find many more examples. They're all single tone, solid colour, and highly spiritual drawings inspired by art from the Haida Nation.

Of course, I'll start with a single drawing as a test to make sure I have no allergic reactions to the ink. Afterwards, I'll start adding more of them, all following straight lines along the length of my body, each one working together to tell a mythical story.

When it's all done, the animal figures on my body will become my guardian angels, always looking out for me wherever I go.

I only have one tattoo at the moment, but I have never regretted it. I am seriously thinking about having more ink done in the future. On the other hand piercings are something that have never really appealed to me.

http://a300.ac-images.myspacecdn.com...de93d30613.jpg


http://a630.ac-images.myspacecdn.com...beda85f6cd.jpg


MY THOUGHTS? As a guy looking at a half naked woman, my thoughts are not quite work safe, at all.

My thoughts on "why" this appeals to me seems to be that this crosses over in to the realm of fantasy. These "markings" make this person a little more alien, a little "less human" and I think part of us all desires to live in a reality where different types of humanoids existed. Its part of what makes the elven/dragon/etc high fantasy stuff appeal to us to begin with. We thrive on diversity, we WANT to be different, no one desires a nation of clones.

That said, god damn, that is such a fucking turn on. See my signature for details.

Seconded.

Something tells me you should wait a few years and see if you still want Invader Zim.

That said, there are many great artists out there that can do cover tattoos, it would depend a lot on what's already there.

I'm starting to save once I start my new job, I plan on having my second tattoo 14" by 16" or so on my lower back by this time next year. Seven lotus flowers and either a Buddha sitting on them or the Zen symbol worked into each lotus.

I'm pretty iffy with tattoos.
My dad always complains about how he hates tattoos, and thinks they are dumb. I've been interested but have yet to find anything I want to permanently place on my body. I'm satisfied with myself for now.

http://t4.imagechef.com/ic/imgout/sa...e08a450491.jpg
http://t4.imagechef.com/ic/imgout/sa...f99706a9eb.jpg
http://t4.imagechef.com/ic/imgout/sa...0cdcc3ce61.jpg

I might actually consider doing this.

My family has asked that I do not have any more ink installed. They have requested me not to go to Temple with them. How do I move my pics from my "pictures" file to my TFP post. Mincken

you got me.


hahahaha.

yeah, ive wanted that tatoo for a bit. im a big fan of jhonen vasquez's work. either zim or johnny the homicidal maniac with squee and shmee.

zim is just way more colorful.

im also thinking about getting the crimson ghost tat'ed somewhere on my body, but that idea might also fade.

eh who am i kidding, i will always love the misfits.

Personally I have one, a rugby tattoo on my right thigh. I like it there because I can see it and its personal. Not many people can see it (only the lucky few I take my pants off for!) unless I'm playing rugby. I would love to have more, but expense and ideas are failing me now.

I love this suggestions though:
I was born in Alaska and getting some native art (maybe not as big) is very interesting to me!

Thanks for the support, ruggerp11! I'm probably at least six months away before I get my first ink. I'm already altering the design, and moving closer to the lifelike characters Bill Reid incorporated in his art, his most revealing example being his sculpture "The Spirit of Haida Gwaii". I'm seriously thinking of getting a full landscape done in that style, on the entire back of my body, from my upper arms down to my calves, all done in black ink with shading, mainly to avoid potential allergic reactions to colored inks (I might be vulnerable to them).

I might still change my mind later. That's why I have to spend a lot of time on this design as well as find the right artist to do the job. It'll probably take a year to finish all the tattoos, and I'll be wearing this work of art for the rest of my life.

The more I think about doing this, the more I really, really like it. I should have thought of this ten years ago!

I personally wouldn't mind getting one, but it's nowhere near my top list of priorities. However, being the horror fan that I am, whenever I see some big dude with his entire upper torso and arms blacked out with all sorts of insane little pictures, I can't help but stare, try to find some gore, or a little Voorhees here and a Krueger there. Fun stuff, in my opinion, but not really for me.

My thoughts? I need more.