Lyndell had some old tattoos on his back that he wanted to do something with-- he wasn't sure what but when he showed them to me I said that what we needed was a total back cover up, as the old work was pretty far gone (see the Read More button below for pictures.) For a theme, he suggested Africa, with Egyptian godesses, lions, the jungle, whatever, "just no snakes! I don't like snakes." Because this is a cover up, we had to adhere to the cover up formula (larger, darker, more detailed, body position, etc.) and so the plan is to use the large goddess with her complicated jewelry, costume and wings to do the major work and fill out the rest of the back with the lion and jungle and desert scenes. We completed the gray lining (getting the stencil in the skin as a blue print) yesterday, which took three hours-- and will start tattooing the outline in next week.
Samantha and Zachary wanted tattoos with their children's names in them but they wanted different elements (Sam wanted a butterfly but Zach didn't) and different styles of lettering. Zach had a previous tat that he wanted incorporated into his new one. So I came up with very different tattoos (see the Read More button below) even though the names are the same. We are finished with Zach's but are working on Sam's second one (with their son Michael's name in it.)
Ashley says she's wanted to get a tattoo for awhile but was having a hard time finding the right image. She loves the mountains and does alot of hiking and mountain climbing and wanted something connected to that. She sent me some pictures of her favorite locations and this is the design I came up with. (See the Read More button below.) We completed the outlining and gray shading at her first session and will lay the color over everything at her next session to finish.
Last year Shane came in with copies of some lovely lithographs by Alphonse Mucha that she wanted tatooed on her back, one on each side of a piece that was already tattooed in the middle of her back. (See the Read More button below.) We were able to get the outlining on both pieces done and are now starting to fill in the gray shading and next session, the color. I was really excited to recreate such amazing works of art as tattoos (see the drawings) and am super glad to work on them again.
A bike messenger for many years, Chris spent one summer crossing the US on his bike-- without a map. A couple of years later, he did the same thing in Europe. He had some wonderfully serendipitous experiences and wanted a set of tattoos to commemorate his journeys. His idea was to have two panels, one on each of his outer thighs (as his legs were what powered him through) consisting of maps, based on old pirate and treasure maps. This is the result of our first session-- his first tattoo. (See the Read More button below.) He sat for three hours! We did not get all of the outline done (see the purple parts on the second shot, which are the stencil) but will put the missing elements in next. It will probably take us three or four more sessions to complete the whole tattoo.
Jim is a mountaineer who recently returned from Japan where he climbed Mt. Fuji; he wanted a tattoo that would commemorate that journey for him. Here are some shots of the first tattoo we are doing (see below.) This section needs a couple more sessions to complete. Eventually it will join up to another section that will be on his left upper arm.
Adam came to see me in January with some previous work that he wanted covered up. (See "before" shot below.) He wanted something tribal that would not only cover up the blotchy old tattoo on his chest and upper back but that would also unite the armband somehow. The design I came up with (see "in progress" shot below) conforms to the cover up formula: the new tat must be larger, darker, full of detail and use positioning to take the eye away from the old work. We were not quite finished when I took these last photos; the work on his chest and back needed another session to complete.
Meg came in to see me earlier this year for a wristband created by two intertwining snakes, one representing herself, the other her fiance. This time her tattoo concept is an armband and eventual full sleeve connecting the two pieces. The way we work together is: she tells me her ideas, I draw them up, she OK's them and then we ink. Click on the Read more link for pix of the finished tat.
Mark and Stephanie are a couple from NYC who wanted to get tattooed while on vacation out here in Portland. Stephanie wanted some lettering-- a phrase with personal significance written in her own handwritting. She wanted it someplace on her body where it would be sort of hidden but that she could see some of it, so the upper inner arm placement is perfect. Mark wanted a representation of the carniverous plant Drosera Capensis growing up from his inner wrist and curving around his forearm. He's a filmmaker and one of his favorite films features the plant. It also grows very well in Portland and you can see it in many gardens around the city. Click on the "Read more" link for photos.
Dan had an old tattoo of the Playboy bunny symbol on his outer right calf that he wanted to have covered up with some kind of celtic design to reflect his heritage. He sent me four designs that he'd found and I chose a couple that I thought would work well enough for a cover up tattoo. The formula that we use for coverups is: the new design should contain lots of detail and be darker and bigger than the old tat. We also use position and redirection on the body to help fool the eye. See below for the before and after shots-- click on the "Read more" link.