20 replies to this topic

[JaderBug]

Doodled up some new ideas for a tattoo, thought I'd share.

I've liked tattoos and wanted one for about as long as I can remember, and I'm not sure what's stopping me from getting one anymore. Trying to decide where to put it, IF I get it. Hubby isn't real excited about the idea of me getting a tattoo, but he won't stand in my way if I really want it.

The dogs (maybe without the crazy-eye)...



The sheep (which style, curly Qs or loops?)...



All together now...



Whaddaya think? Where should it go? Probably has to be hide-able...

If you have a BC- or dog-related tattoo (or any tattoo, I suppose!) I'd love to see your ink...

[gcv-border]

Good Luck with your tattoo. I am glad to hear that I am not the only one who wants a dog-related tattoo. I just want my dog's name, and like you DH thinks I am nuts, but he just raises his eyebrows and shakes his head. The main things holding me back are where to put it and what font to use and how to I get a good tattoo artist (not that it is a difficult tattoo, but from watching the tattoo shows on TV, I realize that it is hard to do clean work).

Jovi

[bcnewe2]

My daughter is a tattoo artist. I can say, it's so important who does your work. Ask for pics of other work and check out others.

I have several, a paw print on my back shoulder (done before daughter grew up) sheep prints around my ankle and a hand print with a paw print inside of it on the inside of my wrist. I forget I have the one on my back shoulder so when I get a glancing view of it in a mirror I freak out till I remember it's a tat not something crawling on my back.

Every time I find something new or new idea she poopoo's it. She is in the process of drawing up a scene with sheep in a Field with a border collie in it. More like a picture than a tattoo.

I had come up with sort of a tribal bc that I wanted on top of the sheep prints around my ankle...she refused. Said tribal is not allowed in her family!???

I'm not young I have very few places on my bod that I'd like to highlight. So my next one will be on my calf. I think one of the more important things with getting a tat is to be careful of the spot. Imagine one day you'll be old and think what it will look like. I almost had the handprint/pawprint put on my neck (right below my hairline in the back)she stenciled it on and I looked...not the most attractive place on someone who's not real skinny. Hence the wrist placement.

Again from personal experience I can say....pick a real artist not a flash artist (someone who does only wall art or can't really draw except tats), even if you do the artwork they have to be able to duplicate what you drew, and pick your placement. Much to my dismay...we all get old!

DH has none, he's not really fond of them but he just smiles and asks when I'm going to have his name put on me. Not going to happen!

Here's my daughters blog link, if you go to her gallery you can see some of her work. She's done some really beautiful work. But I am her Momma so I guess maybe I'm a bit prejudice!

[rushdoggie]

My heart dog is not a Border Collie, so there is a black swallowtail butterfly (can you figure that out?)with a design that symbolizes relationships on my upper back. I love my tattoo, and its the perfect blend of stylistic and realistic.

the wind is blowing his ear fringe back, but you get the idea...

[nancy]

I like the top left sheep, but it needs brown horns. And I like the black & white pup.

My daughter has an ivy garland around one ankle. She wore socks around me for over a year - and she was at least 30. I rather like it. On her. Having my ears pierced was quite enough for me.

[G. Festerling]

I like the curly loops in the sheep. For what it is worth. Like the idea.

Myself I have none. But I have been wanting one for a long time. I want a composite pic of my first three dogs real life. But not sure how to do it without it being too big.

[MrSnappy]

I have lots of tattoos. Most of them are not dog related. I am slowly (very slowly, as I am poor) finishing my half sleeve which is a marine theme (marine like the ocean and fish stuff, not military).

I do however have colourful, cartoony style paw prints running up my other forearm. Currently there are 4 for the dogs I had when I got the work done. Each dog has its own colour pawprint (red for Briggs AKA Red Dog, pink for Piper, orange for Wootie (naturally) and dark red / maroon for Tweed). Briggs has since passed away and I have added more dogs ... I still have lots of arm, but running out of colour ideas. Dex's will be black and white, but I have no idea what colour to make TWooie's (what colour is evil?) and Spring has me stumped altogether.

I've had some of my work for about 20 years now and still in no way regret it. This is not the case for everyone, of course. Some people deeply regret it. I still like both dogs and fish ;-)

When I was younger and cared about that kind of stuff, I got my then partner a gift certificate for a tattoo so he would cover up his ex girlfriend's name which was on his ankle. Ha ha. Oh the things that are important in our youth.

I found my artist by accident. I had another artist at the same shop, who is very good at what he does but has a very sour personality. The next time around I just tried one of his coworkers, who is both talented and a peach. We stay in touch frequently. Check their work and be sure you like their style before you sit down in their chair. And as my artist likes to say - "good tattoos ain't cheap, and cheap tattoos ain't good."

ETA - I think the curly-Qs are cuter on the sheep. But the dog doesn't look like a border collie to me, not even cartoonily (<-- not a real word).

RDM

[waffles]

I have lots of tattoos and my biggest advice is do not draw your own tattoos. Leave it up to the artists. I would take what you have drawn to an artist and tell them "this is my rough idea and you take it and put your own spin on it". This is why it is SO important to find an actual artist who has a style you really like. I travel 10hrs to see my guy because I love his style so much. I just tell him my idea, he draws it up, I tell him anything I want modified and we go from there. Having someone with a style you like makes this process such a breeze.

Even if you can draw well, what you draw does not always translate well into a tattoo. That is why again, it is so important to find someone with work you like and who has actual talent. If you like the cartoony look, then find someone who does work like that. Find someone who has done animal tattoos you like. Otherwise you will not be happy.

I like the last idea with the dog after the sheep. I would find someone who does work you like and show them your drawing. Tell them to draw it up how they would like it. I always tell my artist "you decide" when he asks questions. I trust his judgement since he is the professional. This is why great tattoos are not cheap.
This is who I go to: http://black13tattoo...tist=joshwoods/
and will eventually get someone from her: http://www.ohashleyl...om/?page_id=104

[gcv-border]

Jaderbug - Like MrSnappy, I like the sheep (both the loopy and the Qs), but not so much for the dog. But that might be because I am not big on cartoony characters.

bcnewe2 - yes, I want to be careful where I put my tattoo. Like you, someplace that hasn't aged (notice I said hasn't, not won't ).

Eons ago, I had a boyfriend with an incredible arm tattoo (a very colorful parrot). This was wayyy before tattoos became popular. (OK, I am going to age myself and say it was over 30 years ago). I did think about a tattoo then, but was afraid of what it would look like when I got older. Not only if I had put it in a place where the skin aged, but also did not know how the tattoo would 'age' since I had seen several tattoos (mostly of the simple blue variety) that were all muddled.

I think the technology and the artistry have improved in the interveneing years so I am not so worried about the aging process of tattoos.

Jovi

[JaderBug]

I do however have colourful, cartoony style paw prints running up my other forearm. Currently there are 4 for the dogs I had when I got the work done. Each dog has its own colour pawprint (red for Briggs AKA Red Dog, pink for Piper, orange for Wootie (naturally) and dark red / maroon for Tweed). Briggs has since passed away and I have added more dogs ... I still have lots of arm, but running out of colour ideas. Dex's will be black and white, but I have no idea what colour to make TWooie's (what colour is evil?) and Spring has me stumped altogether.

I remember seeing your paw print tattoos a long time ago, can't remember exactly what they look like but remember I really liked them. For TWooie you could do blue, since blue is the opposite of orange on the color wheel, and Spring could be a green or yellow, since the green plants and the yellow for the sun are what returns in the spring (I'm guessing her name is more likened to a metal bouncy spring though).

I have lots of tattoos and my biggest advice is do not draw your own tattoos. Leave it up to the artists. I would take what you have drawn to an artist and tell them "this is my rough idea and you take it and put your own spin on it".

That's another thing that's been holding me back- I draw a lot but I always find flaws in my drawings, and if I have to stare at it the rest of my life I'd like to have someone else's influence on it. Working hard to find an artist I really like, proving to be difficult to know what all to look at. I'm also not sure what 'style' this might fall under... New School maybe??

Btw, my new favorite competition show on TV is Spike's "Ink Master", and Josh Woods is one of my favorites on the show! How cool to have work done by him. Do you have pictures of his work on you?



Can we see pics of y'all's tattoos??

[MrSnappy]

I feel like we have done this thread before, but I can't find it. However, I did find an old post with photos of some of my ink.

*sigh* So little money, so much I want to do!

RDM

[waffles]

That's another thing that's been holding me back- I draw a lot but I always find flaws in my drawings, and if I have to stare at it the rest of my life I'd like to have someone else's influence on it. Working hard to find an artist I really like, proving to be difficult to know what all to look at. I'm also not sure what 'style' this might fall under... New School maybe??

Btw, my new favorite competition show on TV is Spike's "Ink Master", and Josh Woods is one of my favorites on the show! How cool to have work done by him. Do you have pictures of his work on you?



Can we see pics of y'all's tattoos??

I had no idea he was on a tv show. That is silly. I have been getting work done by him for almost 8 years, he wasn't such a "star" back then. I don't have any up close photos of mine but I attached a photo that at least shows most of them.

If you just spend some time each day looking online you will eventually come across someone you like. Depending on how willing you are to travel, you can start searching for tattoo shops/artists in surrounding cities or large cities you would be willing to travel too. Yelp is one site that might help too. You'll know it is the right person when you see it. You should have no doubts about their abilities.
 6137929186_75876f2bb9.jpg   95.18K   43 downloads

[D'Elle]

I have tattoos, also.
Actually, I am not in agreement with you, Waffles, on drawing your own. (no offense intended! :-) )
I have drawn my own tattoos since the first one, which was a while ago now. I work on it a long time until it is *just* what I want and then spend some time deciding on placement. That way I get exactly what I want. The main advice I would give about tattoos is: don't be in a hurry. And do indeed find yourself a true artist, not just someone who can work from flash.

My tattoo artist lives in Sedona and is a fine true artist and a great person as well. I would happily recommend him to anyone interested. Sedona is a nice place to visit.

Jaderbug: I love your designs. I think they would translate beautifully into a tattoo! JMO, I like the curly-Qs better than the loops on the sheep.....it looks much better to me. Love the dogs.

I am still working on what my tattoo(s) will be to honor my current dogs, Jes and Kit. I would love portraits, but am nervous about that. I have seen too many that did not look really like the animal or person. So, I am thinking paw prints, but have not decided yet how I will make them extra special, or representative of these two lovely dogs.

I, for one, never worry about how a tat will look when I am old. If I want it now, i will get it. I have never regretted getting one yet and never will because I am ultra-certain before I do it. So far all my tats still look good and I think they always will. Truth is, you only look different when you get old, not worse. Same with the tattoos. Again, JMO.
D'Elle

[martySQ]

I've only intentionally shown my tattoos once to someone other than my spouse, because they are areolæ. I would like eventually to have them made into a hint of a flower that you would see looking close. Waiting on scar tissue to lighten a bit yet.
My tat fella is Whispering Danny in KC,MO on about 38th & Main street. He has quite a good reputation, and I trusted him with my 'girls' and he didn't let me down!

[D'Elle]

I've only intentionally shown my tattoos once to someone other than my spouse, because they are areolæ.

Marty SQ.....What does that mean?

[MrSnappy]

It means their on her boobs ;-) Or more correctly, around her nipples. I assume, from the comment about scar tissue, there was some kind of reconstructive / deconstructive surgery in her history.

RDM

[Jumpin Boots]

I like the sheep...adorable, the curly-q's speak to me a bit more, but I like both!

I have a big butterfly on my back, got it at 18, don't love the theme now (I have it before everyone had butterflies on their backs), but the artwork is really good, the tat and color are pretty amazing, and like RDM, if the tat money fund wasn't such an issue I would turn it into a full back scene...someday.

My other tat I love, I asked my artist to draw me a celtic knot horse head, at which point he gave a grumbling sigh, later his wife told me how much he dislikes drawing celtic knots b/c they are so meticulous. It's not a true knot b/c the ends don't meet (I don't care), it is more than I had hoped for when I asked for him to draw it for me, I truly love it.

Make sure when you are talking with an artist that they have repeat clients, not just one time wonders.

[martySQ]

RDM is correct, I had double mastectomies 5 years ago. They can't tattoo nipples because of poorer circulation, so they do an inverse thing and tattoo around the nipples for an areola and the mind turns it around and interprets the scene to say... oh... nipples!

[johndeniel]

If you have decided for having a dog tattoos then you should go for it. You should not think about so much what others would think. I have also a dog tattoos on my back. It is a tattoo of my Chinese FU dog. I has black color tattoo. I would soon post the images.

[Chesney's Girl]

I like the sheep, I think the dog looks good with the sheep but doesn't look like a Border Collie on its own.

I've been contemplating another tattoo as well. I am at the same point as you... Not quite sure exactly how I want it and more importantly WHO I want to do it. There are so many tattoo places in Southern California, I just need to shop around I guess.

I'm wanting a heritage type tattoo that will include a quote, a clover, and a border collie, maybe sheep. I want some color but mostly shading that starts full around the edges and fades towards the middle of the clover and border collie. I have some things drawn up, I drew both my tattoos I have now and there is only one little thing I would change about the second one I got.

I want the Border Collie to be this, and finding an artist that will add their interpretation without changing the feel of it too much is important.