Tattoo a Nice Day: January 2012

Sunday, January 29, 2012

A Spot of Hawaiian Ink on the New York City Subway

Earlier this week, I posted about my experience on Ink Master, getting a tribal tattoo that was inspired by my upbringing in Hawai'i. Do note that I have not referred to this as a Hawaiian tribal piece, which is a whole different thing altogether.

Just to illustrate, one of my "leftover" posts from 2011 is this tattoo:

This was a real treat for me, spotting an authentic Hawaiian tattoo, in New York City of all places.

Looking back to last June, I had just attended a networking event at Bowlmor Lanes in Times Square and was headed home to Brooklyn. On the 8th Avenue subway platform at 42nd Street, I spotted a bunch of folks with t-shirts bearing Hawaiian names. I got to chatting with them. Turns out they were affiliated with Na Keiki O Ka Mo'i, an outrigger canoe club from Wai'anae, Hawai'i, and they were in town to compete in the 2011 Liberty World Outrigger Competition.

I was shocked. Outrigger canoes in the East River? I've lived in New York for almost 15 years and never knew that this existed in the Big Apple!

There was a whole lot of local folks from Hawai'i on the platform, and when an express and local train pulled in simultaneously, chaos erupted as the visitors scattered into both downtown trains.

I sat down on an "A" train next to a handful of the group and struck up a conversation with a few people. I spoke with one guy, in particular, named Sam "Kamu" Kapoi. Go figure, the talk turned to tattoos and Sam stretched out his left leg to show me his ink.

Sam and I have kept in touch, so I was able to get some additional information on this piece.

Sam is a filmmaker and was accompanying the group as they competed in New York.

The art of Hawaiian tattoo has deep roots in the culture of the islands, and every aspect of a tattoo has personal meaning that is often held very privately by the tattooed individual. You just don't go up to someone with a Hawaiian tattoo and ask, "So what does it mean?"

Sam said it himself in a message to me, "the tattoo itself ... is my family design, very sacred." He credited his artist as Keone Nunes, who specializes in traditional Hawaiian tattoos and uses the tapping method.

Here's a nice clip on YouTube with Mr. Nunes discussing the art of kakau:

The juxtaposition of this illustration compared to my own experience getting a tribal piece on a tattoo reality show is stark. Whereas I love my new tattoo, I in no way hold it in the same high regard as the traditional art of kakau in Hawai'i. I feel honored to have been lucky to come across an example, by chance, in New York.

A big mahalo nui loa to Sam for sharing his traditional Hawaiian ink with us here on Tattoosday.

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Tattoosday Goes Tribal on Ink Master

What’s the hardest thing about being an ink-blogger and getting a tattoo on a televised competition show? Keeping my mouth shut for almost six months about the experience.

This is the tattoo that I received back in August in the course of my stint as a "human canvas" on the set of Spike TV's Ink Master.

What you didn't see on the show (if you watched last night) was the consulting session in which I sat down with the artist and hashed out the ideas and concepts that I wanted represented in this tribal piece that ultimately ended up on my left thigh.

The two main elements are the honu, or Hawaiian sea turtle, and the hibiscus, which is the state flower of Hawai'i. Having grown up in the Aloha State, I wanted something that represented my childhood home.

The end result far exceeded my expectations. I want to again thank Heather Sinn, my artist, for giving me an exceptional tattoo under less than ideal conditions.

I also want to share a little bit more about how I lucked into being tattooed by such a wonderfully talented artist.

The episode that aired last night was dubbed “Botched Head Tattoo” by the network. Fortunately, mine was not the botched head tattoo, although I have stayed in touch with the human canvas who chose to have his scalp inked and can say, with 100% confidence, the only thing botched about it was that it wasn’t completed in the five-hour time limit. The artist, Bili Vëgas, ultimately finished the piece at his shop in New York, and Ryan, who shared one of his other tattoos with us here on Tattoosday back in August, is very happy with the end result.

Photo Courtesy of

Bili Vëgas @ www.bilivegas.com

Back in July, I wrote here about Ink Master’s call for candidates looking for a cover-up. Shortly after posting the piece, I sent in my own idea for a tattoo for the show, thinking it was a long shot.

Within the hour, I got a response asking if I could come in and discuss the idea in person. Fortunately, I was off that day, and I went into Manhattan and met with production staff, discussing what I wanted in terms of a memorial piece for my step-father, who passed away in April 2010. This discussion also included a mention of my almost having been tattooed with a Hawaiian tribal memorial band.

Things moved quickly from there and after a series of phone calls, my original idea was scrapped and I was confirmed to be a human canvas on an episode dedicated to tribal tattoos. I am not generally a fan of tribal ink, but I thought that if I could get something with a Hawaiian influence, I would be cool with that. Having grown up in Honolulu, and with family still in the islands, it made sense to get something along those lines. I was concerned, however, whether whoever was tattooing me would approach the challenge with an understanding and respect for the culture of Hawai’i.

On the designated day, I met at the rendez-vous point with three other human canvases near Times Square to be transported to the set by shuttle. The studio was set up at an old church building in Newark. We were shown to a holding room with five other canvases and, as is typical in television production, we waited.

We didn’t know who the judges were until moments before being led to the set, which was quite impressive, as is evident on the show. I was initially happy to pick the skull with artist Heather Sinn’s name on it and, after our consult, during which I threw idea after idea at her about what would be ideal in the tattoo, I was excited to see what she would come up with overnight.

On the shuttle from Manhattan to the set the next day, we all chatted about our artists and talked about how we thought it would go. Ryan, who was about to have his head inked, was chowing down on a big bowl of red jell-o, a trick some tattoo artists recommend to minimize bleeding (the gelatin aids with blood coagulation). We were also still abuzz about the one canvas who was dismissed because of his psoriasis. The guy had been a veritable comedian in the holding room, and his absence was surprising.

After getting miked up and led to the set, we met with the artists in their work rooms and saw our designs for the first time. I was blown away by what Heather came up with, especially having looked at her online portfolio the night before, and noticed that she wasn’t an artist that did a lot of tribal work.

There was one glaring concern that I did have, however. Heather was not a happy camper. This was episode 2, so they had just started production, and one show was already in the tank. Mind you, they don’t wait a week between episodes, they are often shot in succession, and the hours are long and grueling, even to artists who spend hours on delicately maneuvering a vibrating machine doing meticulous work on a canvas that moves.

Heather did not hide this sentiment from me, the client, and I was concerned, especially since the challenge was rigorously timed, and had dropped from 6 hours to 5 hours after the initial cover-up challenge of episode 1.

She assured me that she was going to do her best under the not-so-ideal circumstances. I would direct readers to this interview that recently ran with Heather in the LA Weekly. She wears her emotions on her sleeve and does not back down from her feelings.

Heather told me she would not be very talkative when she was doing the initial line work as she was not accustomed to this type of tattoo. Fine by me. The cameras were around us constantly and Heather was very concerned that she would not have the time to finish the piece. She also expressed to me that she was not very fond of any of the judges. After seeing the flash challenge that preceded our meeting, I can see why.

When all was said and done, however, she powered through it and knocked it out with time to spare. The result left me with an awesome tattoo, and I have nothing but praise for her craftsmanship.

As for the show itself, so much footage went unused, including scenes in which the human canvases saw their tattoos for the first time in a full-length mirror, met with the judges, and did candid interviews with the producers.

I can say that, despite all the tattoo flaws picked out by the judges in the show, none of the canvases on my episode were disappointed with the final result of their sessions with the Ink Master artists. And, as much as I would like to bemoan the massive amount of "canvas" footage on the cutting room floor, ultimately the artists were being judged on the quality of their work, not on the stories behind their clients' tattoos, or their feelings about the final product.

I think that this is one of the compelling aspects about Ink Master that makes the show so interesting from a technical standpoint. Sure, there's the reality show drama involving the artists' personalities, but the show seems committed, more than most of the other "reality" shows out there, to celebrating the tattoos for art's sake.

I'm not on any more episodes, but I'll keep watching.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Design eye tattoo art

Design eye tattoo artDesign eye tattoo art

Design eye tattoo art

Tribal Ladybug Tattoos

So you are ready to get a tribal ladybug tattoos but you are unsure where to start. It is easy to see why you'd want to get this tattoo as it has become very popular lately. The ladybug is a great symbol for a tattoo. But there are some things you need to consider before you spend your hard earned money on getting your new ink. And that is where I hope this article can help.

You may have already done what so many other tattoo enthusiasts have done before you and that is this: you went to Google images to find pictures of tribal ladybugs. The biggest problem with this is that so has many other people. This means that you can run a huge risk of copying someone else's artwork. And I have a feeling that you're getting this tattoo to stand out and be unique, right?

Vagina tattoo design

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Wesley Shares Two Significant Blossoms

I met Wesley in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, earlier this month, and she shared these two tattoos from her forearms:

These two flowers are (pictured from left to right) a Cherokee Rose, which is the state flower of Georgia, and a Nile, or Egyptian Lotus.

Wesley explained that the Cherokee Rose is generally white in color, but white flowers don't generally translate well to white skin. Fortunately, they can occasionally grow pink, so that's the shade she chose for the tattoo.

Wesley explained the whole process of these tattoos in detail:

"I was born in Macon, Georgia and my dad's from Georgia and the whole myth is that when the Cherokees were driven out ... by the white people, they cried ... The Trail of Tears ...and the flowers that sprang up where their tears [fell] were the Cherokee Rose. And [the flower on the left arm] is a Nile Lotus ... an Egyptian lotus, you see it a a lot on the sarcophagi ... Egyptian tombs, and it's about death and rebirth.... I got them ... in 2005 ...in Seattle by a guy ... Ian at Lucky Devil Tattoo in Capitol Hill, Seattle ... it was a year almost since I had been diagnosed and treated for cancer and it was sort of my celebration of 'I'm okay' and I had some whole elaborate - I was going to have insects on the inside of my wrist and flowers on the outside, and there was a possibility of a snake, there was a whole big thing and ... the great thing about this artist was that he was like, 'here, let me do a temporary version of what that would look like,' and I was like, 'that would look really cluttered and ridiculous' ... and I realized that I really wanted them to be something I could see and I was more attuned to the flowers ... I wanted something that was close to home from my past and then something that was from another culture from farther away - there's the birth thing and the death thing. Yeah."

Thanks to Wesley for sharing her beautiful tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Friday, January 20, 2012

Will Is Well-Armed for the Opera

Occasionally, one of my posts will fall through the cracks and I only discover it by chance.

For example, earlier this week I was passing through K-Mart in Penn Station when it struck me: the guy I had met several months earlier in there never ended up on the site! How did that happen? I'm still scratching my head over that one, because how could I forget this tattoo?

Will explained to me that he has the signatures of twenty-seven female opera singers that have, in some way, touched his life. The photo above is only a fragment of the whole array, which covers his left arm and runs down the side of his chest.

"I'm a big opera fan ...[it's] just a form of music and expression that has always meant a lot to me," Will told me. He explained how he had waited for two hours for a singer to emerge from a venue after a performance, but she never came out. That missed autograph opportunity gave him the idea to recreate the signatures of an array of great singers on his flesh.

Among the names visible in the photo above are Maria Callas and Grace Bumbry.

The signatures were inked by Dave Wallin at Eight of Swords Tattoo in Brooklyn.

Thanks to Will for sharing his operatic arm with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Ink Master Premieres Tonight!

Regular readers of Tattoosday may recall this post, last July, when I mentioned that a production company was looking for volunteers to get tattoos on a new reality tattoo competition series.

That was six months ago and the first installment of that project, Ink Master, is scheduled to debut tonight on Spike TV, at 10:00 PM (and 11:00) EST.

I strongly encourage people to watch, as I’ve seen the line-up of artists competing, and know for a fact that they are a talented crew.

Unlike New York Ink, which seems to have evolved very quickly into a faux-drama in a tattoo shop that just happens to have great tattooers, the focus of this show is about creating body art in a reality-competition setting.

That’s not to say there won’t be interpersonal conflicts - even shows like Master Chef and Project Runway have their share of drama. But, I am optimistic that this series will not disappoint.

Check out the trailer below:

SPIKE

Official Ink Master Series Trailer

And here’s a bit of a tease ..... I know with 100% certainty that at least three of the volunteers on a couple of the episodes have appeared previously as subjects on Tattoosday. I’m looking forward to not only seeing who wins each week, but as USA Today put it, “who on earth decides to get inked as part of a reality competition?”

This won’t be the last you hear about Ink Master on Tattoosday. Trust me.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Meister's Memorial Sparrows

Last month, I was leaving the Muhlenberg branch of the New York Public Library when I spotted a woman with two birds on the backs of her calves:

These two sparrows belong to Meister, who is also known as The Nervous Cook.

I love how these are not your typical tattoo sparrows, but are more lifelike than the traditional bird flash that is much more common.

She explained that these, two of her eight tattoos, are memorial tattoos, that she has "for three people that I lost, roughly around the same time." Meister elaborated:

"A best friend of mine passed away in a scuba accident - she's the female sparrow [on the left calf] ...

...and then two good friends of mine died within two weeks of each other ... totally just a a devastating series of unfortunate accidents."

These, along with most of her other work, were tattooed by Myles Karr, who works out of Three Kings Tattoo in Brooklyn. Meister indicated that these sparrows were done a while back, when Myles still worked out of the now-defunct 334 Bowery Tattoo. Work from Myles has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Thanks to Meister for sharing her beautiful sparrows with us here on Tattoosday! Be sure to visit her over at The Nervous Cook.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Face Tattoo

Simply just choosing to be tattooed is really a big move, but having a face tattoo on your face is definitely a serious lifetime commitment.

Now, I guess that you're thrilled that you have decided to have a facial area tattoo. Is it your very first one?

Did you realize?

Often it is simply a decision to rebel against the norm; in other cases it's really an authentic need to force limitations and free people's minds towards a new direction.

No matter what the particular reason is for selecting face art tattoo, there's no doubt: it will get some kind of reaction.

The face is probably the most challenging place for needling. Facial body art elicits an automatic reaction from people in the community; automatically those with facial tattoos are considered extreme and provocative. Some may even say that it is "ridiculously dumb" - many are unable to understand why somebody would tattoo his face.

Nearly all parts of the body can be covered up, except for the face. Unless you put on some sort of ski face mask, your tattoo is always going to be on display.

Quite a few well-known folks, who have opted for facial tattoos, incongruously are top notch sports athletes:

David Clinger: Clinger is a highly ranked cyclist and he is possibly the most extreme of the face inked sports stars; he has a full tribal tattoo design over his entire face.

Mike Tyson: By far the most popular boxer, he's got a tribal tattoo design on the side of his face which wraps around one eye.

Lee Priest: Priest is a really famous and successful skilled bodybuilder. His face tattoo design is also on half of his face and features a tribal design.

Among rappers, Lil Wayne is probably the most talked about with respect to body tattoo designs. This excellent rap artist has got countless tats on his entire body and his face.

Concerns for Face Tattoo designs:

Concern does exist about getting face tattoos and there should be even more concern about them. There is absolutely no covering up and no turning back. At one point, there was even some sort of statistic out which reported, unfortunately, that there was a high incidence of suicide among people with facial tattoos. As a result of this, and for other good reasons, a lot of tattoo artists have a tendency to refuse to provide face tats.

Letter Tattoo Designs

Do you know that if you choose to have a letter tattoo, you should take into consideration where in your body to have it inked? In addition, it is also important to pay importance on the "font" size and its design. Having said this, allow me to give you more pointers on how to have that best letter tattoo before finally getting one for yourself:

1. KNOW WHAT YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE. Will the tattoo symbolize the initial of a loved one? Will it be an initial of your secret love or crush? Will it be okay to be obvious or must it be kept for discreet viewing only? Are you bent on really getting one or have you just been swayed into getting one against your will?

2. IMAGINE. Remember what other people say: Never underestimate the power of your imagination, and this includes your letter tattoo. After knowing what you want to achieve, the next step is to imagine how it will look like with the designs you can possibly imagine. If you want, can also imagine how girls or boys swoon after they see your tattoo. Imagine more. maybe your crush will think you're cool and might actually ask you for a date.Imagine that you'd be like a superstar in school or your workplace because of your tattoo, that life would be great. Therefore, you have to make your imagination work to get the best one you can---and plan how to achieve it.

3. PLAN. It has been said that imagination is important but has to be paired with a plan. Achieving something will be possible with a good imagination and a strategic plan. Plan as to what design and where to have the tattoo done. To help you plan well, you can do research and lots of online research as to what kind of font size, color or kind of letters to choose. Will you limit your choices to English? How about trying Korean, Chinese,Arabic or Japanese characters? Pretty cool choices you've got there huh!As for location, will it look good if you have it etched on your left arm or on the right one? Will it look good on you if it's on your cleavage? Will the price be worth it if you place it on your ankle? As for the size, will you go for the extremely big one, the average or the small one? Let's say you choose the letter "S". Will it be good if it's smaller or bigger? If you decide to make it oversized, it might just look like a misplaced Superman symbol on your wrist or arm. Goodness! Therefore, decide carefully. Err on the safe side as they say.

4. DECIDE. Having done all the aforementioned, its high time you make a decision. Of course, asking for a second opinion is not bad, but ultimately, it's your skin, your choice and your life. Never allow other people to talk you out of your decision that you have carefully thought of, imagined and planned!

Angel Tattoos Design

Angel tattoos are popular tats for women and usually take on the appearance of the CHERUBS sitting down on a cloud or as an avenging angel. Angels tend to be spiritual beings which are considered to be a lot more powerful as compared to human beings. They have been looked at as creations of a distinct order coming from humans and occasionally as the spirits associated with highly developed humans.

The actual term angel is actually derived from a Greek word 'Angeloi' or 'messenger'. Throughout biblical periods it was usually believed that the will of God or 'God's Work' appeared to be carried out by angels.Guardian angels are the guardian of souls and therefore are divine creatures but have been shown to be fallible and vulnerable to sin, especially ego. One of the best known examples of a 'fallen angel' is Satan.

The actual meaning associated with angels and their appearances have varied throughout the historical past. Artists have represented angels as winged beings, generally gorgeous physiques suffused in light, being seen wearing bright robes, suspended on clouds, from time to time in human being form or as an angelic 'symphony from heavens'. In Catholicism tend to be intelligent spiritual creatures designated to look after and protect everyone on earth.

Each person has a guardian angel assigned to them. These types of angels are to help the individual in obtaining their eternal salvation. Additionally, these angels protect groups of individuals and nations around the world. Other people make reference to these guardian angels as leading spirits which control or guide and specifically help in personal safety.

Curiously, the angels present in the American bible didn't have a set of wings. However, they were always the bearer of important news from God. They frequently came down to Earth to propagate an important message.

Then again, somewhere in early stages in history artists which involve painters, stain glass artists together with calligraphers that developed illuminated pages from the holy bible did in fact integrate a pair of wings to the angels, seraphim together with nymphs that visited earth.

The reason why this was done or where it started has been lost in history but it can be seen just about everywhere.

You actually can't come across an angelic being without having a pair of white feathery wings. Perhaps artists wanted to show angels with special powers and also have some approach to represent an angel as looking different than human beings.

sexy tattoos angel

Friday, January 13, 2012

Tattoosday Loves Friday the 13th!

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.....

My lovely bride is a Friday the 13th baby, so it's a lucky day for me, in general.

As for Tattoosday, my visit stats have already been robust since December, but this week they have shattered the records, with yesterday being the best ever. My sitemeter points out that folks are visiting our old Friday the 13th posts in droves this month, which is fine by me, but I thought I'd link them here for fun.

Our first Friday the 13th adventure was in 2009, on Melanie's birthday, as documented here.

And, in 2010, we got the readers involved, and started here, and documented my first (and so far, only) Friday the 13th tattoo here. And followed up with another one for Melanie here.

There was only one such day last year, back in May, and we missed it, but this year we're starting early and, I just realized, thanks to the Leap Year, there are two additional Friday the 13th observances in 2012!

We're planning on getting inked today at Hand of Glory in Brooklyn, and there are plenty of other options, as well, including Dare Devil in Manhattan and Three Kings in Williamsburg.

If you know anywhere else, in New York City and elsewhere, please post in the comments section so our readers can find a place to go.

Check back tomorrow or see when our Twitter page may light up for more details later today.

Have a safe and lucky 13th!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Little Darling's Ink: Pinups for Pitbulls

Last spring, I met Deirdre, aka Little Darling, as she was leaving Penn Station to cross Seventh Avenue.

I snapped these pictures of her upper right arm:

Deirdre explained that she is the president and founder of a non-profit organization called Pinups for Pitbulls.

The two pups pictured are portraits of two of her dogs, as interpreted by skin artist Jon Clue.

Little Darling invites people to check out her company's website PinupsForPitbulls.org if you are interested in supporting the ongoing effort to help fulfill their mission of working "to educate the public about the history and temperament of the American Pit Bull Terrier and pit bull type dogs [and] to raise awareness about Breed Specific Legislation and Breed-Specific abuse."

One of the ways that Little Darling and her company strive to "reestablish the defamed reputation of pit bull type dogs as America's premier companion animal, war hero, and therapy dog," is through fundraisers and the sale of Pinups for Pitbulls merchandise, such as their annual calendar. Many of these products can be purchased through Amazon (see link below).

Other Pinups for Pitbulls Merchandise can be found by clicking the hyperlink in this sentence.

Thanks to Deirdre for sharing her tattoos with us here on Tattoosday, and for waiting so patiently for this post to appear.