size of the hand is pretty small. youll be fine

Bad idea. I had my first tattoo around the rib area. The tattoo artist warn me it's not a good idea. I YOLO it and man it the worst first experience you could have. My tattoo is like 4 times the size of yours though. Good news is You will survive but you will hate yourself during the tattoo. Bad idea yes but if it's what you want go for it.

It's painful but I think it's a bearable pain. I have my left side done from upper ribs down to my hip and thinking back to it I feel like armpit and collar bone were far more painful.

Plus, size of a hand isn't that big. It'll be done fairly quick i think.

Every time I get a tattoo I think oh my fucking god, there's no way I could ever get anything on my ribs.

Thanks for the input guys, I might go for the one on my upper arm first then. It's not overly big but since it'll be pretty much solid I think I'd like to have a point of reference for the pain first :lol

not sure if anyone mentioned this previously but if you are ticklish (like me) it will be a nightmare - especially near the ribs.

The tickles were far more excruciating to go through than the pain imo. When you are about 5 hours deep in your session it does get exhausting.

The part that tickled the most for me was the sides near the ribs on both sides..literally like holding back my laughter which causes me to become so tense and trembly.

The next time I went into my appointment I armed myself with morphine and that helped a tiny bit. We left the sides till the end and I just put numbing cream on the sides + morphine + 2 beers + 2 henny shots. This helped a lot. DR Numb wears off really quickly though and should only be used for extremely difficult parts. In general you should be able to tolerate the pain from tattooing before even considering Dr. Numb.

This was after I had 20 hours on my back..so it was not the pain that was holding me back but it was the tickles.. as sad as that sounds :(

Lol, yea in general I'd say tattoo's fucking hurt lol..

My peice on my back was fairly sizable for a first peice but even in the relatively tough tissue of my shoulder, overall it was probably some of, it not the most pain I've felt lol

Got my ribs done first and i didn't have any issues compared to a regular tattoo. Just make sure you eat, i made that mistake for my first tattoo and your body can go in to shock(get cold and start to shake a bit so had to finish the remainder on a different day). Also found long deep breathing helps a lot. The second tattoo I got on my ribs was easier but may be because it was done by single needle.

gettin ur nips tatted is the worst for me.. fuck goin back in august lol

Oh my God yes it tickles and it hurts. Weirdest feeling ever. I thought it was bad on my ribs but the tickling was worse on the back of my arm.

Imo Greg Nicholson is even better than Steve wiebe. Again books close.

@evilkolors on Instagram. Traveling is the best choice if you want real good black and gray work but don't have a crazy killer idea that would tempt these artist into taking you in.

I find Gregs work to be too soft for my liking, it's not really true to that "west coast" style like Steve's is.

Had my first session with Jesse Strong. Sleeving out the rest of my arm. Script,flowers, skull, nothing but that good stuff! Currently in remission for over six months now so gonna smash this out before my next scan date in Oct! Will post photo when healed. Feels good to be back in the chair after many years. Jesse is as solid as they come and offers good rates for full or half day bookings.

Who else is getting tattooed this summer??

been two years since i got my whole back by jesse from blackwater and it still needs to get touched up / completed
i wanted to add more onto the rest of my butt lol but it hurts the most for me :alone: and its awkward when my i tighten my cheeks the moment the needle touches lolol

going back to jesse at blackwaters to finish up my chest in august haha, gonna try to troop it and finish it in 1 go.. told me i have around 6-8 hrs left :okay: will post pictures!

I sun burnt my back today. Did i dun goofd? little worried about fading now..

It won't help that's for sure

It's going to fade no matter what though

Anyway with sunburn, fading tattoos is probably less important than the potential dna damage/cancer risk caused. Build a base tan and take care!

This looks like it's going to be a must watch

3 more weeks till my appointment :D

Hey guys, getting my first on Friday, going to be the majority of my forarm. First appointment is booked for 4 hours and I work an hour after.. (only time I could get in unless I wanted to wait till october) Anything I should know, tips for healing process and best ways to protect it?

I'll post pics of my work Friday

Would help to know what line of work you do. Construction? Receptionist?

Ah, I should have specified. Pretty intensive warehouse work. I can modify how I lift things but I'm still concerned about catching it or something. I'm aware I can google some of this but I rather have a conversation about it so I'm prepared before it all happens

if you can wear a t shirt or something that doesn't cover it. each artist has their own aftercare instructions. My artist told me to wash the tattoo thoroughly an hour after the session and then apply a thin layer of aquaphor (can find it at london drugs). Tell your artist that you have work after the session and see what he says.

I would actually cover it up. The first few hours after tattoo it's basically a huge open wound, you don't want to get it dirty and risk infection etc. The artist will most likely wrap it up anyways to sent you off.

I have done labour intensive work right after tattoo. Keeping it clean is the key but you day is going to suck regardless and sweating increase the chance of infection.

I would definitely recommend aquaphor for the first few days as well. It's basically like a layer of Vasaline and seals the tattoo off, so you don't need to worry about things like water hitting your tattoo too much afterwards. Just keep in mind that you will be pretty drained and your skin will also feel really tight and sore so it's going to hurt to do labour intensive work.