Hello all,

Well I am asking tattoo questions here because if I remember correctly, there are a lot of guys on this site who have tattoos and know of good parlors in the Northern California area.

Basically I have a concept, the fight between good and evil, that I want on my arm and shoulder. problem is that I am a terrible artist, and I have not seen any images that come close to looking like what I want.

So, would it be out of the ordinary for me to contract a tattoo artist to draw up my ideas long before getting it done, and have him email or snail mail his drawings to me?

What makes this even more confusing is the fact that I live in England. My reasons for wanting it done in or around Northern California is that I have family in the area, so it would be easy to get it done during a vacation, as well as the fact that the current exchange rate would make it much cheaper to have done in the States, albeit much more inconvenient.

I know nothing about tattoos, so I was hoping to get a very rough idea on how much it will cost me. The tattoo will extend from my elbow area up to my shoulder or neck, will not have any colour, and will be all outlines, with practically no filling in.

I appreciate any help!! I didnt know where else to ask!

James

 

I go to www.garageinkstudios.com, Rob Struven.

Some artist charge by the piece, some by the hour. It varies. In your case I would research various studios in Northern California. As far of your concept, all you can do is find out what artist is right for you. Then have them draw it out and get back to you. I'm not too familiar with how other shops work because I strictly go to Rob. He is booked about 5 months in advance. So we discuss what I want, and a week or so before my appointment I come in and look over the piece. We discuss anything I want changed, and change it if need be. But he does GREAT work, so I give him some creative freedom (which is best IMO.) The piece you described, depending on artists work rate could vary from probably 3-5 hours. That all depends on the complexity of what is being outlined.

Hope this helped.

 

i go to a local shop here in San Jose its called www.ktdragon.com , he hand drew the piece i have on my back, but its still not done yet. its completely normal to sit down with an artist and explain to him what you want your piece to come out to. the guys i go to are known for asian inspired art and i have the owner as my artist. just remember to have a big piece on your arm you need a big arm, haha, most people come in looking for something small that looks good on paper, but once its on your body with all of the contours and different textures, it'll come out smaller, so go big goodluck with your research, the best way is to go and check out their portfolio's and have a sit down with them.

 

Final sin?

 

black and blue tatoo in sf.

 

state of grace on berryessa....best group of tattooers i know....they are gonna be doing my next big piece ;-)

http://www.horitaka.com

 

do you have to have tattoos to be a tattoo artist, or are there respected artists that dont have tattoos? i might choose that field if current fields dont fall into place.

not to change the subject, just always wondered.

 

There was this one guy my brother worked with that only had one tattoo. It was a diamond on his sac... get it. That was the only tattoo he had.

He may have more now, but if your a good artist, and can work in that medium, it doesnt matter if you have any.

 

ok, its kinda like working at a Harley Davidson shop not even owning one yourself or i dont know how to explain it.

Guys that would come in with full on tattoos would hesitate to let someone work on them that hasn't had the experience i would think.

anyways back to original post

 

^ if thats the case i'd probably just show him my sack if i were Ipecac's friend, hahahahah.

 

tat artist w no work? i dont think id fly.

 

Go see Dirty Harry in Vacaville. He has some of the best work around.

 

I have a piece done by a guy that had NO tattoos. He did some blood lines on himself to know what it felt like, but that was it. I hesitated, but his portfolio was good and the piece turned out awesome.

I've only had some color work done since moving up here. Go to Zack at Pierce Ink in San Jose. I've been happy with the work he's done.

My wife goes to Ryan Groebler of Stay True in Dublin. Guy does some really good work if you like traditional American style stuff.

 

Good question. I don't think you have to, but it sure does show you are into the lifestyle of it. On a side note I have another session next week woo woo

 

http://www.blackhearttattoosf.com/