Kristen's Trilogy of Knots

The 34th Street Platform for the A Train has been very kind to us here at Tattoosday, even more so this summer than in years' past.

Take Kristen, for example. She generously offered up this small portion of her corporeal canvas:

Estimating that she is at least a quarter covered by ink, this "trilogy of knots" was the artist's response to Kristen's request to attach the cobwebs on her elbow to the end of her wrist.

The artist, identified only as "Batman" near Canal and Broadway, was also asked to incorporate a Celtic pattern, as well.

The final result was to Kristen's liking and we here at Tattoosday thank her for sharing the tattoo with all of our readers!

Happy Bloggiversary to Me!

Three years ago today, Tattoosday was born.

On July 31, 2007, I put up a post on BillyBlog, featuring a tattoo on a co-worker named Sephora.

The idea was to post a weekly tattoo on Tuesday, and use this is a vehicle to expand my horizons a bit; meet interesting people and learn about tattoos.

There was one problem. I enjoyed it too much. There weren't enough Tuesdays in the week. I was impatient and wanted to post right away, not wait until Tuesday. And so, as Kurt Vonnegut would say, it goes....

So a month later I threw the previous months post up on the stand-alone blog, Tattoosday. And BillyBlog faded.

It's still there, but Tattoosday is my passion and I couldn't have even imagined, back in 2007, how easy it would become for me to talk to strangers about their ink.

The once-a-week project produced forty-five separate interactions in July, we have a 30-day backlog of material, and this past week we registered our 650,000th hit. Not too shabby.

Go see the original post here to see how far we've come.

And a hearty thanks to all our contributors, all our fans, and all the tattooists out there creating wonderful, interesting, portable art. Without all of you, Tattoosday would have been a blip of an idea, and nothing more.

Nick Remembers Billy, I Remember Siki

My first tattoo was modified from a piece of flash at Body Art Studios by an artist who goes by the moniker "Siki". Shortly thereafter, Siki left the shop and went on his way.

My friend Pete knows who he is but, until recently, I hadn't met anyone with ink from Siki, other than myself.

Then, I met Nick on the R train one day after work and, while discussing his many tattoos (he "lost count after 45," they've all connected) , I heard him talking about Siki.

So today's tattoo is by Siki and was, like my lynx, modified from an old piece of flash. Although he adapted it a lot more fully and developed a more unique tattoo.

Siki and Nick had a mutual friend named Billy, who Nick would often go with to get tattooed. When he passed away, they added Billy's name to the bottom of the tattoo as a tribute to their departed friend.

Thanks to Nick for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Jessica's Feather for her Mother

I met Jessica on the express platform at 34th Street earlier this month.

She shared this gorgeous peacock feather tattooed on the upper right section of her back:

The piece is an homage to her mother, who loves everything peacock, and has countless items, like bracelets and other jewelery, that emulate the vivid colors of these beautiful birds.

She credits this tattoo to an artist known only as Allison.

Thanks to Jessica for sharing this wonderful tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Michelle's Tattoo Takes Your Breath Away

Michelle has a lot of ink, twenty-one tattoos, all told, but when I stopped her in Penn Station, she chose to share this one with us:

Boldly planted on her upper right arm, Michelle explained that she paraphrased and pared down a longer quotation to read, more simply, "Live for the moments that take your breath away". I believe she was referring to the saying, "Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

The flowers in the photo are cherry blossoms that were done in blue, rather than the traditional pink because, as Michelle tells it, she's "not really a pink kind of girl".

This tattoo was inked by Fat Tony at Hobo's Tattoo Shop in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Thanks to Michelle for sharing this tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Timmy's Sophisticated Owl

Earlier this month, Melanie and I took advantage of having my sister's car while she was out of the country and we made an unusual shopping trip to the Fairway Market in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn.

There was a gentleman in the produce section with a lot of tattoos, and Melanie pointed out one to me that she thought was cool, this owl on his calf:

Turns out that the guy was Timmy from Timmy Tattoo, an artist whose name rang a distant bell. Work by Timmy appeared in one of Tattoosday's earliest posts, when I met Jackie,an FIT student whose tattoos appeared here.

Timmy's owl was inked by Garrett Ostrowski of Garrett's Tattoos.

Thanks to Timmy for sharing one of his many tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Niki's Memorial for Elizabeth

Last week I was down in Chelsea when I spotted Niki from a distance. She appeared to have a colorful Madonna-like tattoo on her right shoulder, so I changed course and caught up to her only to discover this lovely tattoo instead:

This lovely photo was supplied to me by Niki, as my own camera's battery had run out of power and my BlackBerry photo seemed inadequate:

Niki explained that, after her beloved cat Elizabeth passed away, she wanted a memorial tattoo to honor the friend she had for fourteen years.

She went to artist John Reardon, then at Saved Tattoo, and told him she wanted a memorial in the style of the Virgin of Guadalupe, and the look of Mexican shrines and altars.

One can see Reardon hit the ball out of the park, as proven by my mistaking the piece from a distance as a religious icon.

John Reardon is no stranger to Tattoosday. His work has appeared previously here and here.He now works out of his private studio in Brooklyn.

Thanks to Niki for sharing her beautiful tattoo with us on Tattoosday!

Jim Commemorates a Trip To Greece with His Brothers

I mentioned yesterday that I had gone up to Woodstock on the 4th of July weekend, where I spotted some upstate ink.

At a flea market, I met Jim, who had this amazing tattoo on the back of his calf:

And a wider, three-paneled view:

Jim had gone on vacation to Greece for thirty days with his brothers and he wanted to commemorate the experience.

They had stayed on the island of Ios, and Jim took several photos he had into Jake Parrington at Lowell Ink in Lowell, Massachusetts.

The end result was this amazing tattoo that captures the scene of their vacation. One of Jim's other brothers got the same tattoo. Note the three figures hiking are meant to represent Jim and his two brothers.

Thanks to Jim for sharing this great tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Larry's Tattoo Burns at Both Ends

Occasionally, but not too often, I do venture out of the city to places far, and not so far, away.

Fourth of July weekend, I was up visiting friends in Woodstock, New York.

On July 3, we found ourselves at an outdoor flea market and I met a couple of inked folk, including Larry who has "a lot" of tattoos.

When asked to choose one, he offered up this piece on his forearm:

The image, of a candle burning at both ends, reminds him that life goes by quickly. The "No Tomorrow" is a spin on the carpe diem, or "seize the day" philosophy.

The tattoo was done by JR Maloney at Vanguard Tattoo in Nyack, New York.

Thanks to Larry for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Lil' Miss Sunshine

I spotted Christina on a subway platform and she let me take a photo of this tattoo above her outer right ankle once we got on the train:

Our time to chat was limited, so all I learned from Christina was that this was a self-drawn self-portrait that a friend tattooed on her four years ago.

"Lil' Miss Sunshine" is her nickname.And yes, the sun refers to her as "That Crazy Ass Bitch".

Thanks to Christina for sharing this tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Pete's Tribute to a Magical Grandfather

Last month, as I wandered despondently down my street, mourning the loss of my camera, I saw Pete standing on his stoop in the afternoon heat, without a shirt. He had a really cool tattoo and I talked to him about it, taking a picture with my BlackBerry.

Alas, the image quality wasn't good enough, I thought, to post here, so I waited until I saw Pete again, almost a month later, when I had my new camera in hand.

So here, without further delay, is Pete's tattoo:

Pete explained that this tattoo is a tribute to his grandfather, a magician who went by the name "The Great Merlini". The tattoo was designed by Kiki at Tattoos by Lou in the South Beach section of Miami, Florida. Pete went to him and explained what he wanted and Kiki drew it up and inked it.

On a sidebar, the Great Merlini wasn't just your run-of-the-mill magician. The man behind the persona was Clayton Rawson (click name for full biography). Rawson wrote four mystery novels that featured the character also known as The Great Merlini. And as this YouTube clip shows, Merlini also was a noted illusionist:



Thanks to Pete for sharing this magical tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Preston's Invaders Take Tattoosday

I met Preston in early May on the train platform at West 4th Street.

I spotted his tattoo and we talked about it.After along wait, we finally get to see this, one of Preston's five tattoos, here on Tattoosday:

These are,of course, images from the original Atari Space Invaders, one of the forerunners that was the first video game to truly take the world by storm.

Preston told me that these symbols represent space invasion. The neon green color makes them stick out even more and, he added, they make a "great ice breaker".

As a result, he continued, "people invade my space" when they question him (as I was doing) about his tattoo.

Preston is a musician by trade, who goes by the moniker Press Reset. Check out his website here. And this link will take you to his new record <3 on iTunes, where you can listen to (and hopefully, buy) his music.

Preston credits the tattoo to an artist named Ziggy who tattoos out of South Florida.

Thanks to Preston for sharing his alien neck tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Shannon Shares Her Wieners!

At the end of May, I met Sherry, who shared her love of her home state of Texas with this tattoo here.

In an ensuing email, she asked if she could send her friend Shannon my way to share her ink. "Of course," I replied, and was directed by Sherry to Borders, where Shannon worked. "Ask to see her wieners," she said and added, parenthetically, "(it's G rated, I promise!)."

The Borders in question is part of my normal stomping ground, so I kept my eyes peeled. No sign of Shannon and her wieners.

Then, at the beginning of the month, I finally found Shannon and met Geddy Lee and Sarah Lee, the two wieners tattooed on her upper right arm. They are of course, wiener dogs, more formally known as dachshunds:

The one on the left is Geddy Lee, named after the lead singer of Rush. Shannon's a big fan of the Canadian rock trio.

Sarah Lee, on the right, is a fictional dachshund, do-si-do'ing with Geddy, as they are dance partners.

The tattoo took two sessions, which shows her devotion to Geddy Lee who, Shannon acknowledges, is "that little jerk [that] sucked my soul". She loves him to no end.

These beloved dogs were inked by Adam Paterson at Jersey City Tattoo Company.

Thanks again to Shannon for sharing this incredible tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Venus Flytrap Takes Manhattan Cape Fear

I met Tim earlier this month, along with a bunch of friends, and he had an amazing tattoo that I wanted him to share:

This piece, which is located on his upper right arm, took about twelve hours and features a large mutant Venus Flytrap attacking Cape Fear. Tim is from Wilmington, North Carolina, and this tattoo is a nod to his hometown, with a twist of disaster movie thrown into the mix. It's a brilliant idea for a tattoo, and very unusual.

I love the detail and color that the artist Josh Payne utilized in this amazing piece.



Josh works out of Artfuel Inc. in Wilmingtion.

Much thanks to Tim for sharing this awesome tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Recap of Matty No Times Fundraiser at Yes Gallery

My trip to the Yes Gallery in Williamsburg on Saturday for the launch party of the Matty No Times benefit was complicated by the weekend suspension of the G train.

Rather than a 1-transfer commute from South Brooklyn, the trip involved a lengthy trip on the R train which took me through Manhattan and into Queens, where a shuttle bus skirted me back to Brooklyn. Are you kidding me?

But I didn't want to miss this event, not only because it was for a good cause as the NY tattoo community rallied to help one of their own, but because it would give me the chance to see some amazing art and possibly meet some of the artists behind the work.

I shed my backpack and just brought my notebook, stuffed with fliers, although I didn't necessarily expect to do the Tattoosday thing at the event. But you never know, and it was a long (1 hour, 28 minutes, according to HopStop) trek. Who knows who I might meet along the way?

I arrived relatively early, just in time to catch Thomas Hooper exiting the gallery. I have long admired Mr. Hooper's work (even his web site is art) and was hoping to meet him.

I introduced myself and he was soft-spoken and polite. I would have loved to chat with him further, but he was headed elsewhere and seemed to be in a hurry to go.

Inside, the Yes gallery's air conditioning was a welcome relief, as I started looking at the hundred-plus works of art that had been donated by artists from all over to help Three Kings' artist Matty No Times recover from staggering bills that resulted from an emergency liver transplant last Fall.

I introduced myself to Matty (Mr. No Times sounds weirdly formal) and chatted briefly as he ran the table where people paid for the art, left donations, and entered the raffle. He is a very nice guy and seemed genuinely appreciative of the turnout.

The list of artists who contributed their work was staggering. Check it out:



One of the bonuses in going to the event, for me at least, was seeing the work donated by Peter Caruso, who is the artist who created  my third tattoo.

And whereas, I had discussed with Matty and several other guests the etiquette of taking close-up photos of the art hanging on the walls, I did have Pete's permission to post his painting, which we were all excited to see sold early on.



I was pleasantly surprised to run into one former Tattoosday contributor, Elizabeth, along with her husband. We chatted awhile as they made their way around the gallery.

I also talked with Magie Serpica, who I ran into last year at a Needles & Sins event, and who made her own Tattoosday contribution here. An artist at Bound for Glory Tattoo on Staten Island, she had contributed a painting, as well:

As the crowd swelled, I began to become overstimulated. Do I look at the art on the walls? Or do I look at the amazing art on the bodies? Most folks would have assumed I would have gone hog-wild taking photos of peoples' tattoos, but remember, I tend to embrace the random encounter aspect of the Tattoosday mission, and just like one doesn't see a lot of photos from conventions and tattoo shops, I avoided interviewing people about their tattoos. It just didn't seem sporting to do so. I did however, take a couple of shots of Peter's tattoos, to be unveiled at a later date here on the site.

I didn't receive a call from Matty on Sunday, so I will assume I didn't win the raffle. No worries. I wasn't in a position to invest in any art, so I did my part to help raise funds for this worthy cause.

You can support Matty through Three Kings Tattoo, where he works, and you still have time to visit the Yes Gallery, at 147 India Street in Brooklyn, and check out the art through Friday, July 23.

Thanks to all the artists who participated and made for such a wonderful  visual experience, and to all the extended friends of Tattoosday who made the event more enjoyable for me, especially Pete and his wife Maria, who let me tag along with them at the gallery and spared me the subway after the show with a much-quicker ride home!

Sugar Skull Sunday: Hannah and Her Family

I met Hannah in Penn Station one afternoon after spotting this amazing sugar skull on her upper left arm:

Here is a broader glimpse of the tattoo:

Hannah has over twenty tattoos and told me she wanted this piece to have alot of different elements in it. The gold tooth was a must, because Hannah loves pirates.

Gold teeth in sugar skulls are not necessarily unusual. Chainsaws, however are a bit out of the ordinary:

The chainsaw, Hannah explained, is a tribute to her uncle, who is a lumberjack. And, she added frankly, the bottle is there to acknowledge her grandfather, an alcoholic.

This sugar skull was completed in two 2-3 hour sessions by Tim Barnes at Holeshot's Premium Tattoo & Piercing in Amherst, Massachusetts. Tim has moved on to Florida, according to Hannah, but I haven't been able to identify where he is currently working.

Readers can see all of the sugar skulls previously posted on Tattoosday by clicking here or on the Sugar Skulls tag at the end of the post.

Thanks again to Hannah for sharing her sugar skull with us here on Tattoosday!

Where I'll Be Tonight - Matty No Times Benefit

This is where I'm heading tonight. It should be amazing!

More info at Tattoosday UK and Needles and Sins.

Welcome to the Machine

I met Paige over by the New Jersey Transit section in Penn Station late last month and she shared this, one of her five tattoos:

It's a biomechanical piece that helps illustrate her as a machine. Her plan is to ultimately turn it into a sleeve with an apocalyptic bent.

She had this done at Lola's in Bogota, New Jersey. Work from Lola's has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Thanks to Paige for sharing her tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Sealed with a Snake

I spotted Steve one day, and got him to share this rattlesnake tattoo on his right arm:

Steve has three tattoos and is bass player for a band called S.W.A.K.

He came up with the design and had Gary, owner of Shotsie's Tattoo in Wayne, New Jersey, complete the process.

Thanks to Steve for sharing this tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Lindsay's Ink for Peace

When I recently upgraded my camera, the first new photo I took, of Lindsay's tattoo, convinced me I had selected well:

This lovely tattoo, on Lindsay's upper left arm, is punctuated by this part of the tattoo on her biceps:



The picture tells the story and the words, all meaning a form of "peace" in Hebrew, Arabic, Sanskrit, and English, punctuate the images just inches away.

Lindsay took a class on world religions at the University of Rhode Island and this influenced her greatly. She wanted the tattoo to focus on the beauty at the heart of religion, and to disregard the conflict that so often plagues religious dogma.

Lindsay feels that the tenet of peace is often lost and this is her way of expressing how it means so much, but is forgotten in relations with people of different backgrounds.

She brought a picture that somewhat embodied how she wanted the tattoo to look in to Artfreek Tattoo in Providence, Rhode Island. She and the artist Brian Mullen collaborated on interpreting what she wanted the piece to embody and she was very happy with the end result.

The tattoo was completed in two short sittings that spanned four hours.

Work from Artfreek has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Thanks to Lindsay for sharing this fabulous tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Clair Reid Tattoos

Tattoos by Clair Reid