Usher in the New Year with a Hugs and Kisses Monster!I met Laine earlier this month in Penn Station and she shared this, one of her "eight or nine" tattoos: Laine explained that her friend Jason Lee, who tattoos and DJs in Florida under the name "Mr. Monster," inked this on her as a spur-of-the-moment tattoo. She was with a friend who was getting ink…
Shanon Inks Lovely ThoughtsLast week, my brother Seth was in town, and I met him after work at a restaurant near Madison Square Garden, where he was having a quick bite with Shanon, an old friend of his from Southern California. He had just seen Shanon in a performance of Peter Pan at the Garden. Shanon is with the touring co…
The Long Story About a Small Tattoo, or, Megan Massacre's Golden TouchTonight on TLC, New York Ink premieres its second season. For those of you who may have blinked, I got about six seconds of quality screen time in season 1, episode 7, at the tail end of the show. I figured I'd share my experience here, in conjunction with the premiere of the show's sophomore run.Ev…
"Because You Can't Take the Brooklyn Out of the Girl..."Back in October, my friend Ronni introduced me to her friend Elizabeth via the web. Elizabeth is from Brooklyn, but resides in Seattle, and was looking to get a New York-themed tattoo on an upcoming visit. She wanted to find a reputable artist and shop in New York City.Although I am by no means an e…
Nigel from the Dirty Thirty Shares Some Traditional InkI met Nigel on the Upper West Side last month, across the street from Verdi Square. I spotted some tattoos on his arms and asked if he wouldn't mind sharing some of them. He was happy to oblige.The first piece is a gypsy, inked by Dan Santoro of Smith Street Tattoo in Brooklyn:"The gypsy," Nigel sai…
Repost: All I Want for Christmas is a Tattoo with TeethHappy Holidays from us here at Tattoosday! Today we're re-visting a post from 2009, in the spirit of the season:On Christmas Eve afternoon, I was passing through Penn Station, I spotted Lindsay, a woman with what appeared to be a sleeve that had a water-inspired design.It wasn't until after I approa…
Going Ape for Josean's InkEarlier this month, I met Josean, who was sitting waiting for a downtown express train at the 72nd Street subway stop on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.Josean is pretty much covered in tattoos (70-80%, by his best estimate) and so I sat down to talk to him about his work.As it turns out, he is cur…
Derek Shares Three Tattoos Inspired by Alice's Adventures Under GroundLooking back to the summer, I ran into Derek one evening while waiting to board the R train at 36th Street in Brooklyn.I first noticed this piece on the outside of his right leg:Derek explained that he had this illustration by John Tenniel from Alice's Adventures Under Ground by Lewis Carroll becaus…
Jasmin's Phoenix Keeps Her GroundedAs the year winds down, I am clearing out the cobwebs - a hodgepodge of posts that just didn't make the grade. What causes an encounter from May to be delayed over seven months? Several things, like, in this case, a photo that just didn't make the grade. Further problematic is a subject's non-workin…
Amy's Stunning Peacock TattooSometimes, my little camera just doesn't cut it - like on a late summer afternoon with a bright sun low on the horizon.I met Amy as she walked passed my office back in August. I caught up to her just as she was about to go into Penn Station and I snapped these photos of her peacock half-sleeve: Amy …
One More from Michael: An Otomo Design That Reminds Him of a Love LostMichael, whose Calvin tattoo was featured in the previous post here, also shared this cool piece from his right arm:Michael explained the origin of this design:"The artist is Katsuhiro Otomo, the legendary Japanese animator, who did Akira [a popular manga series]. I’ve been in love with him since I…
Michael's Calvin Embodies His Spirit of AdventureI met Michael back in August out on Penn Plaza and he shared this tattoo, on the upper left side of his chest:That is, for those who don't know, the comic strip character Calvin, from Bill Watterson's Calvin and Hobbes. Michael is an illustrator and visual artist. He explains this tattoo: "I’m a C…
Vickie's Pin-Up Has Blood MoneyIn what must have looked odd to passers-by, I interviewed Vickie in Penn Station the day after Halloween. I'm guessing that she and her friend had attended costume parties the night before. What interested me most was Vickie's ink. She "lost count" of how many tattoos she has, and she offered up thi…
In Memory of TamaYesterday, my DVR finally managed to catch an episode of "Tattooed in Detroit," on Animal Planet.Marisa over at Needles and Sins talked about the show here.In a bit of a coincidence, shortly after watching the hour-long episode, which featured several memorial tattoos for owners' pets, I learned, vi…
A Trio of Tattoos from DevinI met Devin walking down Third Avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, back in September.He had a lot of ink, so I just grabbed a shot of his left leg:He broke these three pieces down for me, explaining that the butterfly on the top is an old Sailor Jerry flash piece that was his friend Shawn first tattoo as…
Seth's PhoenixYesterday's post featured a sleeve from a guy named Phoenix. Today we have a sleeve that centers around a phoenix.Anyone who's spent any time in New York City could tell you that bike messengers have a lot of great ink. Not all, of course, but quite a few. Fixtures in the city streets, especially in…
Phoenix's Sleeve is Out of This WorldBack on August, I met a man named Phoenix in Penn Station who shared the sleeve on his right arm.The work starts near his shoulder, with a traditional-style pin-up girl straddling a rocket in an outer space motif:The cat perched on the rocket in front of the woman represents Phoenix's love of animal…
