rising from the ashes (part four)

well another section finished, just the flames tonight as my back has been playing up cause im so old now, i think i manged the effect i was aiming for quite well the flames fading from yellow to black. favoured the red for the musical notes so as to blend them in with the flames.
definately agree with dad and david that the bird will need a little more work once its healed just to give it some definition really as now the flames are in its looking a little bit pale.
so booked in for the skull to be done in a couple of days and also the get the words "novus vita" underneath which in case you cant figure it out means new life. the perfect title for a pheonix tat.
xxxxx

rising from the ashes (part three)

well a little further on yet still no wiser haha, this was a little battle of wills with myself and allans horrid back. he was quite happy to sit all night where as i was losing the will to live behind him pushing the pedal and drilling the holes.
the body isnt quite finished yet i need to wait until its healed a bit now and add some detail of feathers and shadows etc.
the darker section is where the body and tail continue down through and behind the flames this also will need a little more definition when the tattoo is nearly complete.
its a bit of a race against time now actually as im a way on holiday on the 20th of october and im not wanting to leave it unfinished.
so keep your eyes peeled for part four folks lol

rising from the ashes (part deux)

well here we are part two, this was a lot more work than i had anticipated actually the head and both wings took me from 9pm until 12midnight. i was ready to commit murder by the end of the three hours the concentration had pickled my brain. needless to say im having the night off tonight as i have no kitchen roll left haha.
im really pleased though with the way the colours have turned out and i actually cant wait until its finished so i can see what it looks like altogether.
dont get paid until weds though so it will need to wait.
xxx

rising from the ashes

this is my first full back piece attempt. in case you cant make out the picture very well, its a skull at the bottom cracked and broken with flames erupting from it and a pheonix in the flames.
allan who got leckey on his tummy a wee while ago, (and who is also no longer with sharleen by the way), has had a rough time of it since he moved over from island but he has finally started to pick himself up now, hes got his own house, hes got some good friends and has met the woman he wants to love til his dying day. so he felt it was time to get some representation of this and after many notes and scribbles trying to explain what he was looking for we settled on a pheonix.
i did the whole outline tonight and it took a good hour or so because of all the feathers, and we are looking forward to another couple of sessions i think to get the colour in there too.
ill keep you posted xxxx

dolphin number one

this is another first today, my friend eilidh is moving down south next month and wanted a tattoo to not only make a memory of her daughters sasha and sophie, but to mark the big change in her life.
it was good fun doing this one eilidh is such a brilliant laugh and im glad i got to give her a going away present that will last forever.
were all gonna miss you eilidh but we wish you good luck for your future xxxxx

ghost rider

another not very good photo here but its actually a skeleton on a motorbike, a wee tribute to davids brother as he had something similar david has been trying to think of something to get and this is the end result. dont know if it was just the mood i was in or the fact that ive worn a hole through my top spring but this one although it only took an hour and a bit felt like forever.
but this morning it looks a lot better than i was expecting it to, this shading malarky is very misleading lol xx

my first shading attempt

well two photos of the same tattoo, my first attempt ever with the shading and i have to say im really quite pleased with it on the whole.
it now belongs to sharleen who has been on here before with several different pieces, it is an impression taken from a tattoo book and the picture was called "the lady of hell".
its quite a simple design that relys on the shading for detail so i had free reign to practice.
it only took a couple of hours but next time ill know how the different shades work so it will be a bit quicker, its about five inches from top to bottom and three inches across its widest point so its not too small either.
it was good fun playing about with a new technique an davids got one booked in for tomorrow lol
xxx

a couple closer to home

these are a couple of tattoos that david and i did for each other, the top one is on davids leg and is a take on the rememberance tattoos we saw on miami ink. often in battle if someone dies they stab the gun into the ground hang the dog tags on it and the hat and place the boots at the bottom, if only to mark the losses though im sure there is a deeper story behind it. david however being the big softie he is wanted something to remember the innocent people that are lost to wars and violence so this piece was named "toy soldiers".
its a kids baseball cap on a toy gun with the dog tag and boots and a handful of toy soldiers on the ground.
it turned out quite well though it really needs a close look to see the detail.

this is the next installment of what could be a huge tattoo, it started with davids first ever tat, the butterflies around the ankle bone which im sure i blogged such a long time ago, it travels round a piece that my daddy did many moons back when i was about 18, thats the little chinese symbol and butterfly. the latest bit is then the flowers and the bumble bee with the music notes. it took a little longer than anticipated but im really pleased with the result, again under close inspection the colours really blend together and hes done a great job of it.

it hurt like hell i wont lie and im slowly but surely changing my mind about it going all the way up my leg but hopefully the finished piece will look the way i want it to xxxx

dont forget leckey!!!

and no i wasnt talking about the kind you put in the meter lol. this is a newly aquired friend from northern ireland.
you will remember sharleen who had her vine growing up her leg well allan is her new beau, and his name is allan leckey.
this is his new tattoo on his stomach which might i add was a nightmare to do. he couldnt relax as hes more ticklish than a babys bare foot and he had to tense his muscle to stop it tickling which made it more sore bless him.
but the old english style really suits the name i especially like the Y at the end.
hes already talkin about flames on his wrists like the cuffs of a sleeve and a huge great big back piece of a warrior and his woman.
not sure how long it will take for him to build up the courage for them but well see.


on a different note my shading stuff arrived dad the same stuff you ordered so remind me to ask you about it next time i talk to you ok? got a fair idea from previous conversations but want to make sure ive got the right idea before i go ahead and " nail it on " ..........

none will come ..... then somebody does!!

this rangers one was a last minute decision for annette, she came to get her sisters name on the back of her neck and ended up going home with this one as well.
its the first rangers crest ive done myself and im quite chuffed with it, all done free hand no transfers so its all me and annette was really made up.
it was healed in time for her to show it off at the game on saturday and she has already made plans for her next one.


this little one was a real joy to do, i met kelly when she was part way through her pregnancy with her daughter and at the time i was tattooing her fellas friend, i got to know the family a little bit and tattooed her fellas mum and dad, if you look back chick had a made in scotland tattoo and sharon had a couple done the most memorable one being the kiss my lips on her chest, anyway, kelly has now had her daughter and wanted to get her name on her foot. it didnt really take long to do but bless that child her mum has grounded her for life due to the pain, (we did try to warn her it would hurt lol). kelly went away very happy and sharon went away green with envy as she wants hers to look like that. no doubt ill see her soon for a touch up on the names on her feet.
lovely family and im glad tattooing gave me the opportunity to meet them xxxx