Getting a bad tattoo is one thing, but having to get a bad tattoo because you lost a bet, is the worst.  I’ve never personally had to get a bad tattoo after losing a bet, but it’s hilarious how often it does happen to other people.

Jason Mac, a DJ for a New Zealand based radio station, The Rock FM, now has a brand new tattoo of one of the most beloved/hated contemporary rock (aka Cock Rock) musicians out there, and it’s on his right ass cheek.  The tattoo is of none other than Nickleback frontman Chad Kroeger.  Kroeger is singing quite heartfelt as always, into a microphone…except that the microphone isn’t a microphone.  It’s a penis.

I don’t know what sort of bet was so important that it necessitated risking getting this horrible (but funny) tattoo.  Man-o-man.  Incidentally, in case you’re wondering where the tattoo was done and you want to see it actually being done, you can mosey on over to here and here, respectively.   I must warn you however, you might become inspired to risk the stakes of future bets with your friends and end up with something similar or worse.

And that would be horrible hilarious.

I’m not a tattoo artist, but I can understand that just like with any other job, being a tattoo artist has its fair share of idiotic customers, customers who fit perfectly into comedian Larry David’s analysis that the customer is not always right and that more often than not, the customer is an asshole.

In short, take the worst customer relations nightmare that you’ve had at your place of work (if you happen to work with customers) and hopefully you still won’t even have come as close to what went down in Monterey, California last July.

Nathan Augustine, 36, of Pacific Grove, California, is to be sentenced to 7 years in prison on March 12th after pleading no contest to two charges of arson.  It all started when Augustine entered Creative Visions tattoo in Monterey and asked for a:

tattoo of a swastika and an image of Obama overlaid with crosshairs…

The artists at Creative Visions all turned Augustine down and wouldn’t tattoo him.  Augustine later returned to throw a Molotov cocktail at the Creative Visions shop.

Wow.  That’s some crazy shit.  But I do have to say, high-fives and much respect to the staff at Creative Visions for sticking their ground.  What’s more, Nathan Augustine received his second arson charge for throwing a Molotov cocktail at a local restaurant.  Apparently they wouldn’t serve crazy redneck assholes.  But that’s just what I heard.

It’s been a while since I have done a post about my adventures in tattoo advertising. I have been through quite a bit since my last post. My family and I were evicted from where we were living. I have also had a few new tattoo advertisements done as well. Since my last post I have had 4 new tattoo ads done. I now have SheMaleYum.com on the side of my head, CrackWhoreConfessions.com on the other side of my head, that reads ” I saw your mom on CrackWhoreConfessions.com”. I have a new tattoo ad on my Forehead that is for DrFreak.com, and a tattoo ad on my chin for HotMovies.com.

Things are going pretty good as far as finding websites to advertise on me. I am starting to get more exposure as well. I did 2 photo shoots recently for  magazines that are going to do features on me. One of the magazine’s that did a feature on me is Bizzare magazine. The issue that features me in it will be out at the end of the month. I am hoping to get even more epxosure. It would be cool to get on CNN, Today Show, or some other program like that. If you would like to see more of my tattoo advertisement photos you can go to my tattoo advertising photo page at this link http://www.checkoutmyink.com/profile/billythebillboard. I will start posting more about my adventures in tattoo advertising now that my family and I have a place to live now.

When I think about how long that I have been doing the tattoo artist profiles for, it’s embarrassing to admit that I have not yet profiled Robert Hernandez.  Considering that Hernandez is widely considered to be one of the greatest tattoo artists in the world, I’ve been slacking by not giving this guy the big time respect that he deserves.

Looking at the work of Robert Hernandez is especially rewarding if you happen to be a fan of tattoo portraiture and horror movies.  I don’t want to make it sound as though Hernandez is solely a horror film tattoo artist, but there certainly is a grotesque and dark feel to much of his tattoo work.  It’s a true mark of exceptional talent when an artist can make disgusting images and characters from horror films or music - a sweat soaked Marilyn Manson, for example - look beautiful.

“Throughout the years I have tried to develop my own unique style. My style tends to be a little on the dark side, sinister even. My main focus has always been realism. I like to play with different tones and textures. I also enjoy distorting portraits or any other type of image. I try to create things that look as alive as possible no matter how far fetched the subject may appear. I believe that anything you can draw or paint you can tattoo.”  - Robert Hernandez

Well, Hernandez has certainly succeeded in creating things that look alive.  His portraits practically leap off the skin.  It’s kind of distracting when you need to write about someone’s tattoos but you haven’t written anything because you can’t stop looking at the artist’s portfolio!

Robert Hernandez has his own tattoo studio set up in Madrid, Spain.  He’s of Polish-Spanish descent, gaining much artistic influence during his childhood from his grandfather, who was a caricaturist.  This interest in art lead to art lessons as well as the study of art and eventually (and thankfully) tattoo.

Quite arguably one of the greatest tattoo artists ever.  Enough said.

Better late than never.  That’s what tattoo artist Bob Tyrrell has to say about his late start in the world of tattoo, and I have to agree with him.  Bob grew up wanting to be an artist, but as he reached his teens he discovered the guitar and heavy metal and for many years afterward, music was his true passion.  Bob played in various heavy metal bands and worked in a factory for fifteen years before getting his first tattoo at age 29.  This initial tattoo regenerated Tyrrell’s interest in being an artist.  He began taking art lessons and drawing once again.  His rediscovered interest in art soon led to the world of tattoo and an apprenticeship at Eternal Tattoos in Detroit, Michigan.  It wasn’t until the age of 34 that Bob began tattooing professionally at Eternal Tattoos.  These days he’s still in Detroit but now Bob can be found at his own tattoo studio, Night Gallery.

I once read an interview with tattoo artist Mario Desa, where he said that he’ll do any style of tattoo except for portrait work.  Desa maintained that if someone wants a portrait tattoo, they should go to a specialist.  This is excellent advice.  It takes a great skill and flourish to really capture the essence of a person’s face in a tattoo.  When someone has it, their work speaks for itself.

Well, Bob Tyrrell most certainly does have it. Nice one, Bob.  Take a leisurely look through Bob Tyrrell’s online gallery if you’re interested in some phenomenally good portrait work.  You know what?  Even if you’re not interested in any sort of tattoo portrait work, you need to see his stuff.  Because I think that if you see his stuff, you’ll start being interested in tattoo portrait work.

Excellent stuff.  There’s not much more that I can say about it.  As I said before, when someone has it, their work speaks for itself.

Me personally, I would never get a corporate logo or name tattooed on any part of my body.  Even if there was a very good cash incentive or prize for doing so.  However, that’s just my opinion.  Some people have no problem with tattooing corporate logos on their body in return for a nice bit of compensation.  In fact anyone who has spent a little time reading The Tattoo Blog would undoubtedly be familiar with Billy the Billboard.  Billy has put numerous tattoos on his body as a form of advertising for various companies.  At one point he even auctioned off space on his body for advertisers so that he could get himself a new van.

Well, we haven’t seen much of Billy lately, but I sure hope he’s still out there keeping up his billboard tradition.  Today when I came across this article, I immediately thought of him.

Grant Burton, 30, from Melbourne, Australia is going to be able give his parents the vacation that they’ve always wanted but never had, by having the logo for the Dutch based rail provider Eurail tattooed across his back.  Burton came up with the idea after being unemployed during his parents 40th wedding anniversary.  His mother, 60 and his father 78, raised six kids and although neither one of them was ever a fan of tattoos, Grant decided that it was now or never to try and find a way to get them away on their dream vacation in Europe.  Because of the sentimental nature of the trip and Grant’s dedication to his cause, the people at Eurail have not only covered the expense of a Eurail tour of Europe for Grant’s mother and father, but also for Grant himself.

‘”We receive sponsor requests every day, but never have we seen such a fun and quite extreme example of fan dedication,” spokesperson Chantal Sukel said.

“We strongly feel that it is very altruistic of Grant to make this gesture to his parents … [so we] decided to throw in an extra pass for Grant himself.”

They will each receive a ticket to tour Europe, while spending money incentives are also being offered for the number of fans that join Mr Burton’s Facebook page.’

So…hey, regardless of what anyone might think about getting a corporate tattoo, you’ve got to admit that Grant Burton getting an 11cmx15cm tattoo of the Eurail logo on his back just so his parents can go on a vacation is a pretty selfless and generous thing to do.

It doesn’t seem to matter what the art form is, whenever people look too deeply into it they are so often completely off the mark with their assumptions. It’s a regular occurrence when assumptions about everything from a person’s character to their social status are made about people simply because they have tattoos.

But that’s nothing new, is it?

The thing is, it’s bad enough when people stereotype or pigeonhole you because of your tattoos, but now there’s an actual reference manual for this sort of stupidity.  I’m not kidding.  Author Judi James has written a new book called The You Code, which among other things, offers explanations as to what type of person someone is based on their tattoos.

Behold some of the wisdom found within:

Small and Traditional [Tattoos]
Judi says: “This is not a daring guy as such but a guy who likes to think he’s daring now and again. So though he’s likely to surprise you with moments of drama in the bedroom, mostly it’s a case of what you see is what you get. A dependable type.”

Mystical Tattoos
Judi James: “Two things stand out about this sort of guy: firstly he craves attention, but secondly that he considers himself deep but misunderstood. Far from being mere shapes, the puzzling symbols suggest he wants to be taken seriously and seem mysterious and clever.”

Animal Tattoos
Judi says: “This is the guy saying: ”I may not look like much but I’m actually strong and powerful”. Probably wants to be an animal in the bedroom and this may well be the case.”

If you happen to be hungry for more of this particular brand of wisdom, you can find more here.

Oh, man.  Hey, I don’t want to be too judgmental - despite the fact that Ms James’ book seems to be exclusively steeped in ridiculous, judgmental notions - but without actually reading The You Code, I have to say that from what I have read, the book is garbage.  People don’t need a book that helps them decipher what kind of a person someone is, based on their outer appearance. The sooner we get rid of the notion that tattoos and the people who have them can easily be pigeonholed, the better.  There are a billion and one reasons why a person would choose a particular tattoo and for anyone to even pretend to know the reasons behind another person’s tattoos is just pure ignorance.  Plain and simple.

Route 66 is an American legacy.  One of America’s very first highways, it inspired everything from songs to memorabilia to a spot in the 2006 Pixar animated film, Cars.  The highway covers a total distance of 2,451 miles or 3,045 kilometers.  Although the route was officially removed from the United States highway system on June 27th, 1985, it still retains a historical significance in American culture and portions of it have been declared Historic Route 66.

So as you can see, with all this history behind the highway, there is no way that people are going to forget about it.  Car enthusiast Ron Jones, however, is one such person who certainly couldn’t forget about Route 66 even if he tried (not that he would ever want to, of course).  Ron loves cars and he loves Route 66.  Since 2000, Ron has been collecting tattoos of some of the pitstops, cities and landmarks that dot the famous route.  Now, 10 years later, Ron has managed to cover himself in no less than 82 different Route 66 themed tattoos.

Ron travels to various car shows in his customized red, white and blue 1956 Chevy, showing off both his car and his tattoos.  Although he’s received some negative opinions of his tattoos as well as his passion for them, there is still plenty of positive attention and appreciation for this 61-year-old’s passion for ink.

“A lot of guys have tattoos of devils and skulls and some things satanic, but that just wasn’t me.”

Though Ron says that he’s running out of space on his body for more tattoos, I’m personally wondering what kind of tattoo he has planned to coincide with his 66th birthday when it comes.  I’m guessing that it’s going to have something to do with a certain route, but that’s just a hunch.

Lately I’ve been pretty busy and I haven’t really had time to think much about the new year.  In case you’re reading this and you didn’t know: it is in fact, a new year.  Yes, that’s right, it’s no longer 2009.  It is now 2010.  I’ve never personally been the sort of person who gets all excited about a new year, but the fact of the matter is that a new year is like a clean slate, you can start all over fresh and new and try to do the things that you some how failed to do last year.

When I sat down and started thinking about all the things that I want to accomplish this year, I realized something: the new year is the absolute best time to get a new tattoo.  The idea of getting a tattoo that represents a goal that you want to achieve this year or in the near future or maybe a tattoo that reminds you of something that you’ve been through in the past year - these are all perfect ways to either stick fast to your goals or hold past memories closer than ever.  I was reading this article and although the article itself doesn’t say much of anything new, this part in particular made me nod my head in agreement:

For Soumya, tattoos are far more effective than New Year resolutions: “A new year is a time for resolutions and reflection. A tattoo can help remind a person of something he or she wants for a lifetime. So your reflections will remain with you not just for a day in the coming year, but beyond.”

Sure, it’s hardly a new concept to get a tattoo to kick off the new year, but it is a concept that somehow just seems right.  Every year people make resolutions knowing full well that they won’t stick to them.  Maybe it’s time to get your resolutions or reminders of your resolutions stuck on you?