First off I do want to make it clear that I am not Vegan, in fact:

“I like mine with lettuce and tomato;
Hinze 57 and French fried potato.
A big kosher pickle and a cold draft beer.
Good god Almighty which way do I steer?”
Cheeseburger in Paradise, Jimmy Buffet.

All clowning around aside, I also admire the Vegan lifestyle, it’s just not me, and I have to hand it to anyone who does opt for this animal friendly way of life. On the practical side, though it’s not easy to live in our modern world as a Vegan. Not only do you live as a vegetarian, but for the most part you refuse to have anything to do with products that are made using animal parts. No leather jackets, purses, wallets, etc. No drugs that are made from animals, or foods that may contain animal byproducts….and for many Vegan tattoo enthusiasts, no ink that may contain animal byproducts. As the Vegans explain it, it’s all part of a cruelty-free lifestyle.

Now that can be very tricky since most collectors give little thought to the ingredients that go into making tattoo ink.

With the exception of hazardous materials, such as heavy metals, tattoo ink can contain everything from burnt animal bones, (Bone Black), to glycerin, which although sometimes produced from plants is more typically made using animal fats. For a Vegan this is downright unacceptable.

Even for Vegan collectors there are two sides to this ongoing argument, which I have no interest in getting in the middle of, and opposing viewpoints can be found in this article, as well as this one. Since both the authors are Vegan they have a firmer grasp of the subject than I.

I did, however research a few establishments that offer Vegan tattooing. In New York Fun City Tattoo not only employs Vegan Tattoo artists, but guarantees their Vegan inks. Scapegoat Tattooing on the west coast is pretty much the same. In a pinch you can ask your artist if he uses the following inks, which are all quite Vegan.

Pelikan black is Vegan.
Starbrite is Vegan except for their black.
Stable is all Vegan.
Eternal is all Vegan.
Waverly colors are Vegan.
Unique (Permapro) colors are Vegan.
Classic is all Vegan.

As always, it is your body, your tattoo. Never be afraid to ask your tattoo artist questions. No legitimate artist is going to be offended, and if they are…..find another artist.

Peace out, Gang!

It never ceases to amaze me how after thousands of years and tons ink on everyone from ice age humans, carnival performers, royalty, and celebrities, a single tattoo can still generate more than a bit of buzz. Not to mention publicity.

Not long ago Erin Lucas, star of MTV’s The City, announced on her Twitter page that she had decided to get a tattoo. This caused a bit of a bit of speculation as to what she would choose. Thought on the matter ranged from an a-typical butterfly tramp stamp, to the newest craze in celebrity tattooing of having a poignant phrase, or motto. So, in keeping with her nonconformist image Erin opted to honor her famous father, Cliff Williams’ legendary metal band AC/DC, with their stylized lightning bolt on her right ribcage.

What impresses me the most about this particular celebrity tattoo is not the fact that another celebrity has chosen to get inked, that has become almost standard practice these days. No, what makes me stand up and take notice is her choice of placement. From years of experience as a tattoo artist I can say one thing for certain. The ribcage is one of the most sensitive places to have any body art placed. Even though women are tougher when it comes to tattooing, that is a very hard core place to get a tattoo, especially a first timer.

Way to go, Erin!

Naturally, the new tattoo caused a bit of a stir on the web after she showed up at the Gen Art benefit party in New York Wednesday night, with quite a few supposed web blogs doing the same lame “Do you like it, or not” polls. Seriously, what does it matter if the public likes the tattoo, or not? She got it because she likes it, and since she has the ‘balls’ to get her first tattoo in a decidedly hardcore area, I’m pretty sure Erin is not all that worried about whether some lame geek, who probably isn’t even a fan, dislikes her tattoo.

Personally, I think it looks good, and it is definitely  a personal statement. Which, of course, is what tattooing is all about. Individuality, and a personal statement.

My love for an a true AngeL from our time.
Show this to the world with love.
Tattoo was donee the day of his passing.

We all know that Michael Jackson died today, but what about the Michael Jackson Tattoos???
If you know of anymore Jackson tattoos… I can only wonder what crazy tattoos people will becoming out with over the next couple days, leave a comment if you see one.

Read the rest of this entry »

For more than thirty years, Boston native turned LA convert Mark Mahoney has been busy.  Not just busy, like he has a lot of work to do.  Anyone can just be busy.  Mark Mahoney is the kind of artist who is busy.  Tattooing celebrities?  Check.  Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt – Mark actually works in close production with British director Tony Scott, creating tattoo design work for characters in his films.  Most recently his tattoo design work can be seen Columbia Picture’s The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3. 

Fashion world links?  Got it.  Not only are they fashion world links, but in Mahoney’s estimation, he took part in one of the …very first times fashion and tattooing came together. That entire movement now seems to be gaining in momentum.

Mahoney’s black and white art definitely retains the feel of something gritty and raw, like the street itself with a harshly sincere LA vibe.  One of my personal favourite Mark Mahoney tattoos is of a Mexican day of the dead mask, resting below the stylish script of the words Los Angeles.  It’s a stunning tattoo, most notably for the three dimensional work on the mask.  Unfortunately, I can’t find a photo of the tattoo online, so if you’re interested in looking at this beauty along with a whole lot more of Mark Mahoney’s work, you can do so by clicking here. and viewing Mark’s entire online gallery.

Last but not least, let’s not forget LA’s notorious Shamrock Social Club -which Mahoney presides over as owner and artist – and where some of the finest black and grey (okay, and sometimes colour too) can be had if your pockets got the green.

One of the tattooing world’s greats.

So after we reported the news in regards to the girl in Belgium, Kimberley Vlaminck, who asked for 3 tattoos and received 56, she has finally come clean and admitted the truth… like all good girls she lied about her innocence to her father because he was made.

Miss Vlaminck told a Dutch TV crew: ‘I asked for 56 stars and initially adored them. ‘But when my father saw them, he was furious.
‘So I said I fell asleep and that the tattoist had made a mistake.’

The tattoo artist Toumanaintz said, ‘I don’t regret it. To tell you the truth, this has given me some publicity.’

Will she get them removed them or keep them? Stay Tuned….

Prison tattoos are nothing new and I know that I always come down on scratchers and that prison tattoos are basically done by scratchers, but the guys are locked up in prison and they don’t really have anyone to give them quality tattoos and well…that’s kind of sad, isn’t it?

Well, Rhea County Prison inmate Ricky Parker Jr thinks that it is and so he decided to do something about it.  Apparently ever the industrious fellow, Parker undertook a prison tattoo ink manufacturing method called “Pop-lighting”.  

Pop-lighting involves taking an electrical cord of some sort, stripping it to the wires, then touching them together.  A styrofoam cup is then burned upside down in order to capture soot.  That soot is then mixed with toothpaste and used for ink.

If you think that sounds like a shitty way to make ink for a tattoo, that’s because it is.

Anyway, Parker got a little too much heat going via those stripped wires and ended up setting his entire styrofoam cup on fire.  This caught the attention of the guards, who came to his cell and discovered that Mr Parker wasn’t up to anything that prison authorities generally approve of.

As a result of Parker’s smoke show, he’s been hit with a reckless endangerment charge that will extend his current sentence.  Which sucks for Ricky Parker Jr.  

All the guy wanted was a tattoo. 

For those of us who have been following, the last five episodes of Lars Krutak’s Tattoo Hunter are due to be aired on The Discovery Channel. Yes you heard right, June 27 starts the finish of quite possibly one of the most informative and interesting shows about tattooing ever produced.

To add insult to injury the last five shows are scheduled to be aired at the prime slot of 2:00 AM. I don’t know about you all, but if I am up at two in the morning I am usually partying, not watching television.

The tattoo anthropologist, and author of “The Tattooing Arts of Tribal Woman” will kick off the final episodes with the Brazil episode, then continues with Ethiopia, Benin, and India. This isn’t a weekly thing anymore either, Gang. The Brazil episode airs Saturday the 27th, and is followed by the Ethiopia episode on the 30th. So, if you’re a fan you might want to set your DVR’s to catch the last of a good thing, or figure out how to program that cassette video recorder.

The coolest thing about Lars is he was hands on with his series, getting tattoos done in some of the oldest school there is on this planet. From traditional Hawaiian, to traditional Japanese. Here was one anthropologist who put his skin where his mouth was. So to speak, and I’m sorry to see this short-lived series end.

Well, I can at least look forward to re-runs, if Discovery has the good sense to air them, that is.

Lars….I’m gonna miss ya, Dude.

We’ve all heard stories about how tattoos have been used to identify criminals, or victims. How law enforcement has posted a person’s tattoos to help track them down, but this is the possibly the first time a tattoo may be used to help prove the prosecutions case.

Currently the DA’s office is seeking permission to go into the jail to take pictures of Casey Anthony’s tattoo, which she allegedly had done a week after Caylee Anthony’s disappearance. The tattoo, located on Casey’s back, reads “La Vita Bella,” which is Italian for “The Beautiful Life.”

Now at this point it is not hard to imagine just why the prosecutor is wanting photographs of the tattoo. Along with her other bizarre behavior following her daughter’s disappearance, Casey allegedly got the tattoo in honor of her daughter two weeks after the toddler vanished, and the state believes it could be important to their case.

Whether they feel the tattoo’s obscure message is proof that she already knew the little girl was dead, or some strange declaration of freedom is anybody’s guess at this point, but one thing is for certain. This has to rate as the all time saddest story ever involving a tattoo.

This week, I want to talk about this article that I read.  The article (for those of you who don’t actually feel like reading it), is by someone named Jancee Dunn, who writes for the Huffington Post.  Anyway, back to the point.  The article recounts her horror over the idea set forth by her 67-year-old mother to get a tattoo.

“Now, my mother is hardly the biker type. She’s a wholesome Talbot’s-sweater-wearing Southerner, a former flight attendant from the days when airlines had strict weight and grooming requirements.” 

Dunn’s attitudes toward tattoos really didn’t change throughout the article, even after she cited statistics about how popular tattoos have actually become.  Her mother did end up getting the tattoo she wanted however, a black raven on her wrist.

The rest of this is pretty much going to be about how awesome I think Jancee Dunn’s 67-year-old mother is.  Let’s hear it for Jancee Dunn’s 67-year-old mother, people!

All right.  Nice.  I honestly love it when people who don’t fit the “type” go out and get a tattoo because that totally obliterates stupid stereotypes about people who have tattoos.

 I also love it when people have the confidence to pursue the idea of a tattoo even when they know that it will cause waves with others.  I’ll never understand why some people have problems with what other people do with their bodies.

At any rate, nice one, Granny Dunn!