I had a tattoo of a small rose on my right ankle. I got it while I was in high school. Although I do not hate it, nor do I regret getting it, I was also not in love with it either. I thought about getting the tattoo redone or covered up periodically over the last few years. I never went through with it (prior to this year) because I didn’t find the right artist, or the time, or the money to get it (re)done properly.
I have always liked Chinese dragons and phoenixes. I think they are beautiful and I like what the images represent. Well, as you can see by the photos, I decided to get my little rose covered up with a phoenix. It took a bit of research to find the right artist. I found a group of artists at “Seventh Sons Tattoo” in SOMA (it’s on Howard St. between 6th and 7th).
I had my first consultation with Gordon Combs. His portfolio is amazing. Check it out for yourself: http://www.seventhsontattoo.com/gordon_combs.php. You can hardly tell that the canvas is in fact skin in some of his pieces because they look like paintings. I emailed Gordon an image of a Phoenix that I liked so that he can use it as a starting point for his drawing. After meeting Gordon, he informed me that in order to do a good cover up the tattoo will end up being “a large piece”. Of course being a little shocked I replied, “how large is large?” Gordon then motioned to my leg and traced out my entire calf. Needless to say, I was very reluctant to get a piece that large.
Gordon then referred me to another artist, Luke Stewert, who does a lot of Asian inspired tattoos. Luke is an equally talented and amazing artist. (Check out his portfolio here: http://www.seventhsontattoo.com/luke_stewart.php). He’s also a real street fighter. He competes in MMA or UFC style fighting. Badass! Gordon thought that because Luke has more experience in this style of art, that he would know how to best cover it up in the amount of space i was willing to tattoo (notionally mid-calf at the time).
It was settled. Luke was going to do my tattoo and my first session was on Cinco de Mayo. I emailed him the same Phoenix image that I sent Gordon. I told him that although I really liked the image, I wanted the tail feathers to be “fuller” and to extend down onto the top of my foot. I also expressed to him that I wanted him to put his touch into the design as well. He is, after all, the artist and professional here.
Fast forward to May 5, 2010. I worked a half day so that I could get the tattoo started (Luke was booked through the end of May with the exception of this day). When I walked into the shop, Luke showed me his sketch. It was amazing! I loved everything about it. However, the design was large. It was the size of my entire calf. I asked Luke if he can make the design a little smaller, and he informed me that if we made the design smaller we would lose a lot of detail. It would also look funny because we would only be using half of the space. The body is segmented, so it’s natural to use the whole space.
As a “dry run”, Luke transferred his drawing onto my right calf. I’m not really sure how this process works, but it involved a special printer (he xeroxed his sketch with this printer) and some kind of solvent to transfer the ink from the paper to my skin. After he transferred his drawing, he then drew free hand the tail feathers onto my foot and calf using a Sharpie. He told me to walk over to the mirror and check it out. While the design was large, it was also pretty incredible. I was sold and wanted it done.
We got set up to do all of the outlining during this first sitting. It lasted a little over 3 hours. Most of which was painful. If you never got a tattoo before it feels like a bee sting…only dragged across your skin. Over and over again. It’s a good thing I have a high pain tolerance.
I took the second picture half way through this first sitting. The front of the calf and the top of the foot were the worst in terms of pain. I had to put on my ipod, focus on my breathing (isn’t that what they tell mothers in labor?), and zone out. My assessment is tattooing anywhere with bone right beneath the skin hurts like a bitch. The back of my calf (i.e., the meaty side) wasn’t too bad. I was able to text and gchat while he tattooed that section. The final two photos that I posted were taken a few days after my tattoo session.
I thought I was going to be able to write about the entire process in this post, but I’m losing stamina. I’m not used to writing this much.
To be continued….
On deck: Pictures from the second and third tattoo sessions.
I have always liked Chinese dragons and phoenixes. I think they are beautiful and I like what the images represent. Well, as you can see by the photos, I decided to get my little rose covered up with a phoenix. It took a bit of research to find the right artist. I found a group of artists at “Seventh Sons Tattoo” in SOMA (it’s on Howard St. between 6th and 7th).
I had my first consultation with Gordon Combs. His portfolio is amazing. Check it out for yourself: http://www.seventhsontattoo.com/gordon_combs.php. You can hardly tell that the canvas is in fact skin in some of his pieces because they look like paintings. I emailed Gordon an image of a Phoenix that I liked so that he can use it as a starting point for his drawing. After meeting Gordon, he informed me that in order to do a good cover up the tattoo will end up being “a large piece”. Of course being a little shocked I replied, “how large is large?” Gordon then motioned to my leg and traced out my entire calf. Needless to say, I was very reluctant to get a piece that large.
Gordon then referred me to another artist, Luke Stewert, who does a lot of Asian inspired tattoos. Luke is an equally talented and amazing artist. (Check out his portfolio here: http://www.seventhsontattoo.com/luke_stewart.php). He’s also a real street fighter. He competes in MMA or UFC style fighting. Badass! Gordon thought that because Luke has more experience in this style of art, that he would know how to best cover it up in the amount of space i was willing to tattoo (notionally mid-calf at the time).
It was settled. Luke was going to do my tattoo and my first session was on Cinco de Mayo. I emailed him the same Phoenix image that I sent Gordon. I told him that although I really liked the image, I wanted the tail feathers to be “fuller” and to extend down onto the top of my foot. I also expressed to him that I wanted him to put his touch into the design as well. He is, after all, the artist and professional here.
Fast forward to May 5, 2010. I worked a half day so that I could get the tattoo started (Luke was booked through the end of May with the exception of this day). When I walked into the shop, Luke showed me his sketch. It was amazing! I loved everything about it. However, the design was large. It was the size of my entire calf. I asked Luke if he can make the design a little smaller, and he informed me that if we made the design smaller we would lose a lot of detail. It would also look funny because we would only be using half of the space. The body is segmented, so it’s natural to use the whole space.
As a “dry run”, Luke transferred his drawing onto my right calf. I’m not really sure how this process works, but it involved a special printer (he xeroxed his sketch with this printer) and some kind of solvent to transfer the ink from the paper to my skin. After he transferred his drawing, he then drew free hand the tail feathers onto my foot and calf using a Sharpie. He told me to walk over to the mirror and check it out. While the design was large, it was also pretty incredible. I was sold and wanted it done.
We got set up to do all of the outlining during this first sitting. It lasted a little over 3 hours. Most of which was painful. If you never got a tattoo before it feels like a bee sting…only dragged across your skin. Over and over again. It’s a good thing I have a high pain tolerance.
I took the second picture half way through this first sitting. The front of the calf and the top of the foot were the worst in terms of pain. I had to put on my ipod, focus on my breathing (isn’t that what they tell mothers in labor?), and zone out. My assessment is tattooing anywhere with bone right beneath the skin hurts like a bitch. The back of my calf (i.e., the meaty side) wasn’t too bad. I was able to text and gchat while he tattooed that section. The final two photos that I posted were taken a few days after my tattoo session.
I thought I was going to be able to write about the entire process in this post, but I’m losing stamina. I’m not used to writing this much.
To be continued….
On deck: Pictures from the second and third tattoo sessions.
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