Sunday, March 14, 2010

Two Tattoos from Devin

Last Wednesday I had a productive inkspotting lunch hour, which culminated with meeting Devin in front of Penn Station.

Devin has three tattoos, two of which are in close proximity on his left forearm:

The first of the two he shared was also his very first piece he got when he was eighteen:


This "punk rock chick" is based on an old Rancid logo. Aside from being a fan of the band, he liked the design, as well. It was tattooed by Brad Schicklgruber at Mackenzie's Tattoo in Carmel, New York.

Just above that is the sparrow design that is classic flash:

It seemed fitting, then, that Devin had this done by Eddie at Sam O'Reilly's Tattoo Parlour in Santa Cruz, California. O'Reilly's, established in 1891, is one of the oldest shops in the nation and has top-notch artists. Work from O'Reilly's has appeared previously on our site here.

Thanks to Devin for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Friday, March 12, 2010

Tattoos I Love: Melanie's Hybrid Flower

This is another special edition of Tattoosday, a variation on the Tattoos I Know series. First seen on Valentine's Day, this is an episode of Tattoos I Love.

This category is reserved for the ink on my wife, Melanie, who turns 40 today.

Several years ago, I bought her a gift certificate for Body Art Studios in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. The owner and artist, Peter Cavorsi, is a talented tattooer, and he proved it in this case.

Melanie's favorite flower is the iris. She wanted something pretty along those lines, and gave Peter a couple of samples of artwork as a reference.

What he came up with was a lovely interpretation of the iris, but with other floral elements thrown in. So, although based on her favorite flower, it is a hybrid that is uniquely hers:


I surreptitiously snapped this photo of the tattoo on her right ankle last year at a little league game in which our younger daughter was playing.

Work from Peter at Body Art Studios has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Happy Birthday, Melanie!

Trina's Tattoo for Her Momma

The second subject of our March 10 tattoo bonanza is Trina, who sports seven tattoos, several of which are on her legs.

After her sixth piece, her mother chided her, saying teasingly, "You have all of those tattoos, and none of them are for me?"

The next tattoo solved that problem:


Reading "I'll always love my Momma," this piece was inked on the back of one of Trina's calves at Uptown Tattoos & Body Piercing in Harlem.

And what does the woman to whom this tattoo is dedicated think of it?

"Mom loves it," Trina grinned. As well she should.

Thanks to Trina for sharing her tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!