Nadir's LA Ink

Last month, my lovely wife Melanie was hospitalized with appendicitis. A bummer by all accounts, but on one occasion, when I left Maimonides Medical Center to grab a slice of pizza, I ran into a guy on Fort Hamilton Parkway named Nadir, whose forearm tattoo jumped out at me:

Nadir is an Angeleno transplanted here in the Big Apple, but he wears his hometown on his sleeve. The distinct LA logo, most commonly seen on the apparel associated with the Los Angeles Dodgers, is a sign of civic pride. He credits Mikey Montoya, from Rube's Tattoo in Arcadia (east of Pasadena), with this piece.

Nadir also shared this tattoo, from the left side of his chest:

If that looks familiar, it is because it is the logo at the center of the Mexican flag.

This nod to his Mexican heritage was tattooed by Raul Suarez at Inkstop Tattoo NYC.

But most impressive was this piece on Nadir's right side:

 

Nadir explained that his father always listened to the musical group Los Tigres del Norte, and he grew up with their music playing in his home. He considers this also as an apt tribute to his heritage and upbringing.

He credits this incredible piece, which took six hours to complete (no easy feat, considering it's on his ribs), to Tom Tilden, co-owner of the aforementioned Rube's Tattoos, in Arcadia. 

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

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Hannah's Parrot is a Love Bird

I spotted this avian tattoo on the right calf of Hannah one afternoon in a Duane Reade store:

Hannah explained that this tattoo is romantic at its core.

Married couples often have pet names for one another, or nicknames, at the very least. Hannah and her husband Kevin are no exception to this rule.

They refer to one another as birds, extending the metaphor to calling their apartment their "nest" and their car as the "moveable nest".

So Hannah wanted a bird tattoo, with the plan for Kevin to get an owl tattoo to give them an avian set.

She took a photo of a blue and gold macaw with her to the artist Nalla Smith at Inkstop NYC on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. This lovely parrot tattoo was the end result. Work from Inkstop NYC has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Kevin's owl is on hold while he finishes a Capricorn sea goat tattoo in progress on his right arm.

Thanks to Hannah (and Kevin) for talking tattoo with us here at Tattoosday and sharing their work. We're looking forward to sharing Kevin's finished tattoo in the future!

Jay's Incredible Chest Pieces

Last Friday, I met Jay on the 59th Street platform in Brooklyn. He had well-inked arms and he clearly had other ink peeking out from the edges of his shirt.

We chatted for a while on the platform and on the R train after it arrived. Jay was game for contributing to the blog, but wanted to offer up his chest pieces, of which he is most proud. Since taking off his shirt was not an option, he agreed to send me a photo later. That's what you see above.

Needless to say, Jay was right. His chest work is phenomenal. The artist is Eddie Carrero, who works out of Inkstop Tattoo NYC in Manhattan. It's all custom-designed and original art by Eddie. Let's take a closer look:



Not only does Eddie use phenomenal coloring on the koi and the dragon, but his shading work in the background is extremely cool as well.

Thanks to Jay for sharing his chest pieces here on Tattoosday!