Alex's East Indian Tribal Mask

What's fascinating about approaching two inked people talking on a subway platform and asking them if either would like to share a tattoo, is that you never know what you'll get (if anything).

On Saturday, May 23, I found myself in such a situation, and Alex, one of the two people chatting on the 59th Street subway platform in Brooklyn, offered up this, one of his sixteen (16) tattoos:


This piece, which covers the front of Alex's right shin, is a representation of an East Indian tribal mask.

The tattoo was done by David at Dragonfly Studio & Gallery in West Reading, Pennsylvania.

Thanks to Alex for sharing this cool mask with us here on Tattoosday!

Tattoo Highway Contest #2

Win Prizes from the New A&E Real Life Series TATTOO HIGHWAY, THIRD AND FOURTH EPISODES AIRING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3 AT 10/9C.

Tattoo Highway follows 15-year tattoo veteran and star of former A&E hit “Inked,” Thomas Pendelton as he takes his tattoo parlor on the road to cities like Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Salt Lake City to transform personal stories into living art. Pendelton and his business partner and wife Monica have transformed a 1970s tour bus into a tattoo parlor on wheels, featuring a swanky interior and top-of-the-line tattooing equipment. It’s a tattoo shop that can tattoo anyone, anywhere. Ride along as emotional limits and friendships are challenged and the persistent mechanical problems of a vintage bus are tested on the road, as “Tattoo Highway” proves to be one bumpy ride. Tattoo Highway premieres Wednesday May 27th at 10/9C on A&E!

Visit http://www.aetv.com/tattoo-highway for more information.


Here at Tattoosday, we've partnered with A&E to help promote this exciting new show. Here's how our contest is going to work:

Tattoosday is all about stories behind the tattoos and how each piece of body art resonates with the individual. To be entered into the contest, simply watch the two episodes airing Wednesday, June 3rd from 10:00 to 11:00 PM Eastern/9:00 to 10:00 PM Central) and then write a little something in the comments section of this post. Tell us what tattoo that you saw on the premiere episode was your favorite, and why you liked it. Winners will be chosen randomly among the entries and you could win:

a Tattoo Highway iPod Skin OR

a Tattoo Highway Aluminum Water Bottle OR

a Tattoo Highway Tank.

Watch and enjoy! Winners will be announced on the site by Monday, June 8.

Dana Winkler and Chris Manning were the winners from last week. Congrats to Dana and Chris!!

Tattoorism: Josh Pays Tribute to the Verrazano Bridge

Last Friday I received a very special surprise via e-mail from a guy named Josh:


The following explanation accompanied the photo:

"I recently discovered your blog's postings about various Verrazano Bridge tattoos you've seen [here and here] ... They both looked pretty awesome.

I'm also a big enough fan of the bridge to get it inked on my skin ... Although mine is a slightly different style than the other two you posted.

I'm originally from New Jersey, and used to drive over the bridge on a regular basis to my Army duties at Fort Hamilton ... I also wanted to run in the NYC Marathon for many years growing up, and finally did so in 2004 (and again in 2006) and decided to commemorate the occasion with a little inking."

Needless to say, it's a phenomenal piece. I, too, am partial to the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, as I can turn my head to the left as I type this at my computer, and see it through my window.

Josh had the tattoo done by an artist named Mark Van Ness at Blue Flame Tattoo in Raleigh, North Carolina. Work from Blue Flame has appeared twice before on Tattoosday.

Josh elaborated on the piece in a follow-up e-mail:

"...I was inspired by the works of artist Barbara Bascove, who's painted dozens of New York City landmarks in her unique style. I loved the dark, rich tones of her paintings, and decided to get my tattoo along the same lines. I used the same angle / template from one of her paintings of the George Washington Bridge, and just had the tattoo artist replace the GW towers with those of the Verrazano."

The piece, which Josh says took about five and a half hours over two sessions, is one of several tattoos that he has. You'll have to wait until a later date for us to share those here at Tattoosday.

Thanks again to Josh for sharing his awesome Verrazano Bridge tattoo with us here on the site!

Alice and the Cheshire Cat in Manhattan

At one of the busiest intersections in Manhattan (34th and 7th), I recently met Kelsey, who offered up this still-fresh tattoo:


This is a scene from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, when Alice meets the Cheshire Cat for the second time.

The tattoo is based on this illustration:


This is her most recently tattooed piece. The inspiration behind it is that this was one of her favorite stories, ever since she was six years old.

This was done by Mark Roberts at Fine Line Tattoo Parlour in Deep River, Connecticut.

As a postscript, I noticed in the original photo I took, down on her ankle, was another tattoo, an apparent equation:


I e-mailed Kelsey asking her what the significance of "<3.14". I initially thought that it had something to do with being less than the value of Pi. (π).

Her response surprised me with its cleverness:

"Well, it's <3.14 because <3 is a heart and 3.14 is Pi, an irrational number ... I got it at a tattoo parlor in Augusta, Maine. Four of my friends also have that tattooed in the same spot."

Thanks to Kelsey for sharing her tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Michaela's Tattoo Illuminates a Life

Yesterday at a street fair in my neighborhood (always prime ink-spotting locals), I saw this beautiful tattoo on the upper right section of Michaela's back:


When I asked her what the meaning of the tattoo was, she asked me "The real story?"

"Absolutely," I replied.

So she told me that years ago, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and she had this tattooed to remind her that there are two sides to everything. The moon and the sun serve as a solar/lunar yin-yang. I especially love how the moon wraps its limbs around the parts of the sun.

Often, whatever a diagnosis may be, finding out what is wrong (as opposed to not knowing) can illuminate a life. She gains strength from this tattoo as it marks a point when her disorder was defined, when a light clarified her situation in life.

This tattoo was done by Noel Wilkinson at The Tatt Shop in Perth, Australia. I believe this is Tattoosday's first sample of work from Autsralia.

Thanks so much to Michaela for sharing this lovely tattoo with us here on Tattoosday! I appreciate her courage in sharing the deeply personal meaning behind her tattoo, as well.