wan chai shit pie

So here's the mess i had to attempt to make into a passable tattoo.



The thing that really kills me about this piece (apart from the fact that it was done in a "tattoo studio" and not in a lab by a trained monkey), is the fact the script was done upside down, and the cross the "right" way up, so either way u look at it, it's wrong. WRONG I SAY! grrrr
anyways, did what i could, but it's like they say, "you can put pearl earrings on a pig, but it doent make it pretty."
whatever, she's happy now so i'm happy now........til the next one!

In other news, the shop has been really busy recently which is good, May's getting booked up nicely, and the navy r in next week, so we'll see if i get any fun pieces to do! it's almost my day off which i cant wait for, i've been opening early these past few days to fit all my rescheduled customers from the sick day i took, and i'm knackered. tomorrows super busy too, so wednesday will be a much needed break.

Ok everyone, sleep tight, and remember....

Think before you ink!
The reason for this rule,
and upon this I've often thunk,
is that nothing rhymes with sober,
but plenty rhymes with drunk.

Flamin-gogo-dancer

So, my last appointment today decided not to turn up, so i have a minute to blog. Here's what i got up to yesterday. She's out on the town, all dolled up.



Tomorrow is crazy busy, over booked if anything, a lot of appointments that got juggled around this week coz i've been feeling ill still. Should have a cover up... well another "Hong Kong special" tattoo i'm attempting to make passable for a half decent tattoo. Just hope i remember to take a before pic this time! Been in the habit of forgetting recently so theres been a few cover up's i havent posted. Before picture....before picture....i'll try and drum it into my head! (although this one's such a beauty i doubt i'll forget! the girl came in like, the next day, or maybe 2 days after it was done already asking for my help! this shit infuriates me. sometimes i wonder if the guy behind half of the crap i end up fixing had a stroke and just didnt realise. or maybe he gets bored and tattoos left handed, or with his eyes closed, .... or drunk. i dunno.)
anyways, til then.....

Look what i found!

So i was trying to find a large pic of one of the canvas' i did for skin:inks, and stumbled across an awesome review from Inked magazine! Check it out HERE!

Then i found a really funny review i had forgotten about from Time Out magazine that said (regarding Skin:inks exhibition 2008)

While a few of the exhibition’s pieces look like they’ve come straight out of a high school art class, there are also promising new talents in the midst. Julia of Star Crossed studios in Tsim Sha Tsui shows the range of her ability in three canvases from old school Americana designs to graffiti-esque works to traditional Chinese bamboo and cherry blossom. “It’s the next best thing to a tattoo convention,” says the Hong Kong-born artist. “You’re able to judge who has artistic merit.”

Julia represents the new generation of Hong Kong tattoo artists who are increasingly using custom work over flash designs (generic designs that a client chooses, and has traced onto their skin), highly personalized works that are increasingly in demand in a hype-individualistic society.

Anyways, not much else to post, i'm at home sick today, and i left my i pod in a taxi yesterday...i dunno, must have been feeling generous.

blame it on the boogie

so i haven't had much to post recently, and kinda still don't, but i had to post something....
all week i've been doing little itty bitty pieces and tribal, and ... i cant even remember what else. this is the closest thing i've come to a blog worthy piece all week, so i figured "what the hell?" or in this case.. "what the heaven?"



it's depressing, flicking through the appointment book, it looks like the soonest blog worthy piece wont be til may! i'm gonna have to paint some stuff so i got something to post! anyways, 2morrow's my day off, so maybe i'll get something done then! til next time...

The early bird gets the worm

So here is a fun piece i got to do yesterday, had the best intentions of posting it last night, but by the time it got to 4am, and i still had to photoshop them together, it became clear that just because u have the best intentions....things don't always turn out as you hope. life lesson there, soak it in....mmmmmmm



anyways, better late than never eh? this is actually a cover up of an old lovers name. hope y'all enjoy!

time waits for no man

So! here's the artwork for the magazine. enjoy!



if i get the pic uploaded, i'll post the piece i did earlier today soon too!

day off tomorrow, not an off day today!

awesome, tomorrow's my day off and i have NOTHING to do. i mean, there's stuff i can do....and i'm sure there's stuff i will do, but nothing i HAVE to do! no designs HAVE to be done! i'm sure i should, but they can wait til thursday night's mad rush! hooray!
so i got the artwork for West East magazine finished, on time can u believe it!? so on thurs i'll get it scanned, send it off and then post it right here! how exciting!

So super quick post before i go to the pub.....ahh the sacred establishment where the cider flows freely, who could want more?

I thought i'd post todays doings. i know i know...all my customers have been not showing or rescheduling and i was kinda thinking i may never tattoo again, but all was solved when todays customer showed up on time, ready for the fun of having her ribs poked for a few hours.



In other news, looks like i'll be busy busy busy with not one but 2 navy's! one from each side of the world soon. so should have some fun pieces coming up in the next few months. Got a real nice piece to do on thursday too so my blog wont suck so much.....i hope!

Til then....

insane in the membrane

ok, so as promised, here are the photos of me tattooing a guy's FOREHEAD! crazy i tell ya!





ok, so lemme explain! basically, this guy had a scar from his hairline down his forehead, and it was way lighter than his natural skin tone, and he had begged me to help disguise it. i tried talking him out of the idea, and made sure he understood there was no way it would be a PERFECT match, but i'd do my best. So.... after spending a while mixing up a flesh tone super close to his, we got to work. It went better than i was expecting to be honest, and it was awesome tattooing a dude's forehead....never thought i'd ever do that! We'll just have to wait and see how it heals, this may take a few sessions, maybe not...there's no knowing....

Just to clarify ya'll....this does NOT mean i do cosmetic tattooing, i do not do eyeliner, lipliner, beauty spots etc! I just felt really bad for this guy, and he had pestered me so much and i knew how much it meant to him.

Anyways, i need to get back to the drawing board and get my head down......not done nearly as much as i hoped to on the design for the magazine... i'll post a pic when it's done though.

happy happy joy joy happy happy joy joy

so i havent had a minute to blog for a while, even though all my customers seem to not show for their appointments, (i had 3 no shows in 3 days...i mean...i know it's a full moon and all, but seriously, has the world gone MAD? MAD i say!)
ok, so i'm still i little on the sick (ill not sick in the head) side.... and seeing as tomorrows appointments got cancelled too now.... i'm taking the day off. i've got a deadline for some artwork for this magazine i mentioned and i need to lock myself indoors and just finish it.
also, i will soon upload the pics of me tattooing a guys forehead (no...seriously....) but more on that later....
til then, coz i'm in such a great mood, and i have nothing else to blog about right now...here's some lyrics to a kick ass song to cheer u all up.
this is for all my customers who seem to think that a deposit makes up for 4 hours of time put aside.

I've got something to say
I killed your baby today
And it doesn't matter much to me
As long as it's dead

I've got something to say
I raped your mother today
And it doesn't matter much to me
As long as she spread

Go

Sweet lovely death
I am waiting for your breath
come sweet death
One last caress

Well I've got something to say
I killed your baby today
And it doesn't matter much to me
As long as it's dead

Sweet lovely death
I am waiting for your breath
come sweet death
One last caress

Sweet lovely death
I am waiting for your breath
Come sweet death
ONE LAST CARESS



oh yeah, happy easter y'all!

yesterday... all my trouble's seemed so far away...

So seriously, after going through like 25 pics...heres the best one. i know i know terrible glare, but u shoulda seen the others. it was like.....dying and seeing the light. so here's yesterdays cover up. (sorry again bout the pic!)



anyways just finishing up after a brutal day, thank god tomorrow's my day off!

flowers for madaaaam!

So! super quick post, it's 4am and i'm long overdue some sleep, but here's one of todays tattoodles. was gonna post 2, and will post the 2nd tomorrow, but i couldnt get a half decent pic, and after taking 20 shitty pics, i got fed up and didn't upload them.

hopefully by tomorrow i will have gained patience to trawl thru all the pics and pick the best of the crap. really nice tattoo though, don't get me wrong ya'll.... actually it was a cover up, but i'm a spastic space invader, and forgot to get a "before" pic. doesnt matter, the tattoos good on it's own, and the lovely lady who its on is my local boozer barlady, so everyone knows what used to be.... before i showed up! mwah hah hah...... (that's my evil genius laugh.....) whatever.....

anyways, babbling, and all that will be showcased tomollow laaaah.... so here's today's.....

Am i under the weather, or is the weather over me?

"I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

Fannie Lou Hamer

So started feeling sick at the end of the day yesterday, and by the time i got home i felt like i was dying! Managed to trawl through work today, but we are gonna be closed tomorrow. Hopefully i'll feel a little better by monday. Anyways, pretty easy day, luckily, no mammoth pieces booked in, just finished up with an old school padlock of a dude's calf. nice way to go out, very nice indeed. So anyways, as promised here's a better more fancy, splendid photo from yesterday's doings. (sorry bout the glare!)



I'm working on some artwork for some fancy shmancy magazine, cant remember what it's called....i think ....i dunno. Anyways, the theme is youth so i'm hoping i can get working on that tomorrow if my eyes can focus and stop watering. i feel like i have a huge ever growing water balloon in my head right now, oh which reminds me, we had some bad news bout poor little Kepi.

Looks like he's not gonna grow up to a rockstar after all, he has Hydrocephalus and the vets aren't holding much hope for him lasting too long. Puts a whole new spin on sick as a dog. Poor little guy. Anyways, i'm heading home, thank god. Til next time y'all... adieu.

brothers in arms

so here's the piece i did on my big bro. sat like a trooper, cant really bend his elbow anymore, and already started bruising by the time we finished, but hey, thats what's family's for! just wanted to post something, so here it is, but i'll repost a better photoshopped fancier version tomorrow so u can see the sides.



off for taco's again! never have too many taco's eh?!

taco's n tattoos

So today was the day after the night before. It pained me just to crawl outta bed. Luckily i had no bookings til later in the day (i think ahead sometimes, uh huh!) So here's todays piece. Basically, Monsieur Adam here is going around collecting flowers from around the world. Here's the one i did for him.



Pretty much finished off a very globetastic floral sleeve! Got my big brother in 2 morrow and i havent designed his piece yet, well thats a lie, i sketched it out ages ago, then i got to thinking..... then i dunno .... i kinda drove myself a little obssively crazy thinking bout it, and i havent looked at it since i did it so many weeks ago i cant even remember what it looks like, so gotta get in early tomorrow to get that all finished up and smoothed out before i set in in skin!