| Blind Tattoo (in Progress) | |
2008/03/08 06:18 Here's a fantastic display of complete trust. My very first – Blind Tattoo!
One of friends was in need of a new tattoo. Didn’t know what they wanted, but knew that they wanted one for her lower back. I decided to see if I could make a deal with her. I’d draw her something that’d suit her, but she couldn’t see the design until the outline was already tattooed on her back. That meant – no input from her or anyone who knew her. She couldn’t see the drawing, stencil or tattoo until it was already in her skin in its entirety. It took a few weeks of planning – gathering ideas and whatnot. And then it came down to a final draft the night before – which isn’t unusual for me now a days. But with the pressure on and the client without a clue what I was about to tattoo on them – everything had to be just right – as I’m sure you could imagine. But the day light came and I headed in to tackle this challenge head on and confident that I had created a masterpiece oblivious to it’s receiver.
Ok – I’ll admit that it, It was a bit nerve racking to say the least. Would she like it or would she break down in tears and we’d have to spend millions in laser surgery to remove it all – and as you can see it became quite large by the time I was done designing it.
Needless to say – we were able to bypass the laser surgery extravaganza due to the fact that she did like it after all. Thank God! And I guess she should – after all it is a fairly close likeness of her with the 2 interments that she does play in real life, the Saxophone and Piano. The tattoo is meant to have a “Rock-a-Billy” feel to it, which I must say she does in real life portray, and the surrounding Victorian filigree will end up with a rusty old finish to it. I wanted the writing to say a little something about her personality. And with the Rock-a-Billy undertone! “Shake Rattle and Roll” – was just the up beat, charismatic, loud music blaring attitude that ties it all together to match the persons attitude that it portrays!
I absolutely loved the challenge – and I loved the anticipation received and given on this project. Many Thanks go out to Chelsey for being trusting enough to go through with all of it and for being convicted enough to sport my very first – Blind Tattoo! Thank you very much for indulging me in this great opportunity!
I’ll be sure to keep everyone up-dated on its progress as it comes along.
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| 2006/07/13 04:45 I’ve been tattooing now for about 14 years.
Not unlike a lot of other tattooist, I started out in Jr. High, with a homemade tattoo machine and all the wrong inks and sanitation practices. (I wouldn’t recommend that though, if you want to get into tattooing, go to a shop and get an apprenticeship. It’s much better, faster and way easier on your clients and you for the future cover-ups needed to erase your “holly crap did I do that” mistakes). But within a few months I had a professional set up and away I went. Tattooing friends and family, stupid roommates and whoever wanted some ink. I was in a small town back then, with no other competition within 80 kilometres. So needless to say I was the guy that almost everyone went to. Well eventually anyways! Starting out so young didn’t instil a lot of confidence in everyone – but I did have my clients who were faithful. That and there’s almost always someone in your repertoire of friends that’s up for free practice tattoos. And you gotta start somewhere, right? Within a few years I was doing much better at it. I started getting more and more clients and bigger and better designs.
Eventually I jumped ship from the small town to only a slightly bigger city. Within a few months I got my name out and even landed a tattooing job in this beauty salon that just opened up there. They wanted to offer tattooing and after an unusually bad slash and gouge tattoo done by the owner on her son and a rather expensive hospital trip later. She finally came to her senses and sought out professional help. Now I can’t say that I was professional at that point. But I did do pretty good tattoos and I saved those people from her bone marrow massacre. And I felt pretty good about that. That shop stayed open for about 3 or 4 months, and then she shut it down due to her not being a professional anything, and trying to compete in a town of a million beauty salons, all with their own loyal clients and postsecondary graduated beauticians. Go figure huh? So back to being a private tattooist I went.
A few more years of that and I was finally ready for the big time. Well that and I was so done with all the pathetic back talking and BS that was coming from my main stream job. White collar sucks! Anyways – I packed up my drawings and tattoo photos and headed for the big city looking for a good reputable establishment to kick off my career as a Professional Tattooist. I eventually came across Dragon FX in the Kingsway Garden Mall. Took a bit to get there but so very glad I did. I didn’t even know it was there until the Dragon FX at West Edmonton Mall recommended it to me. Needless to say I got the job. It took a bit of getting caught up to speed on the proper way of doing things and making damn sure I understood about cross contamination prevention and things like that. I loved how strict and by the book they were, I’ve seen way too many shady shops cut corners and lax on things like sterilization procedures and what not, just to save time or money!
I’ve been there now for over a year, and I love every second of it. I couldn’t ask for a better atmosphere to strive to the top in. I’m surrounded by an arsenal of great tattooists, who do everything from fantastic portraits to amazing oriental style sleeves to solid black Chinese characters and everything in between. We have great body piercers who train very hard and strive to be, and as I see it are the best at what they do. It’s always exciting, fun and somewhat crazy to work here at times. There’s never a dull moment with all the shenanigans from people like Dirk, Lexci, Charles, Lee, Mike, KAT, Aza, Kathryn, Rachel, Myself and last but certainly not least Lane Jenson, the man that made it all possible, who keeps us afloat by managing the business aspects and what not, organizing events, constructing a Tattoo and Piercing magazine, piercing and tattooing people himself, doing photo shoots, and just plain helping us out “all the time” with whatever comes up. I have never seen or even herd of any other boss so willing and driven to go above and beyond as much as this guy. Might sound like I’m blowing wind up his butt, but I gotta call it like I see it, and give credit where credit is due!
This past year has been the best of my life. Getting up and going to work isn’t like work at all. People say that being a tattooist isn’t a career or a job it’s a lifestyle. And I must agree with them. There just aint anything like it anywhere else. So if you’re looking for a lucrative career and an experience of a lifetime as a tattooist in a fantastic atmosphere I’d highly recommend looking into our shop.
I’d like to thank the staff at Dragon FX for accepting me into their family of weirdoes and crazies. And here’s hoping for many more years to come.
Dragon FX rocks the Kasbah.
Stacy A.J. Knight.
2006
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| 2006/07/03 03:35 - Sing to my soul. -
The Guitarist strums his hearts sonnet. I don’t ask the reasons of the why, simply
listen to his heart spill his blood of love, sorrow, happiness and denial. The
intentions of his song beats upon my chest, my eyes now not dry. My heart
pounds with the cleft of his times, and I smile to the tears that come. Welcoming
that strain in my breast, I choke happily upon the tension in my throat. I close my
eyes to break off the welling tears that cling upon my lashes. I let them trickle
down my cheek to pool upon my quivering chin. I leave them free to flow and
roam, spill and splash where they may. They deserve that much I proclaim. I wear
them proud, unconcerned of judgement and ridicule.
I sink ever deeper into the soothing tail of the rifts and bleed my heart freely along
to the tapping of my foot. The pulse of the drums keeps the pace as the guitar
sways my regrets from my mind. The overwhelming womb of sound, pounds upon
my breaking heart to open me vulnerable. Six strings pulling at my soul, ripped
wide open and beat by a strum of another man’s collected rhyme. This is my
repent in another’s words. Lost in a consuming twang, tip, tap, pull, slide then
paused for eternity in a break to a solo. I open my eyes to a blur of faces looking
back at me from the past. Free falling tears now for the gratitude and contentment.
Smiling thankfully, and cut to the beat of my new found freedom. Peace fills my
heart, sowing my soul with glee. I didn’t ask the reasons of the why! Simply
thanked him through my heart, for the six strings and the strain.
Stacy A.J. Knight.
Feb 24th 2005.
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| INFINITE BEASTS - Admired writting. | |
| 2006/07/02 20:54
From time to time I watch you closely, with new eyes,
appreciating how much of you I haven't seen
and I'm no longer sure whether it's what I know of you
that attracts me, or what I might find.
When we met, I thought knowledge had limits, that in love
we were finite beasts who shared known boundaries
but watching you touch objects for which i have no desire
I see a measure of longing in your eyes
that forces me to say, I don't know you yet. That forces me
to say, there are places in you I may not wish to know.
In love we are beasts of infinity, crude in our longing
for things that may carry us apart. It's more than biology
or romance, more than drawing thorns from feet
with gentled fangs, more than all we have been told;
it's finding a reason to come together
without killing the wildness we each carry
like a gift we haven't decided to share
and hold inside ourselves with only the edges showing.
- Rhona McAdam
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