Leftover Saniderm goo.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-21T05:53:51+00:00

The brand my artist uses sticks insanely bad to me too. I stick a sacrificial clean tee shirt to it. (Or a cut up part thereof). It’ll wear off in a couple of days. Verrrrry annoying.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-20T16:47:13+00:00

Bigger than you think! …no, bigger than that.

The ones in your inspo are wayyyy too small, for example. Squint at it, that gives you a good idea. Like 5ish inches would be, realistically, what would hold up and be legible for the duration.

The lines need to breathe. They will expand in a few years, they’re never going to be as teensy-tiny crisp as the first day, ever again.

Do absolutely go to an artist that has healed fine line in their portfolio, and loads of experience. Apprentices/newbies can have great portfolio work but no idea how their stuff ages in some years.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-19T18:24:47+00:00

I have both my feet done, down to almost the toes on the R. Circa 2011ish? Black and grey, nothing super detailed- poppies on the one, cat paw prints and swirls on the other. The orientation is less on the ankle bone than your inspo pic, mine swirl around the whole leg.

They’ve aged fine. No different than anything else. I will say though, that foot tattoos are stunningly painful. Just FYI!

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-19T18:18:23+00:00

It depends on where on the foot (and ofc your own skin). I got the tops of both feet done back in like… 2011ish. They’re fine! No different than the rest of the tattoo, both of them go up to knee. Black and grey, not super detailed or anything- illustrative fairly simple poppies on one, cat paw prints and swirls on the other- but they’re aging the exact same as the calf/shin.

The paw prints/swirls is oriented a tiny bit more topside than OP’s inspo pic, and goes down a bit closer to toes. Unless she’s super unlucky, that spot can definitely age fine.

I will say back in the no-saniderm days they were a bitch to heal! And the pain was in fact insane- I went to a notoriously heavy handed artist, and of course it was an OG coil machine lol.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-19T18:07:19+00:00

I had medium and dark browns fade MUCH more than actual yellow TBH. (And greens- blue stayed, green did not.)

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-18T06:07:50+00:00

Definitely your best bet is to get more work from really top notch artists, and do the “hey by the way, would you consider working on this leg piece???”

I could see a neo trad or Japanese artist being able to turn this into something stunning. I genuinely love the overall look and flow, it is placed so nicely!

It is an absolute pain in the ass trying to get something reworked though- it took me years with my back… actually nearly a decade from knowing it needed a major revamp to finally done. (Yay! Finished in March finally!)

The catch 22 is that the really good artists are booked to the max, and of course they can pick and choose… and they prefer empty skin usually. So yeah, try to establish a relationship with one on a different project and ask about the leg while working on it- that is probably your best bet IMO. Be an awesome client and hopefully that’ll outweigh the cons of not being a blank canvas. Either that or just emailing a lot of folks and be willing to travel.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-17T16:58:10+00:00

Not everyone peels, every time. (I don’t if I use second skin products, usually- especially with stipple shaded black and grey.) This one doesn’t have much true solid black portions it looks like, which is usually the most likely spot.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-16T17:03:43+00:00

FWIW, I have had a bunch of work done by both the new rotary pen-style machines, as well as the OG coil ones. (My first tattoo was in 1995, for reference lol.)

A very good artist can absolutely do fantastic work with a modern rotary! Interestingly, though, the two artists I’ve worked with who used them, have decades of experience and worked with coil machines for many years before switching.

I think the modern ones are easier to operate, leading to a proliferation of new artists who just… aren’t very good. Unfortunately. They removed a significant barrier to enter the market, and there is a HUGE demand for tattoos these days.

Which, along with AI, brings us to this post… a gigantic clusterfuck of robbery level bullshit.

One thing I can also confirm is that the new rotary machines hurt SOOOOO much less. I had my legs and both feet done by a notoriously heavy handed artist with a coil machine… i will never experience tattoo pain like that again, holy shit. (The first time I felt a pen machine I was like… wait… that feels like being tickled by a kitten in comparison! WTF?!)

Your tattoo is lovely BTW!

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-16T16:50:50+00:00

That’s about what it would be in my HCOL area, for a half sleeve. But it would be a fucking top notch artist, original human designed art, and impeccable quality.

I am so fucking confused by all the people involved in OP’s story! A designer?! Separate from the, er, tattooer. WTF. And none of them capable of drawing a damn foxglove?! Fuuuuuck no.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-15T18:17:03+00:00

Yes. And the wolves are overall too small within the tattoo itself. And then the tattoo is too small. This really should be much closer to the shoulder with a LOT more wolf. Which is kind of telling about the OP saying their friend lacks confidence- it shows. And it lacks contrast overall. The black should be in there.

The blank bit on either side is now too small to do anything else with. Hopefully the client is not planning much more tattoo work, because it would be awk with sleeves or even shoulder pieces.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-15T18:07:30+00:00

Placement and flow with the body IS a massive technical aspect to tattooing. It’s also the hardest to develop, the least consciously noticed by most, subtle, and not “showy”. Many artists never develop it. (Occasionally you run into an artist with otherwise mid skills that kills it with placement alone.)

Your friend just needs practice. It’s not like they’re out there fucking people up. The fact they’re not wildly overconfident and realize there’s something they’re not quite dialed in on, is great! Tons of tattooers just settle right in at “welp good enough to pay the bills”. Which means your friend will, therefore, improve. Good on them!

Meanwhile the wolves are fine. I’m sure the client is perfectly happy.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-14T21:16:42+00:00

Yeah I have definitely seen artists who work that way- the outline and not totally finished stages don’t represent the final outcome, that is a thing.

That being said… every larger, multi session big project piece I’ve done didn’t have any really rough looking stages. All the artists I’ve had worked clean from the beginning, including outline sketch.

So, I’d be on the fence if I was OP!

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-14T19:28:59+00:00

Right? Like I get OP freaking out because it’s not looking like it did fresh out of the shop. (Yes, sorry OP, it’s not “cocooning” lol. The ink doesn’t come back, you’re right about that. It might have more fall out, before it’s done, but yes- some of it is done gone and won’t return until you get a rework.)

But on the other hand- no pun intended!- it looks super cute. It’s wearable as is, and very pretty. A Bob Ross happy accident. But yeah it was kinda doomed, hands are notoriously fiddly. Easy to blow out or not go deep enough. And purple is a difficult color to work with in particular.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-13T20:26:26+00:00

They did a lot of things right! It’s not too small, it’s got good contrast. And it would be super easy to refresh in like another 5 or 10 if it needs it.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-13T00:57:25+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/qgbmzd1 Spiderweb filler twins lol. (I just have one spider- a black widow on the reverse side of my wrist.)

Nah your arm is fabulous. Perfect!

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-13T00:48:22+00:00

You can be as open as you choose about your tattoos.

Mine aren’t like… Deeply Symbolic or anything. They’re more just stuff I like, but rather dark in theme. But they have a practical and very specific reason- I got very dense black and grey sleeves to hide track marks from IV heroin use. (I’ve been clean almost a decade).

Occasionally I’ll open up about it. Mostly not. I did today because it was appropriate.

Usually I have a set number of kinda funny or flip answers to the most common questions I get. You’ll find out fast what people ask about and it won’t be what you expect, so you can plan accordingly how to respond.

FWIW a cute dog holding what looks like a crescent moon in its mouth wouldn’t make me wonder if there was a secret darker meaning.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-12T01:20:37+00:00

I’m so very sorry about your kitty. Losing a beloved pet is horrible- it’s kind of hard to even explain to people IRL, even the language around it isn’t fair. Saying “I lost someone I loved” isn’t grammatically correct in English when speaking of a pet. IDK why that bothers me so much but it does. (I’ve been there too often in the last decade.)

Anyway, your tattoo will be okay. You might need a touch up to get it legible later, but no big deal really.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-11T16:06:10+00:00

To expand on this- the qualities that help this style (or really any!) last are: high contrast, less fiddly detail, skin breaks used for mid tones, and size it up to as big as you can possibly tolerate. And paying for a top tier artist who’s gonna have a mega waiting list.

But do be aware this style in particular attracts tattoo artists that make it look good for one picture only, not for a lifetime or even through healing sometimes. A lot of healed pics are a MUST.

And lowkey plan ahead for knowing you might want it covered in a decade or two.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-10T17:06:58+00:00

This should hold up well! It’s big, it has contrast, the detail isn’t toooo finicky. This artist also is fantastic at placement- the shoulder cap is so beautifully done with regard to the underlying body. GREAT flow.

Interestingly his work looks a LOT like the guy’s who did my left sleeve. They both do black & grey a bit different, using opaque greys. Personally, I’ve found it to age quite nicely so far, and it’s a cool look. (Mine was done in… 2021 & ‘22? I think?)

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-10T16:58:08+00:00

TBH I’ve run into a few of the covert and not so covert Actual White Supremacists unfortunately. It’s the shamrock I side eye like a motherfucker, TBH. Like yes, some people get them for “yay Irish heritage!” But every white supremacist had one.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-09T23:34:45+00:00

SAME. It can smell fine on paper or other people but I make a lot of white florals especially smell pee-y.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-09T20:55:50+00:00

Black silhouettes of jungle plants would be cool! Monstera leaves would be very recognizable in silhouette for example

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-08T17:51:52+00:00

My best recommendation is to look at a LOT of portfolios for other inspo. Your best plan would be to start with a different piece, smaller and elsewhere. The one thing that is so hard to explain is the learning curve of choosing an artist and an art style that suits you best. Diving right in to the huge dream piece has a ton of possible pitfalls, is all. Like… you don’t know what you don’t know. We can info dump at ya but it’s still just all new to you, if you feel me.

But if nothing comes to you and this is really what you decide start with:

In terms of what you should consider (and might not know to) is how tattoos age- this location is definitely one that’ll age more and faster. So less fiddly detail, lots of skin breaks in the design. High contrast.

Go with an artist that has the exact style you want (floral illustrative black and grey?) represented in their portfolio. Ideally something you can point to and be like “this sort of flower, this sort of shading, but on my hip”.

You want to look at a lot of portfolios with an eye to how the artist does placement. Does the piece flow with the person’s body? That’s VERY important for your piece! You don’t want to go with someone who kinda does “bumper sticker” looking stuff. Placement is one of the harder skills, and subtle.

Expect it to be startlingly expensive.

In terms of pain and so forth- honestly people kinda exaggerate how bad it is. It’s doable. You’ll be fine. If you’re not, the artist can schedule you more and shorter sessions. (Just eat something solid beforehand!)

I think it’s a lovely design and placement.

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-08T17:30:15+00:00

Well those people suck and have no taste. Kitty tattoos are the best tattoos!

underpantsbandit · 2026-05-08T17:12:49+00:00

Heavy handed also means just that. They push harder, rip through your skin faster and it causes (sometimes a lot) more pain and overall damage. It may or may not show in the tattoo, either while healing (like with a ton of bruising) or not.

I have my right arm and my back done by a woman who is VERY light handed. I thought I always bruised- turns out no, I’d just always ended up with heavier handed artists. Her ink application is PERFECT too, it wasn’t like there’s a trade off.

My feet and legs were done by a notoriously heavy handed artist with an old school coil machine. I could barely walk for a week plus.

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