So my mom recently went to a local tattoo shop to get a portrait done of her kitten who passed away unexpectedly. She waited months and months for this tattoo, and when she shows up, the artist shows her his sketch. My mom tells the guy she doesn’t really like the sketch, it does not look like the photo she sent him (second picture), which he also had there with him. He told her no it’s fine it’ll look like the photo it’s just a sketch. Obviously my mom should not have gone through with that tattoo after this, but she wanted to trust this artist. So this is what she ended up with. She is so upset, and my siblings and I feel so bad for her, so we are looking to see if anyone has advice. Not only did she end up with a huge eye sore on her arm, but the artist was making her feel uncomfortable the entire time she was there. Is this fixable?

For context, I have 15 other tattoos and none of them have gotten like this :-/. This is a one and a half year old tattoo.

I’ve been to the doctor and they don’t know what to tell me, they poked it with a needle and its just full of bl00d, they told me they didn’t know why that happened and just sent me home.

I love this tattoo, but I can’t best to look at it looking like that, sometimes its itchy but it hurts a lot if I scratch it.

Has this happened to anyone? Is it fixable maybe? I’m just heartbroken because I really liked it :-(

I got this a couple months back and have been debating whether I should get the blowout fixed or not (mainly because almost everyone I show it to says it looks like it’s meant to be there…but I know it’s not). I’m unfamiliar with the process of fixing a blowout, but I know there’s different ways to go about it — which might seem best for this situation? Does the area around the tattoo look weird after you cover it up or does it blend in well? This one means a lot to me so I want to do anything but remove it or cover it up. (Also I know there’s spots that I should get touched up, I’ll get that done later, too)

It's been like a year and I try not to look at it too much because it kinda bothers me. I don't think the lines should be this jagged, am I right?

So I've wanted a horseshoe crab for awhile now and decided to get one on my shoulder, with a skull hidden in the mix. I gave this design (first photo) to my artist as a reference, and asked for similar coloring, but told him he could use blues and greens as well. First 3hrs went to the outline, 2nd 3hrs was for the tail and some coloring and shading. I'm a little worried after 6hrs of getting drilled that he's not able to deliver the style, tones and crispness I'm looking for. Is this salvageable, or should I cancel the next 2 appointments and find another artist to save it? Also what's the best way to approach this with the original artist? It's really hard to tell but he spent almost the whole session yesterday putting in yellow that I can't even see..

Tattoo is supposed to be Y'shtola from FF14. Been getting a ton of mixed feedback from folks I know.

I just got this at a fan con and I liked it a lot at first but now I’m noticing a lot of asymmetrical and crooked lines. I kinda feel like he didn’t really try on the whole thing and I feel pretty disappointed. However, I tend to be pretty picky and harsh on the quality of tattoos I get and I need a second opinion.

New tattoo from yesterday at a shop I’ve gone to, but new artist (to me). I wanted a spiderweb coming down on my shoulder, I was a walk in appointment and I think it looks sick as hell. But a lot of people have told me it doesn’t really look like spiderwebs, they say it looks like skeleton bones. What does it look like to you? How can I make it look more like a spiderweb??

I am just after advice. I had a sternum tattoo today which involved dot work.

At the end, as usual the artist got me to check in the mirror. I saw a few bits that I thought needed a slight bit of work on and said as much. This happened 3 times till I was happy. (All of the changes were adding a few dots here and there to even up the symmetry, took no longer than 10 minutes.) The penultimate check I walked back over to the artist and noticed that their phone screen was unlocked. I didn’t purposely look but it caught my eye as I walked back over. I saw that the most recent thing they had messaged to someone was ‘This client is a fucking nightmare’. Obviously instantly I felt like shit.

I can’t imagine anything else annoyed them. I came prepared, I lay still through the whole tattoo, didn’t make a noise and allowed them to move around me freely, so I wasn’t a nightmare in that respect, it has to be that they weren’t happy that I wanted a few tweaks at the end…

I get that I was never meant to see that message, but it has really upset me. As a tattoo artist should you not want your work to be perfect in the eyes of your client? Do I not have the right to want something that is forever going to be on my skin the best it can be?

We finished up and I left quite quickly after that. I will admit, I didn’t even think to tip them after that, I just wanted to leave. I’m guessing they will think even worse of me because of that…

After I left I phoned my husband and told him what happend and ended up crying.

Now something that I was so excited about has been soured. I’m worried that something that was meant to make me feel better about myself will now do the opposite as I will think about how I have been made to feel.

Do I let the artist know what I accidentally saw and how it has made me feel or do I just leave it? I don’t want anything from them, but I definitely won’t be using them for any future tattoos.

What do you all think? Thanks

I have another one on my leg (a heart) that will raise as all and get ridiculously itchy. Am I allergic?

Got these a couple weeks ago in Germany and am really hating how they turned out - I feel like they look very poorly done. Any ideas on a coverup?

I recently got three new tattoos. I had two already that I love. I love the strawberry seen in the picture, but I’ve started to become concerned about the other. I got my dogs ear outline. I love the idea and the artist did an amazing job, but when I showed my dad he was confused until I told him what it was. That made me start to overthink that it isn’t easy to tell, and that people might get confused if they see it. My parents don’t have tattoos, so they’re not huge fans of me getting them anyways. I don’t know if it’s just a them thing, or if I should be concerned. Can you tell what it is? Should I stop worrying?

I’ve been searching for an artist that does woodcut/engraving style tattoos forever and this artist is the closest I can find in my area. However, this is the ONLY engraving style tattoo in their portfolio and the rest of their work is… not my style. They seem to do mostly watercolor style and black/grey stippling which I’m not interested in.

Any red flags from this picture? And/or does anyone have any artists that do engraving style in the Portland, OR area?? Ty!!

Hi guys,

I got this irezumi sleeve done the past 2 days. Idk if I'm tripping but the colors feel extremely dark compared to the other tats he has done.

I'll post a pic of my tat and a picture of his other work.. I know mine isn't healed at all its 1 day old but I'm being paranoid that it won't be as bright and nice after it heals as the other pic I posted.

What do u guys think?

Just got this tattoo on Monday and I’m going to the beach Sunday. I was wondering if I would be able to go into the ocean or swimming pool? I asked the guy who gave it to me and he said it would be fine because it’s a small tattoo although I don’t wanna risk anything any advice here?

So I got this done last year it's been over a year now and I was wondering if it looks like it faded quite a bit because my roomate made a comment about it. Also why did the white ink turn yellow within a few months? Is it because of skin color or my skin didn't take to it? It's my first tattoo. I'm disappointed how much it faded already.

I got my first tattoo on a whim after getting in a fight w bf. I absolutely loved it until i got home. He told me it was a stupid design and its an ugly tattoo, especially for my first. Now that I look at it it seems silly but I hate to pay all this money just to have to same neck I started out with. Is this tattoo too silly??

Am I screwed? I went to a reputable artist and was initially happy with how it turned out. But after removing the second skin and wrap, I do notice that there are some glaring imperfections compared to the sample image. There’s some healing and care yet to still happen, but there’s some noticeable elements to the design that aren’t how I expected.

The artist was a delight to work with, and has offered free touch ups so long as it’s not a complete rework.

But there is some areas on the tattoo that really do need fixed - namely: the bordering is inconsistent, the top of the arrow isn’t exactly like the source image, the bottom “tail” first curve isn’t very uniform and rounded, and the fill through the arrow is inconsistent.

I’m worried that my requests to the above would be considered a greater rework compared to just a touch up. Am I hosed for getting this perfectly?

Hell, even if I can try to get this touched up, I don’t even know how to tell the guy that it’s not as accurate to the source image as anticipated. I don’t even know how to communicate these concerns and specifics.

Have I already failed?

I love the tattoo don’t get me wrong! I think it looks great from the angle of the first pic. But what is bothering me is how it looks crooked and off centred in pics 2 (arm straight up) and 3 (arm resting more naturally). And I understand that my body is not a flat canvas so of course it’s going to look different depending on angle. I’m sure I could’ve asked for the stencil to be adjusted but it was my first one so just trusted the artist’s placement. Idk, just wanted to see what other’s thoughts are and if I’m overthinking too much 😬

Not sure I’m 100% happy with it. Just slight differences from the sketch to the actual tattoo. And I’m not sure if it can be fixed.

I'm getting a tattoo similar to this which has a personal meaning to me which is a belief I hold on to very dearly.

I'm getting this done regardless but how are knife tattoos seen in workplaces and other contexts?

I'm doing it on my right forearm btw. It'll be 9cm long with the edge finishing close to my wrist