custom sleeve transfers

So, I've started tattooing and I'm apprenticing under a guy who is a stencil artist, I myself , have a solid background in drawing and other aspects of art, So I am able to draw ideas I get right outta my head, The only thing is, I wanted to know the process of putting the custom thought up idea that I drew out onto an arm or leg, persay. Now, my teacher isnt really too experienced with this, Yeah I know, So you dont even need to say it!! , But ,I was just wanting to aqquire your guys's ( and chicks ) professional thoughts on the matter, any methods that you guys could tell me about would be greatly appreciated! Thanx, Pugs

A good percentage of todays great tattoo artists will draw the design then transfer it to skin with a stencil....the freehand artists draw the design directly on skin then tattoo...the TRUE freehanders go directlt from needle to skin Hope I helped

Its mostly about how well the client trusts you. most of my tattoos were done with a stencil or a combination of stencil and drawn on the skin with sharpies. No ones ever just started tattooing me without mapping it out in some manner beforehand.

Regardless on how great someone may be, to just tattoo it right on the skin, no matter how awesome it comes out, it just might not be what the client wanted.

Yeah well I have NEVER had a complaint...sorry but where I came up using stencils was considered color by number....everyone has their way to do things....yours works for you and mine works for me.

So, not to get into any beef, or piss either of you off, Taz's way does seem more applicable to the sleeves i usually think up. I usually end up making pieces where everything flows together , But a couple things on the whole sleeve are the centers of intrest. doing those in stencil and then connecting the negative spaces with either sharpie or free hand would prob. be the best way to approach the idea! I thank you both for your input and time! Pugs138

No beef man...every one has ther method...ya just gotta find what works for you....trial and error really...but good luck! and great tattooing!

So taz you really only work TRUE freehand?

No Luca about 50% of my tattoos are drawn on skin first with sharpie the rest are needle to skin...and you?...Your work AMAZES me man...I hope your thumbs fall off!...TAz

Thanks a lot bro,I personally try to work with preliminary drawing on skin ,but really whatever the artwork dictates,I mean if details and geometry are a big part of the drawing I find stencil more effective,if I'm lookin for flow and big areas layout ,nothin beats freehand.I've seen one artist ones workin needles to skin ones:it was Horioshi III on a chest plate doing a dragon's head.That stuff takes some serious confidence!!

Yep! its not for the timid!!

i'm sorry for doubting you , but how does one strech the skin and keep lines, perspective and shading properly arranged and all? it doesn't seem like there can be many opportunities when one could really do a needle to skin freehand. how many tattoos can be applied were there is that much freedom in the design? try it if you like but i need to see that, before i believe that.

i'm sorry for doubting you , but how does one strech the skin and keep lines, perspective and shading properly arranged and all? it doesn't seem like there can be many opportunities when one could really do a needle to skin freehand. how many tattoos can be applied were there is that much freedom in the design? try it if you like but i need to see that, before i believe that.

Well Blake you are obviously very inexperienced in the tattoo world...When true freehanding the design is very lightly sketched on the skin WITH the needle....As for not believing me well...whatever man...true freehanding is a dying art but there are a few of us who keep it alive...and most of the uninitiated like yourself,have no clue that that how its done. now Blake although they say ignorance is bliss and you are obviously VERY happy...If you come to my studio any day of the week I will be there and I will be glad to show you that true freehand does exist...I do it every fuckin day....and there are others...not many but they exist...TAz

ok, if you say so....why go through all that. "sketching in the skin" yeah i've done blood lining, and light washing freehand, any artist should be able to when the situation presents itself. to do a complete, entire tattoo freehand is not cool, it's irresponsible, and arrogant. sketch it on paper first, make sure your client likes it, stencile it and stop wasting time (your clients money) on show boating with potentialy disastrous techniques. truly, you shouldn't encourage an apprentice to try things like this. mabey if you spent more time thinking before posting and taking cheap shots at other readers of this site you might have realized this. to the person that started this thread....practice your craft with patience and accountability, never jeopardize the quality of your work or the safety of your client, and always, always, only do what YOU are comfortable doing. this business is not know for its humility, but we all know it could sure use some.

ok, if you say so....why go through all that. "sketching in the skin" yeah i've done blood lining, and light washing freehand, any artist should be able to when the situation presents itself. to do a complete, entire tattoo freehand is not cool, it's irresponsible, and arrogant. sketch it on paper first, make sure your client likes it, stencile it and stop wasting time (your clients money) on show boating with potentialy disastrous techniques. truly, you shouldn't encourage an apprentice to try things like this. mabey if you spent more time thinking before posting and taking cheap shots at other readers of this site you might have realized this. to the person that started this thread....practice your craft with patience and accountability, never jeopardize the quality of your work or the safety of your client, and always, always, only do what YOU are comfortable doing. this business is not known for its humility, but we all know it could sure use some.

Well thank you so much for telling me how to be responsible after 35 years of tattooing ,a wall full of awards and a very successful studio with a great reputation...Irresponsible my ass... that coming from someone who is most probably a stencil sissy and wouldn't know a freehand artist if he saw one....I'm now booked solid til january of 2007 ....tell you anything?...In all the years of freehanding I have never EVER had a complaint and the only naysayers have been those like you who don't have a clue and will never be GOOD enough to freehand....and as I told my pal Luca....the majority of my work IS drawn on before tattooing...what you stencil jockeys CALL freehanding....but when I do true freehanding it is always on a client who knows my work, has seen me do it and is completely comfortable with the freedom true freehanding allows the artist...I put myself through college freehanding portraits on Long Beach and freehand (painted on not stickers) pinstriping which certainly didn't hurt...ever been to the mall and seen one of those amazing portrait artists that do them with charcoal or pen with no eraser?...they don't use stencils sonny Do your homework kid...I'm not the only one out here that does true freehanding...yes there are few of us...but don't be a hater just because YOU can't ...its ok ...really...most tattoo artists DO use stencils so you are in a pretty big crowd...I choose to NOT and it works for me...who the fuck are you to insult ME??...NOBODY!!

Hey Jwerk...you wanna enlighten this child on the true freehanding I have done on your sleeves....do you think I was in any way irresponsible?...hmmmmmm?

OUCH! so fagile, whith all the dirt you dish out, i thought you could take it better than that. to pugs: as for freehand, sharpie or stencil....go with what gets you and your client the results your looking for. if you gotta do all three, so be it. the work is what's important, not mouthing off in message boards.... oh, and don't listen to people that speak (or type) only to make themselves feel better. you know what the say about oppinions...they're like ASSHOLES everybody's got one :)

Sure, no problem.... Not only am I a client, but I am also Taz's apprentice.... Blake, you honestly have no clue brother. Taz, all I can say is post some pics of the bio arm. That should keep the crow warm that he's about to eat....J

Blake, don't be a fuck....

People like him just gotta be h8trs!!

....

.... *blinks* ....

hey, if you do freehand, thermal paper, sharpie....that's cool, as i told pugs, do what you are comfortable with, just seems like you take a little to much pride in this message board is all. it's just been my experience that those that put themselves up on pedastools.... why am i keeping this going? do what you feel taz... pugs keep your wits about you and learn from everything, there's so much in this dialogue if you realy look at it. time to go and use some stenciles :)

Blake, it isn't about putting yourself up on a pedestal, or taking to much pride in ones self. When you knock on someone, whether it is in person, over the phone, on this message board, you are going to eventually step on someones toes. That fact that you called out a man how has been in this industry fo 35 - plus years and has been there and done that just about everywhere, well shit man, you just didn't know. But I would almost guarentee that had someone came at you the same way you would have bucked the fuck up too. You can't tell me any differently because that is human nature. You could have been cool about it and maybe learned something but you had to play the antagonist which only made you look ignorant to the thousands of people who are silent readers of this forum.

Pugs...I never in any post urged you to freehand...that is strictly for the very experienced artist....find YOUR method with the aid of your mentor ...Great tattooing and if I can be of any help just yell! Blake...Hell YES! I take GREAT pride in this message board as ,I believe .do the other regulars that spend their time on the forum giving out sound advice every day...and I am sure Gabe the moderator is very proud of this forum also...hell I get dozens of e mails from this forum alone DAILY...so what is it man?...are you jealous because nobody wants YOUR advice... Yeah go back to your stencils pal...its ok ...really it is!...T

I guess the man has some sort of a prob with me personally even tho he doen't know me....yeah I did come back hard but ya know when someone says you are doin somethin you are not (encouraging Pugs to freehand) then says shit like I am "mouthing off" on here and "putting myself on a pedastle"( I have no clue where THAT came from...just because I was explaining different styles of tattooing to someone I am doing WHAT wrong?..) I dunno... I do know I never said anything negative about using a stencil...well... until ol Blake started spouting off and basically calling me a liar...so there ya go....just seems to me that the man can't freehand and maybe thats why he is so negative about it? Oh well it takes all kinds...so fuck him!...see ya TAz

Fuck I hear ya Taz, ole pal. Sometimes these message boards are a double edged sword. Yes, everyday tons of sound advice is posted for those who have legit questions. Yes, there is some horse play on here that gets a little corny at times but that is just us regulars having a good time. Yes, there is some bashing when our good friends "stupidity" and "ignorance" show up. And, Yes, how many times has someone took what we have said and got the words jumbled around a bit and were misunderstood? But some people just have to be plain assholes about it instead of taking a step back and being cool about it. Who knows....

you know this entire thing was just do to TAz taking offense to my first post which wasn't meant to be malicious, if you read it again you'll see that i was asking questions, yeah with some doubt, but just asking questions. instead of elaborating...his response to me was an attack on me, my experience and my over all character....just thought i'd point that out.....think about it? enough of this shit though, i'm out good times and good wines people:) blake

BYE BYE

Honestly Taz, I have watched a zillion masters at work for 15 years all over the states and have never seen anyone do anything sizeable without sharpieing + pen and/or stenciling something beforehand. Im not surprised at the reaction your getting at all, and you guys seem to be attacking back kinda hard for some reason... That is I guess I am also one of the blissfully ignorant inexperienced tattoo newbies on this one... It was bound to happen I am a youngster after all... As we all know, the proof is in the pudding, if the work is great it doent make a difference how it is done as long as its done safely and the client is comfortable...

Also, as you know pugs, the best way to find out how the masters work is to get tattooed by em! You can only learn so much about technique from an online public forum...

Taz, Could you post some of your freehand work so we could see it?

Simply go to www.myspace.com/bullangel there ya go!

Gabe ...of course I am going to attack back HARD when I am attacked first....You've never seen true freehand?...Wow!...but we are proud to be freehand artists...never had antone jump out of the chair yet....when I was coming up in Long Beach freehanding was much more prevalent than it is today and true freehanding was a thing to be marveled at not insulted....and as far as reactions...there was only one real negative reaction ...hell even Luca was interested and asked questions but was not at all negative.....so there ya go ....yes there is a thing called true freehanding...yes it can be done and is done...yes it is rare...TAz

I'm not jumping into the fray here.... :) I'm not for or against freehand, if you can do it, and it works for you, and you are pushing out great work doing so? By all means, go right ahead. For me, I don't know that I could ever get freehanded on again. My shoulder is an embarassing wreck. I knew this artist, trusted this artist, had spent countless hours in his shop for two years or so. He was no hack. Sometimes, freehanding just isnt for everyone.

Taz my dear, when you freehand, do you do some sort of preliminary sketch on paper just so the client knows what you have in mind, or do they just say what they want and you just kinda go at it?

Since all my work is custom ...yes I do artwork BEFORE tattooing on a customer UNLESS the customer wants me to just go for it....that does happen more than you think...and sometimes I refuse if I think I need to get it on paper first...T

Saiyge...are you talking about that pic you sent me?

ok, i think some of the confusion may have come from that that part wasn't clear...i don't know why people would think that, but, who knows

Taz, Exactly. The Right shoulder with the runes and the .... you know Whatever the fuck its supposed to be. Sorry, I'm getting so completely embittered when I even think about it now. I have a drawing somewhere of what it was supposed to be. I'll have to scan that one in and send it to you.

Well dear (now I am not tryin to be mean) but if you are talking about the tattoo I saw that person shouldn't even do a stencil tattoo let alone freehand.....God I hate sayin that but its true...it is really bad work. sorry!