Body Piercing Pictures

There are many reasons why people get tattoos and piercings. Some common ones are:

1) Self expression

"I think as long as they are tactful they are art." ~~Carrie

2) To remember a memorable event or person

"To remind me where I have been and that I don't want to return to that point." -Bruce

3) To feel unique

"I had my tongue pierced way back when and as soon as it became mainstream I took mine out, and now I have my tragus pierced, when it becomes popular, out it will come." -Dawn

"They are a way to express your individuality. Celtic knots look really neat, and a tattooed ankle won't hook on stuff." -Julie

4) As a sign of rebellion or independence

"For the most part I got mine for freedom but yes, rebellion, too." -Carrie

Note: Sometimes people regret getting tattoos and piercings.

"I got my first tat when I was 18. I think I got it because I could. I got the second 2 weeks later, and thought it was cool. I hate them both now and I will be having them lasered off. I am actually taking my son with me to show him what I have to go through to get rid of a stupid mistake." -Teresa

I am Pregnant and Have a Piercing, Now What?

A) Navel Piercings

"I had a belly ring when I got pregnant with my son, took it out the night I found out. I was pretty stressed about being pregnant and figured now is better than later with taking it out. Got it done again after he was born, guy did it off center, took it out again, and then got it done again through scar tissue -- OUCHY! Took it out over a year ago because of gallbladder surgery and never put it back in." -Jessica

A common concern is if you should remove your navel piercing if you are pregnant. You shouldn't need to remove it although you might want to consider seeing a professional piercer and changing it to a flexible bar (a PTFE bar). Your ring will be tight as your skin stretches, which will irritate the piercing and cause it to heal out due to the pressure. The soft flexible bar will prevent this from happening. How long you have had your piercing and how big your belly gets also has an effect. As a guideline, if the area around your piercing changes color and is a darker red than normal, change it to a flexible bar. It is not painful to change it.

B) Tongue or Genital Piercings

Rings that are not large in diameter are good choices to wear as your baby should be able to deliver past your piercings without affecting the delivery. A bar in the clitoris or hood can be uncomfortable if it becomes entangled during delivery. Talk to your doctor or midwife if you are concerned about the size and affect your piercings might have during delivery.


If you are having a cesarean section, you should not need to remove your piercings as they can be taped. The only exception is a tongue piercing. A tongue bar might cause problems for the anesthetist if it becomes necessary to put a tube down your throat. It would be advisable to wear a flexible bar although some anesthetists might ask you to remove your tongue piercing.

"Have my tongue pierced, over 3 years. I was supposed to take it out during labor and delivery but I kind of forgot to. Luckily I didn't have any problems." -Jesse and Jessica

C) I am Pregnant and Have a Tattoo - Now What?

A pregnancy will affect your tattoo in different ways, depending on the placement. If your tattoo is near the stomach area, not only can it stretch, but there is no guarantee that it will go back to its original shape after the birth of your baby. Tattoos are definitely affected by stretch marks. Chances are if your mother or grandmother had stretch marks, you will too.


"When I was 18, I got a four-leaf clover on my pelvis. About three years later, I became pregnant and noticed that I now had a six-leaf clover. The clovers have all stretched and it looks like one green blob. I can't wait to have it removed." -Teresa

"I got my tattoo when I was 2 weeks pregnant and didn't have a clue I was! It's on my lower back and I was very worried about it getting distorted since it was new and being in a stretchy spot. I gained 50 pounds and luckily it's still perfect!" -Jess


Intricate designs such as tribal pieces, Celtic knots and geometric designs (such as circles) could wind up distorted, or worse, a blob. Simple designs such as clouds may look better.

If your tattoo is in the small of your back, it should not prevent you from getting an epidural. The ink from the tattoo is a permanent part of the dermis of the skin. The epidural needle passes through the epidermis, dermis and into an area near your spinal cord quite easily. You might want to consult with your doctor and anesthesiologist to see what they recommend if you have concerns.


D) I'm Pregnant and Want a Tattoo/Piercing

It is not advisable to have any body decoration procedure that would involve breaking the skin while you are pregnant. This includes procedures like piercing, tattooing or scarification. Most studios have made it a policy not to perform tattoos or piercings on anyone pregnant or breastfeeding. When you get a tattoo or piercing, you face a small chance of an allergic reaction or an infection. It just isn't worth the risk when you can just wait a few extra months and then get the tattoo or piercing you desire.

Any invasive procedure normally involves a small risk of infection. If you are pregnant, this might adversely affect your baby. You also risk contracting a blood borne disease if the needles used are not properly sterilized or are contaminated in some way. Your body is changing and you have enough to worry about without the added worry of caring for a new piercing. It is better to have a piercing completely healed before becoming pregnant; otherwise it might not heal properly until after your baby is born.

"I wouldn't recommend getting a tattoo while pregnant. All causes of infection are to be avoided during pregnancy, as your immune system does not work the way it normally does. Even minor infections should be treated promptly during pregnancy. Anything that could even potentially result in an infection in the blood is particularly to be avoided, so that would include getting a tattoo. Fortunately, pregnancy does not last very long, and waiting a few weeks or months is a very small price to pay to protect your child's health." -Cynthia Flynn, CNM

E) Pregnancy doesn't mean the end of your tattoo or piercing!

Being pregnant doesn't spell the end of your tattoos and piercings. If you take good care of your piercings during your pregnancy you will still have them afterward. Take precautions during labor and delivery to safeguard yourself and your baby -- you'd hate having your hood or clitoris tearing because the piercing got caught somewhere!

Similarly, when you want to get a tattoo, have it done in a place that won't stretch or have a simple design done. That way, the tattoo should remain relatively unharmed by stretch marks.

Above all, have procedures done before planning a pregnancy, or afterward. The risk of contracting an infection, which could possibly affect your baby, is not worth satisfying your desire to have a tattoo or piercing immediately.

If you have concerns or questions about tattoos or piercings, it's always best to talk to your doctor, healthcare provider or midwife.


Sources
La Sumisa
Pregnancy.org
HauteMama.com
Venus by Maria Tash


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Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry explores the roots of American tattooing through the life of its most iconoclastic figure, Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins. Considered by many the foremost tattoo artist of all time, Collins is the father of modern day tattooing, whose uncompromising lifestyle and larger than life persona made him an American legend.

Through rare interviews, photographs and hours of archival footage, Hori Smoku Sailor Jerry: The Life and Times of Norman Keith Collins, explores the past, present and future of the global tattooing phenomenon. Featuring interviews with Sailor Jerry's protege, Ed Hardy.



Sources

La Sumisa
Hulu



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Nigel Kurt started his tattooing career in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. He opened his own studio, Fun House Tattoos in Barnsley in 1993. Nigel is well known for his black and grey work and has won many awards over the years.

A tattoo artist from South Yorkshire has been named Best UK Male by the UK Tattoo Industry.

Barnsley tattoo artist Nigel Kurt, who has run Fun House Tattoos since 1993, said he was "chuffed" when presented with the award on 15 May in Liverpool.


Mr Kurt said he did not like tattoos when he was younger but he changed his mind after seeing the work of American tattoo artist Jack Rudy.

"He more-or-less invented portrait in tattoos," he said.

Mr Kurt specialises in photorealism, creating tattoos to look like pencil drawings, using black and grey inks.


His work ranges from colour tattoos of well known characters, including ITV's Coronation Street character Hilda Ogden, through to people requesting a drawing of their loved ones - including parents, children and pets.

Mr Kurt who has worked in the industry for 20 years has had many requests for tattoos but there are some areas of the body he will not work on.


"We don't tattoo faces and we don't do hands either. If someone comes in with something that won't make a nice tattoo, we won't do it."

The shop has seen a rise in inquiries since body art became popular with celebrities, including pop star Cheryl Cole and footballer, David Beckham.


"Every week we get at least one or two people coming into the shop asking for copies of David Beckham's tattoos," said Mr Kurt.

"There are hundreds of people walking around with copies of celebrity tattoos."

Despite receiving the award, Mr Kurt said it would not change him.

"Once I stand out that shop I'm just a slightly scruffy man walking down the street," he said.


To contact: 01226 779595

Or visit the shop which is located at:
Fun House Tattoos
140 Sheffield road
Barnsley
S70 1JH


Sources
La Sumisa
BBC News


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Ear piercing is common, many people are already doing this. If you have the courage and want to appear to be different try tragus piercing! You'll look cool. Piercing tragus actually already started to become a trend since the first, used by young people to show courage and desire appear to be different.

Many people are afraid to do tragus Piercing because ditumbulkan pain, assuming it is actually not entirely true because it actually was not so sick Piercing tragus caused because the ear has a number of nerves are much less so as to make the process of making Piercing tragus did not hurt. Perhaps because it is thick tragus makes the process of punching holes in a long time and will hurt, but all must be sick while the piercing process only, if you do tragus Piercing manually yourself at home I would suggest to pay attention to cleanliness and health, use of sterile equipment.

Good luck.

Aldo Distefano is a living art. With his body emblazoned completely with tattoos, the artist has been decorating people's bodies for more than a decade. As skin is his canvas, the American tattoo artist is excited about setting up shop and a learning school in the country.

He reveals that the reason why tattoos have always been such a rage is because mankind since the beginning has been obsessed with permanence. "Though tattoos are usually associated with biker boys and rebellion, our ancestors were also infatuated with body art. Be it cross, skull, wedding band or Chinese characters, tattoos have always been a way of expressing yourself. And even if you don't know what you want, you do want one (tattoo) on your body."


From celebs to your neighborhood hunk, tattoos have become the perfect style statement. But before you get into the chair, remember, "Your body is your temple, decorate it wisely."


Aldo's Five Commandments:

1)Hygiene factor: You don't want to get a tattoo done in doctor's cabin but make sure that the place is hygienic and the needles, equipment and gloves are sterilized.

2)Artist's Portfolio: You might get awed by the attractive designs on the tattoo parlor wall, but before you let the guy give you a permanent tattoo, make sure you know his style and his work experience.

3)Significance: It's going to be there for life, so make sure you don't get something you regret a few years down the line. Your current girlfriend/boyfriend's name might seem like the right thing now, but few years down the time, you might have to cover it up.

4)Diet: While you might think going their drunk might lessen the sensation- it's not a good idea as alcohol thins out the blood and you'll end up bleeding more. Better would be to carry a chocolate to give you instant energy.

5)Post tattoo care: Yeah, you are eager to see the tattoo in its full glory but give it at least two weeks time to heal. Put water based creams instead of petroleum (vaseline) products. And do not pick or scratch the scabs.


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First of all when I finally got this in the mail , I was so excited because I had been wanting to get a dangle belly button piercing and our town is small so I decided just to order it. So I got this in the mail, and when i tried to unscrew the ball from the ring itself it didn't unscrew. It was cold, it had snowed here so I ran it under warm water. After taking the ring back to the table it then fell into three different pieces. This product is crap. I guess you get what you pay for

Check out this Ink

Sources
La Sumisa


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This may well be called Kochi Ink. For those of you who have drooled at the many tattoos and tattooists on Miami Ink or LA Ink, and yearn to ink your self, Black Art is your chance.

Black Art is a Panampilly Nagar-based tattoo studio run by Pramod K. Is tattooing all that popular here? If that's what you are thinking, then Pramod's answer is a resounding yes!

The Unseen factor

So your next question should be - How come we don't see anyone sporting tattoos except maybe the ‘odd' actress? That's because most people get tattoos where people cannot see them and according to him, the most unlikely of people sport tattoos. And we've just got to take his word for it because he runs two tattoo studios in the city, and has an experience of around six years in the business.

A trained graphic designer, Pramod stumbled on to tattooing. A six-month course in Malaysia and he was ready to ‘ink', and the logical choice was setting up a tattoo shop in Fort Kochi, given the traffic of overseas tourists. That was six years back. Black Art is his second tattoo studio.

Getting a tattoo is not as simple as bracing yourself for the pain (that is of course there). Clarity is one and being of voting age is important. One cannot get a tattoo juts like that. It is like on Miami/LA Ink, a tattoo is the result of discussions between Pramod and prospective ‘tattoo-ee'. “There has to be clarity; for both parties involved. The design and dimensions are put down on paper, and shown to the client. Only then do we proceed.” Every aspect is worked down to the last minute detail. “It avoids hassles later, of all kinds,” Pramod says, with a laugh. A tattoo is forever…because getting it off is tough and expensive.

Tattoo is personal art which in the past was associated with deviant or socially unacceptable behaviour. There are some who frown upon tattoos, but it is generally acceptable. “Families come together even if it is just one member (usually male) getting a tattoo. It has to be okayed by all families before the design gets a go ahead.” And inevitably another member gets a tattoo as well, ‘but that's generally married couples.'

Very personal

Personal iconography – images or symbols that are important to a person find expression through tattoos. For instance religious icons (Ganesha is popular) or symbols or images associated with love (sweetheart's name etc) and even those relating to one's profession find expression through ink. Tribal designs are popular, then there are angels, butterflies, flowers etc. By the way if you have thinning eyebrows or scars on your eyebrows you can get a tattoo and cover it up. Or if you want a beauty spot , Pramod will do that too.

The ink, Pramod says, is vegetable dyes, and these are permanent (unlike on garments where they run for their lives) since the ink is inserted on the second layer of the skin. He warns against tattoo joints, the fly by night kind, where a combination of henna and hair-dye is used as tattoo ink.

Doctors, software professionals, those working in the hospitality industry, housewives, college students….talking to Pramod it sounds like everyone's getting a tattoo. And when so many people are doing something there are bound to be stories, stories galore. Some are outright hilarious. For instance a girl who is to be married or engaged in a couple of days was brought to his studio. She had a tattoo of her now ex-boyfriend's name or initials and the parents wanted it off. In comes cover-up tattoos, meant for love gone awry and botched up tattoos.

There are many ways of getting a tattoo done, it all depends on how you look at it, literally. “When you look at it one way it will be your name, read it from another angle it will be someone else's name.” Getting tattooed is addictive, there are people who keep coming back for more.

A peek into his tattoo studio puts to rest doubts about the cleanliness and hygiene of the whole process. It would give most medical clinics a run for their money. The room where the tattoo is done is sterile and clean. He imports the equipment required for tattooing. The needles once used are destroyed and the entire machinery is then dismantled and sterilised. He even got health department officials to inspect the premises and made the minor changes they recommended.

Talking of needles, the needles are three point, five point, seven point etc. There won't be three or five needles that the tattoo artist will jab you with, these are very fine needles which the lay person will not know or doesn't need to know. The design decides how many needle points will go into you. Is it very painful? “No, just a wee bit,” says Pramod. A tattoo needs to be looked after initially, till it gets under your skin.

There are painless tattoos, which are temporary. But Pramod does not offer these off the counter. “If it is for specific purpose like a photo shoot or film shoot I will do it. Otherwise no!” How long each temporary tattoo will last depends on the skin type. Some wear off faster and some last, and… let's just say he likes peace.

Filing it all

He has a meticulous system of ‘filing' each tattoo. Each tattoo has been photographed and catalogued. “This is expensive. So some people come and get it done in instalments and I need to know the continuity, and other details about the work to avoid confusion.” A three sq. inch tattoo at Black Art costs Rs. 2,000. Then how come the man who holds forth on tattoos does not sport a single spot of ink? He says he is waiting for his tattoo Master, an expert of the Yakuza genre of tattoos, to do it for him.


Sources
La Sumisa
The Hindu


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Magnetic children have been springing up across former Yugoslavian nations recently. Their stories are a little dubious, but some scientists and body-modification fans have been irresistibly drawn to the idea of merging man and magnet, with startling results.

Magnets have long been a source of fascination for we curious apes, drawing the attentions of generations of scientists, writers and philosophers. The ancient natural philosopher Thales thought that they might perhaps have a soul, prompting Aristotle to note (with perhaps a hint of snarkiness), "[he thinks] all things are full of gods." 2600 years later the rapper Shaggy 2 Dope summed up the frustrations many of today's youth feel when physics intrudes into their lives, pleading, "fucking magnets, how do they work?"

History is littered with experiments in magnetism; from Shen Kuo's successful use of magnets in navigation by 1088, to William Gilbert's investigations of Earth's magnetism published in 1600, to my own experiments in the mid-1980s, which involved inserting bar magnets into my nostrils and trying to make paperclips stick to my nose.


I wanted a magnetic nose. I still do, and who wouldn't? A magnetic nose is not something to be sniffed at (or with; removing bar magnets from sinus cavities is not a pleasant task for anyone involved). Imagine being able to sense north through a tingling in your nose, feel your mobile phone ringing in your face, or spend the night locked in a pleasant nasal embrace with your dream lover of opposite polarity. The possibilities are as endless as the variation in your mileage.

In Eastern Europe my dreams of magnetic people have supposedly become reality, for a very low value of supposition and a very tenuous definition of reality. Boys and girls with 'magnetic bodies' have been springing up all over the place, without a nose-bleed or a hidden bar magnet in sight.

The latest is Ivan, a six-year-old Croatian boy with "the ability to attract metallic objects, from coins to heavy frying pans, to his body" according to the, er, well, Guardian sadly. He follows ten-year-old Serbian girl Jelena, and her seven-year-old compatriot, Bogdan, who is supposedly banned from going near anything electrical and therefore won't be on Twitter any time soon.


All three are claimed to be magnetic, but this obviously isn't the case. Bogdan is pictured with china plates and a TV remote control plastered to his chest, while Jelena is able to 'attract' mostly-plastic cigarette lighters - not objects you would really expect magnetism to act on.
The videos are rather oddly staged, too. None of the footage shows any objects being impelled by any force, or moving without human assistance; the items are always placed carefully against the flesh, with big surfaces in contact rather than, say, the edge of a knife. Larger, heavier items are positioned at the top of the chest with the child leaning backwards, suggesting that actually a lot of the weight is pressing into the skin, not pulling against it (and both boys are generously proportioned, allowing some of the weight to rest on their tummies).

It also bugs me that the demonstrations are so unimaginatively lame. If my ejaculate somehow gave rise to a magnetic boy I can think of a thousand experiments way cooler than sticking cutlery to him. It would be nice to see him lift a cloud of iron filings off of the ground with a wave of the hand, or put a compass near him, or have him picked up by one of those electromagnetic cranes they use to pick up cars in junkyards, or make him be the first person to wing-walk on the underside of a wing.

In short, these aren't very convincing displays. Human skin is greasy and oily and stretchy and can be pretty sticky - most men at some point in their lives will experience the agony that comes when you sit naked on a leather chair in hot weather and then stand up, only to find the bottom half of your scrotum still welded to the seat. There's nothing in the videos that can't be explained by sticky skin and some careful positioning.

My dream isn't quite dead though. Thanks to the efforts of artists and scientists, magnetic people do exist. Quinn Norton wrote a fascinating essay for Wired in 2006 which describes the adventures of body modification artists Jesse Jarrell and Steve Haworth, who worked in collaboration with graduate student Todd Huffman to develop implants that would allow them to sense magnetic fields through their finger-tips.

The implants were tiny - miniscule fragments of iron encased in a silicone sheath to prevent rejection - but the results were startling. "In time, bits of my laptop became familiar as tingles and buzzes. Every so often I would pass near something and get an unexpected vibration," Norton relates, in an article that is well worth reading in full.

In Britain, graduate student (and science blogger) Jawish Hameed at the University of Reading has been living with his own magnetic implants for over two years.

His implants are tiny neodymium disc magnets inserted in the ring and middle fingers of his left hand. They are 3mm in diameter, and just 0.7mm thick, and coated in a material called Parylene C to prevent any reaction with the surrounding tissue. Doctors at the university refused to perform the surgery, so Hameed had the procedure carried out by a body modification artist, Mac McCarthy. It sounds risky, and he tells me that he did it with his family's 'minimal knowledge', "They had concerns of its long term effects. But over two years with the implants without incident has comforted them somewhat!"

The magnets are positioned in the pads of the finger-tips. Electromagnetic fields can stimulate the magnets, and their tiny movements and vibrations are picked up by the tightly-packed mechanoreceptors (nerves that sense mechanical pressure and distortion) in Hameed's fingers, allowing him to experience magnetism as little tugs and tingles.

I asked him what it felt like. "It startled me on numerous occasions when interacting with everyday things like cash machines, microwaves, speakers and even my own laptop," he says, "I was suddenly aware of the silent spin and working of the hard drive and the cooling fan. I could feel a field around microwaves from about a foot away."

His experiences then are similar to Quinn Norton's, with household objects suddenly interacting with his senses in whole new ways. "Each magnetic field induces a different sort of feeling, depending on the strength and frequency of the current that drives the electromagnetic fields," he tells me, "It is hard to describe an analogy but [it] feels like the vibrations from wind."

A simple interface, consisting of an electromagnetic coil on a wire-frame wrapped around the finger, allows a computer to deliver signals to the implants. Initial tests have been promising, although there is obviously a long way to go before anything like this could be used widely. There are many possible applications, particularly for the blind. He has been able to use the implants to receive Morse code, and has experimented with transmitting information from an ultrasonic ranger to the implants to help people 'feel' the environment around them.

He also plans to integrate the implants with his mobile phone, "I'm currently preparing a mini ring-sized wearable interface to injecting text messages from my phone." Even without the interface, he says his extra sense has practical uses: "I use it quite regularly to sense if a wire is carrying AC household current."

Check out the video below, it shows how the procedure is done.



It goes to show that where we find fairy tales, science is often not far behind. Jawish Hameed is not 'Magnetoman', but there's something quite amazing about a species that, given five wonderful senses with which to experience our world, sets about trying to build a sixth.


Sources
La Sumisa


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The concept of body modifications has long been prevalent in the human race. Put in simple words, ‘body modification’ refers to the process of making changes in the body. The changes incorporated can be temporary or permanent in nature. Primarily done for the purpose of beautification, body modification has emerged to be very different from what it had started as. The need as well as the ways for body modification has undergone transformation. This concept of making changes in the body has various implications and differs from culture to culture. While sharp objects, to tattoos to amputations are all categorized as ways to modify any part of the body, jewelries are the most common element that is used in body modifications.

Apart from being a fashion statement, body modifications in early days were done for purely religious reasons. This thing still prevails in the modern times where examples can be cited from various regions. Believers do so with this faith that their sacrifice and pain will satisfy God and they will be granted their wishes. The pain inflicted on the body while doing so becomes immaterial at that time.

Tracing back to the times of Indus Valley civilization, ornaments or jewelries has played a crucial role in body modifications. Earrings, anklets, necklaces, nose rings all excavated from the ruins have proved that they were in use in those days. The Bronze statues of a dancing girl excavated at one such site bore proof of the same fact. Bangles, rings, head bands also found at the excavation sites are evidence of the fact that even men used these for body modifications.

For many cultures across the world, body modifications have an altogether different need and importance. It is an inherent part of their culture and they are taught to imbibe this from their very childhood. Say for example in Myanmar, the women of the Padaung tribe has this tradition to wear tight neck rings around their necks. The practice starts at a tender age of 5. While at this time, the number of ring put around the neck is one, the number soon increases with time. It’s quite prevalent among them to wear as many rings as possible around their calves too. The ultimate reason for doing so is to modify the neck as in the process it gets elongated at times to alarming rates. Other body modifications followed by tribes related to this use jewelry extensively for elongating their ear lobes or ear piercings done previously.

Instances of body modifications can also be found in the American culture where the use of labrets is common among First Nations people inhabiting the North west coast. Modifications of the lips with the use of lip plates are common among Sara and Mursi people, mostly of African origin.

Body modifications can hence be categorized as common and ‘extreme’. While some are temporary and easy to do like body piercing, ear piercing, dermal anchoring which is placing a small steel bead on the skin, neck rings and tattooing – some can be really dangerous and harmful. The extreme kinds consist of tongue splitting and extra ocular implant.

With time, the sense of fashion has undergone a considerable change. For so long, footwear, jewelry and handbags co ordinate perfectly with stylish attire drew the attention in the crowd. Now is the time, when a ethnic embroidered apparel from India or a chic Indo western wear is well complimented by a perfectly done body modification.


Sources
La Sumisa
Tattoo Articles


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This coming weekend, the Mesa Convention Center hosts the 11th annual Arizona Tattoo Expo, where the tattooed and those looking to get tattooed can explore styles and designs by nearly 150 artists.

The convention draws upward of 7,000 people a year and is an opportunity to promote tattooing, said expo founder Sage O'Connell, who owns Urban Art Tattoo in Mesa.

Most of those who attend sport the full-range of tattoos, from sleeves to back pieces to tiny ankle tattoos, but O'Connell says nearly 25 percent get inked there for the first time - a phenomenon he attributes to the success of cable television series like "L.A. Ink," "Miami Ink," and "Inked."

"I see people that might not have gotten a tattoo that now have seen the show(s) where they saw other people that were like-minded and said, 'You know, I really want to do something that commemorates my father,' or, 'I really want to do something that shows my kids how much I love them,' " O'Connell said.

Sean Dowdell, owner of Club Tattoo with five Valley locations, said the TV shows have made tattooing more mainstream, showing that tattoos are a way of expressing people's individuality. In 2006, nearly 24 percent of American adults, aged 18 to 50, had at least one tattoo, according an article that year in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Dowdell, along with his wife and Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, opened Club Tattoo in 1995,when tattooing was just infiltrating the mainstream. Now, Club Tattoo participates in nearly 20 conventions a year.

"I think years ago, people associated tattoos with kind of a biker mentality or lifestyle," Dowdell said. "Now people will come up to you on the street and check out (your work) and recognize that particular style."

When he opened Club Tattoo, Dowdell estimates there were maybe four tattoo conventions each year worldwide. Now, "there's one every weekend, probably at three different locations in the United States alone," he said.

"There are so many tattoo shows that it's a bit saturated," he said.

One thing that separates this weekend's convention from similar ones is the focus on area art, Josh Gargalione said.

Gargalione, who goes by the name "Uncle Josh," has been tattooing for more than a decade and works at Lady Luck in Tempe.

Gargalione said a lot of the work done by artists at the convention is the result of pre-booked appointments. Last year, Club Tattoo had 18 appointments for four artists. Usually artists tattoo regulars or spend the weekend finishing large pieces.

The expo is more of an opportunity for artists and the Valley's tight-knit tattoo community to socialize, Gargalione said. More than 70 area shops are represented at the convention, though there will be an international artist from Spain and a few more from around the country.

"A lot of time, people will get tattoos from people that are out of town, because you don't have the opportunity to go into another state to go get tattooed," Gargalione said.

Like many conventions, the Arizona Tattoo Expo conducts contests - best black and white, best themed, most erotic - and seminars, including one on piercing by Dowdell, for tattoo artists.

Contest winners earn cash prizes, including $250 for the best tattoo of the day and $500 for best of show, and gain public recognition for their work, which often results in new and repeat customers.

In an effort to differentiate the convention, O'Connell is hosting a fine art show. The art, featuring everything from sculpting to airbrushing to oil painting, is all done by tattoo artists to showcase artistic ability, he said.

Arizona Tattoo Expo

What: The expo includes more than 150 artists from 70 area shops as well as seminars, contests and an art show. When: Noon-11 p.m. Saturday, May 21 and noon-8 p.m. Sunday, May 22. Where: Mesa Convention Center, 201 N. Center St. Admission: $20 per day, $30 for the weekend. Ages 15 and under free with adult. Details: 480-644-0812, www.aztattooexpo.com


Sources
La Sumisa
AZ Central


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Elegant Gucci Sunglasses
Looks so Beautiful using Gucci Sunglasses
Black Gucci Sunglasses

Gucci is well known for making sunglasses with a sleek and stylish design. The glasses can be elegant, classic, and magnificent. There’s no wonder why many celebrities choose these sunglasses to complete their look and look great for photos. These sunglasses are made with many different kinds of materials. These materials give Gucci their signature look. The materials that these sunglasses are made of are high quality. These include plastic and metal frames that come in many different sizes, shapes, and colors.

Brown Gucci Sunglasses
Gucci Model
Purple Gucci Sunglasses