Tattoos hurt. 9 sessions with Dino, back and second arm coming soon…

I've gone about once per month since December
2025. Appointments have been booked at Five Points Tattoo in Chinatown NYC. Each session has been about 3 hours of work. I have an appointment next week and I think we may finish the background. Photos were taken in Kinosaki Onsen in Japan (private bath). I highly recommend going to this town as there are no restrictions for people with tattoos.

Chris also did my left arm dragon/tiger, and my right arm was done by Nick Caruso at Bound for Glory. I will post more updates, thanks for looking!

Hey, I have an appointment in November for a right arm sleeve and I'm stuck on the main animal. Would love outside opinions.
I'm going with a neo-traditional artist who has Japanese influences, not a classic irezumi artist. The look I want is like the backgrounds in the pictures: soft grey, gently graded, not heavy black. I also like slightly feminine motifs and flowing lines.
The layout: pink peonies on the shoulder and upper inner arm, one main animal, colour only on the flowers and the animal. It goes down to about two thirds of the forearm with an organic edge.

I already have a shishi on my left leg, but that one is more colourful. Shishi come in pairs, so one on the arm would match nicely. My two favourites are still the shishi and the moon hare, both with pink peonies. The hare is softer and I really like it, but I'm worried it's a bit too feminine on a slightly muscular arm. The shishi is stronger, but I already have one.
I like the tiger, crane and snake too, they just feel weaker for me.
Which would you pick, hare or shishi, and why?
Pics, in order:
The two pictures that come closest to the look I want: shishi and cat sleeves
Examples of hares, my favourite main animal
Examples of shishi, my other favourite
Examples of crane and tiger, main animals I like but rank lower
Examples of snake and cat, main animals I like but rank lower
Pictures of my artist's work in this style
My arm, slightly muscular, with the pre-drawing in red

Completed Mike’s left arm as a continuation from his back piece that I also did. Made at my private studio in Dallas, TX

@jordanbaxtertattoo on insta.

Finished up this sleeve for my client Kyle. More photos on my Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/clintonleetattoos

This one is traveling to NJ, a big thank you! More than happy to paint!

Shading and colors by hand (tebori technique)

Expanding on a project from 3 years ago. Upper half-sleeve is fully healed 3 years old and the lower half-sleeve is a new addition. 9 sessions 54 hours in total.

Entry 20: Thinking Outside of the Box
Artist: Horikazu (Asakusa)
Photographers: Sogi Kanta and Martin Hladim
Sources: 日本伝統刺青 (Nihon Dentō Shisei, 2004, 2005, 2007) and Traditional Tattoo in Japan: Horikazu

The background can end without the tattoo ending. That isn’t completely unfamiliar. We’ve seen smaller hints of it around traditional tattoo fields, where beads, flowers, or other details continue past the mikiri. The background stops, but a little piece of the tattoo remains on the other side. The boundary was never completely sealed.

What changes in these Asakusa Horikazu tattoos is how far that continuation can go. At the neck, Buddhist figures rise above the surrounding background. Even the takara-zukushi (宝尽くし) around the collar become part of a composition that keeps climbing. I tried covering the figures above the collar for a moment just to see. The upper edge still felt complete to me. But uncovering them changed how I saw it. The collar wasn’t only an ending. It gave those figures somewhere to rise from.

On the hand, a red bonji sits among goldfish while the shaded background continues onto the knuckles and fingers. On the torso, a red inscription and lotus occupy the open skin of the munewari, between the dark borders of the suit. Neither example looks like the background has simply expanded everywhere. Different parts of the tattoo can go beyond the usual field in different ways.

I’ve been thinking of those background frames almost like the bones of a bodysuit. They give the whole thing shape and help subjects settle into places like the back, thigh, or calf. But these photographs make me think the bones do more than hold everything together. The dark edges of the munewari frame the inscription and lotus without enclosing them. The collar supports figures above it. Borders like these can behave less like walls and more like hinges. They hold an edge while giving the composition somewhere else to go.

Then I noticed another twist. Look at the chest photograph with the necklace. Beads follow the collar toward the center, while cords, amulet, and tassels hang down into the river of bare chest and abdomen. Not outside the barrier, this necklace overlapped the boundary. I kept thinking about where I’d seen something like this before. Aha! Leaves and flowers sometimes cross the mikiri, too. These aren’t exactly the same kind of crossing, but anyways, both make me question how malleable that border really is. I love that a bodysuit can have such carefully established boundaries and still let parts of the composition reach beyond them.

So far I’ve mostly thought of the body as something a composition has to solve.Shoulders that turn, limbs that narrow, and joints that interrupt the flow. But anatomy also gives the tattoo somewhere else to go. A wrist can be an ending or another surface. So can a neck. And not all of those surfaces are equally easy to conceal. An inscription on the chest can disappear beneath a shirt. Tattoos on the hands or neck are harder to separate from everyday public life.

I started this entry thinking about how a frame contains a composition. Now I’m wondering how far its work continues beyond its visible edge, and where the next limit comes from. Maybe the body is the final physical frame. However, what someone is willing to carry beyond the usual boundary depends on more than an artist’s imagination. It also depends on how much of that tattooed world the wearer is willing to bring with them into the visible one.

Had a lot of fun putting this one together. Really enjoyed working with the movement of the flames and the contrast between the heavy black and the warmer tones.
Thanks for looking!

IG: @ryanussher

Healed pictured of a one shot backpiece done during Perugia convention.

A big thank you to this community for supporting my job. ✌️

Hey all,

I have been thinking about this for a while now with my own tattoo journey. My ultimate dream is to get a top body suit with a munewari. I currently have a A. Traditional flash leg and a traditional Japanese flash leg both in progress. But I also think an American traditional chest looks sick too with eagle, rock of ages, swallows etc. I talked to an artist the other day and they said it would probably be one or the other. But has any one seen a blend between the two that looks cohesive? And not just jumbled together.

I’m in the Philly/NYC area and having a hard time narrowing down who I want to consult with. There are so many really good Japanese tattoo artists around here that I feel like I keep adding names instead of actually getting closer to a decision.

I’m planning a 3/4 sleeve with hikae, but need help at identifying why I like certain pieces.

What characteristics should I be paying attention to when comparing artists? Are there certain schools/styles or visual traits within irezumi that are especially useful for figuring out your taste?

I seem to like pieces from every artist I've viewed (added a few as examples), but then obviously every artist has pieces that aren't exactly my taste.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

18x24" Silk dye and liquid acrylics on Arches

Hey everyone!

I’ve been looking to get a irezumi arm sleeve and have been getting a little overwhelmed picking an artist. I’d be looking for a more traditional style, and am willing to pay for the right artist.

My short list so far;

- Khan
- Jenn Liles
- Greg Laraigne

I’d love to hear any personal recommendations.

Made with India ink and tattoo ink on 300 gsm Fabriano paper

So I started my first tattoo just about a year ago September 2025 and got hooked instantly in my opinion a good way. Got me back on eating cleaner and exercising again. Down over 60 lbs and 2 arms a leg and a back. So here is my progress starting my right leg in November needed a few week's break after the back and butt lol. All by Matty monzuki on ig @ Iron Age Tattoo in east Atlantic beach NY.

Yesterday I delivered this commission, thanks to everyone that support my work 🫰

What do you think?