Taylor's New Tattoo Bridges Time and Oceans

We're returning from a hiatus with a visit from an old friend, Taylor.

Taylor first shared her work with us here back in 2010. We saw more work from her last year when she shared this incredible back piece inspired by Banksy:

Recently, Taylor shared her latest tattoo with me and I'm passing it along to you:

As you may have guessed, these are actually a pair of tattoos of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, which connects the boroughs of Brooklyn and Staten Island. Taylor elaborates:

"My mom and I got matching tattoos. It was also her first. For some [people] the Verrazano Bridge is just a pretty bridge connecting Staten Island and Bay Ridge [Brpoklyn]. For me and my mom its where it all began. She moved to Shore Road [which runs along the Verrazano Narrows] from Germany when my parents got married.

Every childhood memory I had was by that bridge. Unfortunately my parents got divorced and I moved with my mom back to Germany.

I've been living in the neighborhood for almost 10 years again without my mom, but the Verrazano is somehow a piece of her."

Here's another, healed perspective:

I love how, not only do these tattoos, bridge the past with her mom, but they also bridge the ocean that currently separates them, bringing them closer together.

Taylor credits local tattoo artist Angel Bauta, from Puncture Tattoo here in South Brooklyn with this work.

Thanks again to Taylor for sharing her tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

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Saturday Links: Hello February!

I posted a bunch of links last Saturday and it seemed like the thing to do. So I started this last Sunday and added to it as the week progressed, giving you a snapshot of what interested me in the world of tattoos this past week, as we left January behind, and headed into February.

On Sunday, Artist Joe Capobianco updated us on a back piece he was working on here.

On Monday, "Shanghai" Kate Hellenbrand, one of the longest-tattooing female artists, alerted me to a Kickstarter campaign (here) to raise money for a documentary about her career called "From Voodoo to Vogue".

On Friday, I spotted this piece on xoJane about getting matching tattoos.

On Saturday (today), I looked back and said, "Really, only three things?" It's a little misleading, as I have a lot of cool stuff in the works, including a great contest next week for readers.Y'all come back now, ya' hear?

Brian's Mat-tree-monial Tattoo

Late last month, I met Brian on the 34th Street A platform and he shared this amazing tattoo:

The piece was relatively fresh, having been inked only a couple weeks before.

He explained that this tree represents the Tree of Life. He alluded to the roots that spread out, firmly symbolizing family.

Brian also explained that it was an investigation piece: he added a key, hanging from a branch. This symbolizes his desire to unlock the meaning of life.

What's doubly special about this tattoo is that it is also a marriage tattoo. Brian's wife has a similar tree on her right arm (Brian's is on the left), only with cherry blossoms instead of a key, and a baby in the design as well.

The couple are linked not only by their vows, but by their similar ma-tree-monial tattoos. Sorry, I couldn't help it.

The tattoo is by Kaz at Brooklyn Adorned. Work from Kaz has appeared previously on Tattoosday here. And this tag, links all previous Adorned work on the blog.

Thanks to Brian for sharing this amazing tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Ricky & Jessica's Matching Nightmarish Tattoos

I met Jessica and Ricky outside of Penn Station during the last week of April.

I had spotted one of Ricky's four tattoos on his right bicep:


This is, of course, a tattoo based on the great film A Nightmare Before Christmas, with the character Jack Skellington in the foreground and his girlfriend Sally in the background, standing on the recognizable Tim Burton hill.


What's particularly cool about the leering Jack tattoo is that it was inked at the same time as Ricky's girlfriend Jessica's piece:


This tattoo, one of eleven that Jessica sports, is on her right ankle. The design is similar, with the hill in the background, only the roles are reversed.

In the foreground is Sally, and Jack stands in the background.

The two tattoos, a matching set, were customized for the couple that sports them by Sean at Spanky's Tattoo Studio in Camden, New Jersey.

As a fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas, I totally appreciate the representation of the two main characters in ink, and the romantic in me loves the fact that Jessica and Ricky expressed their relationship in this fashion (Full disclosure: my wife and I have matching Jack and Sally coffee mugs).

A Nightmare Before Christmas tattoo has appeared on the blog previously here.

Thanks to Ricky and Jessica for sharing their tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Punx: Two Friends from Texas

This is a continuation of sorts, from the post above.

When I met Kelly, she was hanging out with her friend Amber. And although Kelly appeared to be the more inked of the two, Amber was very positive and enthusiastic about the concept behind Tattoosday.

So after taking a picture of Kelly's tattoo, I turned to Amber and asked if she wanted to share as well.

The two decided to show off their "Punx" tattoos, both inked on their wrists on the occasion of their 21st birthdays.

According to Amber and Kelly, the "Punx" label is affiliated with the band The Transplants, headed by Lars Fredrickson, formerly of the band Rancid. According to Kelly and Amber, it is common for fans of the band to get this tattoo as a mark of solidarity.

They don't remember the name of the shop where they had these spur of the moment tattoos done, but they do recall that it was a place near the River Walk in San Antonio, Texas.

Thanks to Amber and Kelly for being so cool and sharing their ink with us here at Tattoosday!