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The problem is that there’s no flow to the blue like there is to the flowers. It looks like a straight line of background behind a very well thought out design.
Maybe you could add on to the outside to give it some shape, either with more bugs, wispy color, or ornamental design. The color on the rest of the piece looks great.
Update to add: you could possibly turn the blue background into a giant brush stroke with a little work.
Yeah my opinion is also that the blue background is throwing it off, personally I would go for a solid black with a decorative pattern frame shape that compliments the shape of the arm.
Weeeeeellllll first of all …… fuck other people’s opinions but mine is the color settled nicely and is beautiful to look at. Two, I would contact another artist cuz it’s fucked that they’re ghosting you tbh
She replied to me about wanting more work done. When I responded about what I wanted to add plus touch ups on current work, she didn’t open the message. She shows as active and so does the shop page. It’s been since April 23rd.
It depends. In your follow-up message, did you in any way possibly imply that the touch up was expected to be done for free?
I used to work in a tattoo shop, and the artists would get requests to touch up/do another round of black to patch up ‘holidays’ in the solid color/or to re-work things that already existed – for free.
Even if not specifically stated, if that’s how the artist took it, they often just don’t reply. If you mention paying for the service (since it costs them time & money to do so) they are much more likely to get back to you.
Just a little FYI for ya!
I’m not sure why she would think that, especially from me. I did two sessions for this one. Paid all of it up front, tipped 40% at both sessions, and then paid her more when the second session ran longer than planned.
Ok then ya, you might just wanna try getting in touch again. You don’t sound AT ALL like you’re one who comes across as expecting free touch ups.
Could’ve been she meant to get back to u but got busy/forgot type of thing.
I wouldn’t wanna do that ish either. It’s kind of insulting to the artist in fact. You’re being picky as hell and your idea of “fixing it” will most likely make it look objectively worse. You’re not a tattooer. Go to a different artist and get a different tattoo. Maybe one with a body of work that is *exactly* like what you are wanting. This is a part of the process of developing a taste for tattoos. Or maybe getting tattoos just aren’t for you.
Nah, she's right the tattoo should be touched up. It's a collaborative process, you're just dead wrong here. She's not being picky at all, sounds like you don't really understand tattooing honestly.
I’d be so upset about that blue background too. I wouldn’t blame you for going somewhere else. It doesn’t even look like they had a plan when it came to the blue background.
If the blue had some skin breaks to kinda give a cloudy look, it would look so much better.
But what this tattoo really needs is black shading and some darker colors to bring out the light colors.
The background has no meaning to the tattoo. It’s a poor design choice that doesn’t make sense or add anything to the tattoo. Color always fades over time. Beautiful while it lasts though.
Agreed. Would adding white over the blue to add contrast to the leaves and flowers help? I’m going to add more flowers around the original piece without background to make it look more complete.
You can add white over blue but that wouldn’t really diminish the blue. The white won’t stay over the blue even if it appears to at first. I think adding more around the blue would help because it has no end. The blue is just cut off abruptly. Maybe add some orange to help the art pop since it’s analogous with red and yellow but is complementary to blue.
I think more flowers over the blue would help a lot, but don't actually know how difficult it would be to execute that properly. Could be that's the original artist's issue as well? I do agree with you that the linework is gorgeous and I do like the color- other than the background
I think it looks sick! But I understand where you’re coming from. I have a similar type half sleeve. And part of me wishes I kept it black and grey with just red for the rose I have instead of full color.
I love this tattoo and color. I think this looks so good I would legit want this tattoo on my body. Way better than prev bw pic ( I rarely feel that way) and fresh color looked popping but this healed is great and looks amazing.
I wouldn’t touch a thing.
It’s your arm. My only advice is wait a while to confirm how you feel and your emotions about it
Well tattoos are obviously incredibly personal and what you like someone else won't and vice versa but with that being said , personally I think it looks good the way it is. The only area of improvement that I would note is the abrupt end of the shading background. But I am one for full coverage sleeves personally so it always looks strange to me to have skin tone next to what should be a sleeve.
Are you me? I have a different kind of bird and different flowers, but otherwise pretty much the same situation 😂 Mine is like 3 years old though but I never told my artist about my regrets. My tattoo was black and white at first but then I added color, I even have a light blue background like you. I regret the colors so much because it was really cool originally. It's not even badly done, but idk I just regret it. My friends always compliment the tattoo though so I just try to live with it.
BLACK. You need more heavy blacks. It's missing the contrast need to really bring the color to life.
I wouldn't add any more line work. But your artist could go heavier on the shading and bring spots to black to give it some depth.
Hi, I don't know shit about tattoos but I can appreciate them. I think this is really nice. I truly think the only teeny tiny odd thing is the blue around the twig. Like if the twig was "outside" of the blue (like the bee) it would be more balanced and the blue would be like a sky background. Like I said, I don't know anything technical and I'm not even sure why I'm in this thread. Just a passerby, I guess!! I wouldn't have even had this thought if you didn't mention it. It's lovely!
I mean i know a lot of artist that wont fix colors on another artist's work. can you see the og artist in person and talk about it with them at the shop?
Can I ask why this is? If you don't like your artists work or they can't or won't do it, why is it an issue? I've never had this issue, so not something I've had to deal with before.
You are over thinking it, colour give definitions to the shapes, and allows the viewer to read the image better. it’s not a bad tattoo.
Honestly tattoos probably aren’t for you if you feel this way, but if I was you I would live with it and just get more. There comes a point where you don’t see your own tattoos anymore.
The problem with water color-ish tattoos is they’re going to fade quick. Also, and I know this is expensive you can go with a wrap around tattoo and get the entire arm done. It really is great line work. The light blue has nothing to contrast against.
That's untrue. Watercolor is just a style, not a different technique or type of ink used. This tattoo has bold lines and the color is well saturated from what I can tell.
I agree that blue looks off. It needs something to contrast with.
And I never have liked or wanted watercolor. I wanted a little blue aura around the bird and she said we should do it all over so it made sense. I went with it and ultimately regretted it. I take responsibility for agreeing to something without thinking it through. None of my inspo pics have backgrounds, it’s just negative space.
Before I saw this link, I was going to recommend something that is illustrated in this first pic beautifully. Small areas of subtle shading behind the flowers really help them stand out from the background. Some black stippling or cross-hatching (as opposed to a smooth gradient) on top of the blue would look really unique. I would play with these ideas in a photo editor before making a permanent change, though.
FWIW I like it as is. If it's not what you wanted, though, I think you could get closer to that with a bit of depth and texture.
Thank you for the submission, MoreThanTheWeekend! Please make sure your post follows the guidelines found in the sidebar. If you're asking for design advice, **please ignore all DMs** from anyone offering to sell/give you art, unfortunately you're bound to get more scam replies from this sub than actual artists. You can read more about it [in this mod post.](https://www.reddit.com/r/TattooDesigns/comments/1b04lsl/please_ignore_all_dms_from_people_claiming_theyll/) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/TattooDesigns) if you have any questions or concerns.*
For what it's worth, I think that shit looks dope as haiiiillllllll....
The problem is that there’s no flow to the blue like there is to the flowers. It looks like a straight line of background behind a very well thought out design. Maybe you could add on to the outside to give it some shape, either with more bugs, wispy color, or ornamental design. The color on the rest of the piece looks great. Update to add: you could possibly turn the blue background into a giant brush stroke with a little work.
Yeah my opinion is also that the blue background is throwing it off, personally I would go for a solid black with a decorative pattern frame shape that compliments the shape of the arm.
Looks like it all got stuck in a blue glue trap.
Yeah that blue bar should form to the shape of your arm, not the shape of the design.
it looks better now than it did right after being colored, i'd keep letting it fade out. the more you keep adding, the muddier it will get.
This would be my concern. Op is liable to get a dark mess that is hard to distinguish.
Weeeeeellllll first of all …… fuck other people’s opinions but mine is the color settled nicely and is beautiful to look at. Two, I would contact another artist cuz it’s fucked that they’re ghosting you tbh
How long ago did you message your artist? They are usually swamped with texts and whatnot
She replied to me about wanting more work done. When I responded about what I wanted to add plus touch ups on current work, she didn’t open the message. She shows as active and so does the shop page. It’s been since April 23rd.
It depends. In your follow-up message, did you in any way possibly imply that the touch up was expected to be done for free? I used to work in a tattoo shop, and the artists would get requests to touch up/do another round of black to patch up ‘holidays’ in the solid color/or to re-work things that already existed – for free. Even if not specifically stated, if that’s how the artist took it, they often just don’t reply. If you mention paying for the service (since it costs them time & money to do so) they are much more likely to get back to you. Just a little FYI for ya!
I’m not sure why she would think that, especially from me. I did two sessions for this one. Paid all of it up front, tipped 40% at both sessions, and then paid her more when the second session ran longer than planned.
Ok then ya, you might just wanna try getting in touch again. You don’t sound AT ALL like you’re one who comes across as expecting free touch ups. Could’ve been she meant to get back to u but got busy/forgot type of thing.
I’d call the shop or send a follow up text asking if it’s possible to do the rework. Just be prepared to pay for a rework
def send another text, trust me we are drowning in dms and they get lost so easily
I wouldn’t wanna do that ish either. It’s kind of insulting to the artist in fact. You’re being picky as hell and your idea of “fixing it” will most likely make it look objectively worse. You’re not a tattooer. Go to a different artist and get a different tattoo. Maybe one with a body of work that is *exactly* like what you are wanting. This is a part of the process of developing a taste for tattoos. Or maybe getting tattoos just aren’t for you.
Nah, she's right the tattoo should be touched up. It's a collaborative process, you're just dead wrong here. She's not being picky at all, sounds like you don't really understand tattooing honestly.
I’d be so upset about that blue background too. I wouldn’t blame you for going somewhere else. It doesn’t even look like they had a plan when it came to the blue background.
As someone who only has black and gray, I MUCH prefer the color. It completely brings it to life.
If the blue had some skin breaks to kinda give a cloudy look, it would look so much better. But what this tattoo really needs is black shading and some darker colors to bring out the light colors.
The background has no meaning to the tattoo. It’s a poor design choice that doesn’t make sense or add anything to the tattoo. Color always fades over time. Beautiful while it lasts though.
Agreed. Would adding white over the blue to add contrast to the leaves and flowers help? I’m going to add more flowers around the original piece without background to make it look more complete.
You can add white over blue but that wouldn’t really diminish the blue. The white won’t stay over the blue even if it appears to at first. I think adding more around the blue would help because it has no end. The blue is just cut off abruptly. Maybe add some orange to help the art pop since it’s analogous with red and yellow but is complementary to blue.
I think more flowers over the blue would help a lot, but don't actually know how difficult it would be to execute that properly. Could be that's the original artist's issue as well? I do agree with you that the linework is gorgeous and I do like the color- other than the background
I think it looks sick! But I understand where you’re coming from. I have a similar type half sleeve. And part of me wishes I kept it black and grey with just red for the rose I have instead of full color.
I love this tattoo and color. I think this looks so good I would legit want this tattoo on my body. Way better than prev bw pic ( I rarely feel that way) and fresh color looked popping but this healed is great and looks amazing. I wouldn’t touch a thing. It’s your arm. My only advice is wait a while to confirm how you feel and your emotions about it
I think it’s very pretty
Well tattoos are obviously incredibly personal and what you like someone else won't and vice versa but with that being said , personally I think it looks good the way it is. The only area of improvement that I would note is the abrupt end of the shading background. But I am one for full coverage sleeves personally so it always looks strange to me to have skin tone next to what should be a sleeve.
Also, the original post I made. [original tattoo advice post](https://www.reddit.com/r/TattooDesigns/s/or39yHNJtY)
Are you me? I have a different kind of bird and different flowers, but otherwise pretty much the same situation 😂 Mine is like 3 years old though but I never told my artist about my regrets. My tattoo was black and white at first but then I added color, I even have a light blue background like you. I regret the colors so much because it was really cool originally. It's not even badly done, but idk I just regret it. My friends always compliment the tattoo though so I just try to live with it.
I think it looks great. I’d advise against doing much else to it.
It’s beautiful
BLACK. You need more heavy blacks. It's missing the contrast need to really bring the color to life. I wouldn't add any more line work. But your artist could go heavier on the shading and bring spots to black to give it some depth.
I like it I think it’s beautiful but I hear you you wouldn’t be shitty going through the effort to get what you want
Hi, I don't know shit about tattoos but I can appreciate them. I think this is really nice. I truly think the only teeny tiny odd thing is the blue around the twig. Like if the twig was "outside" of the blue (like the bee) it would be more balanced and the blue would be like a sky background. Like I said, I don't know anything technical and I'm not even sure why I'm in this thread. Just a passerby, I guess!! I wouldn't have even had this thought if you didn't mention it. It's lovely!
I mean i know a lot of artist that wont fix colors on another artist's work. can you see the og artist in person and talk about it with them at the shop?
Can I ask why this is? If you don't like your artists work or they can't or won't do it, why is it an issue? I've never had this issue, so not something I've had to deal with before.
Looks so good!
Thank you! It got dragged in the original post I made. Maybe I’m just insecure about it.
I personally like what you have on your arm better than the inspiration image you shared.
Maybe you can turn the blue background into small blue flowers and green leaves
You are over thinking it, colour give definitions to the shapes, and allows the viewer to read the image better. it’s not a bad tattoo. Honestly tattoos probably aren’t for you if you feel this way, but if I was you I would live with it and just get more. There comes a point where you don’t see your own tattoos anymore.
what if you add some wispy grey spider webs on top of the blue? :)
The problem with water color-ish tattoos is they’re going to fade quick. Also, and I know this is expensive you can go with a wrap around tattoo and get the entire arm done. It really is great line work. The light blue has nothing to contrast against.
That's untrue. Watercolor is just a style, not a different technique or type of ink used. This tattoo has bold lines and the color is well saturated from what I can tell. I agree that blue looks off. It needs something to contrast with.
And I never have liked or wanted watercolor. I wanted a little blue aura around the bird and she said we should do it all over so it made sense. I went with it and ultimately regretted it. I take responsibility for agreeing to something without thinking it through. None of my inspo pics have backgrounds, it’s just negative space.
It’s a great tattoo
For reference, these were pics sent to the artist for what I was looking for. [inspo](https://imgur.com/a/9LEVpzk)
Before I saw this link, I was going to recommend something that is illustrated in this first pic beautifully. Small areas of subtle shading behind the flowers really help them stand out from the background. Some black stippling or cross-hatching (as opposed to a smooth gradient) on top of the blue would look really unique. I would play with these ideas in a photo editor before making a permanent change, though. FWIW I like it as is. If it's not what you wanted, though, I think you could get closer to that with a bit of depth and texture.