Ryan Cook Musician Andre the Giant: When I was a kid I was enamored with the idea of him and big, larger-than-life people. And I’ve never seen someone with [a tattoo] like that. Arabic script: It says “In the name of Allah.” I went through this brief phase when I was 20—I embraced Islam for […]
Halifax Ink
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What’s the worst tattoo you’ve ever seen?
Ugh. That girl who got the Sidney Crosby tat and was in the Herald a few years ago. —-Chrissy Merrigan When I was getting one of my tattoos done I asked the artist the same question and he gave me his book of tattoos he’s done and one guy got a crying penis on his […]
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My dumb tattoos
I have three tattoos, all done between the ages of 16 and 18 and each one is kind of bad in its own right. Tattoo #1: Lacoste alligator logo on my back left shoulder, when I was 16 at Red Dragon Tattoo in Oromocto, NB, two hours before my father was remarried. He dropped me […]
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Derek Hill: Meet the artist
From Lower Sackville Tattooing since 2007 Trained with Scott Forbes, Oceanic Style I like doing a lot of different stuff. My favourite thing is when someone comes in with a cool idea and lets you do your own thing with it. Are you seeing any trends in tattooing these days? A lot of script. Everybody […]
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Nova Scotia in the blood
This is a Halifax Inspired tattoo, my husband [Chris Mitchell] got this done before he moved to Fredericton for school. He grew up around The Dingle in Flemming Heights and always wanted to remember home while he was away so he got this tattoo of the dingle tower! —-Kaylyn Mitchell Thought this might count as […]
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Amber Thorpe: Meet the artist
Tattooing since 2000 From Niagara Falls, Ontario Trained with Charlie “Harley Charlie” Duarte at Way Cool Tattoos Style Bright, bold colours are what people most know me for. What’s popular in your shop right now? We do custom work, so it’s definitely a mix. But in Halifax anything to do with the sea, the ocean, […]
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Kirt Silver: Meet the artist
Tattooing Since 2003 Trained with Mike LeBlanc at Iron Ink in Truro Style I’ve had to become fairly well-rounded as I was the only person in my shop for the first seven years. I can do big black-and-grey works, traditional Japanese, full-colour, new school. At this point I’ve become well known for my colour realistic […]
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Lydia Klenck: Meet the artist
Tattooing since 2006 From Nova Scotia Trained In Toronto with Bill Baker Style Portraits, traditional American What’s popular in your shop right now? It’s a range, lots of traditional stuff and portraits, what we do in the shop. Japanese, black and grey. Do you have a tattoo you’re most proud of? The one that I […]
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Mark Marshall: Meet the artist
Tattooing since 1981 What what was it that originally drew you to tattooing? I’ve always loved art and I have a family member who is a tattoo artist. It’s actually three generations. When you started in New York City in the early ‘80s, that was long before the current popularity of tattooing. What was it […]
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10 things to think about before getting a tattoo
1. What it is A tattoo is a permanent disfigurement of your flesh. Sure, there are lasers to remove them now, but it takes a long time, is painful and costly. Do not enter into this lightly. And know that what’s cool now may not be cool later. 2. The philosophy If you have ink […]
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Tattoo rules in Nova Scotia
You need a licence to cut hair in Nova Scotia, but don’t need one to be a tattoo artist. Strange? Plenty of people think so, and The Coast has agreed in such articles as a 2006 look at government discussions of tattooist regulations. Now it’s the end of 2011. “We’re just in the middle of […]
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Tats start here
It’s difficult to pinpoint when tattoos began. The art was happening millennia before the mechanization of the tools occurred. The earliest recorded tattoos date back to 5,000 BC. Western cultures began to notice these strange markings when explorers “discovered” Polynesia in the South Pacific. In typical fashion, Europeans took the nomadic Polynesians (sometimes by […]