Asking for tips on transitioning from fake to real skin

ed_lorenzo · 22 Jan 2023

Hello all,
I have been practicing on fake skins and have tried a few on real people (including myself)but I will be the first to admit they all SUCK!

What I see as my problems are:

Real skin stretch - this is not present in fake and I might have developed bad habit of forgetting to stretch
Stencil stretch - on real skin, when I stretch a straight line sometimes curves but my hand will draw a straight line, so when I let go, curved
That vibration thingy - I still don't know what is the right vibration that tells me needle depth is good

Here is my latest, and dare I say best work:

Done with a 3rl, this is about an inch and a half tall.
see, I told you it sucks.

any tips and guidance will be appreciated. Thanks all in advance!

Big Pete · 22 Jan 2023

That rose isn't all that bad...smaller needles are the hardest to control as they tend to wobble, bigger needles are a bit sturdier because of the higher number of needles making it a bit firmer, so I would recommend using thicker needles until you are more confident with your lining.
Stretching the skin is something you really need to get into the habit of doing, and as you have mentioned, it will pull the stencil out of shape, just remember to trust your stencil, always follow the line of the stencil and don't deviate from it even though your brain is telling you that the line is bent, it will come back to shape when you have released your stretch.

ed_lorenzo · 22 Jan 2023

Big Pete said:
That rose isn't all that bad...smaller needles are the hardest to control as they tend to wobble, bigger needles are a bit sturdier because of the higher number of needles making it a bit firmer, so I would recommend using thicker needles until you are more confident with your lining.
Stretching the skin is something you really need to get into the habit of doing, and as you have mentioned, it will pull the stencil out of shape, just remember to trust your stencil, always follow the line of the stencil and don't deviate from it even though your brain is telling you that the line is bent, it will come back to shape when you have released your stretch.

Thank you sir, I will take that first part as a compliment.
5rl is good? I hope it is less painful. This rose was particularly challenging because the guy kept flinching and contracting his leg muscles the whole time like a scared little @#*@#(. BTW, this was my leg

Now I am contemplating on going over it again with a 5rl but I think a totally separate tat might to better for comparison. I sincerely hope I learn before I run out of space on my leg LOL

DKJ · 23 Jan 2023

Hi there!
As Pete said, this is quite a good first, the design choice was nice but quite difficult with all these straight lines, but the bending you saw isn't noticeable (from this pic at least).

I wouldn't come back at it with a bigger needle as you may mess it up. Later when you have a better understanding of the technique will you be able to 'fix' it.

I never experienced the vibration thing in my 20+ tattos experience but some peeps do, so you'll see if it happens to you.

I started with 7rl and i think it's a good grouping to start with: it's quite forgiving and not hard to get ink into the skin. 5rl is almost the same but with more pain and wooble, then you go down to 3rl or single needle, where some experience is needed to follow the stencil and keep a good depht.

Always trust your stencil and nothing else! You'll end up with silly stuff if you don't.
And that means always stretch, get that in your head and you'll see amazing results. This is also true for packing and gradients.

Nice start, i have 5 tattoos on my upper legs and still a lot of place to work on, don't worry

Peace,

DKJ

John.D.Escu · 24 Jan 2023

ed_lorenzo said:
Hello all,
I have been practicing on fake skins and have tried a few on real people (including myself)but I will be the first to admit they all SUCK!
What I see as my problems are:

Real skin stretch - this is not present in fake and I might have developed bad habit of forgetting to stretch

Stencil stretch - on real skin, when I stretch a straight line sometimes curves but my hand will draw a straight line, so when I let go, curved

That vibration thingy - I still don't know what is the right vibration that tells me needle depth is good

Here is my latest, and dare I say best work:

Done with a 3rl, this is about an inch and a half tall.
see, I told you it sucks.

any tips and guidance will be appreciated. Thanks all in advance!

May I ask how long have you been practicing on fake skin?

ed_lorenzo · 26 Jan 2023

Hi john, since October last year.

ed_lorenzo · 26 Jan 2023

This is so encouraging! I thank you. Okay I won't "fix" it, might serve as a good reminded of my skills now.

ed_lorenzo · 26 Jan 2023

John.D.Escu said:
May I ask how long have you been practicing on fake skin?

Since October last year

John.D.Escu · 27 Jan 2023

ed_lorenzo said:
Since October last year

Ok, thanks! So you have a few months. I recommend you continue on fake skin. No shame or problem with that. I tattooed on fake skin for around one year and this his how my first tattoo on a human ended up:

My first ever Tattoo on human skin.

Hello guys, So after a year of tattooing on all sorts of fake skins, and also Reel Skin, I started my apprenticeship in a professional studio (Melon-Tattoo | Tattoo und Piercing-Studio) and I got to do my first ever tattoo on a human. I can say that I was shocked with how smooth and accurate...

tattooing101.com

Its all in the time you put into practice. You will get better at anything you do as long as you do it on a constant basis and don`t rush the process.

Jspot87 · 29 Jan 2023

I use to hate the stretch. It made me learn real quick that a stencil is worth millions because once the skin is stretched those lines look nothing the same. I can make great art on paper, transfer, and do long as my stencil holds up my tattooes come out magnificent.. so 1. Most detail are not part of s stencil. 2. A stencil can kill be wiped do many times before leaving and 3. Restenciling is so dern hard. So this brings me to my dilemma. If I don't have a lot of detail in mY stencil I can't free hand and If I add a lot of detail it's missing before the work is finished.

whippet · 29 Jan 2023

There’s a series of steps to follow with stencil application to ensure it stays on. In my experience, missing or skimping on any one creates problems. I do realism quite often and regularly finish a full piece (say a half sleeve) and still have stencil marks present.

After shaving:

1. Wash the area thoroughly with a soap solution (green soap works), rubbing vigorously several times…clean it, not just wet it. Dry it.
2. Rub the entire area with alcohol rub. I stopped using medí swabs as they take too long and have insufficient alcohol, I use isopropyl alcohol from a bottle and rub vigorously several times. Deliberately clean the area, then dry it.
3. Apply your stencil solution (best I’ve found is ‘stencil premium’) making sure you massage it thoroughly into the skin…wait till it is tacky to touch, not wet.
4. Apply your stencil in position and smooth down. From centre out, you can use the back of the razor or tongue depressor to press all of the surface against the skin.
5. Allow the stencil to sit on the body for a good minute, and use the time to press kitchen roll on top, both pressing the stencil down AND (most importantly) forcing the stencil paper to soak up the excess stencil solution.
5.2. Use the kitchen roll to also dab around your stencil paper to soak up the excess stencil fluid. If you don’t do this your first wipe can inadvertently pull excess stencil fluid across your stencil…remember its job is to degrade stencil toner, so this is not good.
6. Peel off carefully. The stencil paper should be difficult to lift, pulling the skin up as you pull away, and if its on well, it will likely tear the paper…that’s a good sign
7. Carefully place a kitchen roll on top of the new stencil, ensuring it will not slip, and press down, smoothing across the stencil, removing excess toner and excess stencil fluid.
8. WAIT….before starting your tattoo. If you want this thing to stay, give 20 minutes. I use this time to set up my station.
9. Avoid using petroleum based lube (such as A&D Vaseline etc) as this will actively degrade your stencil lines, not to mention both the Latex and Nitrile in your gloves.

I know this might look a bit long winded but trust me, I don’t worry about stencils rubbing off anymore, and on certain pieces it means I can confidently start at any part of the tattoo I want,. Sometimes the bottom (close to wrists for example) is not always the most comfortable place to make your first marks.

ed_lorenzo · 29 Jan 2023

whippet said:
There’s a series of steps to follow with stencil application to ensure it stays on. In my experience, missing or skimping on any one creates problems. I do realism quite often and regularly finish a full piece (say a half sleeve) and still have stencil marks present.

After shaving:

1. Wash the area thoroughly with a soap solution (green soap works), rubbing vigorously several times…clean it, not just wet it. Dry it.
2. Rub the entire area with alcohol rub. I stopped using medí swabs as they take too long and have insufficient alcohol, I use isopropyl alcohol from a bottle and rub vigorously several times. Deliberately clean the area, then dry it.
3. Apply your stencil solution (best I’ve found is ‘stencil premium’) making sure you massage it thoroughly into the skin…wait till it is tacky to touch, not wet.
4. Apply your stencil in position and smooth down. From centre out, you can use the back of the razor or tongue depressor to press all of the surface against the skin.
5. Allow the stencil to sit on the body for a good minute, and use the time to press kitchen roll on top, both pressing the stencil down AND (most importantly) forcing the stencil paper to soak up the excess stencil solution.
5.2. Use the kitchen roll to also dab around your stencil paper to soak up the excess stencil fluid. If you don’t do this your first wipe can inadvertently pull excess stencil fluid across your stencil…remember its job is to degrade stencil toner, so this is not good.
6. Peel off carefully. The stencil paper should be difficult to lift, pulling the skin up as you pull away, and if its on well, it will likely tear the paper…that’s a good sign
7. Carefully place a kitchen roll on top of the new stencil, ensuring it will not slip, and press down, smoothing across the stencil, removing excess toner and excess stencil fluid.
8. WAIT….before starting your tattoo. If you want this thing to stay, give 20 minutes. I use this time to set up my station.
9. Avoid using petroleum based lube (such as A&D Vaseline etc) as this will actively degrade your stencil lines, not to mention both the Latex and Nitrile in your gloves.

I know this might look a bit long winded but trust me, I don’t worry about stencils rubbing off anymore, and on certain pieces it means I can confidently start at any part of the tattoo I want,. Sometimes the bottom (close to wrists for example) is not always the most comfortable place to make your first marks.

This I did not follow to the step when I did my leg but I do when I do someone else

But I will add that soap step. I just usually shave then alcohol.
One thing I think should be considered is the position of the person when laying the stencil down. I made the mistake of placing the stencil on the thigh when the person was seated; which resulted in a Wonky final product when he was standing up. I should have placed the stencil while he was standing.

whippet · 29 Jan 2023

ed_lorenzo said:
This I did not follow to the step when I did my leg but I do when I do someone else But I will add that soap step. I just usually shave then alcohol.
One thing I think should be considered is the position of the person when laying the stencil down. I made the mistake of placing the stencil on the thigh when the person was seated; which resulted in a Wonky final product when he was standing up. I should have placed the stencil while he was standing.

Very true

DKJ · 30 Jan 2023

ed_lorenzo said:
This I did not follow to the step when I did my leg but I do when I do someone else But I will add that soap step. I just usually shave then alcohol.
One thing I think should be considered is the position of the person when laying the stencil down. I made the mistake of placing the stencil on the thigh when the person was seated; which resulted in a Wonky final product when he was standing up. I should have placed the stencil while he was standing.

This is a basic of hygiene courses: you cannot sterilize fully something which hasn't been washed before.

Ok, you can't fully sterilize the skin but washing will eliminate grease, dry skin foliage, and anything that can be washed. Then alcohol will totally wipe off the grease that could be lasting after wash, and all the bacteries, shrooms and micro-living-stuff left.

Peace,

DKJ

Asking for tips on transitioning from fake to real skin

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