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I really had high hopes for Spike TV’s Ink Master when I first heard about it. A tattoo reality show centered around competition made me think it would be something akin to Chopped on Food Network. A tattoo version of Chopped would be a good thing, right? Chopped is pretty well-made and fairly clever. As a viewer, I think the most interesting part is the feedback contestants receive from the judges once the challenges are over.

I thought Spike TV had enough experience with reality programming to do this right–they worked with the UFC  to create ‘The Ultimate Fighter‘ show. While Ultimate Fighter gave interpersonal drama way too much airtime, it was still better than the average reality TV trainwreck.

Then I heard Dave Navarro was involved with Ink Masters, and I was suspicious. I get it: they picked a recognizable, douchey ex-rockstar with tattoos to appeal to the average joe. (Personally, I would have gone with Benji Madden–but that’s just me.)

Nevarro aside, they did enlist Chris Nunez and Oliver Peck as judges, and the list of the tattoo artists/contestants was fairly impressive. With that many talented artists involved with the show, I still held onto the hope that this could really be a show the tattoo industry and community would be proud of.

The promo clips are starting to pop up online, and I have to say, I’m a little concerned. Instead of following the Chopped model like I’d hoped, this looks like typical bad reality programming… What an awful feeling. (Watch the clip below to see what I’m talking about.)

Even after seeing clips like these, I hope there’s going to be some good that comes out of this show. Like I mentioned above, there’s a number of really talented artists involved. Maybe it can shine the light on some other artists, as well as shops that really deserve the attention? Better yet, I’ve heard that the artists talk openly about some important tattoo common-sense subjects, like why you should tattooed in a shop instead of someone’s kitchen.

I realize I’m grasping at straws, here. I just don’t want to believe every episode is going to be like the clip below. I can’t say I’m confident Spike TV will air the portions of the show that would actually benefit the general public, but I could be wrong.

At this point, I don’t know what to expect of a full episode… but I guess we’ll find out tonight at 10pm.

Last week we briefly discussed Spike TV’s newest show, Ink Master. Since then a lot has been released about the show, including a full cast list and this trailer below.

I’m interested in hearing what you think about the show, the cast, and the preview.

It’s ridiculous how many tattoo reality television shows we’ve heard about and discussed. People have talked about a tattoo competition based show, but it was always in the works and nothing was concrete. Apparently Spike TV is the first one to move forward with this idea. The show, InkMaster, will be produced by Tim Warren. You’ve probably never heard of his name before, but I’m sure you’re familiar with his work. Tim has produced Deadliest Warrior, Extreme Makeover, and Pros vs. Joes.

Everyone will have their own opinion if this show is a good thing or bad thing (as always, you’re welcome to share your opinion in the comments below) so I’ll refrain from sharing mine. Instead, I’ll share a snippet from the official Spike TV announcement:

The tension and stakes are high in “InkMaster” as the artists not only face the judges, but also the opinions of their ‘human canvases.’ The artists will have a wide variety of clients to deal with, ranging from tattoo virgins to connoisseurs with a full sleeve of body art to those who want to cover-up a prior tattoo misstep. The masterpieces created on these ‘human canvases’ will last a lifetime, but so will the mistakes. Satisfying the individual whose skin now bears the artists’ handiwork will be a major element in determining the victor.

The winner of “InkMaster” will win a $100,000 cash prize and a feature in Inked magazine, the preeminent magazine covering tattoo culture, art, music and fashion.

Next Friday night, the good people at The Austin Tattoo Company are throwing a Halloween bash next Friday night.

On top of the normal Halloween debauchery, the shop will be giving away tattoo gift certificates and Oliver Peck’s Misfits cover band will be playing live. I haven’t even started talking about the art show featuring work from Nate Beavers, Bob Tyrrell, Nick Baxter, Paul Acker, Dan Henk, and others.

Do I still need to continue to convince you to go?

Oliver Peck and the crew over at Elm Street Tattoo are having another one of their legendary parties on Friday, December 18th. Along with the normal debauchery, the party will included live performances by The Architects (KCMO), The Miss Fits, White Punks On Dope, and DJ Hammertimez.

Please note the party is described as a wig party, so you need to start your shopping now! Oh, and you don’t want to show up in the same wig as someone else – so below is a picture of a wig that Oliver has worn in the past.

If you’re in the Dallas area, I highly suggest you check this out. If I was within driving distance, I would be there. From what I’ve heard, these parties are always a blast and tend to get a little wild. Additional details can be found here.

Tickets are currently on sale at the link above, and they’re only $6. A limited number are available, so don’t sleep on this.

Remember us talking about Jeremy Swan from Broken Art Tattoo? Yes you do, he was the tattoo artist that attempted to break the world record of “Most tattoo’s given in 24 hours.” Well, he was successful, and actually went above the required 801, and completed an absurd 875 tattoo’s in 24 hours.

The L.A. Times covered the event and made a great video (embedded below.) The video covers the event, the atmosphere, and interviewed Swan prior to the event starting.

Broken Art Tattoo Record from Tim French on Vimeo.

Last month, I decided to treat myself to a new laptop. With the amount of time I spend on a computer writing entries, and generally wasting time, I easily justified the purchase. I don’t need anything fancy, so I just bought myself a basic Macbook.Between traveling and tossing it around, I figured I could use a cover for it as well. I might as well put one on now, as the computer was brand new and all. I’ve seen a number of tattoo artists mention they did designs for Ding, so I took the plunge and checked out the site.

The site has a separate section for tattoo artists, and they fill it up nicely. They have designs from a number of artists, and several tattoo related companies. Each design comes in a version to fit your cell phone, laptop, iPod, or gaming device. They even make covers for your Guitar Hero controller.

The laptop cover costs around $30, but coupons aren’t hard to find (check their Twitter.) I think when everything was said and done, I ended paying around $27 for the cover. After ordering it, it took about fourteen days to come in with standard shipping. Once it was here, it only took a few seconds to apply. It doesn’t use glue or anything that’ll ruin your device, but yet it doesn’t easily come off either. Don’t ask me that works – it just does.

Overall, it’s a decent way to protect your device and support a tattoo artist at the same time. It beats the gem encrusted alternative for sure.

We couldn’t talk about Friday the 13th without posting something about Oliver Peck.

Now Jeremy Swan is currently trying to break the world record, and has to complete 801 to get his name into the book. In the first video below, you hear “Over 200 is the goal. . . .” which shows how old this video is.

I remember reading a couple years back (in Prick Magazine) that every Friday the 13th, no matter where he is, Oliver Peck does 13 tattoo’s all day long for $13. I don’t know if that’s still true, but know you understand why I refer to him as the king.

Jeremy Swan, tattoo artist and owner of Broken Art Tattoo, will attempt to break the world record of “Most tattoo’s given in a 24 hour period” this Friday the 13th. 801 is the magical number that Jeremy needs to complete to break the current record, and he will start at Midnight on Friday, November 13th (I.E. midnight tonight.)

If you’re in the Los Angeles area, the event starts tonight at 11pm at Broken Art (see the site for directions.) Food and beverages will be provided, and a live band will be on hand to kick the event off. There has been a handful of articles on the event (here, here and here,) but I’m sure once the event is underway there will be even more. Here’s the press release for additional information, and Jeremy has pictures of the available designs on his blog.

801 is a ridiculous number of work to be done in 24 hours. I can’t imagine how much Jeremy’s hands will ache when this is all said and done. This world record has seen a lot of activity over the past couple of years. Oliver Peck originally set the world record, and it was later broke by none other than Kat Von D. Oliver then took it back, but lost it to Hollis Cantrell this past November.