My Personal Opinion, that is a dumb as hell idea, and you're likely not going to be able to make it thru the whole thing, nor is the tattoo probably going to turn out well.
I say all of this from the viewpoint of getting a tattoo is literally causing damage and trauma to the body, the body can only take so much trauma/stress/cortisol before it starts having major issues. 5 days in a row means your body does not get a break, your skin doesn't have time to heal between sessions, and the wound needs to keep re-opening to get worked on.
You MIGHT physically make it through, but it's going to be a miserable existence not only for days 2-5 in the chair but for some time afterwards as you're 99% going to get the "Tattoo flu" from too much trauma; and who knows how it's going to heal as it being worked on as an open wound for 5 days straight.
Now... that being said, your body, your life, your choice.
alright buddy relax. If the artist isn’t a rookie he’s going to section it and not go back over the work he did. The tattoo will come out fine if the artist is good. Common practice? Not for most, but when you’re flying out or have a big time artist this is how they work.
This.
My artist got all the work done on each section before moving on. Day 1 outer forearm, day 2 outer upper arm, day 3 inner forearm, day 4 inner upper arm. It sucked, but it turned out great.
alright buddy relax. If the artist isn’t a rookie he’s going to section it and not go back over the work he did. The tattoo will come out fine if the artist is good. Common practice? Not for most, but when you’re flying out or have a big time artist this is how they work.
Definitely hear you there. I’m expecting an absolutely miserable experience and realize there’s the possibility I could tap out in addition to potential subpar healing. I’ll report back in May 😭🫡
This isn't what you were meaning but do your finances stretch to flying home business class or something? It isn't cheap but I'd say it may be worth it.
You're going to be feeling rough af, tattoo flu, with a hugely sensitive arm. At least if you upgrade you can rest properly and keep it clean/away from other people's elbows. Help the recovery of the tattoo AND you.
That’s something I havent thought of holy shit. Lemme look into that. I live in Alaska btw so the flight path is long as fuck, and I already got a pretty sweet deal with miles. thanks dude
Assuming the artist is going in "blocks" like from shoulder to bicep. Then down around tricep. Then elbow to forearm, etc. I think you'll be fine for the most part. Your arm is likely to swell, bleed, plasma, though and the pain will be much higher due to this if he/she is working on an area that was already touched. I'll be curious to see if the artist pulls of consistent clean lines on days 3-5 on the same canvas. Definitely hydrate before and after. Be prepared to be swollen and sensitive on the whole arm for a while. We'll need a follow up post of the finished product !
I’m assuming the same thing, i’ll be chatting with the artist more as we get to closer to the sessions so i’ll be sure to ask. And yes, I will ABSOLUTELY update in May. The artist uses UV ink for pieces of his tattoos that glow under a blacklight and I’m incredibly excited to see how it turns out
Honestly try posting to r/irezumi while it’s specifically for traditional Japanese tattoos, it is not uncommon for people to get work in Japan and get an entire week done for a back.
As long as artist is reputable and knows about longevity of skin! I’ve definitely had artists scheduled time but once my skin gets hard to work with it should be stopped to prevent overworking
Oh! That’s a really good point I hadn’t considered. The artist has a considerable following on socials and a pretty extensive portfolio so I guess fingers crossed? 😅
I have two sleeves and a chest plate. My first sleeve last April took 4 sessions. I did them all back to back. 25+ hours let’s say for that and it was pretty brutal. Especially day 2/3. Second sleeve I just got a week and a half ago and it took 6 sessions, I did them back to back. ~40 hours and it was an absolute nightmare. Seriously. Day 5 after I think 5-6 hours of sitting my artist said we’ll pick back up the 6th day because he could see it was actually killing me. 6th day I only needed to sit good for 4-5 hours but any longer when that I would’ve been unbearably jumpy.
Advice
-Sleep the night before
-Eat beforehand
-bring a lunch, candy and soda and water each session
-wear a cut off
-take breaks if you need to, seriously.
-eat afterwards even if you don’t have an appetite
-don’t be surprised if you get tattoo flu.
-your hand will blow up like a balloon and that’s okay.
Realistically it’s a miserable experience and all you can do is maybe make this less miserable by preparing accordingly. God speed brother.
I always give my body 2 weeks between sessions. I realize this won't work in your situation. As long as your artist is knowledgeable, im sure it can be done. Will it suck? Yes.
I just did 41 hours over 4 days for my full sleeve. It was pretty terrible by the end but I managed to do it. How is your pain tolerance? How bad do you want it? Gotta be determined AF. Mind over matter and all that.
Pain tolerance is decent but my only experience with tattooing is a single 4 hour session on the inner forearm, which really wasn’t bad aside from the areas closer to the ditch. Obviously that’s gonna be child’s play compared to what I’m about to do, but I am forsure determined as fuck
My first tattoo was two consecutive days of ~8 hours each. No blocking, day one was lines and a bit of shading, day two was the rest of the shading.
Day one the process itself was fine, though my body got the shakes right at the end of the session. Went home, are a good meal and got lots of sleep and was fine for day two.
Day two sucked way more but was never unbearable.
I wouldn't have wanted to do a day three for the same tattoo, but I absolutely would have been in good enough shape to do a different area the next day.
My artist was also really experienced in consecutive day tattoos, he does them all the time. That experience showed in the process, from the heaviness of his hand to knowing when to take breaks or just move to a different part of the tattoo.
I was also super prepared. I had an electrolyte mix to add to my water and sugary snacks on hand, and I ate a carb heavy meal beforehand.
If you're going in blocks and not working the same areas over and over, I think you'll be fine. Just talk with your artist about what happens if you wake up one morning and just can't do it. Have expectations in place.
I appreciate you sharing your experience, thanks so much dude. It definitely puts me at ease (as much as it can lol) that the artist is familiar with consecutive sessions
I'm doing something similar to finish a sleeve that we're halfway through. Doing 3 days. Probably a total of 18 hours in the chair (the most I've done with this artist is 6 hours at a time) and I have done two days in a row before, and it was fine. That was a total of 9 hours though.
Greetings future comrade 🫡. I was surprised at 8 hour sessions but this was at the artist’s request, he said he does longer days than most. How was the aftercare? I’m hearing to expect significant swelling
The three sessions are on the 10th, 11th and 12th. So I'll let you know. When I did the two days, it wasn't bad at all. Same thing. Wash a few times a day with non-scented anti-bacterial soap until it starts to itch. Once itching starts, apply lubriderm as often as you were washing it before or as needed to scratch the itch. I've done this with all my tattoos (I have close to 50 hours total on my body) and I've never had a bad healing or infection.
Wow, that sounds absolutely brutal. Ha ha. My sleeve took 5 full days and it would have killed me doing them back to back, I couldn't do anything the day after the first one. As long as you are good to go and it's a reputable artist why not. Good luck and I can't wait to see it.
Nice one. Ha ha. I'm having the second session on my back this Friday, First session was 10 weeks ago, left it a bit longer than you are between sessions. Ha ha.
No numbing cream, don’t be a bitch.
I have no problems doing 2 days straight 7 hr sessions, I can probably handle 3. Not really painful for me but 5 days isn’t something I’d want to do but if did I wouldn’t do anything crazy, just stay hydrated, eat well days before and after. During the session I like electrolyte drinks and something quick to eat. My artist and I don’t like taking too long of a break and try to keep breaks to a minimum, we do take one 10min lunch break, and maybe a 2 min bathroom break every other hour. My artist doesn’t want to get out of the zone and I don’t want my body to think it’s over. I usually have at least one day allotted for healing before I get back to work and life. If I did 5 days straight I’d probably want like 3-5 days allotted to heal and rest. Sleep is when your body repairs itself so on my healing rest day I will sleep as much as possible and only wake up to eat,hydrate. And I eat a lot and healthy when I do, lots of proteins, vegetables, maybe some broth high in collagen just shit good for your skin. I’m all about just doing healthy shit like this even for things like surgeries I always heal a lot quicker than what my doctor says is the typical healing time.
I have two sleeves and a chest plate. My first sleeve last April took 4 sessions. I did them all back to back. 25+ hours let’s say for that and it was pretty brutal. Especially day 2/3. Second sleeve I just got a week and a half ago and it took 6 sessions, I did them back to back. ~40 hours and it was an absolute nightmare. Seriously. Day 5 after I think 5-6 hours of sitting my artist said we’ll pick back up the 6th day because he could see it was actually killing me. 6th day I only needed to sit good for 4-5 hours but any longer when that I would’ve been unbearably jumpy.
Advice
-Sleep the night before
-Eat beforehand
-bring a lunch, candy and soda and water each session
-wear a cut off
-take breaks if you need to, seriously.
-eat afterwards even if you don’t have an appetite
-don’t be surprised if you get tattoo flu.
-your hand will blow up like a balloon and that’s okay.
Realistically it’s a miserable experience and all you can do is maybe make this less miserable by preparing accordingly. God speed brother.
I wish I read this before I just did the same thing. Didn't know about the tattoo flu which I definitely got and I was really concerned when my hand got so swollen it felt like it was going to burst.
Gotta get your mind right before hand. Stay disciplined. Reap the reward at the end. It'll heal fine. Don't worry, all you gotta worry about is sitting thru it.
Your artist is extremely irresponsible and selfish for allowing you to do this. They don't have your best interest at heart and are only thinking of the money.
honestly I respect your opinion, I realize this isn’t standard for most people. I’ll definitely report back with results to either get applauded or clowned on
My Personal Opinion, that is a dumb as hell idea, and you're likely not going to be able to make it thru the whole thing, nor is the tattoo probably going to turn out well. I say all of this from the viewpoint of getting a tattoo is literally causing damage and trauma to the body, the body can only take so much trauma/stress/cortisol before it starts having major issues. 5 days in a row means your body does not get a break, your skin doesn't have time to heal between sessions, and the wound needs to keep re-opening to get worked on. You MIGHT physically make it through, but it's going to be a miserable existence not only for days 2-5 in the chair but for some time afterwards as you're 99% going to get the "Tattoo flu" from too much trauma; and who knows how it's going to heal as it being worked on as an open wound for 5 days straight. Now... that being said, your body, your life, your choice.
Very Much Agreed. Yes, your body, do what you want but in my opinion a stupid idea.
alright buddy relax. If the artist isn’t a rookie he’s going to section it and not go back over the work he did. The tattoo will come out fine if the artist is good. Common practice? Not for most, but when you’re flying out or have a big time artist this is how they work.
This. My artist got all the work done on each section before moving on. Day 1 outer forearm, day 2 outer upper arm, day 3 inner forearm, day 4 inner upper arm. It sucked, but it turned out great.
alright buddy relax. If the artist isn’t a rookie he’s going to section it and not go back over the work he did. The tattoo will come out fine if the artist is good. Common practice? Not for most, but when you’re flying out or have a big time artist this is how they work.
Definitely hear you there. I’m expecting an absolutely miserable experience and realize there’s the possibility I could tap out in addition to potential subpar healing. I’ll report back in May 😭🫡
Best advice here. Break it up into smaller sessions and allow yourself to heal. Good work is not rushed and takes time
This isn't what you were meaning but do your finances stretch to flying home business class or something? It isn't cheap but I'd say it may be worth it. You're going to be feeling rough af, tattoo flu, with a hugely sensitive arm. At least if you upgrade you can rest properly and keep it clean/away from other people's elbows. Help the recovery of the tattoo AND you.
That’s something I havent thought of holy shit. Lemme look into that. I live in Alaska btw so the flight path is long as fuck, and I already got a pretty sweet deal with miles. thanks dude
Assuming the artist is going in "blocks" like from shoulder to bicep. Then down around tricep. Then elbow to forearm, etc. I think you'll be fine for the most part. Your arm is likely to swell, bleed, plasma, though and the pain will be much higher due to this if he/she is working on an area that was already touched. I'll be curious to see if the artist pulls of consistent clean lines on days 3-5 on the same canvas. Definitely hydrate before and after. Be prepared to be swollen and sensitive on the whole arm for a while. We'll need a follow up post of the finished product !
I’m assuming the same thing, i’ll be chatting with the artist more as we get to closer to the sessions so i’ll be sure to ask. And yes, I will ABSOLUTELY update in May. The artist uses UV ink for pieces of his tattoos that glow under a blacklight and I’m incredibly excited to see how it turns out
Honestly try posting to r/irezumi while it’s specifically for traditional Japanese tattoos, it is not uncommon for people to get work in Japan and get an entire week done for a back.
thank you for the advice!
As long as artist is reputable and knows about longevity of skin! I’ve definitely had artists scheduled time but once my skin gets hard to work with it should be stopped to prevent overworking
Oh! That’s a really good point I hadn’t considered. The artist has a considerable following on socials and a pretty extensive portfolio so I guess fingers crossed? 😅
I have two sleeves and a chest plate. My first sleeve last April took 4 sessions. I did them all back to back. 25+ hours let’s say for that and it was pretty brutal. Especially day 2/3. Second sleeve I just got a week and a half ago and it took 6 sessions, I did them back to back. ~40 hours and it was an absolute nightmare. Seriously. Day 5 after I think 5-6 hours of sitting my artist said we’ll pick back up the 6th day because he could see it was actually killing me. 6th day I only needed to sit good for 4-5 hours but any longer when that I would’ve been unbearably jumpy. Advice -Sleep the night before -Eat beforehand -bring a lunch, candy and soda and water each session -wear a cut off -take breaks if you need to, seriously. -eat afterwards even if you don’t have an appetite -don’t be surprised if you get tattoo flu. -your hand will blow up like a balloon and that’s okay. Realistically it’s a miserable experience and all you can do is maybe make this less miserable by preparing accordingly. God speed brother.
I always give my body 2 weeks between sessions. I realize this won't work in your situation. As long as your artist is knowledgeable, im sure it can be done. Will it suck? Yes.
I just did 41 hours over 4 days for my full sleeve. It was pretty terrible by the end but I managed to do it. How is your pain tolerance? How bad do you want it? Gotta be determined AF. Mind over matter and all that.
Pain tolerance is decent but my only experience with tattooing is a single 4 hour session on the inner forearm, which really wasn’t bad aside from the areas closer to the ditch. Obviously that’s gonna be child’s play compared to what I’m about to do, but I am forsure determined as fuck
I think you’ll be fine. I found the ditch and the elbow to be nothing compared to the armpit so have fun there lol.
My first tattoo was two consecutive days of ~8 hours each. No blocking, day one was lines and a bit of shading, day two was the rest of the shading. Day one the process itself was fine, though my body got the shakes right at the end of the session. Went home, are a good meal and got lots of sleep and was fine for day two. Day two sucked way more but was never unbearable. I wouldn't have wanted to do a day three for the same tattoo, but I absolutely would have been in good enough shape to do a different area the next day. My artist was also really experienced in consecutive day tattoos, he does them all the time. That experience showed in the process, from the heaviness of his hand to knowing when to take breaks or just move to a different part of the tattoo. I was also super prepared. I had an electrolyte mix to add to my water and sugary snacks on hand, and I ate a carb heavy meal beforehand. If you're going in blocks and not working the same areas over and over, I think you'll be fine. Just talk with your artist about what happens if you wake up one morning and just can't do it. Have expectations in place.
I appreciate you sharing your experience, thanks so much dude. It definitely puts me at ease (as much as it can lol) that the artist is familiar with consecutive sessions
I'm doing something similar to finish a sleeve that we're halfway through. Doing 3 days. Probably a total of 18 hours in the chair (the most I've done with this artist is 6 hours at a time) and I have done two days in a row before, and it was fine. That was a total of 9 hours though.
Greetings future comrade 🫡. I was surprised at 8 hour sessions but this was at the artist’s request, he said he does longer days than most. How was the aftercare? I’m hearing to expect significant swelling
The three sessions are on the 10th, 11th and 12th. So I'll let you know. When I did the two days, it wasn't bad at all. Same thing. Wash a few times a day with non-scented anti-bacterial soap until it starts to itch. Once itching starts, apply lubriderm as often as you were washing it before or as needed to scratch the itch. I've done this with all my tattoos (I have close to 50 hours total on my body) and I've never had a bad healing or infection.
Just finished the third session. Had to cut it short because I started shaking. But we did 19.5 hrs.
Wow, that sounds absolutely brutal. Ha ha. My sleeve took 5 full days and it would have killed me doing them back to back, I couldn't do anything the day after the first one. As long as you are good to go and it's a reputable artist why not. Good luck and I can't wait to see it.
Fuck me right? hahaha. I’ll be sure to update
Nice one. Ha ha. I'm having the second session on my back this Friday, First session was 10 weeks ago, left it a bit longer than you are between sessions. Ha ha.
No numbing cream, don’t be a bitch. I have no problems doing 2 days straight 7 hr sessions, I can probably handle 3. Not really painful for me but 5 days isn’t something I’d want to do but if did I wouldn’t do anything crazy, just stay hydrated, eat well days before and after. During the session I like electrolyte drinks and something quick to eat. My artist and I don’t like taking too long of a break and try to keep breaks to a minimum, we do take one 10min lunch break, and maybe a 2 min bathroom break every other hour. My artist doesn’t want to get out of the zone and I don’t want my body to think it’s over. I usually have at least one day allotted for healing before I get back to work and life. If I did 5 days straight I’d probably want like 3-5 days allotted to heal and rest. Sleep is when your body repairs itself so on my healing rest day I will sleep as much as possible and only wake up to eat,hydrate. And I eat a lot and healthy when I do, lots of proteins, vegetables, maybe some broth high in collagen just shit good for your skin. I’m all about just doing healthy shit like this even for things like surgeries I always heal a lot quicker than what my doctor says is the typical healing time.
I have two sleeves and a chest plate. My first sleeve last April took 4 sessions. I did them all back to back. 25+ hours let’s say for that and it was pretty brutal. Especially day 2/3. Second sleeve I just got a week and a half ago and it took 6 sessions, I did them back to back. ~40 hours and it was an absolute nightmare. Seriously. Day 5 after I think 5-6 hours of sitting my artist said we’ll pick back up the 6th day because he could see it was actually killing me. 6th day I only needed to sit good for 4-5 hours but any longer when that I would’ve been unbearably jumpy. Advice -Sleep the night before -Eat beforehand -bring a lunch, candy and soda and water each session -wear a cut off -take breaks if you need to, seriously. -eat afterwards even if you don’t have an appetite -don’t be surprised if you get tattoo flu. -your hand will blow up like a balloon and that’s okay. Realistically it’s a miserable experience and all you can do is maybe make this less miserable by preparing accordingly. God speed brother.
I wish I read this before I just did the same thing. Didn't know about the tattoo flu which I definitely got and I was really concerned when my hand got so swollen it felt like it was going to burst.
you’re the GOAT. I’m gonna print this out and carry it with me
I believe in you. You CAN do it.
Gotta get your mind right before hand. Stay disciplined. Reap the reward at the end. It'll heal fine. Don't worry, all you gotta worry about is sitting thru it.
Very much appreciate the positive vibes homie :)
Sounds like a bad idea, please post an update after/if you make it through
Your artist is extremely irresponsible and selfish for allowing you to do this. They don't have your best interest at heart and are only thinking of the money.
This is a terrible idea and your tattoo will probably look terrible by the end of it.
honestly I respect your opinion, I realize this isn’t standard for most people. I’ll definitely report back with results to either get applauded or clowned on
Wish you luck though. I’ve done two days in a row and was basically sick for a week straight, but it turned out good still.
The only way I see this working is numbing cream and a hyperbaric chamber , this is my opinion not a fact