Your Tattoo Won't Look Like This Forever

A tattoo can look incredible fresh—but what happens eight years later? Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, and Gabe “G-Money” Pantoja sit down with Daniela Sagel and Gordo Letters to look at tiny tattoos years after they were made. Martin Dobson's hexagon collection gets the conversation going: a Twix bar, a Kobe Bryant jersey, and a mix of styles give the crew plenty to debate about detail, contrast, scale, and aging. Then it gets personal. When did being a tattoo artist also mean being your own photographer, videographer, and full-time content creator? The crew argues about posting your process, making mistakes in public, and whether better equipment settles the old-school-versus-modern tattooing debate. Some tattoos hold up better than expected—and nobody agrees on everything. Would you choose a tattoo differently after seeing it years later? Tell us in the comments. In this episode: • Fresh versus healed tattoos and the hexagon collection • Why artists are tired of documenting everything • Creative freedom, social media, and audience pressure • Tipping screens, an income-and-tattoos chart, and tattooed travel • Modern equipment, old-school experience, and online tattoo courses FOLLOW EVERYONE Jon Mesa —   / jonmesatattoos   Matt Truiano —   / matttruiano   Gabe “G-Money” Pantoja —   / gabetattoos   Daniela Sagel —   / danielasageltattoo   Gordo Letters —   / gordoletters   Honest Tattooer —   / honesttattooer   https://www.honesttattooer.com/ REFERENCES MENTIONED Martin Dobson's fresh/healed tattoo comparison —   / ddbbav8iyzw   Pew Research Center's 2023 tattoo survey — https://www.pewresearch.org/short-rea... David Sylvester archival clip and context — https://austinkleon.com/2023/05/07/ar... Watch the after-show and support Honest Tattooer:   / honesttattooer   Subscribe and send this episode to a tattooer who has something to say about healed work. CHAPTERS 00:00 Meet Daniela Sagel and Gordo Letters 01:53 The barefoot guy at the Bowery shop 03:19 One leg, a collection of hexagon tattoos 04:31 Tiny realism: the Kobe jersey and Twix bar 06:05 What healed tattoos can teach tattooers 08:10 Seven and eight years later 10:43 Fine lines, bolder whiskers, and aging 12:25 A nine-year-old portrait 13:12 Artists are tired of making content 16:20 Artists need room to make bad work 18:36 Making mistakes in front of an audience 20:19 How far will you go for social media? 21:34 Tattooer, photographer, and videographer 23:25 Do it yourself—and tip me 25:10 What does income have to do with tattoos? 27:59 The guests' experiences being tattooed in Japan 29:57 Generations and changing tattoo tastes 32:29 Tattoos, beards, and the workplace 34:19 Old-school versus modern tattooing 37:03 Better tools, same human skin 39:44 Reaction bait and online tattoo schools 40:23 More students doesn't mean better teaching 41:33 Tattooing after the boom 44:08 What gatekeeping got wrong 44:47 Wrapping up and the Patreon after-show