Fine Art Friday

Friday again. This weeks feature is from Japanese artist Yumika Kayukawa. Her work is a unique mix of Eastern and Western styles. Her pin-ups have a pop art / fashion look that she very deftly mixes with animals and fantastic patterns. Her paintings have a unique energy.

This painting is from a show that showcased the art of James Bond. Her painting features scenes from "You only live twice". I love her style, I also like the way she captured the look on Agent Tanaka's face as he looks on to Bond being washed. Anything for Queen and Country, right?
http://www.sweetyumiko.com/

We also own one of the originals from the collection entitled "Masks" from tattoo artist, lettering maestro, and sneaker designer- B.J. Betts. The piece has some great depth in person. One day I will feature some of B.J.'s sneakers...we'll have a Footwear Friday.

http://www.bjbetts.com/

Pulse Crew Goes To Hell

Half of the Pulse Crew is headed out this weekend to the Hell City Tattoo Fest in Killumbus, Ohio. Our pal Durb puts on this show and we feel it sets the standard of the modern tattoo convention. If you are in the area stop by, they always have something new and exciting. Make sure you say "Hi" to the Jessica, Alex and Katie they will be working under the banner that says BAR. Drink up, but please be on time Monday - the web orders will be backed up by then.

http://www.hellcity.com/

Stickers May Be Askew

We had a guest worker at Pulse the other day. She worked really hard and did a great job labeling our spring sets. So if you get a bag where the sticker is a bit askew, know that it was made with extra love.

Fine Art Friday

It's Friday, so it's fine art time. Today we showcase a painting from tattoo artist Jime Litwalk. This painting hangs at the bottom of the stairs so we see it it every day. From time to time I wonder, what's with the room key. Is it a honeymoon thing? Is it an invite? Did something terrible happen in room 13? I guess I could ask Jime but wheres the fun in that. This piece is big 4' x 3'.

http://www.jimelitwalk.com/

This painting is from Pin-up artist Marcus Gray. Marcus does fetish and pin-up work similar to Olivia. I actually acquired this piece from Olivia's dealer in Beverly Hills. I liked this piece because it wasn't as polished as most of his stuff and it has a great art nouveau vibe. Good stuff.

http://www.thepinupfiles.com/gray.html

"Build Your Own" Workshop

We are happy to announce that coming this fall we will be putting on an all new Pulse Workshop. We are going to debut it at the Paradise Tattoo Gathering http://www.tattoogathering.com/ in Sept. this year. The workshop will be a hands on machine building workshop with myself, Tim Brewer and Alex Benoit. We we work with you through every element of building a machine. Each subsystem of the machine will be examined and we will tell you what we know about what works for us and why. When building machines you need to have a checklist in your head of things you are looking to achieve and avoid. Anyone can bolt a machine together, but not everyone can be a machine builder. Also for the first time ever we will be providing you with any of our Pulse machines in pieces for you to build with us. This will be a fun and informative workshop. I find that every time I am able to sit down and build with someone, I always learn something also. Our tentative date is Friday the 18th from Noon on.
Last year the show was fantastic, it has a great venue at the Jiminey Peak resort, a ton of seminars, panels, and great artists. This is in no way an average convention, it is more of a tattoo retreat for those who want to learn, connect with other artists, hear people talk about the industry and relax and refuel. I highly recommend it, and I would love to see you at the workshop. The sign up is available in our Pulse gear section or you can give us a call 888.824.5529 - the price is $300. We are only going to have a dozen spots so be sure to sign up soon. I am also hoping to have a special guest builder with us, we will see!

http://www.tattoogathering.com/

Welcome to Fine Art Friday

As promised we have created a new feature entitled "Fine Art Friday", to showcase our in-house art collection. We've had the great fortune over the years to be able to procure and collect some great originals. Hands down the best part of this business is the art, so we have filled our work space with some great works.
Each week we hope to bring you a couple of selections from the walls at Pulse, and like when Dorothy landed in Oz, they will be brought to you in full technicolor. We hope you enjoy the exhibit.
We open with a favorite from artist Shawn Barber. I love that someone else saw the beauty in the process and tools of tattooing. http://www.sdbarber.com/
Los Angeles artist Greg "Craola" Simkins has become one of the hottest painters in the country. Hands down the most creative person working right now. Want to get inspired, check him out -http://www.imscared.com/

The Black Pulse Card

.Our all new Pulse Gift Card is really something special. It's a laser engraved black aluminum card, much like the Black Amex card the rich and famous have. We can create them in any amount and you don't have to be rich or famous. You just have to tattoo. Now available at the webstore or give us a call 888.824.5529

Under The Watchful Eye

This eye sculpture resides in our production room. I was watching it the other day and I begin to think it was watching me. It was created for us by artist Tom Strom. I think it's the second pupil that is most unsettling. We have quite a large collection of original art here at Pulse, and we are thinking about creating a weekly feature here on the blog to share it. Stay tuned.

Sometimes It's Good To Get Schooled

In life, and especially in business, it's good to get your clock cleaned every now and then by somebody you respect. It keeps you on your toes and helps you to focus when someone else is so on top of their game. When you see something great, it makes you want to produce something great. One of the cats in this business who has done this to me, and for me is Soba. We have known each other for as long as we have both been building machines, in fact I used to make Soba's first coils. We have helped each other out a bunch through the years. The other day I got a gift from Soba that made me remember to get back to work. He had sent me one of his new, unreleased -super limited Zipper aluminum liner machines. It's a nice light weight buzzer that has a super cool lasered graphic on it. But the packaging, to me, was the lesson of the day. Soba has created an amazing piece of art with the box. Custom graphics, hand painted box, lasered, die cut, signed, and numbered, black egg crate foam, the works. Damn. When people put such an effort into the box, you know 10X that went into the product. It shows how much he cares about his machines, his company, his clients, and his rep. It made me a little queasy, now I have to head back to the drawing board and think up something great. It's alright, it's why I show up every day, for the chance to make something great. Thanks Soba, for everything. See for yourself, these are not going to be available long, keep checking in for the release -http://www.workhorseirons.com/

The New Executive

The newly converted Executive frames are now in stock. We are converting our entire line over to our new vise system. Almost everyone who has tried it has had a positive experience. I am also well aware that over the years there was the occasion artist who did not enjoy our Pulse pivot vise system. Please let them know, the new system rocks. I think the Specialist may be on deck, we might also trim the side plate and compact the frame a bit while we are tinkering. I have had some interesting conversations lately about ways to shave weight, we'll see.

Hoodies Are Moving.

Just a note to let people know that the Hoodies are moving. They are a limited edition of 100 pieces, and we have moved almost half of them. So if you have been thinking about it, don't wait too long.