Sailor Jerry's Tattoo Stencils [Paperback]

Kate Hellenbrand (Author), Matty Jankowski (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 30, 2002

American tattoo master Sailor Jerry Collins of Hawaii is best known for his remarkable tattoo designs, blending the fluidity of Asian motifs into classic American tattoo imagery. Until now, most of Sailor Jerrys work has been controlled by a handful of collectors, seen only at museum or art gallery exhibitions or in short-run, self-published books. Here is a sizeable portion of Sailor Jerrys stencils, the newest tattoo collectible, spanning his tattoo career, from the 1940s to the early 1970s. The basic line work of hundreds of his staple and surprisingly beautiful designspin-ups, roses, bluebirds, hearts, and banners, and Jerrys infamous military/political cartoons. The stencils themselves were handcut in celluloid, vinyl or acetate sheets by the master himself for use during his day-to-day thriving tattoo trade in downtown Honolulu. They are, in the best sense, permanent tattoos carved in plastic, enduring through time. In their original condition, most carry residual charcoal dust from their last use. All are signed by Jerry with one of his several distinctive signatures. This is the only book of its kinda workbook for artists, and a design catalog for folk art historians. The value of the stencils is included, along with descriptions of stencils and their usage and a glossary of tattoo terminology.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. (August 30, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764315625
• ISBN-13: 978-0764315626
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a must for any tattoo fan, March 23, 2005

By 

Jennifer Stark "Jenni" (Kansas City, Misery USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sailor Jerry's Tattoo Stencils (Paperback)

This wonderful book not only includes the images of Sailor Jerry's celluloid stencils but also an overview of Sailor Jerry himself and the process and growth that the tattoo industry sustained under his keen eye. The stencil images are priceless and a true must for any true tattoo enthusiast or Sailor Jerry fan. As a bonus, the pages are perferated for easy tracing or even framing. A wonderful book.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every tattoo artists sweet dream, January 14, 2008

By 

Christopher Smith "Daddytat2" (Gaithersburg, Maryland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sailor Jerry's Tattoo Stencils (Paperback)

I feel that every single tattoo artist,inspiring tattoo artist, or any kind of artists and even art historian should,must own this book. I will admit that when I read the first 15 pages cause thats all there is with any writting on. I had a tear in both my eyes. Every single page back to back is covered with Jerrys tattoo stencils. Also every page is in a very heavy duty paper and they are perforated so you can take each page out and laminate them and use in your shop or portfolio of flash to use for you customer/clients. Every page is full of history. I highly recomend this book and the otherjerrys stencil books they are a very big must have specialy for you buisness/shop you will be so excited to look at the tats not to mention the money you will make from the stencils. I noticed that every single Tattoo magazine has countless tattoos specialy the women are covered in this art. I recomend this book in a big way.
You are very welcome for the big tip.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tattoo designs - a real surprise, November 9, 2006

By 

R. Deshazer (Venice, Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sailor Jerry's Tattoo Stencils (Paperback)

I purchased Sailor Jerry's tattoo designs books for my son, who is a very picky kind of guy when it comes to tattoo designs. He was really surprised and delighted with this book. It is really part of the history of the tattoo - specifically the designs popular for the "traditional" folks who always liked having tattoos when they weren't popular with the younger crowd they decorate today. Sailor Jerry's designs are still "in", and many artists have started their craft doing designs that Sailor Jerry created. To me, this is really a part of the history of art, whether you want to put it on your skin or not. We highly recommend this collection of designs for anyone who wants to see variety - not just the tribal stuff that one sees so much of today.