SPC: ModCon One (1999)

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How do you write an article about an event so private, so secretive, that it’s guests were made to sign nondisclosure agreements? Easy. Just be one of the ones who didn’t sign. Over the last fourteen years, the ModCon events have been shrouded in mystery. Fight Club jokes aplenty- the first rule of Modcon is that you don’t talk about ModCon and so on.

But today, we’re going to do just that. In a continuing series of articles on my life in the modern Body Modification community I’ve decided to shed a little light on ModCon; where the idea first came from, the 1998 event that never happened and more.

Obviously there will be a lot left out for the sake of discretion (as well as keeping some of the mystery) but if you’re a geek for this sort of thing…  read on. Continue reading

Dotwork Scarification

I shared this tattoo when I posted a gallery of Iestyn Flye’s work on ModBlog (click here if you don’t remember — it is in regards to the scarification seminar he and Ron Garza are hosting that you don’t want to miss if you’re a London-area professional in the field), but I also wanted I’ll just share this wider shot of Dom here, because I also really like her dotwork scars. I can imagine an entire body done in these, and have seen such things in Africa of course, but not as often in a “modern” context. Beautiful work.

dotwork

PS. Ignore the “smartphone” on the picture, it is only of use if you’re trying to track her down on Facebook!

Support BME: Update

Thanks to your support BME has surpassed the voting threshold needed to be considered for the small business grant!

It will be a while before we know if we won the grant, but we just wanted to extend a huge thank-you to everyone who voted.  There are still 2 days left, and more votes won’t hurt, so if you haven’t yet taken a moment to vote for BME, you can do so by simply visiting www.missionsmallbusiness.com.  On the bottom right you’ll see a button labeled “Log in & Support”.  The site will link to your facebook, so you don’t need to create a profile of any kind.  Once you’ve signed in, search for “BME” and click the “VOTE” button for BME.com.  That’s it!

So again, from all of us here at BME, thank you so much for your continued support.

p.s. The t-shirts from the fundraiser for Ari are being printed right now and should be back from the printers in the first week of July.  So expect to see them in your mailbox sometime after that.

Mission: Support BME

As many of you know, BME is a small business.  With only 5 employees, BME still manages to be the world’s largest online tattoo, piercing and body modification community, historical archive and educational resource.  While there have been some changes over the years, most notably the gallery redesign, and the upgrades to IAM, not to mention staff changes, BME is still up and running.  For those that have been paying attention to Rachel’s IAM page, you’ll recall that the site redesign took about 3 years longer than was predicted, and cost a lot more than was estimated.  We’ve since gotten rid of the company that was screwing us over and brought in a new programmer that has been working day and night to address as many issues as possible.  Now with us having such a small staff, it’s obviously a lot harder for us to keep up with the changes that you’ve come to expect from your social networking sites. Now if BME were to receive a large sum of cash, we’d be able to bring in more programmers and get the features that you want to you a lot sooner.

So what can you do to help?  Well, we’re not asking for your money, but we are asking you to support us as we’ve applied for a small business grant.  Showing your support is extremely simple.

First, visit www.missionsmallbusiness.com.  On the bottom right you’ll see a button labeled “Log in & Support”.  The site will link to your facebook, so you don’t need to create a profile of any kind.  Once you’ve signed in, search for “BME” and click the “VOTE” button for BME.com.  That’s it!

We need at least 250 votes to be in consideration for the grant, so be sure to ask your friends to vote as well.  The more votes we get, the better our chances of winning.  If BME receives the grant, you can expect a lot of the changes that we’ve been working on happening considerably faster.  So put this on your IAM pages, your Facebook wall, and your Twitter feeds!  Get the word out, and help support BME!  Voting ends June 30th, so vote today!

“2012 Classic Logo T-Shirt” Fundraiser for Ari Larratt

Hey Modbloggers, a member of the BME Family is ill and needs our help.

Ari Larratt is living with her mom, Rachel, in the US and has come down with some kind of illness that is making it hard for her body to digest food.  As it stands right now, she’s going through a lot of tests to find out what is wrong, and the medical bills are already starting to pile up.  Now because Ari is living in the US, everything is coming out of pocket from both Rachel and Shannon.  The bills are already approaching $7000 and they still have yet to get a diagnosis.

So, to help raise funds for Ari, Shannon has designed a brand-new BME logo shirt.  It’s going to be sold in the BMEShop for a limited time, with all proceeds going to Ari’s medical bills.  The design itself is basically an updated take of Scott Fox’s original BME logo, mixed with the Calm logo, and incorporates modifications that weren’t around when the designs were originally created.

You can order the shirt right here.  We’ve set the price of the shirt at $20, with the option to donate more if you wish.  We’ll also be sending along a bunch of BME stickers in addition to your shirt, depending on how much you are able to give.  But even if you aren’t able to give any extra, just getting one shirt will go to help a sick little girl get better.

Also, if anyone has any information on health insurance plans for children only, please get in contact with Rachel via the BMEShop e-mail address (shop@bme.com).  Her insurance won’t cover Ari, so she’s looking for a plan that is just for children.

Moving Sale!

So the BMEShop is packing up and relocating at the end of June.  This means that we’re putting almost everything on sale so we don’t have to carry as much.  What does this mean for you?  It means that from today on, you’ll be able to get 30% off everything (except t-shirts and anesthetics).  Every piece of jewelry, all the tools, and even the books and dvds are all 30% off!  Just use the coupon code “movingsale” (without the quotes)

You’ll be able to get items like Horiyoshi III’s “One Points”

How about some Carved Amber from Reign Custom Design

Or maybe you’re running low on play piercing needles

In order to recieve the discount, just type in the coupon code “movingsale” (without the quotes) when you check out, and you’ll automatically get 30% off all eligible items.

Diablo Organics Jewelry – On Sale Now!

That’s right, we’re having another sale on Diablo Organics Ornate Jewelry, this time everything is 20% OFF!!!  That means all of the Diablo Organics Ornate Buffalo Horn, Ornate Wood, Feather, and Brass Patina Jewelry is now 20% off!  In order to get the discount simply type in the code: 20offdiablo when you go to check out.  It’s that simple.  Take a look at some of the items on sale now.

The sale ends March 22nd, so get yours today!

Because you asked for it..

The BMEShop gets requests for items all the time.  Sometimes we can fulfill those requests, sometimes we can’t.  So when Rachel started getting requests for the jewelry featured in this post last year, she set out to make it happen.  Well, it took a bit of time, but the waiting paid off, you can now get these hearts from the BMEShop!

We have 2 types of hearts, 18ga bendable niobium hearts, and 14/16ga stainless steel bendable hearts.  The niobium ones come in a variety of colours, including Ice Blue, Green, Pink, Yellow, Light Blue, Purple, Dark Blue, Teal, Dream Blue, Rainbow, and High Polish.  Here’s the pink one..

And here are a couple more colours.

The larger gauge ones only come in stainless steel, as you can see in this picture.

So head on over to the BMEShop now to get your own hearts!

Oh, and don’t forget to check out the t-shirt section while you’re there.  Rachel just added MORE DESIGNS over the weekend, including the ever popular “Always Wear Lube“.

Shirts! Shirts Everywhere!

We’ve got some big news about the BMEShop today!  The t-shirt printer is working again, which means that the BMEShop is now back in stock with over 75 designs.  On top of that, expect to see over 100 more added in the coming weeks!

Here’s some of the ones that are now back in stock:

The list goes on and on, so head on over to the apparel gallery to see them all!

Because there have been so many designs in the past, getting them all ready to be printed is going to take some time.  So if you don’t see your favorite shirt listed, send the shop and e-mail with your requests so we can get that one back in stock right away!  Can’t remember the older designs?  Check out the BME Wiki page!

In more shop news, we’ve had some requests for cheaper international shipping.  So we’re going to be running a trial on “International First Class Mail”.  Keep in mind that this cheaper option will not come with a tracking number, and may take up to 4-6 weeks to arrive.  Due to the nature of this shipment, missing packages will not be the responsibility of the BMEShop.  So keep this in mind if you wish to try out the cheaper shipping options.

BMEShop ’til you drop!!

There’s only 4 days left on the Diablo Organics blowout sale!  You have until midnight on February 12th to get 40% off every purchase of Diablo Organics ornate jewelry. All you have to do is use the coupon code 40offdiablo when you check out!

What exactly is on sale?  Everything on this page (except the plugs and tunnels).

This includes items like this pair of solid brass anotomica weights:

Valentine’s Day is coming up, and what better gift to present your significant other than a pair of hearts.

Looking for something a little thicker?  How about these water buffalo horn borneo swans?

Act quick because the sale is ending soon!  Only 4 days left!  Remember to use the code 40offdiablo when you check out!