Friday, April 29, 2011

Step 2: The Consultation

This is what you do when you're considering an artist or you've already decided who you want to go. You get to meet the artist! How exciting, no pressure but it is like a first date. This is the first time you're meeting someone who may or may not be giving you something permanent that will be on your body for the rest of your life. Be warned, I overthink things on a regular basis but it is a big deal. If they're an asshole, feel free to walk out. You want to feel comfortable with the person. You don't want to worry about feeling judged or have them put you down. Even if they are the most talented artist you've found and they're a complete turd and put down your idea you don't want them to tattoo you and they don't want your business. There are way too many nice people who want your business to go to someone who is rude.

The first time I ever walked into a shop to get my first tattoo, the script "Not all who wander are lost." On my chest, the artist said that he could not do it the way I wanted it and he could do it with huge letters going across my whole chest. So I took my business elsewhere to someone who could do what I wanted. Now I'm perfectly happy with what I have.

I did learn a lot. I learned to stick to what I believe in, and accept constructive criticism when it is constructive. This artist was not constructive and made me feel like an idiot. Now when I go into shops, I always bring a lot of refernces, try to be as clear as possible, and straight forward. However, you have to remember that this is their profession and they probably have the best advice on what looks good on skin. They will offer advice, but they shouldn't tell you what to get where, unless you tell them to do whatever they want wherever they want.

Some keys things to ask them about are:

Pricing. You will be seriously screwed if you set up the appointment, get the tattoo, and then you can't afford it. They will be able to give you a price range or an hourly rate. This is the most important question to ask, in my opinion. Prepare to bring more than they say just so you can have plenty of money to tip too.

How long it will take. I usually try to leave the whole day open but if there are other things planned I suggest going after whatever you already have planned. You will be a strange mixture of sore and exhausted but also excited. This is another incredibly good question.

How many friends. I usually either bring one or none to the actual appointment, but I have a couple and usually feel really comfortable. I take someone to the consultation to help me decide if I really want to go to that artist for that tattoo.

What to wear. I suggest being comfortable, but it depends on what you're getting and what time of year. Don't wear anything tight cause you'll be uncomfortable.

What to do and what not to do before the day of the appointment. In posts soon to come, I will offer my advice but I am not a professional artist.

Getting a Tattoo Step 1: Finding An Artist/Shop

So! You know what you want to get. Now what? So many people have tattoos now but where do they go to get them? I honed in my artist-finding-skills when I lived in NYC. I used to walk around and stumble across shops all the time. Here you could drive around but the shops are more spread out. Don't worry, I plan on answering any question's and concern you may have.

For starters, there will be weekly profiles on local artist's and shops coming very soon. For the time being, there are a few of my favorite shops listed in the blogroll to the right of the screen.

Talented artist's come first. I strongly recommend looking at an artist's portfolio online before you go in. If you hear amazing things about an artist but they don't have an online portfolio, just go into the shop and they will definitely have one. Be sure to look at their skill level, content, and consistency.

First, you have to be sure that the artist can do what you're asking. This isn't usually a big deal for most tattoos, but there are tattoos for everything imaginable. Sometimes tattoos require a lot of different color's, or a lot of detail.





That is a compass rose, on my dear friend Anna Laytham's wrist. She came to me last year asking about tattoo artist's in New York City. I told her it would be hard to fit so much detail in such a small area, but after digging around we found Bart Bingham at Adorned. We went into the shop and Anna told the shop boy she wanted a lot of detail in a small area and he sent her to Bart saying that he was the perfect man for the job. So we looked at his portfolio and almost the entire thing was tons of detail in small areas.











Shon Lindauer was the perfect artist for my wolf in sheep's clothing tattoo. I had been a huge fan of his traditional work for over a year before I finally decided to go into the shop and present my idea. The fact that he was really excited on it just made me more excited to get it.









Before I start rambling into oblivion, my point is that you have to find the right artist for the job. So when you're looking at artist's work you have to realize that what you want may not be their thing, but it will definitely be someone else's. Some artist's enjoy fitting a lot of detail into a small area, which may drive some other artist's crazy. Some artist's really like old school traditional style work with a lot of bold color. Some artist's really love tattooing giant monsters on large areas of skin. Some artist's only like to do black and gray. If they generally like doing those different type's, they're probably really good at them because they did a lot of them.

That already covered most of the content part of it too. Why would you even bother going in to a shop to talk to an artist who strictly does black and gray, if you want a large colorful tiger with a landscape behind it on your back? You get the idea.


Artist's who have been in the business a couple years will already have consistency, but this will tell you how new to tattooing an artist is. If they have developed they're own personal style, they're really good and you know what you'll get going into it. It doesn't have to be the same girl on the side of the thigh over and over, but if they have the same style or same look to a tattoo where you can see a tattoo and go, "Oh that's a Shon Lindauer tattoo." Then you're looking in the right direction.

Next, Step 2: The Consultation.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Introduction to Getting a Tattoo

Wanting to get your first tattoo but don't have a clue where to start? Last post we covered the different styles of tattoos. Now that we've covered that, you should have a clearer idea of what you're looking for. I will start a 6 part series on the process of getting a tattoo. It will cover everything you need to know before going in, while sitting in the chair, and when you leave.

Step 1: Find an artist/shop - This post will help point you in the right direction of what to look for in the right artist for what you want to have done.

Step 2: The Consultation - So you've found a couple artist's that you really like, next is the consultation. This is when you go meet the artist that you really like and discuss what you want to have done and to see if the tattoo and artist will be a good fit - and most importantly, that you like the artist too.

Step 3: The Day Of - A walk through of before you go into the shop the day of your appointment.

Step 4: Sitting in the Chair - Tips to deal with pain and calming the nerves.

Step 5: Tipping/Paying - Ways to keep everyone involved happy.

Step 6: Healing - Every tattoo artist will offer aftercare advice, but everyone heals their tattoos differently. These are some different suggestions in case what the artist recommends doesn't work out. We'll also cover how you'll know the aftercare remedy isn't working since it's different for everyone.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Styles

        Have you ever seen a tattoo that kind-of looks like a cartoon? What about just thick black designs? Or something you immediately know what it is? These are different tattoo styles; traditional, realistic, tribal, and  black and gray. Different parts of the country or world give them different names but they all have the same meaning.

Sailor Jerry flash by Andy Howl

        American-traditional are inspired by the places American's have been and experiences they've brought back with them. A pioneer in the style, Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins, created this style from gathering information from his clients and inspiration from Japanese style.  He is especially famous for his flash, which most famously includes sparrows, anchors, and of course, pin-up women. This style usually includes very simple and basic lines with bold colors and shading. There isn't a lot of technicality to it and is meant to be this way. Although Sailor Jerry is the father of American-traditional, today his flash is everywhere and still inspires this style of tattooing.



        Ed Hardy took a new spin on mentor, Sailor Jerry, to create a more realistic style. Daniel Higgs and Freddy "Mr. Niceguy" Corbin worked at Hardy's San Francisco custom-tattoo's-only shop. They worked to give their clients their original piece of art to wear on their skin. Nowadays, artist's like Mike DeVries take the level of realism to a whole new level with color portraits.

Photo by Diane Mansfield

       Tribal tattoos began in tribes all over the world to show what tribes that person was in or what rank within the tribe. The American father of neo-tribalism is Leo Zulueta. He includes Polynesian traditions in modernized designs. Most American artists have moved away from focusing on tribal, but Zulueta still carries the same traditions and belief's he's always worked with.

Jack Rudy



   

Black and gray style is exactly what it sounds like. The tattoos are generally towards the more realistic style and use only black ink, but not in the same way tribal artist's do. They use shading techniques to make the ink a deep black or fade it out to make various shades of gray. Jack Rudy is considered the father of black and gray and single-needle tattooing. This style is still heavily used today. New York artist Thomas Hooper doesn't strictly do black and gray but it seems to be what he does the most. Hooper tattooed the twins with almost identical tattoos shown above.

Horiyoshi

Japanese style is traditional to Japan. It originated by the Edo firemen getting these body suit tattoos to protect them from danger. Some samurai warriors also got body suits to protect them. They usually have koi fish, tiger's, dragons, cherry blossom trees, Geisha's or demons in them, depending on what the client wants. Atlanta's own Matt Greenhalgh at Only You Tattoo is well known for his Japanese style tattoo's.


Next post will be an introduction into a very useful 6-part series so be sure to check back soon!

Friday, April 15, 2011

DIY Tattoos

Like to Do-It-Yourself as much as possible? Well, if you really want to, you can even DIY tattoos! It involves india ink, a pencil, a jar lid, and a sewing needle. Or, calligraphy pens look super classy, and have two prongs and have a little well to hold the ink. I personally don't have any and will probably never have any. Call me a coward, but I just don't think I can handle that. The process is much slower than with a machine as you are literally being poked with a single needle over and over, one at a time (or if you use a calligraphy pen, two at a time).

However!
Plenty of people love them and some people are very talented at giving stick-n-poke tattoos and they can look really beautiful. Nowadays they are the modern version of what Ploynesian peoples and certain tribal groups all over the world practiced. This form of tattooing has been around since at least the Neolithic times. Tattooing was mainly used for identification and rank within the tribes and groups of people. These traditions are still continued today in places like Thailand, Philippines, Africa, South America, Japan, Cambodia, and New Zealand.

If you decide to get a stick-n-poke tattoo, I advise you to be safe and make sure everything is new and fresh and of course, make sure you love whatever tattoo you decide to get. Today I will leave you with some my roommate and her best friend stick-n-poke's.


Edit: The day after this was posted I stumbled upon the blog, Draw to Death. It is mostly drawings done by the creator, Alex Snelgrove, but there are a couple stick-n-poke tattoos like this bride of Frankensteinand this whale.




Monday, April 11, 2011

Is this your first tattoo?

There is a first for everything. Including tattoos, obviously. Tattoos aren't something I recommend "figuring it out as you go." So I'm glad to see you found yourself here while doing your pre-first-tattoo research. I know I had a lot of questions before getting my first one. I've always asked friends if their tattoos hurt, (if they didn't mind me asking) how much it cost, and who the artist was. The most important question to me was who the artist was. By asking this question, usually the person with the tattoo will elaborate on how much they enjoyed or not enjoyed getting tattooed by that person. I've always found that there are plenty of amazingly talented artists with personalities to match that I don't need to go to an amazingly talented jerk. Actually, I would never go to a tattoo artist who I thought was a jerk.

Here are some questions I put together and answered from my own personal experiences:

How bad does it hurt? It depends on how much of a masochist you are. Just kidding, it really just depends on the individual. One friend thought she had an incredibly low pain tolerance but for her first tattoo she sat for six hours (Your first one does not have to be a marathon by the way. I got two small tattoos before I got my first big one). I would much rather sit for a tattoo than stub my toe or get a shot.  I have tattoos directly over the bone and some that are directly over muscle. Any spot that is directly over the bone is going to be the most painful spot. But if you can sit through the machine going over your bone, a tattoo on the muscle is a cakewalk.

How much is it going to cost? It depends on the artist and the shop. Some shops charge by the hour and some charge by the individual tattoo. A tattoo that takes roughly two and a half hours will generally run you between two and three hundred dollars. But again, each shop does things their own way.

To tip or not to tip? I always tip but I also go to artist's that I really admire and probably will go back to again someday. I don't want to leave on a sour note after having such a good time with the artist.

How safe is it? It's very safe as long as the artist and the shop follows safety regulations set by the state. Karen Hudson from About.com Guide wrote a great Tattoo Safety Checklist that everyone looking to get a tattoo should read.


 Do they use new needles and inks every time they tattoo a new person? Please run away as fast as you can from any shop that doesn't.

Is there anything I should do the day I'm getting the tattoo before I go in to the shop? There are many things you can do before going in.

1. Eat something. Don't stuff yourself and don't eat anything that's going to make you gaseous. You can get very light-headed or faint if you don't eat. Getting a tattoo is very stressful. Going into it you're probably either nervous or anxious. While getting it, you may or may not be experiencing extreme pain. If you don't feel it, your skin and muscle is certainly feeling it. You will also probably be sore and swollen afterwards. If you eat something, your blood sugar will be even and one less thing for your body to worry about.

2. Drink something. Stay hydrated. I'm strongly advising you to not drink alcohol before getting a tattoo. Your blood will be thinner and you will bleed more (same thing with pain killers). Depending on the amount of alcohol intake, you could be incredibly drunk or pass out or puke or all of the above. You could also be a total jerk to everyone around you. Finally, you could decide to get a horrible tattoo that you regret with every moment.

3. Make sure you have enough money. Tattoos can be very expensive and sometimes one's bank account isn't always flowing endlessly with money. When you are picking your artist, go to the shop, speak to the artist in person, ask how long it will take and how much it will cost. They will give you price range and tell you whether you need to bring in cash or if they take plastic. If you cannot afford the tattoo at the time of the consultation, you should probably wait until you know you will have the money.

4. Bring a friend. For your first tattoo I strongly advise bringing a friend. Continue bringing a friend until you are 100% comfortable. With your first one, you don't know how you will react to the pain, stress, and general nervousness. Plus, a little support never hurt anyone. Key word, support. Don't bring a friend that is going to put you down, insult your tattoo or the artist, or try to change your mind. It's your tattoo, not theirs. They are there for support and conversation. So friends, make sure at the very least the tattoo recipient is hydrated. Hold their hand if need be, encourage them to sit as still and as relaxed as possible. If they are freaking out and losing their mind, tell them to calm down in a very stern voice. Once a tattoo is started, there's no stopping so crying and screaming doesn't help anybody. If they are in extreme pain, take their mind off it by starting conversation. I have fond memories of inspiring a woman to get a cupcake tattoo and then holding her hand while talking to her about her boyfriend till it was over.

5. Make sure your artist shaves the area. This will obviously be once you're in the chair and he's about to put on the stencil, but one time the artist didn't shave my bi-cep. You probably have hair all over your body, even if their little arm fuzzies. When the artist is moving the machine over your skin and it isn't clean shaven, your hair will get stuck in the machine and you will feel it ripping out of your skin. Ouch. Also, when your tattoo is healing and the scabs are coming off, they will get caught on the hair as well. Double ouch (this goes back to I'd much rather get a tattoo than rip off a Band-Aid).

How do I heal my tattoo? Ask the artist and they will have endless amounts of advice on aftercare instructions. I personally use a very thin layer of A&D Ointment for a few days and then once it scabs up switch to non-scented Lubriderm lotion. Some people use Aquaphor, some people use non-scented lotion from the beginning. Be aware of how much you are applying, you want to put on a very thin layer. If you put on too much or your skin doesn't like whatever you are using, you might break out with acne around the tattoo. Also, your tattoo will itch when it starts peeling. Don't peel it and don't itch it. Either ignore it or apply a small amount of lotion.

How do I pick the artist I should go to? Ask people with tattoos who they went to and what they liked or didn't like about that artist. I usually find artists through word of mouth or online. Most shops have portfolios online so first find an artist who has a style you like. You'll know when you see it. Then call the shop and ask when you can come in for a consultation. They are usually free but ask before you come in. Talk to the artist and see what they think about your idea, any suggestions they have to improve it (Remember you are not a tattoo artist and that this is their job - they probably know what they are doing), and how much it will be. Decide from there who you would like to go to and enjoy!


If you have any other questions you would like answered, please ask whenever it comes to you and I will answer them to the best of my ability or find an artist to answer them if I can't.


Friday, April 8, 2011

Welcome!

Welcome avid tattoo aficionado or casual reader! The blog you have stumbled upon is here to write about everything you may or may not want to know about tattooing. My name is Kathryn and I currently have 7 tattoos. They all, in some way, describe where I was in my life at the point that I got them. I cannot remember specifically when I first became interested in tattoos, but I know my hairdresser was a big influence in how I go about getting tattooed but that’s another story for another time. I’ve had the bug since the very first one. If you don’t have any tattoos, I foreworn you now, you will get the bug. I will write about the artists I went to, why I went to them, who I wish to go to in the future, how to deal with disapproving audiences, and my experiences being in tattoo shops or around tattoo culture. I will try to answer the questions I had before I got my first tattoo and any questions I still have. I will post pictures and profiles on shops or artists. Also expect anything else I find interesting and relevant. I look forward to sharing my knowledge with you.