Are You Thinking About Getting a Tattoo? Part 1

Are you thinking of getting a tattoo? Do you wonder if it hurts? Would you even know what to look for in a tattoo artist? Don't worry most people getting a tattoo cannot answer these questions either. The most important thing to remember is it will be there forever.

I was an apprentice in a tattoo/piercing shop for a year or so. After a few months, I realized I did not want to do this for a living. I could not live with myself if I did. I would like to think that not all tattoo artists are not like the one I was studying under. However, all the ones I have met so far are the same. It is a money making business, but at the cost of the consumer. I watched her bully people into getting tattoos they were not sure they wanted because she needed the money. I thought that was wrong. Moreover, she did it in a way that the poor sucker did not even realize it. I being an observer, a fly on the wall, caught on to her game. She did it to my friend before I started my apprenticeship. I felt like a sucker when I seen her in action. I got a tattoo from her before I started there too, and thinking back, she did keep trying to get me to get more than I wanted at that time. Good thing, I did not fall for it back then. I would have felt like a real idiot.

I would pull people aside and tell them they did not have to get it now, and not to let her pressure them into getting something they do not REALLY want. When she noticed me doing this it was, the beginning of the end of my apprenticeship.

She boosted about her artist abilities and how she had this crazy life, blah, blah, blah. But, after hanging there for a while and hearing her tell her stories to the people that came in for tattoos. She would say that when she was 17 she ran off with the Hells Angels. I noticed the timelines and details did not match or add up. I can understand the stories about a wild life, tattoo artist are supposed to be wild and crazy. But, hers were just too much. The bulk of the tattoos she did was from flash art off the internet, or pictures people brought in. She, I should say, I used carbon paper to make a stencil from the picture by going over the lines on the picture with a pen while the picture was on top of the carbon paper. It would only stick to the paper where you ran the pen over it, making a stencil. There was no artistry required. A steady hand yes. I will say most of her tattoos came out good, but if the stencil wore off before she could get the outline and she had to free hand it. That is when she did the worst. Ask the tattoo artist you are checking out if they have pictures of their work. Good focused pictures. Ask if you can speak to someone that has gotten a tattoo from them, this may not always be possible but it is worth a shot.

A good way to feel confident in your artist is to watch they in action, if possible. At least hang around and look at other peoples, if they will show them to you.

You should check if your state requires professional tattoo artist to be licensed, some states do not. I think they should be, considering you can get a lot of nasty disease if they do not clean their equipment properly. Because, blood is involved. Some shops reuse the stems of the needles, at least she did, she would break off the tattooing end leaving the stem and run them through the autoclave. Then she would put new needles on the stems, seal them in a bag, and use them on the next customer.

No customers every came back in to complain to her, but they did complain. If I saw one outside the shop, they would ask me what to do. It made me feel bad to see how unhappy they were, but I did try to stop them. I would always agree to talk to her about it but I told them what she would say, "come in and I will fix it". I am sorry after someone has already messed up and you tell him or her about it you do not want them near you with needles.

I would tell the unhappy customers not to go back, after she used to big of a needle on someone when they "came back to get their tattoo fixed" just to make it hurt more. Among other things, I have seen her do.

What really disappointed was when her shop became a member of the BBB. I did not know all you had to do was pay the membership fees and you are in. I would tell people to call and make complaints so other people could be warned. I went and did it under a fake name. I had to use a fake name because her husband was powerful man in our town and she knows all the cops.

At one point she had got two snakes and kept them in the shop, I watched her feed them baby mice on the table where people laid down to get a tattoo. If I was not there that place would have been a mess she was not sanitary, clean, maybe. But, sanitary, hell no. And, I can see the same problem happening in other shops. I know I am a clean freak, but you should wipe the tattoo chair down with disinfectant after every tattoo done, right? Stuff like that matters when you are dealing with blood. Moreover, not all tattoo artists are not knowledgeable as to proper cleaning of the shop, especially if they are not required to be licensed or have professional training.

Part 2 will be how to walk into a tattoo shop and not get ripped off.