Pro Tips

When it comes to choosing your artist, be sure that you are seeing good examples of the type of work you are looking for in their portfolio. If you are looking for a portrait or some fine line black work for your collection, make sure you see a portrait in the portfolio of the artist you like. Looking for something freehand and totally original? 

Ask your artist if it’s something they’re comfortable doing for you.

If you need to cancel or change your appointment, let your artist know ASAP. 

24 hours notice is the LEAST amount of time you should try to give them.

You will also likely lose your deposit, so be sure to communicate with your artist.

We are looking forward to your session as much as you are, give us a heads up if you think you might not make it, so that we can potentially schedule a client who is on our wait list. 

Your artist will thank you for respecting their time.

Eat something.

Like seriously, we cannot stress this enough. It is not a super idea to get tattooed on 

coffee/energy drinks, or worse, alcohol- and no food. Your body will need real nutrition to assist you in managing discomfort during the application process. 

Avoid the spins, passing out, and puking by having some real damn food first. 

Arrive for your session clean, rested, and fed, and you will have a much better experience.

Or you could always opt for the smelling salts…

Drinking alcohol before a tattoo is never recommended. 

You want to be well rested, hydrated, and have had a meal for the energy you will need to make it through your procedure with the least amount of discomfort.

Alcohol dehydrates you, can thin your blood in excessive amounts and it's bad for your liver. Don't be drinking before getting tattooed. It's bad form.

Also, it's a f*cking miserable experience to do anything with a hangover- I don't even want to think about a tattoo...and if you smell like alcohol and are acting funny- we're gonna send you home. 

Don't put any of us in that position please. We hate it and you will hate it.

Water is your friend.

Even if you don't drink water "like you should" if you do it the day/night before your appointment, it helps. It hydrates your skin and makes it easier to work with which gives you a better result. 

Drink the water.

You can ask your artist if they use or recommend any pain creams- but it is not recommended to show up to your appointment numb without consulting your artist. There are safety/health issues with using the creams incorrectly- so be sure to communicate questions/intentions with your artist.

Remember, people have been getting tattooed without these creams for thousands of years. The discomfort you feel during the process is part of it. You learn your strength- you find out you are tougher than you thought- and it is good. 

Also, your brain is going to produce crazy amounts of endorphins for you- you have all the drugs you need in you already.

What you will want to do is relax and breathe through the pain, you'll be alright. That's how you manage the pain. You just feel it and don't die. 

DO NOT come to your tattoo appointment under the influence of any chemicals. 

If you are visibly "high" or not in the right state of mind, your artist will ask you to come back when you are.

Some tattoo spots are more painful than others. If you have extensive work, you have experienced this. A good trick to manage the discomfort is to try to match the length of the inhale and exhale to one another. Focus on that evenly matched exchange of breath, and it will help you focus less on the pain you’re experiencing. Meditation is a powerful tool for coping and moving past the moment. Also- sometimes- just complaining helps x.x 

Either way- holding your breath can make you light-headed and that is something we don't want. The next step from there is flop sweat and passing out. 

All bad. 

Keep breathing.

Our shop does not have private rooms, and to be respectful to your artist and other clients, there are some simple tricks for wardrobe alteration that will help everyone stay comfortable. While it's true that the client ready to complete a body suit or the client looking for the classic "underboob" tattoo has probably made peace with their level of required nudity during their tattoo procedure, the client coming in for a memorial tattoo might not be fully prepared to stare down a dude's junk or a chick's chest. We simply want everyone to have the best experience they can in our very shared space.