There is a long story about why this is here now… and truly it is not interesting enough to bother you with.
WARNING – This Post is Gay
•December 19, 2010 • 6 Comments…. and will contain at least one expletive.
If this kind of thing disturbs you – please go away now.
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Alright.
There is a certain type of customer. They are always male, but beyond that there is no way to know about this particular predilection ahead of time. Sometimes due to the nature of the tattoo they are receiving it will never even come up. Sometimes a client may have had several tattoos from one artist and the artist is never aware of the situation. Once it happens it is a pretty standard sequence of events.
Because I have been having fun making up names for these we are going to call this guy Kyle. Kyle has several tattoos, one on his shoulder, one on his arm and today he is getting a snarling tiger on his calf (incidentally at least half of the snarling, roaring animals that I have tattooed in my career were actually yawning. people are convinced that tiger they brought me is vicious – and they don’t want to hear anything differently… but I digress…) So Kyle and I are chatting while I am setting up. His stencil has been applied and approved and while it is drying I am putting out the colors that I will use for his tattoo. He looks over and makes the face. It is a pretty distinctive face. A combination or horror and terror which would be perfectly appropriate if I had just put a blood encrusted chisel and hammer onto my workstation. He screws up the courage to speak and in a only semi-controlled panic asks “What is the PINK for?”.
I sigh internally. We are going to have THAT conversation again. “The pink is for his nose.” This never helps. They always come back with “Can’t you use another color?!?”
Since I do not understand this freaky horrible terror of the color pink, I will try to explain that this is the color of his nose. Here – you can see it in the photo. I try to rationally explain that there is nothing wrong with any color. They always try to explain back to me that is “gay”. Now I could write a much longer blog (or probably a full “paper”) on what I personally think of people who are this afraid of things that are “gay”, so I won’t get into it here.
Sometimes I have been able to convince them that no one will notice, sometimes I have to explain that it is the only way to make the image look right and other times I have been reduced to having to throw out the cap full of pink and put out a red and a light beige and explain to them that I will not put any pink in their tattoo – I will only use a light red.
Really. That works. Of course now that I talked about it here, it probably won’t anymore… I’m willing to take the risk.
Now most of you who know me know Joey as well. Joey has worked with me for a really long time and is slightly less tolerant of the Pink Fearing Client. Not the least of this is because Joe has pink (even pink flowers) tattooed on him and he knows that he prefers women.
So I am tattooing away one day listening to Joe have The Conversation with the client in his chair.
He is having a particularly hard time with this guy. The client is adamant that he can not have pink in his tattoo “it’s gay!”. Joey is getting more and more irritated and asking the guy “Do you think that I am gay?”. For those of you who don’t know Joey, I will let you know that he is not only definitely straight but also has a very large collection of exceptionally sharp objects around him at all times. While he can be one of the most entertaining people you will ever meet in person – he is also not a guy you want to directly insult.
The “discussion” is escalating and while the rest of us are still working – we are also listening very very intently to this conversation.
About the point where I am wondering if Joe is going to swing on this guy or just tell him to get the hell out of the shop… Joe stands up and yells at the guy “I don’t know about the pink – but I do know that if you wake up tomorrow morning with a COCK in your mouth, it WASN”T BECAUSE OF THE PINK IN YOUR TATTOO!!!!”
Beautiful. Perfect. I don’t know the rest of the story – if you want to know if the guy actually got the pink or not, you will have to ask Joey. All I know is….
You Can’t Make This Shit Up.
Snarling Tiger Photo lifted from All Posters
“What Would You do with This?” Underwater Edition
•December 18, 2010 • Leave a CommentThis is the image that Sara picked out for us this time:
Casey liked the flow and the colors and focused on that. He did mention that he didn’t know if he was done with this or not, so if he sends me an updated version I will add it later.
This looked like a koi to me and my idea was to make a koi with the same color and flow as the thing in the picture. I had some pieces of black paper around and started with them. First thing that I tried was sidewalk chalk… but it was pretty light and not really pink.
Next I tried some other chalks that I had and the colored charcoals that I had purchased (and never used) for the portrait drawing class that I took recently. I was much happier with the vibrancy of these – but didn’t feel like I had good control over them. Once I stood back and looked at it, I didn’t like the shape of the koi either.
So I decided to try again with the same charcoals and what-not – but as it turns out the rest of the paper was different – It didn’t have the same tooth and wasn’t as dark, so I was unable to get edges or build up layers of the chalk and charcoal.
So I decided to go a completely different direction and try with colored pencils. That way I would have more control and could do finer lines. Now I know from past experience the colored pencils do not stand out well at all on the black (or I would have started with them in the first place). Solution? Draw the image reversed on white paper and invert it in photoshop. This is a learning experiment – so why not?
and then once the image was reversed:
I thought this worked much better than the other attempts and was pleased enough with the results to stop there. I would have rather had the swirly things a different color – but the blue works (I thought that it would be more of a teal color than straight up blue). This week is Sara’s last official week working at the shop, but we are going to ask her to continue to select projects for us.
Another installment of “What Would you do with This?
•December 14, 2010 • Leave a CommentHere is the image that Sara picked out for us this time:
Sara was very excited about the sassy koala, but unfortunately no one else seemed to share her enthusiasm for this photo. Poor Sara. Less you think we always pick on her about the photos that she has picked, the next one was much better received. I know Casey is working on his (I have seen a preview) and I have done two versions of mine and am hoping to have time to do a more polished one…. but anyhow, back to the koala.
This is what Starr did with her Koala:
and what I did with mine:
Damon’s came in a little bit later (and he may still be working on it) but here is what is finished so far.
(Still) As of Yet Unnamed Artist Group
•December 12, 2010 • Leave a CommentSo we had our second gathering today and it went well. Instead of talking about how much I am enjoying this, I’ll just show you the pictures of some of what got accomplished today. A couple of the other artists had left by the time I got around to taking pictures…. but here is a bit of what we had there.
Lots of different styles and varying degrees of completion. Looking forward to next month when we are going to be doing some Art Fusion projects in charcoal and/or pastels.
Spleen
•December 12, 2010 • 3 Comments
Getting a tattoo hurts. We all know this. We all work around it. We all deal with it in different ways with varying degrees of success – but the bottom line is always going to be: Getting a tattoo hurts.
So obviously because it’s an unknown (how bad is it going to hurt? will I be able to handle it? will I be able to sit still?) most people are a uncomfortable and/or unsure of themselves on a first tattoo. A professional tattoo artist will do everything that they can to help someone through this process as comfortably as they can. Friends may not. Lovers may or may not.
Today we are going to meet a couple that we shall call Jenna and Roy. It’s a busy afternoon at the tattoo shop and all of the artists are working or about to begin on their clients. There are a few onlookers and supporters and a couple of clients waiting for their time in the chair.
Jenna and Roy have come to the shop to get their very first tattoos together. They have booked this appointment a while back and the artist has their designs ready. They look like any twenty-something couple. They are anxious and excited and ready to go. Paper work is filled out. Last minute design approval – all of the normal stuff.
It is decided that Jenna will go first. She is getting a decent size tattoo on her foot and she is nervous and wants to make sure that she doesn’t “chicken out”. Roy gives her a little ribbing about this. She kind of looks more nervous. Jenna starts around the counter to get in the chair while the artist is doing final preparations and getting her stencil ready. Roy must at this point have snuck off and downed some of Dr Jekyll potion and begins his transformation into full blown jackwagon.
He starts messing with her. He starts telling her that she is never going to be able to handle the pain. He tells her that she is going to pass out and make a fool of herself in front of all of these people. Roy is being such a loud mouth jerk that clients from other parts of the shop are trying to encourage Jenna. “It’s all right honey, it’s not that bad… see I’m doing fine”. Roy starts arguing with the other clients “You don’t know how big a baby she is – she’s never going to be able to handle it.” Jenna doesn’t really know how she is going to handle it, so she looks apprehensive and worried but determined. She doesn’t say much at all.
The artist gets ready to start and Roy is out of control. He is jeering, he is leaning across the counter telling how horrible it is going to be – I want to make him wait in the car and my client wonders out loud why ANYONE would be involved with this twit. Jenna tenses up holds her breath – the artist starts – and she is …. fine. It’s her foot, it hurts, but she is fine. She grips the handles on the chair and resolves to get through it. Roy is undaunted. He continues to torment her. Every time she cringes, he calls her a name. She glares at him but says very little. The tattoo takes in the neighborhood of an hour and a half, maybe a little more – Roy never shuts up the entire time. Other clients and patrons are irritated with him and once in a while tell him so.
Jenna’s foot is finished and bandaged and the artist begins preparing for Roy’s turn in the chair. We all kind of forget about them for the time being. All is quiet in that area of the shop.
Everyone focuses on what they are doing. The next thing I remember is hearing Roy scream some obscenity. Obviously I need to look over (as does my client). Roy is in the chair now, getting the outside of his upper arm tattooed (arguably the easiest part of the body to get a tattoo done on).
He has not handled his first line well at all. He is obviously frightened, clinging to the chair and looking like a trapped animal. Normally this would be the point where the artist would be supportive and calming to the client, but having listened to Roy run his mouth for the better part of two hours – sympathy is pretty low. The decision is made to just plow on through. The artist says very little, Jenna says even less. Roy makes up for it. He is pale, he is sweating. He is freaking out.
The other clients start jeering Roy. Yelling back all the same crap he had been hurling at Jenna. They are delighted by the distraction and are seriously enjoying watching Roy suffer and twitch. Roy is now pale, sweating and every other person in the shop is hoping that he will pass out.
He keeps asking the artist to stop so that he can catch his breath (which the artist does) Jenna continues to be stoic and remain pretty quiet. Clients and a couple of the other artists pick up the torch and pick on Roy. “What’s the matter?” “Awwww, poor baby, does that hurt?” “Can’t handle it?” “Your girlfriend did fine, what’s the matter with you?”. It is exceptionally rare to have one client jeer another and I think in my entire career I have never seen the entire group gang up on one individual like the attack on Roy. Of course there was never another client who deserved it as much as he did. It was glorious. Instant karma metered out by the hands of strangers.
Roy tries to defend himself to the room. “You don’t know how bad this hurts!!!” (not a good tact to throw out to a group of people currently being tattooed by the heavily tattooed). Laughter… jeering…. it’s a great distraction. Jenna is doing a her best to try to become invisible.
Roy is getting paler and worse looking all the time. Sweat is running off of his head. He is wiggling and moving around. The worse he looks and acts, the more vicious the crowd becomes. He continues to argue with anyone and everyone about how much more horrible this is for him than anyone else could understand. No sympathy. No quarter is given. Roy is at the mercy of the jackals.
He tries again to get sympathy and understanding from the crowd. “You don’t understand!” he blubbers “This hurts worse than when they took out my SPLEEEEEEN!!!” Laughter engulfs the entire shop. The volume and the whininess of the statement are too much. Artists have to stop working because they and their clients are laughing too hard to continue for the moment.
The laughter dies down – work resumes. Roy is quiet for a brief moment (finally!) and then he starts to go at it again…. when Jenna finally has had enough. She stands up, yells something at Roy and follows it with “Why don’t you just shut the f@%# up!”.
Applause. The room actually applauded. Well, and cheered, there was some of that going on as well.
Jenna sat back down. Roy actually shut up. Any remaining protests were muttered much much quieter and Roy managed to sit for the rest of his tattoo.
To this day around the shop we will occasionally ask each other (in a whiney voice) “is it worse than when they took out your spleeeeeen?” and we giggle to ourselves.
You can’t make this shit up.
spleen picture taken from I heart guts
Apprentice Interview
•December 10, 2010 • Leave a Comment
When I first started tattooing people who were looking to learn to tattoo were treated as suspect. The shop that I started out in would throw you out for asking about learning. They actually wouldn’t even consider talking to you about it unless you had been thrown out at least a couple of times and come back anyhow. They figured that showed dedication to learning. I always thought it ensured that you only wound up with candidates who were obnoxious or dense.
So I try to take everyone who inquires seriously. I try to talk to them about their expectations and where they are at currently; to give them advice to help them along. Most times this is not the advice that they are looking for, but I am honest with them about my experiences and what they can expect. Often I will sit with someone and go through their portfolio to give them pointers on where their strengths and weaknesses lie and what they might consider working on.
Enter Timmy (yeah, that’s not his name, but honestly I wouldn’t use is name even if I could remember it and I don’t know anyone who goes by Timmy).
My first contact with Timmy was a phone call. Timmy wants to learn to tattoo. He wants to learn to tattoo the right way. He has been offered an apprenticeship somewhere and he doesn’t trust some things about that shop. He just wants to talk to me for a little bit. He wants to make sure that he going about things the right way. He is exceptionally humble on the phone. Tells me how much tattooing means to him. He does admit that he bought some equipment off of e-bay, but that he knows enough not to use it until he has learned to tattoo from a professional.
He says that he will do anything. Offers to just hang out at the shop and watch… sweep floors… clean tubes… anything to get his feet on the path of learning to tattoo the right way.
I tell him that he is welcome to stop in sometime and we will go through his portfolio and I can give him some input and suggestions. I’m not offering or promising anything other than talking. He is grateful for the opportunity.
The evening that Timmy is supposed to stop in – he calls and says that he is running a little bit late. He has to get a ride from someone and he wants to make sure that I am still going to be there. Yes, I assure him. I will be at the shop until 8 anyhow.
Little while later Timmy and friend arrive at the shop (as I was expecting) both of them have half done HORRENDOUS tattoos on their hands (which I am confused about) and they both appear to be drunk. Not wanting to make assumptions about anything I start talking to Timmy without mentioning either the hand tattoos or the apparent state of intoxication.
Timmy volunteers up the info. You see, we’re running late because we were working on each other’s tattoos – Oh yeah, this is my friend, I am teaching him to tattoo. <What?!?> Really? This is your apprentice? Yep. I thought that you were here to look for an apprenticeship? I am.
So you are here to ask me to teach you to tattoo… and you are teaching this guy to tattoo?
Well, I don’t have a lot of photos of work that I have done, so I figured that I would bring in someone that I tattooed, so that you could see my work in person and since he doesn’t know how to tattoo yet it took a long time and that’s why we are late.
< Timmy is obviously completely missing the inappropriateness of bringing his apprentice to an “apprentice interview”. His choice of words by the way, I never insinuated that I would apprentice him, just that I was willing to talk to him. >
I tell Timmy that I really can’t comment on the tattoos that he and his friend have done on each other as I can’t figure out what they were supposed to be. He assures me that this is because they aren’t done yet. <Egads Dude, quit while you are ahead, maybe if you are lucky they will fall out and you won’t have to look at that crap for the rest of your life!> So he offers to show me the photos that he has on his cell phone of work that he is done (he has brought no portfolio, no artwork, none of the things that he told me that he had on the phone). He hands me his cell phone and tells me that I better hold it and scroll through them myself as he is too drunk to hold it still.
Well, there it is. Suspicions confirmed. He is drunk, and admitting it.
I try to look through the pictures on the phone. I can’t even tell where the tattoo is supposed to be in some of the pictures. Blurry photos of body parts, some of which might be tattooed. Some look like there might be a tattoo there, but they are covered with such a thick film of vaseline that there would be no way to figure out what it is supposed to be.
Visions of cross-contamination and filth and disease float through my head. I try to watch Timmy and friend to make sure they aren’t touching anything with their weepy hands that I can’t spray down after they leave. I can’t believe I am touching this phone.
I hand it back to him. I wash my hands. Timmy and friend just stand there drunk and weaving ever so slightly on the apparently tipping floor that only affects the extremely inebriated.
I run this back through for him.
You called and said that you want to learn to tattoo the right way. You told me that you had equipment, but weren’t using it on anyone. You said that above all it was important to you to learn the right way. So much so that you didn’t want to take on the apprenticeship that you were offered because you didn’t think that shop was up to your standards. You then show up here drunk (he nods), with your friend who you are teaching to tattoo (they both nod) and with a cell phone full of pictures of tattoos that you have done out of your house. (Yep.) Have I got all of that correct?
Yes.
I can’t help you. (Confusion) Get the hell out of my shop. (Really?) Yes, really.
Oh, Okay. That’s cool. Thank you so much for meeting with us.
Out the door into the night they go – all grins and happy with the way that went apparently. I don’t think either one of them noticed that I was disgusted, appalled or that I had been yelling at them.
Back into the shop to decontaminate everything and close up for the night.
You can’t make this shit up.
Genuine US currency
•December 8, 2010 • 1 Comment
The shop that I apprenticed in was in a rather colorful neighborhood. We had prostitutes who hung out in front of the shop (not directly in front, they didn’t want to bother our business) and we got regular visits from the friendly neighborhood boosters.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with boosters – they are kind of a specialty thief. They steal things and then they bring them door to door (or bar to bar) and resell these items. We had the regular roster of boosters who would stop by the shop with their specialty wares. One guy specialized in movies (VHS, this was a long time ago), there was a couple that brought in meat (yes, you read that right, meat) and a whole lot of them selling gold.
The woman that I worked with often bought gold from them. She had a nifty little kit for testing the karat of the gold and was pretty good at bargaining. I don’t know what she did with the gold that she bought. I just liked watching the whole process of the testing and the haggling. That was about as far as it went. Personally I never bought any gold from any of them and would have no idea how to test it or haggle.
So when I wound up with my own shop a few years later – I did everything that I could to discourage the boosters from coming in. If they stopped in selling whatever we would just tell them that we weren’t interested and they would wander on off. No big deal.
Enter the salesman.
Now as I said, I have seen a lot of boosters in my day. I have never ever seen anything like this guy. I don’t know if he was trying to live up to his movie counterpart image or what. He strolls in literally wearing a long trench coat. He has the seedy sideways grin. He announces his presence the second that he walks in the door.
“How are y’all doing this afternoon?” loud and brash and immediately the center of attention. All he is missing is a stage to step up onto. I don’t remember how the sales pitch started or where it went exactly, but in pretty short order he had stepped up to a girl at the counter, flashed his super sleazy grin and (I shit you not) opened up one side of his trench coat to reveal a whole “rack” of gold hanging inside of his jacket. He begins to extoll the virtues of his wares.
I try to explain to him that he needs to go.
He is having none of this. He is in the middle of a sales pitch. There is no way that we could possibly say no to the offer that he has for us. I insist that it is indeed not only possible, but inevitable and he needs to go now. By this point I have gotten up and the girl he had originally cornered has made good her escape to another area of the shop.
We don’t need any gold I explain again. No, no, no he insists. You want THIS gold. This is amazing stuff. This is “gen-you-wine” U S currency! This is the good stuff. This is not an opportunity to be missed. I suggest that if it is genuine US currency then he should take it directly to the bank. He is appalled that I would consider passing up this outstanding offer.
By now I am getting ready to physically remove him from the shop and as I step closer he is backing towards other people and moving through the shop. Artful dodging as it were.
He gets most of the way through the shop and he turns to one of the other artists.
“How about you? Can I interest you in one of these fine watches?”
Having my back, the artist replies ” You heard her… you have to go.”
Not to be cut short in his sales pitch “I don’t care what the Ho has to say, I’m talking to you.”
Sticking up for me in his finest tattoo shop fashion the artist comes back with ” Well, the Ho owns the joint, so you gotta go!” Then grins at me with the biggest proudest ‘didn’t I do good’ sort of grin that I can’t even give him a hard time about also referring to me as the Ho.
Even Mr Salesman is taken aback by this comment enough for me to walk him to the door without further comment.
I go back to my client and no one buys any gold that day.
You can’t make this shit up.
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The photo at the top of this post was taken a long time ago by Mike Zappia for my submission to the Women Tattoo Artists book.
Late One Night
•December 7, 2010 • Leave a Comment
Normally if I am going to be working late at the shop by myself I lock the doors. There are a lot of reasons for this, some of which I am sure you can figure out. Mostly it is just that one never knows what is going to walk in the door and the odds of it being “bad” increase at night and much more so once alcohol has been introduced. Prudence dictates that it’s just the better move.
So that being said, you can understand why I was slightly startled when the door chimed late that summer night. “What the…?” thought I, “Didn’t I lock that?”. Next step after regaining myself is to try and reassume professional posture and greet the person who has walked in. “Hi”, a pause, “Can I help you with anything?” presented with a slightly different inflection than I would have during hours (when the lights are all on and the sign says Open). Next step is to briefly assess my situation. Tall, clean cut looking guy, slightly confused… but, uh-oh… wearing driving gloves. Now it is a tad bit chilly outside tonight, but not enough to warrant gloves and who the hell wears driving gloves inside of somewhere anyhow? All sorts of red flags go up.
“Is this a tattoo shop?” he says still looking slightly confused and glancing around the shop.
“Yes. Can I help you with anything?”
“I just want to look around.” Now he is not looking around. He is staring directly at me. Directly at me in that awkward directly into your eyes, who is going to look away first sort of way. I am trying to maintain eye contact with him as calmly as possible. Making a point of not looking down at the obviously gloved hands which he is making no effort to conceal and has placed deliberately on the counter between us.
“You an artist?” he queries. “Yes” I respond without hesitation.
He quickly turns around and begins investigating the art on the wall, and I do mean investigating. His head is moving up and down and back and forth as he is looking at the paintings. Kind of like he has a scanner inside his head that has to remain perpendicular to the surface to scan properly. This gives me a moment to back further away from the edge of the counter and look to make sure I have a weapon within reach. Check. Easily accessible weapon at the ready.
I wait.
He scans.
This goes on for what seems like an impossible long time, which of course as these things go, was probably only moments.
“These yours?” he asks nodding at the paintings. I explain to him which ones are and who did the others. He goes back to scanning for a bit more.
“So… you think you are some sort of artist.” This is given as a sort of statement with a bit of hostility. He spins suddenly, walks quickly over to where I am at counter (which gratefully I have backed up from because he is pressed up against it now and leaning toward me over it) and a little too loudly says to me “You think you are some sort of artist ?!?”
“Yes” I reply again, very confused as to where this is going.
Now loudly and very aggressively “Then where is your collage at?!?”
“Excuse me?” I ask, genuinely confused.
“Your collage! Your collage! Where is your collage at?!?”
“Do you mean my portfolio?” I offer, “It’s right there in front of you on the counter.” Hoping that he will stop staring at me so intently and look at the portfolio – look at anything to take his laser gaze from me.
“No, I don’t mean your portfolio” he hollers (obviously now believing that he is dealing with a complete moron who does not quite comprehend English, but will if it is used aggressively and loudly). “I mean your collage. Where is your collage at?!?”.
At this point I don’t even have an articulate response. I think that I probably just stood there looking back at him. No fear in my eyes, just utter confusion. What the hell is going on here?
He gives it another try. He’s really yelling now. “YOUR COLLAGE!!! WHERE IS YOUR COLLAGE AT?”
Genuinely confused and still wondering how much of a threat this guy is. Now I have no idea how to diffuse this situation because I am completely unclear on what the situation is. “I’m sorry Sir, I really do not know what you mean.”
He glares at me with utter contempt and disgust. Actually curls up one side of his lip like I am the lowest form of despicable pond scum on the planet. Breaks his gaze, turns suddenly and beats feet to the door with long purposeful strides. If is possible to holler and mutter at the same time – this man had mastered the art. “hrmmph,,,,thinks shes-some-sort-of-artist…. doesn’t have a collage…. doesn’t even know what a collage is….pffft” and out the door into the night he goes. Never looking back. Never breaking his now purposeful disgusted stride.
Right behind him I lock the door. I decide that whatever it was that I was working on really wasn’t that important and I want to be at home.
I am much better about locking the door at night now.
You can’t make this shit up.
Booking Appointments for 2011
•December 5, 2010 • 3 CommentsBooking Appointments
I will be opening the books up again very shortly to start booking for 2011. Here is the deal with booking appointments.
If you have a piece in progress or you are a “regular client”, then you can contact me beginning December 13th to hold times. If you are not sure if you are a “regular client”, then you probably are not.
After the first of the year, I will start booking appointments for everyone else.
(Please note that both shops are closed on the January 1st)
If you are a completely new client – you will have to talk to me BEFORE you can book an appointment. This may be an email conversation, a phone conversation or possibly a personal consultation. You will NOT be able to stop in to the shop and book with me through anyone else.
If we have talked generically about your tattoo design or idea, but I do not have specifics (tracing of the body part, photo reference, style choices, etic.,) then you will need to have a consultation appointment ahead of time.
If we have already had a consultation appointment and I have agreed to work with you on your design, then you have options as how you can book.
~ stop into the Webster location on a Friday or Saturday and book in person with one of the counter staff
~ email me reminders of all necessary design info and then call to book the appointment and leave the deposit by phone
~ email me reminders of all necessary design info and paypal the deposit and I can call or email back with dates for your appointment
I must have either a completed appointment sheet or all of your information in writing (via email or regular mail) and a deposit BEFORE I can schedule time for you. I will not “just hold some time” for you without having clear specifics on what we are doing.
If you have ANY questions at all, please contact me through email. It is difficult to catch me on the phone, but you are welcome to try. Please do not stop into either shop unannounced except for Fridays and Saturdays in Webster when there is a counter person there to assist you.
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Below is a repost explaining the changes that I have made to my scheduling. Again, these are the guidelines that I am working under, if you have questions at all, please contact me directly.
Thank you muchly!!!
TeeJay
my direct email is teejay1<the little at symbol>frontiernet.net
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For some time now I have been feeling overwhelmed. I have tried in the past to cut back on the number of new projects that I am taking on and while it has helped some…. the time has come to do something a bit more drastic.
I apologize in advance to any who may feel slighted. I am not judging you or your tattoo. I am not telling you that there is anything wrong with the style of tattoo that you would like.
What I am doing is cutting back on the projects that I am doing and focusing on a smaller variety of tattoos.
So for the foreseeable future I will be doing:
Portraits and Realistic Work
Custom Celtic Designs
Figurative, Pin-up and Fairies
No Outline Color & Black and Grey Work
Medical Tattooing (Reconstructive)
continuing work on existing clients
I will not be doing:
Reworks and Cover-Ups (other than mine)
Flash (other than mine)
Regular “outline” Tattoos (yes this is completely subjective)
Small Single Point Tattoos (unless it is a ridiculously fun idea)
Traditional Japanese style Work
Text or Word based designs (no paragraphs of type)
Tribal (still)
Any tattoo pulled off of an existing tattoo on the internet (I am not going to copy someone else’s tattoo)
Anything that is not open for artistic interpretation or improvement (if you know every single detail of exactly how it needs to look with no input from me)
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me and ask. There are a whole bunch of exceptionally talented artists at both of the shops. The time has come for me to step back on my tattooing and pass more projects along to them.
Just TeeJay's Blog 