Tips - when and how much

Yay for City Elf! Someone finally asked me a question. I was about to shut this side-blog down (and I still might).

Okay, here's some information about tipping your tattooist. I don't think there's a tip percentage, but here are some guidelines:

It's a bit tricky, to be honest. Generally, most tattooists make more money doing flash, where there's a set price in advance, than they do when they are charging by the hour. Now, if the tattooist is very slow, this is not the case. This variable makes it difficult to determine the tip (or if to tip). I'm sorry I'm not making this easy on you! Now, if you do your research, you may find out who the "slow tattooists" are. I'm not saying to stay away from them; there are plenty of good slow tattooists.

In my general area, I know of one tattooist who works so incredibly slowly that there is no way in hell I'd suggest that anyone tip him. He does excellent work, but when it's by the hour, you're getting socked (or soaked).

Here's when you should tip:
* If the tattoo artist draws up an original design for you and doesn't charge for it. You might want to ask how long was spent on the drawing. If they've drawn up a couple of different things, so you have a choice, that shows a lot of consideration (and not indecision). Give the person at least 20 bucks (but don't give 'em anything if you hate the drawing!) If it's a back piece, fifty is a good number.
* If the you're told in advance that a tattoo will take a certain amount of time and it's done in less time and they are charging by the hour - in this case you should pay them the amount they expected it to take. For example: If you were told it would take two hours and it takes one and a half, if they are charging you a hundred bucks an hour, you should pay them two hundred dollars. THIS ONE IS IMPORTANT!!
* If it's flash art or artwork you brought in and you think they did an especially nice job, give a tip. Really, this isn't about percentages. Give what you feel good about giving. Otherwise, you'll feel resentful.
*If you pass out, throw up, or ask for lots of breaks, and you are treated well, give a tip. Again, give what you feel like. Even five bucks is okay. I know some tattooists would argue with that, but that's my opinion. I hate obligatory tipping, don't you?
*If you feel that the tattooist (or anyone else in the shop) provided you with service that went beyond the ordinary, tip 'em. Isn't this what tips are for?

So, sorry, it's not cut and dry (or is it dried?) I'm sure someone would tell you that "yes, it is" and say give tips like you do in restaurant, betweeen 15 and 20 percent. You can do that. That's fine.

You can also give the tattooist a gift. I have to say that I do not remember the people who gave me tips, but I do remember people who gave me thoughtful gifts, and some of them were truly touching. Some of them were downright awful, too, but that's the way gifts are.

Here's a few that made me feel great, to give you an idea: I did an interpretation of a painting from a beautiful book for a woman and she gave me a copy of the book with an inscription in it a week later. Now that I think of it, this happened twice. I'll always have those beautiful books.

One woman gave me a present a full year after she got her tattoo and that was quite nice and unexpected. But what was even more unexpected was receiving gifts and thank-yous from the spouses or partners of people whom I never even met! "Thank you for giving my wife such a beautiful tattoo that I'll always see. . ." A bottle of wine in a velvet bag from the girlfriend of a man with a big backpiece. . .

Stuff like this makes me feel a bit sad that I've given up doing this for a living. Huh. So, it's not really about money here. The tip is a show of appreciation and if you really feel like giving one, just put some thought into it.

Maybe I should have just said 15 percent and be done with it!

Black skin vs. tanned skin

I noticed that I got a hit from someone who googled "Why a black person shouldn't get a tattoo." The answers to that question are the same for people of all skin colors.

However, there are special considerations for people who have either naturally dark skin or are heavily tanned.

Here's some of my thoughts:

If you are black, and you live in an area where you are in the distinct minority, look through the tattooist's photo book to see if there are any pics of tats on black people. Now, you may not see any 'cause the tattooist did a crap job of taking a photo. But never mind that, you should ask the tattooist about tattooing black skin. See if (s)he knows anything about it.

Here, where I live, a good amount of tattooists have never tattooed a black person. When I was tattooing, I had black people come in who were heavily scarred up by other tattoo artists. Why? Because naturally dark skin is more prone to keloid (heavy) scarring than white skin. Unfortunately, there are tattooist who do not know this! They see dark skin and think "tough" (as in skin). Black skin is not the same as tanned skin, which is tough. There is a reason why scarification is a tradition in parts of Africa. Black skin scars easily. The beautiful designs of traditional scarification are easier to see than black ink on skin that is naturally very dark.

When a tattooist looks at a person's skin, in advance of tattooing, they make some choices. They can pick a tattoo machine that hits the skin harder, faster or slower and more softly. You see a guy who's been working outside all his life, with dark tanned skin and you usually reach for a machine that's going to hit that skin hard. But if a person has black skin, that's the absolute wrong thing to do. That person will probably get scarred up.

As for you who tan easily (or go to tanning beds): don't insist on yellow flowers and then come back and complain that noone can see the color of your tattoo. Of course they can't: Your skin is darker than the yellow. It's just common sense.

And once again: There is no such thing as opaque ink. Ink is not paint.

Any questions?

Hey folks, leave some questions! Challenge me! Maybe you don't like the lack of photos? Well, I'll keep this blog up for a while longer, and see what happens. . .

Imagery for your tats

I must've figured wrong. Considering how many hits the "Why you shouldn't get a tattoo" post on my other blog gets, you'd think these posts would be read. Maybe people are looking for pictures. If so, you are indeed in the wrong place.

If you are looking for pics 'cause you don't know what you want for a tattoo, or you've got a vague idea and are poking around on the Web. . .well, here's a suggestion:

I've written before about finding a tattoo artist who will design custom work. If you want to find your own imagery, be creative: don't look at tattoo flash. There is so much art out there in this world (and on the web)!

Besides painting, there is jewelry design, fabric design, tile design. . .I could go on and on. The "Art Nouveau" period seems to lend itself well to tattoo design.

So, go out there and investigate!

Your first tattoo

I presume you've picked out a good tattoo studio and know what you want for a tattoo. There's a few things that most tattooists rarely tell people before they come in for their first tattoo. I know I always forgot to mention this stuff and/or the person was a walk-in customer and so there was no opportunity.

Some people are either so nervous or so excited about getting their first tattoo that they don't eat that day. Eat something! It's not unusual for people who haven't eaten anything to pass out. You don't want to pass out, so eat something! The same goes for piercings.

No matter how normal and even traditional it is to be drunk while getting your first tattoo, it's a terrible idea. I never really noticed that drunk people bled more than others (which is the conventional wisdom), but I certainly did notice how drunk people were pretty much the only customers whom I didn't like tattooing. Drunk people, even those who have had just a few, move around alot and they don't even know it. You can tell 'em to stop, but they just can't help themselves.

On the day of your first tattoo, you should ideally be:
1. Well rested
2. Sober
3. Not high
4. Well fed
5. Sharing a ride if driving is neccessary
6. Excited

Afterwards, you can do whatever you want.

Flash from the web

Flash is the artwork that you pick off the walls or books at the tat shop. These days, you can also buy flash off of the web. Here is the single biggest complaint I've had and I've heard about Web flash: people print it out way smaller than it can be tattooed properly. Then, they bring it to the tattoo shop and the tattooist says "It's too small to be done right." Customer: "But I got it from an official tattoo site." Tattooist:"It was printed too small." Customer (getting whiney):"But it didn't say anything about that." Tattooist (getting pissed off): "They aren't the ones tattooing it." Ad nauseum.

Hey! Listen to what the tattooist is telling you! Why people argue with tattooists when they're telling a customer that they can't do something well is beyond me.

If you really don't trust what the tattooist is telling you, then you shouldn't be getting a tattoo from them anyway.

You can find a tattooist who will do anything you want. Personally, I don't trust these kinds of tattooists, but that's me. I know that a tattooist knows a hell of a lot more than the person getting tattooed, or at least they ought to. If that's not true, get out of that shop fast!

Going to an opinionated tattooist is a hell of a lot better than going to one who isn't. You may not like this person as much, but they are more likely to know what they are doing. Or they could just be a great bullshitter. Don't forget to look at photos of the work they do! In this case, a picture is worth 1,252 words.

Long tattoo sessions

Let's say you want your arm fully sleeved (which means, if you don't know, having your entire arm tattooed). It's highly improbable that you'll do it all at once. Even if you could stand it, the tattooist probably can't (though s/he may not admit that).

Common sense alone says "do it in sessions". How long should a session be? Well, there's two people involved in this activity, and it's important that you let the tattooist work in the way they like. If your tattooist says they won't tattoo for more than three hours, respect that. If they say they want to tattoo you for twelve hours and you think you can't handle it, respect yourself and find someone else.

In my opinion, a four to six hour stretch of tattooing is the longest amount of time that a sitting should be, for both the tattooee and the tattooist. Of course, there are always exceptions. I was at a convention once where a woman got a tattoo that took 13 hours (and the tattooist was working hard and fast). When they were done, they both looked halfway dead. So, yeah, if you want to get tattooed by someone at a convention or when you're visiting somewhere far from home, the ordinary rules get thrown out the window.

But optimally, four to six hours is the limit. For one thing, you, as the person being tattooed, is going to run out of adrenaline and all the lovely chemicals the brain makes that are "natural opiates" which keep you from feeling pain clearly. When tattooing, I noticed that the average person runs out of steam at about 3 1/2 hours. For some people, it takes less time and, of course, others can go on and on and on. But at some point, it starts to really hurt, and I mean it. Tattooists joke about the fact that even the most hardass tat addict is gonna feel like that damned paper towel with the soothing cool water on it suddenly feels like coarse grain sand paper. And around that time, most people start to bleed more, so tattooing them becomes more difficult.

If you got lost in my wordiness, I had written that this takes four to six hours, but trutfhfully, four hours is most peoples' limit.

After four to six hours, you will probably also be shaky, cold, tired and in need of a good meal, a beer and a lot of sleep. I'm not kidding, but after a really long tattoo session, you are not fit to drive. If you must, sit yourself down and eat some red meat first.

Note: If you are paying your tattooist by the hour instead of by the piece, give them a tip. Even though they may be charging a good sum per hour, tattooists make more money doing small pieces with set prices. When they're working by the hour, you are usually getting a good deal. The tattooist is psyched and they (mostly) tend to work fast under these conditions. So, be a good sport and give 'em a tip.