rec.arts.bodyart Tattoo FAQ: Part II Artist & Shop List
Lani Teshima-Miller
Periodicity: 1 month
Part II includes the following information:
5. Who is a good/bad tattoo artist near me?
5.1 US West Coast: Washington, California
5.2 US Southwest: Arizona
5.3 US Midwest: Ohio, Minnesota, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois
5.4 US East Coast: Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island
5.5 Pacific: Hawaii (US)
5.6 Canada: British Columbia, London
5.7 UK: London
6. Where on my body should I get a tattoo?
5. Who is a good/bad tattoo artist near me? ----------
The following is a growing list of artists, most of whom come with a
personal recommendation by readers of r.a.b. In some cases, artists
have been posted here as a warning against visiting them. A posting
on this FAQ does not constitute approval. It is YOUR responsibility to
check out the artist and make sure s/he will do quality work.
You may submit names to: tes...@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.edu. Include
the artist's name, address, phone number, & specialization. In order to
avoid "politicizing" this list, please use some common sense by not
posting a "mediocre" artist and proclaim him/her as excellent, or
submit a bad review as a way to bad-mouth someone. Good artists
should also have some business sense--a clean, sanitary environment,
straightforward fees, insurance coverage, etc. Fly-by-night operations
will NOT be posted here (unless the artist has a reputation for doing
this, and should be avoided), and postings by those with self-interests
(i.e. your brother owns the shop) is highly discouraged. After all, if
your brother is an excellent artist, someone else will probably
recommend him, anyway. You can include other information, such as
whether they've won some awards, travel the convention circuit,
take credit cards, or what their policy is for out-of-town customers.
Where possible, I will include the name and email address of the
person who posted the information about the artist/shop. This way,
you may email directly for more details.
5.1 West Coast:
WASHINGTON (state)
--Dermagraphics of Seattle, 1516 Western Ave., Seattle, WA
(206) 622 1535, by appointment only.
This is Vyvyn Lazonga's shop. She specializes in combining bold
primitive lines with colorful, flowing abstract geometrics--lines,
bubbles, etc. "A fusion of primitive and modern tattooing" according
to her card. The whole effect is very pleasing, and rather unique, and
would work well for both men and women, I think. Also works out
of San Francisco. (P.S. According to her card, her name is spelled
"Vyvyn," not "VyVynn.")
--Seattle Tattoo Emporium, 1106 East Pike St., Seattle. (206) 622 6895
CALIFORNIA
Bay Area, California (South Bay):
--Pinky Lum, Dragon Tattoo, San Jose:
Top of file, stay away from Pinky Lum. He was good in his day, but
I've seen some *horrible* work he's done. Word is out on the circuit
that he's going blind and getting clumsy, botches tattoos and hurts
people. I've heard this from several other artists.I've seen a couple of
his recent pieces; they were blurry and badly done.
This info is supported by others, including Karl Elvis MacRae
(bat...@cisco.com) and Becky Fenton (fors...@stanford.edu).
--Eddie Lum, Eddie's Skin Works, in Santa Clara 1207 El Camino Real
(408) 554-8520
On the other hand, I highly recommend his brother, Eddie Lum. His
forte, not surprisingly, is Oriental stuff. Very good with flowing lines,
dragons,tigers, flowers. I have 2 pieces from him and am very
pleased. Warning: if you're taking in a custom design, there's a
language barrier, and you may have to explain it several times.
--Robert Roberts, Mad Dog (His name is Robert Roberts--Mad Dog is
the name of his tattooing enterprise.)
Inconsistent. While some of it is truly outstanding, others aren't that
great: It really depends on what you're getting. Robert is great w/ all-
black, but you might want to go elsewhere if you want color.
--Ed Hardy, Tattoo City on Columbus, 415-433-9437
The best in tattoo shop in SF (Actually, without a doubt the best in
the state, and possibly the best in the country) "Tattoo City" on
Columbus; the shop is owned by Ed Hardy, and the guys who work
there (Freddy Corbin, Eddie Deutsch, Dan Higg) are simply great.
You cannot go wrong with the three; Freddy and Eddie are the two
best tattooists I've ever seen.
--Erno Tattoo 252 Fillmore, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415)861-9206
Hours: Noon to 9pm. Appointments recommended.
Shop is clean, businesslike. Autoclaving used.
-Nalla: Specializes in blackwork and celtic designs, excellent artist.
Also knowledgable about piercings.
-Patrick: Good at black & celtic, but specializes in high fantasy art.
Excellent dragons, fairies, etc. Also excels at sci-fi art).
-Jaime Trujillo: More traditional stuff. Good artist--ease & skill of a
seasoned pro.
San Jose:
--Steve Cameron at Zap Illustrations. 1385 W. San Carlos, #202
(408) 287-4011
Mostly custom work; not for beginners. May try to talk you out of a
tat, if he doesn't think it appropriate to the rest of your body-scheme.
Very good free-hand work; likes bold, aggressive designs. He'll also
put in vast amounts of design work for free, if the design excites him.
Redwood City:
--Redwood Tattoo, 846-M Jefferson Ave., Redwood City, CA
(415) 369-6365, walk-ins welcome, but appts have priority. Closed
Sun. & Mon, appts required for custom work. Cash only.
Artists: Paco Dietz and Carl. Paco was at Picture Machine in San
Francisco; specializes in fantasy art, custom designs.
New shop w/ lots of new flash. Beautiful tribal and celtic designs, as
well as some unusual Native American designs.
Santa Barbara:
--Pat Fish, Tattoo Santa Barbara
Bar-none! I've seen some of her Celtic work (her specialty), and she's
*really good*. (I read an interview where she said she thinks it's a
genetic race-memory or something, and went into tattooing
specifically to get into Celtic work.)
Greater Los Angeles (Orange County, LA)
--Skin Works, 313 East Balboa Blvd., Newport Beach CA, 92661, ph.
714-675-8905 (in Orange County, just south of Los Angeles)
Contributed by Tim Lu (t...@sunstroke.sdsu.edu).
Artists:
-Ardee Allen (owner): An excellent artist, always very professional. I
feel it's important to support women in business--I've been going to
her for about 5 years now and she has done my entire chest and
about 3/4 of my back. Periodically attends conventions, and her
work has appeared in a number of tattoo magazines.
-Lynda Tobbin: Talented artist who does very nice custom work
-Val: Specialize in body piercing.
--Good Time Charlies, Anaheim
Artist: Kari Barba
Extremely well-known for her work with nature and wildlife. Her
style is reminiscent of a watercolor-like quality, which sets her apart
from many other artists. She works out of Anaheim, but I don't have
her phone number right now.
San Diego:
--Avalon Gallery, 1037 Garnet Ave., San Diego, CA 92109 (in Pacific
Beach) (619) 274-7635.
Needles autoclaved & new ink used for each new client. Hours: Noon
to 8pm. Appts preferred--walk-ins on Sat. only. Credit cards accepted.
Artists:
Patti Kelley: Specializes in cover-ups, bright color work, moreso than
minute designs. Award winner, booked a few months ahead.
Fip Buchanan (her husband): Graffiti art. More detail work than Patti.
Randy:
Steve:
5.2 Southwest
ARIZONA
--Jil, Skin Alive Tattoos, Prescott, Arizona. (602) 772-2387.
Formerly of Bodygraphics, Reno. By appointment only.
My *favorite* tattoo artist. Her forte is wildlife, but good with just
about everything--would be very successful wildlife artist in another
medium. Her tattoos have an incredible amount of life, and her
detailing is incredible. 20 years' experience. She's a custom fineline
specialist, and has won awards. Her style is what I think of as
"fineline steel engraving" (as opposed to Kari Barba, who does
incredible animals, but primarily with striking colorwork). I found
her by pouncing on a total stranger and demanding to know who
did his *incredible* tats.
5.3 Midwest:
OHIO
--Marty Holcomb, Marty's Artistic Tattooing, 3160 West Broad St.,
Columbus, Ohio
Marty won several national "Best Tattoo Artist" awards in the 1991.
--Dana Brunson, Designs by Dana, 4167 Hamilton Ave., Cincinatti, OH
(513) 681-8871
MINNESOTA
--Acme Tattoo Co., 1045 Arcade St., St. Paul, MN, (612) 771-0471
*Good* but expensive. Pre-designed tats are costly and other work is
$200/hour (as of '92).
--Steve Butterfield, Tattoos by Yerkew, 3127 Nicollet Ave, Minneapolis,
MN, (612) 825-6161
Steve is real good, but the shop's owner, Dave "the fat guy" Yerkew
leaves quite a bit to be desired. Steve around after about 6:00 pm
INDIANA
--Jeannie Fritch, Personal Art Tattoos, 3453 Central Ave., Lake Station,
IN, (219) 962-3600
--Roy Boy's Badlands, 3849 Broadway, Gary, IN 46409, (219) 884-4965.
Needles autoclaved. I got an all-black, tribal piece (a very even dark
gray)--Design was reproduced on my skin quite accurately. Flash is
stereotypical and old-looking, though some nice Celtic designs. Felt
vaguely sleazy--badly painted signs in the front, water-damaged
ceiling panels inside. Actual work areas were spotless, but the
building doesn't inspire confidence. Good enough, but not really
anything special, what with Guy Aitchison a few miles away.
MICHIGAN
--Suzanne, Creative Tattoos, 307 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104
Specializes in celtic work.
ILLINOIS
--Guy Aitcheson, Guilty + Innocent Productions, 3105 N. Lincoln
Chicago, IL 60657, (312) 404-6955 tattoos, 404-6963 merchandise
$1 catalogue available by mail.
Contributed by Phredd Groves (phr...@casbah.acns.nwu.edu)
--Tatu Tatoo, 1754 W. North Ave., Chicago, IL, (312) 772-TATU
Contributed by Phredd Groves (phr...@casbah.acns.nwu.edu)
--Body Basics Precision Tattoing and Body Piercings
613 W. Briar, Chicago, IL, 60657. (312) 404-5838, (a block south of
Belmont, just west of Broadway), Tues-Sat. 2 to 10pm
Contributed by Phredd Groves (phr...@casbah.acns.nwu.edu)
Run by Mad Jack and Anna, Jack does the tattoos and both do
piercings (both by appointment only). I can personally recommend
these guys as far as piercing and professionalism goes.
5.4 East Coast:
MARYLAND
--Main Street Tattoo Studio, Starlite Plaza, Rt 40, Pulaski Hwy,
Edgewood, MD, (410) 676-TAT2 (8282)
They also have an Elkton, MD shop (410) 398-1202. He's done some
very spectacular work and just completed an excellent cover-up of 2
small pieces (which were quite dark; red, green, blue, purple) I had
for over 10 years. The cover up is a tiger lily (magenta, black, pink
w/ yellow tipped petals) w/ delicate curving tribal thru the lily that
is quite breathtaking and required his exceptional artistic talent.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
--The Tattoo Shop, 109 Daniel Street, Portsmouth NH 03801
(603)436-0805. Contributed by Fred Jewell (fr...@ksr.com )
Artists: Hobo, Tattoo George
Prices start at $40; average is $100. In business since '76, are clean, use
sterile instruments and do good solid work.
--Sign of the Wolf, Wiers Beach NH, (603)366-2557
Contributed by Fred Jewell (fr...@ksr.com )
Artists: Dave Sr., Dave Jr., several apprentices.
Friendly and laid back, would make you feel comfortable if you were
anxious. So clean, you could eat off the floor. Dave Jr. has won a few
awards. Price range: $100 to $350; average is $260 for a fairly large
piece. They specialize in wildlife and American Indian art.
--Juli Moon Designs Inc., Route 1, PO Box 1403, Seabrook NH 03874
(603)474-2250. Contributed by Fred Jewell (fr...@ksr.com )
What can you say about Juli Moon except, "When?" She is booked
a month in advance, and is truly award winning,
--Brothers Too, South Broadway, Salem NH, Exit 1 Off Rt. 93
Licensed and Board of Health Approved. Contributed by Fred Jewell
(fr...@ksr.com )
Tattoo Frank scared me. Asked if he'd been vaccinated for Hep A and
B, he said, "I only got hepatitus once and that was from a customer."
His brother, "Bennies Tattoos" is just down the street and has the
same kind of attitude.
--Bill's Tattoo Palace, Broadway , Derry NH, (603)437-8813
Contributed by Fred Jewell (fr...@ksr.com )
Nice guy, but I set up an appointment and he didn't show! I called
back, and got someone who thought he was doing me a favor by
talking to me. Some of the work is really good but there seems to
be a lot of new people in the shop trying out the profession.
NEW JERSEY
--Ernie White, Tattoo Factory, 94 Main Street, Butler, NJ.,
(201) 838-7828
NEW YORK
--Spaulding & Rodgers
Sells tattoo guns, needles and ink. The few artists that have worked
on me (Cliff Raven, Kevin Brady, Phil Payton) usually do a lot of
custom work on their needles if not the gun itself. Needles
continually dull from use or sterilizing and have to be resharpened
and soldered into the appropriate groups and configurations.
--C&C Tattoo, 307 Congress St., Troy, NY 12180, (518)272-0576
Ask for Sue Daves (apprentice). She did my full back piece, and it
came out awesome!
RHODE ISLAND
--Electric Ink Tattoo, 153 Waterman Ave, E. Providence, RI
(401)435 3393.
Needles autoclaved (required by law in RI). New needles/ink for
every customer. Cash only; walk-ins welcome.
-Chris Borge: All-around great tattoo artist. Specializes in tribal;
probably the best in the shop.
-Skott Greene: Great for those who like to customize to a greater
extent. Doing them since Dec '92, he's already very adept; the one to
see about great custom designs. (Trained as an airbrush artist)
-Don L.: Graffiti art & modern methods, the one to see for all the
off-the-wall, weird imagery. (Trained as commercial & graffiti artist).
--Artistic Tattooing, 405 Atwell Ave., Providence RI, 02909
(401)861-7373
All needles are brand new and autoclaved, artists wear gloves, and
ink is individual.
Artists: Rusty, Dean II
Pricing is done by the piece, but may be hourly for large pieces. I
found pricing to be very reasonable and am very happy with my tats
(backpiece by Rusty, earpiece by Dean II). They do everything from
tribal to coverup. They do not participate in any tat conventions.
5.5 Pacific
HAWAII
--China Sea Tattoo, 1033 Smith, Honolulu, Hawaii, (808) 553-1603
The oldest tattoo studio in the US with a grand tradition.
Artists:
Mike Malone, Scotty and Kandy.
All are excellent. Mike is very active in the tat world, and attends (I
think they all do, rotating. I know Kandy was at the Chicago tat
convention recently), and has served as a judge at tat conventions.
Kandy only works there on Tuesdays, (also works at Dragon Tattoo
in Wahiawa on Mondays), specializes in Hawaiian-style designs and
has 10 years' experience.
--Skin Deep Tattooing, 2128 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu (808) 924-7460.
If in Waikiki, you may want to stop by , as it's right on the main strip.
The place is run by Winona Martin and several of her workers.
5.6 Canada:
BRITISH COLUMBIA
--Sailor Cam, the Dutchman Tattoos, 630 12th St., New Westminster,
BC, Canada, (604)522-5156
LONDON (Canada):
--Blue Dragon Tattoo, 253 Wellington London, 519-434-4706
The busiest shop in town, does a lot of flash work. I have found them
either pretty grumpy/opinionated or at times friendly.
--Tattoos Unlimited, 847 Dufferrin, 519-672-8025
Al Newcombe has been tattooing in London for a looong time. His
work is mostly flash, he can create stencils from your artwork. His
work tends to have a '50s feel to it--the stuff you see on ex-seamen.
--Tattoos by Gypsy <does not list address>, 519-453-0822
Tony is pretty young and is a design artist. I've created some really
nice work with him starting with my rough sketches. but his work is
pretty uneven it can be really good or really bad.
--George Lewis, Tattoo Art (est. 1980), 244 King St. S., Waterloo, Ont.
N2J 1R4, (519) 576-8054
Artists: George Lewis, Ken Lewis, Todd Evans (I have experience
only with George--cannot commend on the other two).
"Sterile conditions", "lifetime guarantee" (which I assume means I can
return to touch up color fades, etc.) by appointment only. Does exotic
piercings. Visa and Mastercard accepted.
Mine are very well done--lines are even and seem to connect
properly and all of my friends are amazed at the fine detail and how
bright the colours are!
5.7 Great Britain
LONDON (UK)
--Lal Hardy, 157 Sydney Road, Muswell Hill, London N10 2NL.
Tel: 081-444 8779
Gifs of a thunderbird back piece available from 141.214.4.135.
--Dennis Cockel, Walkers' Court London W1 (a small side street in
Soho)
Tattooed myself and a girlfriend about four years ago and we are
both very satisfied.
---Mark and Andy, Kensington Market, London W8. Their designs
were drawn by several artists over many years, they claim to do
award winning custom work and my opinion is they are good. The
parlor is on the basement of the market building, it doesn't have any
name (as I remember) and is not listed on yellow pages.
--Saint's Parlor, Portobello Road, London
Warning: He had some photos of the tattoos he had done that at first
looked ordinary, but if you look at them more closely, you can see he
has *redrawn* parts of the design on the photo afterwards by pen. At
least I wouldn't trust on a tattooist who does that.
--Terry's Tattoo Studio, 23 Ghisholm Street, Glasgow G1 5HA, U.K.
Tel (041) 552 5740.
Three artists in 1992: Terry, Stuart, and Steven--Quite popular. The
ready-made designs were nice and my boyfriend is very satisfied
with his tattoo. I think in this parlor a first timer can feel comfortable
in, since it looks a lot like an ordinary shop with show window and
quite large, light waiting room for customers.
6. Where on my body should I get a tattoo? ----------
Duh--This may seem VERY trivial, since the answer can be "anywhere
you please!" The ONLY places you cannot technically get permanent
tattoos are your hair, teeth and nails (even the cornea used to be
tattooed years ago for medical purposes). However for the sake of this
FAQ, the following is a short list of areas to get inked:
--Head: The "head" in this case refers mostly to the area where your
hair grows. Obviously, you'll need to shave the area for the tat to be
most visible. If you need to hide your tat, you can grow your hair out.
Areas more commonly inked are the sides of the head (above the
ears), and above the nape of the neck in the back. There are people
who have their entire heads inked.
--Sides of neck (nape):
--Back of neck: I've seen some tribal pieces done on the back of the
neck. You'll need to keep your hair short or tied up to keep it visible.
--Face: Various areas possible. Facial tattoos could fall into the
cosmetic, prison, or standard categories. Cosmetic would include
darkening of eyebrows, eyelining, liplining, etc. Prison tattoos (which
are actually in their own category) often include the tat of a single tear
near the eye to signify time served. Getting a regular tat on the face is
serious business and crosses a portal because people will never look
at you the same way. You might see people with extensive facial tats
working in a circus, for example.
--Upper chest: One of the more standard areas for tattoos, for both men
and women. Allows lots of flat area in which to get a fairly large
piece. One of the areas where you can choose to get symmetrically
inked on both sides.
--Breasts (women): Used to be trendy to get a small tat on the breast.
Women (particularly larger breasted ones) need to be careful about
eventual sagging of the skin in the area. Do not get a tat that will look
silly when it starts to stretch.
--Rib cage: This area can be rather painful because of all the ribs you
work over. However it offers a fairly large area, and can be
incorporated into a major back piece, wrapping around toward the
front.
--Stomach/Abdomen: Some people choose not to get work done on
their stomachs for a couple of reasons. The area is difficult to work on
because there is no solid backing to hold the skin steady. It is a
sensitive area that may feel uncomfortable. Finally, the tat may look
horrible after your metabolism slows down and you develop a --er--
"beer gut."
--Genitals: Said the matron nurse, "Did you see the patient in #409? His
penis has a tattoo that says 'SWAN' on it!" "Oh no it didn't," says the
second, younger nurse. "It said "SASKACHEWAN'!" All kidding
aside, people DO get inked in their genital area. The prospect may
sound very painful, but a friend of mine said it wasn't any worse than
any other sight. However, do consider that there *will* probably be
some blurring in the area because of --er-- shall we say, the amount of
movement the skin experiences (kind of like hands)?
--Thighs: A rather popular area for women to get larger pieces (often
extending from the hip area). Shows well with a bathing suit but
easily concealable in modest shorts. The entire area of skin around
your thighs is bigger than your back, so you can get quite a bit of
work done.
--Calves: A nice area to get a standard size (2" x 2"). However if you
have very hairy legs, it may cut down on the visibility somewhat.
--Ankles: The current trend-spot. I think you have to have an ankle tat
before you can go to the Eileen Ford Agency with your modeling
portfolio. :) You can either get a spot piece on the inner or outer ankle,
or get something that goes around in a band. Vines and other
vegetation seem popular (pumpkins, anyone?)
--Feet: I've seen some incredible footwork (pun intended) in some of
the tat magazines. Easily concealable with shoes. Probably don't have
as much wear and tear as hands so you might get less blurring and
color loss.
--Armpits: Usually reserved for those who want to get full coverage
around the arm and chest area, and need the armpits filled. Probably
not strongly recommended for the highly ticklish.
--Upper arms: One of the most common areas for men, although I have
seen some nice on women as well. If you decide to get a piece done on
your upper arm, consider how much sun it's going to get. Will you be
able to put sunblock on it regularly? Otherwise, expect some color
loss and blurring. If you want some serious work done, and you want
to show it off, you may want to consider getting a "sleeve"--full tat
coverage throughout your upper arm.
--Inner arms: A more unusual location than the outer upper arm area,
this area is often not easily visible. Be careful if your genes are prone
to "bat wing" flab, however.
--Forearms: Popeye sported his anchor on his forearm. Probably not as
popular as the upper arm but common just the same. You can have
your upper arm "sleeve" extend down for the long sleeve effect. For
an example, check out the heavy metal video disc jockey on MTV
(who also has a nose pierce, BTW).
--Wrists: Janis Joplin had a dainty tat on her wrist...easily concealable
with a watch.
--Hands (fingers and palms): This usenet receives frequent queries
about fingers, palms and hands in general. Some artists don't do
hands because the ink will have a tendency to blur or fade easily.
Consider that you probably move your hands the most out of your
entire body. A friend of mine had a multi-colored tat on his finger by
Ed Hardy (who apparently cringed upon hearing about where my
friend wanted it), that is only several years old and is now barely
noticeable.
Some people want to substitute their wedding bands with tat bands.
The palm side of your hand doesn't retain ink well--if you can find an
artist who will do it, you can expect it to be a rather basic line, and
that it will not last too long. Perhaps just matching tats someplace else
would be okay?
--Shoulder blades: The back shoulder blade area is another popular
spot for women, who can show off the work with a bathing suit or
tank top, but cover it up with regular clothes. If this is the case, be
particularly careful with sun because you're not gonna be wearing
that unless it's warm and sunny. It's a "safe" place--but may get in the
way later on if you decide to commit yourself to a large back piece.
--Back: You can get any part of your back done, or find yourself an
artist you really like, and save your money for a "back piece" that
encompasses your entire back. Expect to pay several thousand dollars
for a full back piece (not to mention many tat sessions).
--Buttocks: Again, beware of potential sagging in the area. Rumor is
that George Schultz has a tiger on his, and Cher has a bunch of
flowers on hers (I wish she'd stop getting the silly small things and
get some serious big custom pieces done on her bod! Has anyone seen
that "necklace with three charms" that she has on her arm? Yeeech!)
--
Lani Teshima-Miller (tes...@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.edu) "Sea Hare" o/ /_/_/
UH School of Library & Info Studies. "Whatever the cost of our o|<0_0>------*
libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant \=^-| |_| |
nation." -Walter Cronkite [r.a.b. FAQer: "Think Ink!"] \_} \_}