Session Walk Through

this is going to be quite long winded, but I feel it’s important to be up front about what to expect!

settling in/design selection:

I buzz you in. I welcome you to the space and offer a bathroom break before we get started. I then like to have a quick check up to see how you’re feeling today or to air out anything that’s super pressing so that we can both be more present in what we’re doing.

-Throughout the whole appointment I usually just have my Spotify on shuffle, if a song ever comes on that you’d rather not listen to just say so and I’d be happy to skip it. I generally don’t have my music set very loud and I generally don’t play anything that would threaten to overwhelm the experience. I recognize what super loud music can do to people decision making abilities and always strive to maintain a calm environment so no one feels rushed :) -

Once that’s done I ask if you’d like to look at some flash/see the drawing, where you were thinking of placing it, and what your constraints for size are. If you’re going for flash I usually give a brief rundown on how it’s organized then I let you look at it by yourself for as long as you need to. If you’re having a hard time picking something I prefer asking questions to help you narrow it down. Things like “well what type of energy do you want it to give off?” “how do you want it to occupy the space? do you want something dense and obvious or lighter?” “do you have a preference between abstract and illustrative, narrative or abstract?”

If we’re drawing the day of it’s a similar process. We chat about placement, scale, energy, style, composition - all that jazz. I will then probably make a quick sketch on a 3d model just to confirm and visualize what we talked about. I then prefer to take a picture of the location we’ll be tattooing so that I can make the final drawing to the scale of your body.

Feedback is always welcome during the drawing process. It’s very important to me that you leave with the tattoo you want and I’d appreciate it if you say something if you arent’ totally jivving with the direction my drawing is going.

stencil time!

once we’ve settled on a design i’ll go ahead a print out the stencil, confirm it’s size and placement with you. I’ll ask you to make the area we’ll be working accessible in whatever way you feel most comfortable with. I have an assortment of pasties and tape options, you’re also always more than welcome to use the bathrooms if you need to change. please at any time tell me if you don’t feel comfortable in a position! that being said, please try to wear/bring clothes that allow access to where we’ll be working, or are flexible if you aren’t sure where you want the design to go. loose sweats, shorts, skirts that button down, dresses, button ups that can be worn backwards, low cut back shirts are all great, tank tops, tube tops, plain white tees with the backs cut out, cut offs, all flexible options! If you’re planning to get a piece in a sensitive area I’m always happy to chat with you before hand about what positions I think would be best and the best cover up options for the placement.

I also keep a selection of tanning thongs, panties, and pasties on hand that can work in a pinch. Clients have also had great success with slick chic underwear for hip pieces.

I then go over my skin prep routine. I generally clean the area with soap, shave any hair where we’ll be working, and then wipe it down with some iso alcohol. After all of that is done I rub a decent amount of stencil stuff on and pat dry until it’s tacky. I then confirm placement with you one more time before placing the stencil. Once the stencil is on I usually give it a firm press for a few seconds before peeling it off. Next I’ll ask you to go over to the mirror, check it out and confirm once again that you’re a fan. If it’s not a piece that you can readily see in the mirror without majorly distorting it I’ll offer to take some pictures so you can see it. Some of my stencils can be quite labor and material intensive which is why I check in so many times about the placement before applying the stencil. However! if you aren’t totally happy with it please tell me and we can always redo it. Once we’re happy with the stencil I’ll ask you to just hang out, try to let the stencil dry without smudging it while I set up the rest of my station to actually get started working.

-At no point throughout this whole process do I have any expectations about your conversational level! I know this process can be both an exciting and nerve-racking time, and I’m here for however you need to be while processing that! For some pieces I have to be more focused than others and can’t always promise i’ll be the most intellectual conversationalist, for other pieces the act of conversation causes your body to move in a way that inhibits the tattoo process, but you’re always more than welcome to talk at me if you don’t mind my attention being focused on what i’m doing.

tatting!

Around the time I’m pouring my inks I’ll ask once again if you need to go to the bathroom, or if there’s anything else you need to do before we begin. I then tell you how I would like you to be positioned and ask if you’ll be comfortable with that. This is one of those awkward bits where, because I’ll have to be able to stretch your skin sometimes a less comfortable position can make the whole process take less time/turn out better. However! I’m always game to do whatever we can to mitigate any discomfort or to minimize it. I have a variety of massage bolsters that can be used as pillows or to prop up certain body parts depending on the position.

then we do the thing! at any point of the process if you need a break for water, food, bathroom run, to clear your head, or just recover your tolerance please let me know! oftentimes I become too focused to realize that I also should take a moment to stretch and shake out my body and am usually appreciative of your breaks so I can do that :) depending on the area of your body we’re working on I might wrap the piece in Saran Wrap for sanitation if you do need to go to the bathroom. I also have a tendency to check in a lot, generally every time I switch needles, start working on a drastically different part of your body, or realize I might be putting too much pressure on any specific part of your body (like knees, throats, stomaches or organ rich zones)

and then, magically, we’ve finished !

wrapping up/photos/aftercare

every body is different, and every body responds differently to being worked on. I usually clean the fresh skin and surrounding area of any ink, then i’ll give it a rinse with some witch hazel or apply a gel and Saran Wrap to reduce bleeding. Either way, we allow the skin to breath for a decent amount of time while I break down and sanitize everything. Then I’ll ask if you’re comfortable photographing it, and if you are we’ll take some pictures.

Of course you’re always welcome to express any limitations you have with being photographed, or with how that photograph is used. You’re more than welcome to ask me to take some pictures with your phone if you’d like. In terms of photography I use an LED ring light and minimal editing to retain original skin tones and color values of the piece. Sometimes I muck around with color temperature a bit if the original photo is wonky, but that’s about it. I recognize how harmful desaturation or over editing is, and avoid doing it.

then we wrap it up and I give you the tips and tricks for an ideal healing. Once again, every body is different, but I usually use Tegaderm to heal pieces. I can also make a Saran Wrap / paper towel wrap for pieces not suitable for Tegaderm. I then ask if you have any other questions and congratulate you on your brand new skin sticker.

compensation

All I expect from you is the day rate I asked for when you booked the appointment. I’m only taking cards or cash at the moment.

Any tips you’d like to give are welcome but not expected or necessary for my good will. Tips can be done via cash, venmo, or zelle.

transparency

within the process I believe transparency to be hugely important, and I do my best to be up front about what i’m going to do and why. of course questions and such are always welcome. I use dial antibacterial soap, dettol, grean soap, for the majority of my skin prep and washes, with the exception of an 70% isopropyl alcohol rinse before placing the stencil. I also use vegan inks and try to source my ink from within the United States, currently I’m using a mix of Solid, Dynamic, Intenze, and Panthera inks. My gloves are latex free nitrile. I use Inkeeze ointment and good ol’ A&D, my rinse cup has witch hazel in it. Depending on the placement, I might ask you to lie on your back, side, or stomach or sit with your arm on an armrest, or sit backwards on a folding chair. I always clean my space and equipment with a general antibacterial cleaner before the appointment and with a combination of Madacide and Barbicide afterwards. For aftercare I like to use Tegaderm, Saran wrap, or absorbent pads (depending on the tattoo) :)

I also want to make it totally clear that I’m very approachable. If you have any questions about the process, technical aspects, design considerations or whatever I am open to answering them to the best of my knowledge. I don’t want anything to feel like it’s hidden behind the “aloof artist persona”.

woah, kudos to you for reading all of that

I sincerely hope it was helpful/informative

as always please, feel free to ask me any questions your might have!