Finding a tattoo artist

You aren't.... are you? ?

Zebra is the person to ask.

I would have a look at a few shops - they should be friendly and have sterilizing equipment and if in London, I think have to be registered with the councils for hygiene purposes.

I found bmezine.com really helpful when I was thinking about getting my tattoo - but beware it's quite ahem vivid in showing body mods, it's not just ink.

I had mine done about 6 years ago by a guy called Seth in a shop in Kentish Town - I don't think he's there anymore but the shop is still http://www.flamineight.co.uk/

Presuming you don't want flash art work (you get books and books of art work you can choose from), or have a pic you definitely want already, you should be able to discuss the art with the tatooist and ask them to draw some ideas - I brought some sketches and concepts that a friend drew for me and left them with Seth and he came up with my tattoo for me. I didn't make any changes to his suggestion which I think is bl00dy amazing considering how vague I was ?

Tattooist should be able to recommend about placement and so on too.

Is this for you or someone else? I'm curious!

? at SophieM

BTW, I paid something like £20 deposit in return for the artwork, there was no commitment to ever get it done.

Also, I think my tattoo was something like £150, good artwork isn't cheap.

I know people who have used The Family Business on Exmouth Market and the one on St John St close to the corner with Clerkenwell Road, both have been positive about them. I'm looking at getting a cover up done at TFB, they have a Japanese woman who does amazing artwork.

I am thinking about it, although I must admit I go through phases of thinking about getting a tattoo quite often and have never gone ahead yet. I'd like to work out a design based on my children's initials and incorporating small details from Blake's Songs of Innocence illustrations, which I'd have on my foot somewhere (although not quite sure where).

Thanks Zeb, that's really helpful ?

[edited because my joke was a bit grim]

Ooh thanks MM&I, that place (TFB) looks really good.

Sounds like an interesting concept - I'm sure you could get something you like from that with the right artist.

Re. foot tats though, you need to think about a few things - skin on feet/hands gets a lot of misuse (rubbing from shoes etc) so you need to consider a) that depending on placement the tattoo quality might not last very well and b) that healing it could be difficult (need to choose time when you could wear flip flops for a week or whatever).

By no means impossible though - a good artist wiil advise.

I thought seriously about tattoos for about a year before I even got the design done and then carried it around for another 6 months before I made the appointemnt - the tattoo shop staff were amazed I'd come back, they were sure I wouldn't get it done. My point is, you want something you can live with for the rest of your life without regret and that's a long time so there's no point in rushing into it, make sure the design is exactly what you want ?

ps gutted to miss the joke, I don't mind grim ?

I thought it was funny ? Grim, but funny.

KN - I would advise having a trawl through the recommended places and visiting each one to have a chat with the artist. You should get a feel for the place and whether you like the artist. Its really important to find someone you trust straight away!

With regards to foot tattoos, I have just had each foot done. I have had three bats on one foot and a nautical star on the other. A couple of pointers. Red ink is really hard to heal - it takes the longest out of any colour - so it has taken me 3 weeks to heal that one. Bepanthen is fabulous - don't cover them up at all. I've been wearing sandals (yes even in the rain!) for the past 3 weeks to ensure it heals without any rubbing. Oh and be prepared because it smarts. A lot. I've had 12 now and the feet (especially the colour) were agonising.

I have pictures if you want to see foot tattoos

What the others said, and also that each artist has (or should have) a portfolio of work that you can look through. Admittedly they only put in their good work, but it gives you a feel as to whether you like their style.

The place that did my tattoos wouldn't tattoo feet for first-timers (although that may now have changed as foot tattoos have increased in popularity) because of the problems with healing etc (although this may also have been to protect the tattooist's reputation as people would blame the tattooist if the tattoo wasn't perfect, not the fact that they squashed their feet into unsuitable shoes and wrecked the tattoo).

I second what Zebra said about choosing a design and then waiting a while. My first tattoo was flash, but the other two I chose the design, printed it out and looked at it for months. I even used to stick it on my body to make absolutely sure I liked the placement!

Hi KN,

I went on reccomendation for my 2 tats. I got my first tattoo done at Orginal Skin in Tottenham, and they were brilliant, I can't sing their praises enough. I went in with an idea and they sketched it out then and there, and it was better than what I'd imagined myself!

You could also check out Lal Hardy, he's based in Muswell Hill. He's tattooed the likes of the Oasis boys, he's got quite a good reputation, but because he caters for the celebs, he can be quite pricey. But, I've seen his work, and it is wicked!

HTH.

R.

You can pop in and go through the portfolio's of the artists and if you like a particular style they'll book you in a consultation to discuss the design. As I said there's an amazing Japanese woman there, I'm going to use her when I get my next one done, I've seen her completed work and it's stunning.

If you do go then get the Pain au Raisin from Sweet, it's amazing