actually had older clients. But nowadays the age range is 18 to 65. My oldest client had a double mastectomy and she was a breast cancer survivor. She decided she didn’t want to get reconstruction, she wanted to get a tattoo, so that was her first and only tattoo. It’s very personal, just for her. EVAN: Bucket Lists are a big one. When you start tattooing people over 30? They’ve really thought a lot about it and it usually tends to hold more meaning for them. LUKE: They were younger, but three girls came in together who were sexually abused and they were doing it as a re-claim for themselves. They all got the same nipple pierced, same side. That’s one of the more special moments. FF: HOW DO MEN AND WOMEN DIFFER IN THEIR TATTOO AND PIERCING REQUESTS? SAMANTHA: I think women take placement into consideration more than men do? LUKE: Yes and no! That’s a hard one, because every time I say ‘yes’, someone comes in and completely changes it. There’s definitely trends in piercings, so I can tell when a famous person gets a piercing because everyone will be getting it. That’s when I’ll notice girls will be getting that piercing more than guys. And then it’ll switch! EVAN: The sternum, that’s been very popular for several years. Rihanna got it, and it’s a boom! It’s not fun at all, it’s painful. SAMANTHA: I find women love to work with certain parts of their body, for example the hips. The placement is important too. It needs to work with your body, not against you. So you can have a beautiful design on paper, you place it on some part of the body and it just doesn’t do any justice. Move it over three inches and it looks great. Men love to show off their tattoos! Women love to choose along the breast, hip line, the ear was quite popular to have it sort of showing for a while. FF: OKAY, WHAT IS THE STRANGEST REQUEST YOU’VE RECEIVED AND HAVE YOU EVER SAID NO? EVAN: I’m not a shy person at all, but the strangest tattoo… a stripper came in and I tattooed a star around her butthole. HANNAH: Probably a favourite was a friend who asked (while intoxicated) if I could tattoo a stick person coming out of her butt crack with a speech bubble that said “Help me!” I agreed to
do that one, but unfortunately she never followed through. SAMANTHA: Occasionally on a crazy weekend, some people come down from the bar up the street to see what’s up. And this girl came in and she had a giant gash on her leg. She was really persistent that she wanted to get a tattoo in the cut. Like, not around it or not under it but in it. We were just like no, no, no! LUKE: With piercing and anatomy, curveballs happen all the time. So people need to come in to see me with an open mind ‘cause sometimes things don’t always work out. I won’t say no, I’d say maybe you should think about it for a day or two. Maybe come back. FF: ARE PEOPLE WHO COME TO SEE YOU FOR AN APPOINTMENT GENERALLY PREPARED? HANNAH: This one is really hit or miss! I find maybe half of people are well-prepared and researched. The other half are a combo of either not researching at all OR have spent way too much time on the internet and have made themselves paranoid about everything that could go wrong. EVAN: Exactly, it’s hit and miss. And not saying that there’s nothing wrong with being spontaneous and getting a walk-in tattoo. There’s some people who if they do something, they’re going to do it wholeheartedly and think about it and know all of their options. FF: ANY SPECIFIC SUMMER CARE TIPS TO OFFER YOUR CLIENTS AND FOLKS WANTING TO GET SOMETHING DONE THIS SUMMER? SAMANTHA: Summer is hard because a lot of people want to get it and show it off, with no time in between! Let it heal! It’s a wound. HANNAH: Avoid tanning and sunburns. EVAN: Yeah, sun is your tattoo’s worst enemy! We’ve all seen those tattoos that are just aged to hell and they’re like, two years old. It is important to use sunscreen on your tattoos if you want to protect them. And as great as lakes and pools are, there is bacteria in them. LUKE: If you’re on vacation, you want to be in the sun and in the salt water ocean- it makes sense, right? But it’s not the cleanest place. It’s the fish’s toilet!
TOP 10 PRE-APPOINTMENT TIPS 1. Don’t have a crazy night the night before - get your rest. 2. Eat before your appointment. Have a big breakfast or a big lunch. 3. Research! Know who is going to do the work for you and where you’re getting it done. Choose an artist that you relate to, you’re going to be spending a lot of time with them. You want to enjoy it and feel comfortable! 4. Stay home if you’re not well. Your body and your artist will appreciate it! 5. Dress comfortably. 6. Ask questions! Don’t get scared to ask your artist or staff at the shop any questions you have. 7. Don’t bring an entourage. If you need to bring someone, bring just one friend. 8. Don’t do drugs or drink alcohol the night before! It will thin your blood and getting tattooed hungover is a nightmare. 9. Be hygienic and considerate of your artist! Being clean and smelling nice is appreciated and will help reduce the risk of any infections. 10. Mental preparation. Really think about if you’re doing the right thing and if it’s what you really want. It will hurt, so feeling your best and being as relaxed as possible will help.