13 Things Every Tattooed Person Should Know About Tattoo Artists

by N/A, 10 years ago | 2 min read

Whether you're thinking about getting inked or pursuing a career in the art, you should know these facts.

1. They do a lot of infinity symbols.

Celebrities like Taylor Schilling and Kristen Stewart have infinity symbol tattoos and artists definitely see a rise in certain requests once celebs get them inked on themselves. The trendiest tattoo in recent times is definitely the infinity symbol.

2. Tattooing is a hard industry to break into.

Breaking into the tattoo industry is extremely hard. The first step to becoming an artist is apprenticing under another artist, but it's really hard to get your foot in the door. It can take years of persistence to convince an artist to take you under their wing.

3. Apprentices are at the bottom of the totem pole.

Apprentices often get hazed and have to do a lot of cleaning and grunt work. It's all about showing that you're committed, humble and willing to learn the tricks of the trade.

4. Their bodies take a beating.

Tattoo artists can constantly hunched over, squinting at the finest details and it has an effect on their health. Back, hand, neck and eye problems are common in this industry.

5. Artists practice on themselves.

It's not uncommon for the first tattoo performed on human skin by an apprentice to be a tattoo that they do on themselves. They typically turn out terrible and are covered by other tattoos. Apprentices usually practice on orange peels, pig ears and fake skin.

6. They're on your parent's side, not yours.

Lots of tattoo artists will refuse to tattoo the faces, necks or hands of young people because they know it could impact their futures. The most professional tattoo artists will have your best interest in mind before they ever create a piece of art for you.

7. A good artist will turn you away if your tattoo just won't work.

A unseen part of the tattoo creation process is when the artist figures out if the color, design and placement will heal properly and how it will age over time. If they don't think that either of those things will work, they'll probably turn you away. And you can thank them later.

8. They want you to look at their portfolios.

Artists put a lot of work into curating their portfolios and they want you to use that to figure out if they're the right fit for you stylistically.

9. They make mistakes.

One artist on Reddit says that every artists messes up, but they know how to fix their mistakes as they go.

10. You can negotiate with them on pricing.

Don't expect to get anything for free and remember that good work and worth a high price. Indiana-based tattoo artist Chad Leever once did a tattoo in exchange for a motorcycle.

12. They make a lot of money from coverups.

The tattoo industry sustains itself, since people who get tattoos typically want more or need to get something covered up.

11. Men have the lowest pain tolerance.

California-based artist Jeffery Page says that women can sit for hours without complaint and tattooing them is a breeze. “Usually the funny thing is, the more alpha male the guy is, the less of a pain threshold they have,” he says. He once met a client who wanted a Metallica tattoo on his bicep, who left without it, since he couldn't handle the pain.

13. There's only three names you should ever get on your body.

Most artists say you should only get tattoos to commemorate your pets, your kids, or a dead relative.