next »

[Tiny]

So i have a cool idea, at least i think so, for a new tattoo.  I'm sort of a geek and metal head so I thought a half sleeve of my favorite metal mascots would be bad ass.  I went into a local shop here in town.  It says right on the door "custom tattoos".  I managed to talk to the tattoo artist and explain what i wanted.  He seemed reluctant to give me a price or even set up an appointment.

He said that I would need to bring him pictures of exactly what characters I wanted to incorporate with the sleeve and as close to the pose that i wanted them to appear on my skin.

Isn't a tattoo artist supposed to be an "artist" not a tracer?  Do I need to get a professional artist to create the design and then just take it into the tattoo shop?  I'm a little new on how custom tattoos work.

[Gizmo]

Run, don't walk! away from that tattoo studio.  If an artist isn't into designing what you want then you don't want to use them.  It could be that the artist is incapable of designing what you want.  There are plenty of qualified tattoo artists out there, I'd go somewhere else.

[HCgurl]

Any competent tattoo artist should be able to design you a tattoo.  If your tattoo artist doesn't seem interested then go somewhere else.  Talk to your friends and find out where they got their ink.  It sounds like you need a different tattoo shop.

[Pounded Ink]

I agree with the others that if your tattoo artist doesn't seem interested in giving you what you want then it's time to look for another tattoo artist.

[tsharma]

Yes, I agree with what others have said. Artists are supposed to be just that, artists. And also, if the shop says custom, then it should be custom!

I don't think the tattoo artist is doing anything wrong - at least he is being somewhat transparent with you about what he is comfortable doing or not doing. It is better to know where he stands now rather than have him ink you and then you end up with a design you weren't seeing in the same way he imagined it. Who knows, maybe he had a bad experience in the past and so he is hesitant with your type of design?

In any case, you want to have a tattoo artist who feels confident about being able to give you something that you are completely satisfied with. Look for someone else who feels more comfortable and go from there. Check out a few artists so you have a wider net to make your decision from.