Tattoo Designing

Tattoo designing

When your decision is made to get a tattoo, that is the very beginning of the process. Ten years of “I’d never get one but if I did I’d want THIS” ISN’T ten years of preparing.

When you walk into the studio- an artist will give you as much as you give them. For example: If you pay a design charge and say ‘I love roses and bulldogs, go ahead and design something’; then you are responsible for what you get.

Unfortunately a tattooist cannot read your mind- if you see the finished design and go “oh yeah thats real nice but I want a different kind of roses in a different style of artwork and a bulldog that looks like the one that saved my life when I was choking to death on a milkshake”

This is a big step in the direction to bad blood with the artist.

The next big wrong-step is when you say “I have 30 photos of artwork I like more [than your drawing] that I have been collecting since [8 years before I walked in the door]”

Lack of communication with your artist is disastrous to your relationship with them.

It is difficult to imagine; but if a person were to conceptualize, imagine, research their art design 6 hours a day for fifty years- developing a clear image in their mind of what they envision- the second they talk to the artist the entire process goes straight back to square one, because the artist is new to your idea.

An artist will have the know-how on the way to build a physical product but if you fail to provide examples of what you like- the artist will fail to provide you with the progressive inertia to get your idea down on paper.

It must be noted that to draw Anything takes Time.
Time is at a premium for any artist with a demand.

When a client just tells the artist to “draw a tattoo” without any prior input- the artist may be of the impression that the client did their research, and chose him/her based on their individual strengths, and style.

This results in an inflation of enthusiasm from the artist- likely meaning the artist will take not only the time to physically DRAW the piece; but they will sacrifice time in their homelife (kids, spouse, parents, sleep) to conceptualize, and plan the piece.

This, understandably, results in frustration when the bubble is burst by statements like “can you do this more like someone else?”

All this being said- here is a good way to start the designing process of a tattoo:
1. Find examples of tattoos you would like to see on your skin (just changed to the subject matter of your choice)
2. Find examples of colouring- this can come from tattoos, paintings, photos, or a kids drawing stuck to a fridge door.
3. Research the style of your art- of which there are many. (ie: Japanese, traditional, new school, neo traditional, tribal, realism, PHOTO realism, painted, art nouveau, grotesque, etc etc)
4. Choose an artist based on extensive research. (dont go to a new school guy and ask for photo realism)
5. Expect a process- the artist may not knock the design out of the park on the first shot. A client may have to see a series of rough sketches and they will gradually clean up and come into focus as the design develops
6.Once the work is done: If you go through the design process and the art or subject matter isn’t what you want. You don’t have to get it tattooed. But this is an indication that you didn’t actually do your homework which is inconsiderate to the artist.
7.NEVER EVER EVER get a drawing done by one Tattooer but take it to another to get tattooed. This is a major Faux Pas.

I hope this helps people effectively prepare for a successful tattoo.

Gatekeeper

Hi there! I'm Taylor, you may know me as Sterling Skull reception, or gatekeeper, or most recently Tater (thanks Chris). I love writing, creating and I love tattoos; so what better way to use my passions than to bring you a personal experience of our studio via a blog! Welcome, please stay a while!