Preparing for Your Tattoo
and other frequently asked questions
Preparing For Your Appointment
When preparing for your tattoo appointment it is as important to prepare for each part of the processes in order to have the best tattoo experience.
The Consultation
Choosing your artist: It is important to prepare for your consultation with the understanding that your tattoo artist might specialize in a style outside of that you are looking for. This consultation is a great opportunity to talk about your idea, ensure that the artist is a great fit for your project and discuss the scheduling and financial investment of the tattoo itself. We recommend researching your artist before hand, and coming prepared with your inspiration, font examples and body location in mind.
Your Appointment
It is ideal to eat a healthy portioned meal within four hours of being tattooed. You don’t want to be starving or stuffed. Having stable blood sugar bolsters your immune system and helps the body deal with the fluctuation of endorphins, which are released during the tattoo process. For long tattoo sessions bring some fruit and trail mix.
Avoid caffeine, alcohol and aspirin.
A Valid Photo ID will be required for your appointment
After Your Appointment
Picking the right artist, and choosing the right tattoo is just as important as choosing the right time in your life. It is important to prepare to heal a fresh wound. Everyday things like, hot tubbing, cuddling your pet, or going to a place where you need sunscreen can impact your ability to heal your tattoo well. We have also found that happy and healthy people heal better. Getting tattooed when you are sick, post or pre-surgery, or exceptionally stressed out is not ideal and can impact your immune system. People with a compromised immune system can expect their tattoos to take longer to heal (e.g. diabetes, Hepatitis, HIV).
Frequently Asked Questions
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At this time, we have transitioned to being an appointment only studio. Appointments for your FREE consultation can be made here. Should you decide to book at the end of the consultation, a $100 deposit will be required to hold your appointment time.
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Deposits are not refundable. Deposits can be transferable, restrictions apply.
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We encourage you to bring any visual reference which helps us better understand your ideas! We love it when our clients are prepared, coming to us with fairly specific ideas in regards to subject matter, size and placement, and bring us plenty of visual references, such as:
Images from the internet
if you've collected some images from the internet, it really saves a lot of time if you can print them out ahead of time - or if you don't have the means to print, please email them to the artist you're consulting with before your appointment. Please don't bring images that are just on your phone. In order to create something from the images we need to be able to see them clearly!Drawings, sketches, doodles, or diagrams
This does not have to be a masterpiece, it just needs to get a point across!Photographs, objects, etc
If re-creating a photograph or depicting an object we recommend bringing the item (or a copy if applicable) with you. -
We love animals, but we absolutely cannot allow them inside the shop, for sanitary reasons. All service dogs will not be allowed into the tattoo area.
We strongly advise not bringing young children or infants into a tattoo shop. We are constantly cleaning here, but one never knows what a child can pick up by crawling around the floor, or just being near someone getting a tattoo. Also, young children tend to get very bored and its extremely disruptive to other clients if children are running around the studio. As long as they are with a parent or guardian, minors between the ages of 12-18 may be allowed to watch or sit quietly during your session.
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No. Your body is going through tremendous changes and stress. Getting tattooed while pregnant or breast-feeding can negatively impact either/or your health and that of your baby. It’s simply not worth the risk.
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You can certainly bring a friend to your tattoo appointment. Sometimes it helps to have a friend for moral support during the tattoo. But when you bring 2 or more people with you, it gets too crowded in the tattoo artist's area, and can be very distracting to your tattoo artist. Please be respectful of other clients and the artists by not bringing a crowd of people with you.
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You must be at least 18 years old at the time of your tattoo appointment. Consultations may be scheduled prior to turning 18 in order to try to schedule your appointment on your birthday.
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The process of tattooing can range from mild discomfort to more intense pain. We have found that all of our clients experience the pain differently, regardless of placement. That being said some areas are more painful than others. Typically, the thinner the skin is in a location the more painful it will be.
The pain of a tattoo is similar to a burning sensation. -
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Yes. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Skin City welcomes the use of service animals by any person with a disability. We do not allow service animals in areas of the Studio where they would cause a major change to Studio operations or a threat to the safety of others or the Studio.
Learn More.