How do I make an appointment?
Appointments are booked quarterly, if the BOOKING FORM is available there are openings! If the form is not live on the site, all openings have been taken for this booking period. Once I am able to open the books again I will make an announcement on social media. You can always check back here as well.
How old do I have to be to get a tattoo?
You must be 18 years old and have proper identification. You must bring state or federal photo ID every time you come in for any tattoo. If you arrive for a tattoo appointment without proper ID, you will not get tattooed and you will unfortunately lose your deposit. Acceptable forms of ID include: driver’s license, state issued non-driver ID card, military ID or passport.
Do you take walk-ins?
I rarely have time for walk-in appointments. Sometimes I have cancellations though, and when that happens I will post on Instagram with a pre-drawn design I’m interested in doing for a same-day appointment.
Do you accept every inquiry you get?
I am grateful to receive an overwhelming number of inquiries about tattoo projects, but due to my busy tattooing schedule and life in general, I am only able to take on projects that align with my personal style and interest in the subject matter.
Please do not get offended if I choose to recommend someone else for your tattoo. I want to make sure that every client gets the best possible tattoo and not every inquiry will be right for me. If I am unable to help, I will try my best to suggest another artist who would be great for your project.
I am extremely grateful for the continuing support, because this makes it possible for me to become more focused in my field and to constantly evolve my art.
Price/Budget
I know it’s hard for clients to guess how much something will cost. I do many smaller, one session tattoos at a flat rate starting at $160 and going up from there depending on placement and complexity of the design. For larger and/or multiple session projects, the studio rate is $160/hour with a 2 hour minimum and many tattoos you see in the portfolio are 4 to 15 hours of work or more. If you have a strict budget, please let me know. However, a strict budget will affect the overall size, and detail of your tattoo.
Do you use Vegan ink?
Yes! All tattoo ink, stencil products and soaps used at Black Dragon are vegan/cruelty free!
Can I pay extra to get in sooner?
I appreciate that people are excited enough about my work to even offer this, but no, definitely not. I book appointments in the order they are received and I am not interested in offering special treatment to people who might have a financial advantage over others.
Your comfort
Black Dragon Tattoo Company is a safe, welcoming place to get tattooed without judgement. Unfortunately we have heard too many stories of people who have been made seriously uncomfortable by unwanted sexual conversation/questions, requests to remove more clothing than is necessary and even touched inappropriately during tattoo sessions leaving them with not only a negative tattoo experience but loss of trust in the tattoo process altogether. This is a disgrace to the art form, abuse of a position of power and a violation of a human beings right to feel safe. While I do tattoo mostly women, I welcome ALL genders, LGBTQ+, non-binary, and all races.
Can I get a tattoo if I’m pregnant?
No. I will not tattoo you if you are pregnant for numerous reasons. The tattooing process is traumatic for your body and especially for a developing embryo or fetus. Your body is growing a human being and doesn’t need the additional stress of the tattooing process. If you are no longer pregnant, but are breastfeeding, please speak to your OBGYN about getting a tattoo. I am not a medical professional and cannot tell you if getting a tattoo while breastfeeding is safe.
Cover ups
When submitting for a cover up please include a photo of your existing tattoo you would like to cover. If your tattoo is very faded there is a good chance it can be easily covered. Please be aware that there are limitations with coverup work. Black and gray tattoos will NOT work as a cover up in most cases. Light colors such as yellow, pink and light blue will not cover black in the long term. If you have seen cover ups done with light over dark online, I can assure you that the tattoo was just done and the blacks/darker colors will start to show through as the tattoo heals. Sometimes a few laser sessions would be suggested before scheduling your coverup if the existing design is very dark. I prefer to use floral designs for coverups as their freedom of shape and color lend themselves well to hiding an old, undesirable tattoo. I do not finish incomplete/ poorly done tattoos started by another artist but will cover it with an original, new design.
Will you finish, add to, or fix a tattoo started somewhere else?
Reproducing work by another Tattoo artist
Children in the studio
Tattoo studios are not a place for children. Please arrange for childcare before you come to the studio for any reason. While I love children, a tattoo studio is not a place for them.
Payment methods
Deposits for appointments are only accepted online. The remaining balance of your tattoo is to be paid by either cash or credit/debit card at the conclusion of each session.
Drawings
Your drawing will be ready for you to see on the day of your appointment. I do not send drawings via email or have anyone come in for a preview. I am more than happy to make simple alterations to the design during your scheduled appointment time. If you have changed your mind about the subject matter or want drastic changes that were not communicated in your initial appointment request, this will count as an entirely new design and will require another deposit as well as a new appointment.
Since I am typically booked five to six months in advance that means that I have five to six months worth of drawings to complete before I can get to yours. This doesn’t mean that your drawing or tattoo is any less important, I love all of my clients and always strive to make your ideas become reality, but I have to work on a first come first served basis.
micromanaging
This very well written explanation about micromanaging has been written by our friends at Black Widow Tattoo, Toronto, Canada. It is shared here with their permission. The original blog post can be viewed HERE
A tattoo, regardless of size, is a huge step for anyone. It’s a physically visible alteration of your body that will be with you for life, and some clients are understandably nervous about the procedure. They mistakenly believe that by transferring the psychological pressure and nervousness they are feeling to the artist it will result in a better tattoo for them. This couldn’t be further from the truth, and in fact, will result in the opposite.
Every tattoo artist has had at least one client who becomes a micromanager of their own tattoo project, and the results will always be unfavourable. Why?
The only time a client should micromanage is during the artist selection phase. Portfolios must be examined, styles and approaches must be learned, possibilities must be reviewed, and the correct artist for your style must be carefully selected. For example, if you’re looking for a colour tattoo, do not go to a black and grey artist. If you are looking for a small single needle tattoo, do not go with a traditional style tattooer who prefers big bold outlines.
After you have carefully and rigorously selected your tattoo artist, it is time to communicate your ideas effectively and efficiently, then let the artist do their work. It is amazing whenever we’ve seen a person with zero tattoo experience sabotage their own tattoo project by essentially forcing their artist into rendering poor artistic decisions through repeated micromanagement of direction and details.
You must keep in mind that if your artist selection was handled correctly, you are now dealing with an experienced professional whose style is in line with your goals. They will deliver your results better than you can. In fact, repeated over-involvement and overseeing by a client will greatly inhibit the artist’s ability to connect with the project, and will eventually result in the artist losing what may have been an enormous drive to deliver a perfect product.
What clients may not understand is that in any creative situation, the greatest results occur when the artist is operating loosely, without thought, and becoming a conduit for inspiration. Artistic results will never be optimal when external pressure to excel is applied. Believe us, we apply that pressure internally enough. To test this theory, put a gun to a painter’s head and tell him he has to paint the best painting he has ever done, and that it must be done within a certain time. Then tell him what colours he should be using, tell him where to place details, and make increasingly detailed demands on colours being used. You will not have a masterpiece in the end.
Unless the client is a tattoo artist, they do not have the skill set that we’ve developed over the years. We can look at you and see how your tattoo will sit on you. We understand nuances of movement and surface that a client doesn’t. We know how a tattoo will look in ten years. So when a client starts micromanaging a tattoo project, it is literally an untrained person getting in the cockpit of a plane and trying to fly it. Again, express your need for control in your artist filtration phase, then let us handle our job.
Accept the paradox that, to get the best results, you must maintain creative space around the artist. This is not to say that you shouldn’t have an opinion on the details and elements of your tattoo, but this should be expressed during the consultation phase. At Black Widow, we work with committed clients who have done their research, and are absolutely confident that they are getting tattooed at the right shop. So, to our clients, we thank you for doing things the right way and not ruining your tattoo projects through micromanagement.
Appointment & Deposit policy
To secure the appointment time and date offered to you, a deposit is required. Deposits cover lost wages and time that may have gone to another client in the event of a cancellation or no show. In essence, we share the loss if you are unable to attend your scheduled appointment. For single session projects the deposit is $100, multiple session projects $200 to $300 depending on the amount of time we book. Your deposit will be applied the day that your tattoo is completed. All deposits are non-refundable and non-transferable. The remaining cost of your tattoo or fee per session for multiple session projects must be paid the day of your appointment. If you choose to go with a different design than what was agreed upon at the time of booking, your deposit will serve as a drawing fee for the work involved in preparing the original design and you will be required to leave a new deposit for your new design request. If you need to reschedule your appointment, your deposit will be transferred unless you give less than 72 hours notice. In that case, your deposit will be forfeit and you will need to leave a new deposit to get back on the calendar. This policy includes, but is not limited to, cancellations or requests to reschedule for any reason, any kind of illness or family emergency, car/transportation issues, weather/driving conditions, childcare issues, pet illness or financial crisis. Rescheduled appointments must be within 60 days of the original appointment time. If you request to reschedule a second time for the same tattoo regardless notice given, you will be required to pay a deposit equal to the total remaining balance of your tattoo, so you are paid in full upon scheduling, or I may decide at my discretion, to discontinue working on your project altogether.
In the event you need to to cancel your appointment due to pregnancy, you will need to make a new deposit when you are ready to get tattooed again. In the event that you need to cancel your appointment entirely, your deposit will be forfeited. No call/no shows will not be rescheduled. Touch ups are free of charge if scheduled within 90 days of the completion of tattoo. Touch ups scheduled after that time will be charged studio minimum. If you cancel, request to reschedule or no show a complimentary touch up or follow up appointment in which there is no deposit, you will be required to leave a deposit to rebook and will be charged a one hour minimum studio rate for your time in the chair.
By scheduling an appointment and/or making a deposit you are agreeing to these terms which are legally binding and enforceable.
Arriving Late
Please be sure to arrive for your appointment on time. Since appointments are booked back to back, arriving late disrupts the schedule, cuts into the next clients time and/or does not allow me enough time to finish your tattoo. Clients who are more than 15 minutes late will be considered a late cancellation and a new deposit will be required to reschedule. Remember to plan ahead for traffic, bad driving conditions etc.
Multiple Sessions
Large scale, multiple session tattoos take commitment by both the artist and the client. Appointments are scheduled every 4 to 6 weeks until the project is completed. Please be sure you are prepared to follow through before making this commitment. While rescheduling is discouraged, we understand that sometimes things come up that are out of your control. Rescheduled appointments must be within 60 days of the original appointment time or your deposit will be forfeit and you will be required to leave another deposit to continue. Projects that are not continued after a 60 day period will be considered abandoned.
Weather Cancellations
We recognize that appointments may need to be rescheduled due to weather conditions. However, due to time constraints in scheduling, weather cancellations will be avoided if at all possible. In the case of a travel ban, we will reschedule and your deposit will go to the rescheduled date. If a client chooses to cancel and there are no issued travel bans, the deposit will be forfeit and a new deposit will be required to reschedule. Basically, if other businesses are open, so are we and you are expected to show up.
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