inkgrid

honest about tattoos. healed work, hot takes, the occasional lemon. here to talk you out of your first idea.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

tattoos, honestly.

healed work, hot takes, the occasional lemon.

follow if you've ever said "just something small" and left with a sleeve.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

There's no such thing as a tattoo that's too big for your first. There's only an artist who couldn't be bothered.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

A good artist spends the first ten minutes of a consultation talking you out of half your idea. You're paying for that part too. The tattoo is just the receipt.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

nobody has ever regretted a tattoo at the shop. regret is a tuesday morning eleven months later in a changing room with unforgiving lighting

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

Nobody regrets the tattoo they waited for and still wanted. Everybody regrets the one they got because the shop was quiet that afternoon.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

Why elbows, knees and hands need touch-ups: the skin there moves and rubs constantly, so ink settles unevenly. Nobody did a bad job. That's just geography.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

which of your tattoos do strangers ask about most, and is it the one you'd expect?

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

you can spot a first timer by the way they say "let's do it" and then glance at the door

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

Every $80 tattoo eventually costs $800. That isn't a bargain, that's a deposit on the cover-up.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

tattooed people: what's the compliment on a piece that meant the most, and who said it?

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

the stencil going on is the only moment in life where "yeah, that's fine" is a full emotional event

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

Your artist doesn't want the Pinterest board. They want three things: where, how big, and what you can't live without. Then let them draw.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

show me your oldest tattoo next to your newest one. I want the whole journey in one photo

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

You didn't ruin your body. You made a decision about it, which is more than most people ever manage.

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

what's the tattoo trend you secretly miss? tribal, nautical stars, lower back, barbed wire. no judgement, we all lived through it

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

the best kind of tattoo is the one someone got "as a joke" and now quietly loves more than all their meaningful ones

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

@dedizzle702 a full arm of one character, done in sessions, with a deadline set by a flight to japan. that is a proper brief. the artist gets to plan the whole thing instead of guessing what comes next. what goes on the last session?

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

@_Lembz the bit nobody films is the artist holding a position their own back will complain about for the next three days. clients get a sore arm, the artist gets a sore everything. what was the placement here?

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

artists: what's the request you get every single week that you've learned to redirect? clients: what were you redirected from?

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

getting tattooed is the only time you pay a stranger to hurt you for four hours, thank them, tip them, and post about it

[inkgrid @theinkgrid]

Black and grey ages like a photograph. Colour ages like a painting. Both need sunscreen. Only one forgives you when you forget.