How old do you have to be?
Legally, YOU MUST BE 18 YEARS OLD OR OVER TO GET TATTOOED. It does not matter if a parent consents, the law firmly states that a person under 18 may not have a tattoo. Because it can be hard to judge the exact age of clients we are now adopiting the "think 25" policy. If there is any way we could look at you and think you were 25 or under, you MUST bring some widely recognised ID, such as a driving licence or passport, to prove your age. If you commit fraud by attempting to use fake ID or ID belonging to another person, the police will be informed. If you show up for an appointment and fail to bring ID with your date of birth, full name and recent photograph, issued by an respected organisation which we are sure to have heard of (please ask before booking if in doubt) then you will not be tattooed and your deposit will not be refunded.
The law is less clear on PIRCINGS, but the professional body to which the piercer belongs, the tattoo and piercing industry union, quite clearly states in its terms of membership that no person under the age of 16 may be pierced and no person under the age of 18 may be pierced without being accompanied by someone who can prove that they are the parent or legal guardian. Even if accompanied, I am unwilling to pierce genitals or nipples if the client is under the age of 18. I know this may seem silly because the age of consent is 16, but because the law is vague and sometimes inconsistent on sexual issues (for example, you can have sex at 16 but not buy photos of the same act for another 2 years!) I must protect myself against any allegation of sexual assault on a minor by making the age 18. There are also practical reasons: Breasts and penises may occasionally still have some growing to do at age 16, and if this happens the jewelry will be too tight and on occasions where the client does not seek help very quickly time, this can cause serious problems. Unfortunately, due to an incident where fakes documents, which appeared very authentic, were used as false proof of guardianship, I must reluctantly discriminate against legal guardians as opposed to parents and can only pierce clients 16-18 if they have:
Does it hurt?
Some people feel the sensations involved in tattooing and body piercing more strongly than others. It is impossible to say that any individual will or will not struggle with the discomfort involved. However, most people who come for their first tattoo say that it was not as painful as they expected it to be.
How much do tattoos cost?
The minimum price for a tattoo is £30. Small tattoos are priced after artist and client have agreed the details of the design. For larger work, an hourly rate of £50 is charged. It is not usually possible to say exactly how long a tattoo will take or to finish a very large tattoo in a single sitting. Most clients having larger work get one or two hours done per visit, which helps to spread the cost.
How much do piercings cost?
Most piercings cost £25, and this includes most types of jewellery. The only exceptions are genital piercings, which cost £30 each, and ear lobe piercings, which can be done with a ball-closure ring at a cost of £10 for one and £15 for a pair.
A pair of piercings (2 £25 piercings done for the same client in the same session) can be done at a reduced rate £40 for both.
How much do dermal anchors cost?
These are on sale until further notice :) They previously cost £35 each but are currently the same as a standard piercing: £25 for one or £20 each for more than one (same client, same session).
Can I have a job/ apprenticeship?
Sorry, I'm not looking for an apprentice or for staff of any kind.
How can I become a tattooist/body piercer?
Please see this article for all my thoughts on getting into the body art industry. I'd appreciate it if you don't contact me with any further questions about this topic. I don't want to be horrible, but I get asked about this a lot, and it's not really something I have time for.
I have been using a saline solution twice daily to clean my piercing (in addition to showering) for the past 2 weeks or so and all is going well. I just wanted to ask how long you would recommend I keep up my cleaning ritual to avoid infection? I understand full healing will take 1 year.
Saline isn't about avoiding infection as such, although it does help. Saline is not an effective antiseptic, and thats good because your own cells are not so very different from bacterial cells, so putting some sort of highly effective antiseptic on daily would kill your own tissue and delay healing a lot. Skin cells are specifically designed to be a barrier and can withstand stronger chemicals than an open wound, so don't let the fact that you could put something on your skin and suffer no ill effects fool you. Also, bear in mind that you'll have lots of "friendly" skin bacteria that you don't really want to be rid of, as this just leaves a space for any old bacteria that come along, which may be far more harmful, to move in. What the saline does is to help draw out the white or cream coloured discharge which is normal in a fresh piercing, and yes I suppose it could also draw out a certain number of bacteria, but the main thing you should do to avoid infection in a piercing is LEAVE IT ALONE and make sure only hygienic things such as fresh, hot-washed clothing (90+ degree washing cycle is ideal for first couple of months if you want to take all possible precautions against infection, but not generally though to be essential) which has not been touched on the inside since it was washed. When is not possible/desirable to leave the piercing alone, make sure that only clean things touch it, such as hands which have been VERY well washed, clean dressings/ cotton or gauze pads used for cleaning, and male or female condoms rather than unprotected sex/non-barier methods of contraception if you have a genital piercing. I would not recommend exposing an oral or genital piercing to another person's skin or body fluids through oral sex without a without a condom or dental dam for 3-4 months. Your body will let you know when you no longer need to keep up the routine because no crusty stuff will need to be soaked off the piercing- it will seem clean and comfortable every time you come to soak it. First, cut down from twice to once a day and if after a month everything is still fine and you see no discharge when you do your soak, then you can stop and just wash normally in the bath or shower at least once a day and preferably morning and night (shower is somewhat more hygienic but it does not matter too much as long as no part of your body is unusually dirty). Healed in a year? Thats a pretty rough estimate and it depends what you mean by healed. You aren't usually at much risk of infection after about 3-4 months provided there have been no setbacks (eg, knocks that make it bleed or increase the level of discharge, any soreness remaining, etc) although there are never any guarantees. Piercings which are years old can become infected if the immune system is severely exhausted for some reason. I once had 3 different piercings which were not new become infected during a bad case of the flu, just because my immune system was so busy dealing with the virus it could not manage to keep on top of any bacteria as well. Looking after your general health as best you can is an often underrated part of preventing infection. However, in the first year you are very much at risk of the hole closing up quickly if you remove the jewelery. In some cases this can happen even after several years, this varies a lot depending on the type of piercing and also the individual who is pierced. I wouldn't remove jewellery from a piercing for any significant period of time for several years, to be on the safe side, unless I didn't want the piercing to be there any more. If you do need to remove the jewelery for some reason and have trouble getting it back in come see me right away, I'm good at re-opening holes that have started to close, assuming I get to them in time.