How much do I charge?
The price ultimately depends on what it is you want, the best thing to do would be to fill out a booking form here on my website, and give all the information it asks of you. That way, you're getting a price specific to what it is you're asking for. The only prices I can give without any information are that I charge £90 per hour for work that needs specifically timed sessions, or £450 for a day session. Some tattoos require a day to be completed, however some require more or less time than that. All appointments require a deposit, which is included in the cost given.
You've just booked your tattoo, what now?
Upon booking your tattoo, I'll send you a list of things to pick up and a list of things to do to prepare for your appointment.
The main question I get asked is regarding the design. I tend to design tattoos the evening before their respective appointment, when you arrive for your appointment, the first thing we'll discuss is the design, if any changes need to be made, we can do them right then and there as I draw digitally. If the changes require a full re-draw, we may need to re-book the appointment as there are only so many hours in a day. A full re-design may lead to an incomplete tattoo. When booking, please make sure you're being as clear as possible about how you want it to look, send reference images, where you want it to go and a photograph of the area to match too.
Things you may need before your tattoo.
You’ll need a non-fragranced soap in order to clean your tattoo. For this you can use any of the following:
• Sanex Zero
• Dove shower cream
as long as it’s fragrance free or lightly scented like dove, you’ll be fine.
Please only use bottled soap, if you were to use a bar of soap, there’s always a cross contamination risk such as bacteria from surfaces touching the tattoo directly or other people using the bar of soap, both of which can lead to a bad heal.
I will provide you with aftercare but please let me know if you have any allergies such as coconut or mango so I can suggest an alternative.
Preparing for your appointment.
- Avoid catching the sun or getting sunburn in the area you’re getting tattooed as I can’t tattoo sunburnt skin. If you do come to your appointment with sunburn then your appointment will be cancelled and your deposit forfeit.
- Using a light moisturiser, moisturiser the area you’re having tattooed twice daily for up to a week prior to your appointment.
- Be sure to be alcohol free for at least 24 hours (the longer the better) before getting tattooed.
- Get plenty of rest the night before.
- Have a filling breakfast before coming in. This step is probably the most important as getting a tattoo can be a shock to the system, without energy you may find it difficult to cope. A full stomach makes the whole process so much easier.
- Avoid Caffeine if possible as this can be a very mild blood thinner. It’s not too big a problem with short sessions but with longer ones it’s something to be mindful of.
- Bring some snacks and sugary drinks along with you to keep your energy up throughout the session. Maybe even a sandwich if you’d like something a bit more substantial!
- If you go to the gym or are currently planning on working out, I recommend putting it on hold until 2 weeks after getting the tattoo.
- If for any reason you need to cancel or rearrange, please give me at least 72 hours notice so I can make arrangements to fill the slot. Cancelling with short notice or not showing for your appointment may result in your deposit being forfeit.
- Lastly, I know some do prefer to use numbing cream but I strongly advise against the use of it as it can alter the skin in ways which hinder the process of the tattoo more than they help.
Aftercare
The aftercare process can be different for everyone, those experienced with being tattooed may have their own methods, however below are my general aftercare instructions.
I do keep a supply of dry lock pads and second skin, however I do typically prefer to wrap the tattoo in cling film and provide instructions on what to do.
- Leave the cling film on for roughly 2 hours.
- After that time has passed, remove the dressing with clean hands and rinse it under running warm water, gently washing the tattoo with a non-fragranced soap.
- Once clean, allow the tattoo to air dry. I don’t recommend using any towels or paper towels.
- Due to the intensity of full colour tattoos, your fresh tattoo may be rather leaky. If this is the case just leave it to air out.
- Once the tattoo is fully dry, then apply a tiny amount of your aftercare product.
- If the tattoo looks wet once you’ve applied the aftercare product. Give it a rinse. You don’t want to overdo it with moisturiser as it will cause complications in the healing process.
- Repeat the cleaning and moisturising process twice per day. (Morning and night)
- You can top the tattoo up with a minuscule amount of moisturiser halfway through your day if it’s feeling a little dry.
If you do wish to use second skin, you can, but just follow the steps I will send you upon completion of your tattoo.
