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so interesting to hear the stories. for mine, it was like, "here's my hourly rate." "here are some ideas; I think this one" deposit. show up. let the journey begin.....

that's exactly what I said, perfectly acceptable IMO

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2019/02/ancient-tattoo-needle-southwest-archaeology/

Cause you’re as right as can be, to me

When you have a conversation again instead of getting a quote from them give them your idea and a budget. “I have a budget of X-Y and want Z tattoo on X part of my body” and start from there unless you are open to the sliding scale of price. They will navigate the conversation realistically knowing what you want and what they can deliver without anyone losing out.

Good morning. New member here. I look forward to frequenting these boards and engaging in conversation about tattoos and art in general. Although i have been tattooing for over 20 years, my apprenticeship and career thereafter was very limited in scope. Mostly flash and american traditional. My mentor and friend was hell bent on keeping all rotary tattoo machines and new fancy tattoo art outta his shop and it was very frustrating conforming to his wishes. After he died and the shop closed, i bought an iMac with photoshop, a thermal printer, a pocketjet printer, and 4 top of the line rotary tattoo machines. When cartridges came along i bought the grips and carts and practiced with all kinds of art. Although i feel comfortable putting ink into the skin safely as i was trained and licensed to do........i am not where i want to be with newer styles of tattoo art. . For the last few months i have been researching local artists and meeting them and have decided to do a second apprenticeship for modern times. Call it continuing education if you will. Its the responsible thing to do and even though I am 41 years old It’s never too late to learn new things. I appreciate being here. I hope to talk to ya soon. Thanks

that's pretty cool !

That makes sense actually. Thank you

if you're moisturizing a lot it's probably just a clogged pore, which is very common

We are collectors here, not artists. You are barking up the wrong tree.

You want some wisdom?When the tattooer tells you how much it is,pay them and add a tip.He or she will be happy to tattoo you again.They are professionals treat them as they deserve to be treated.

Hey @Decay You have a lovely new tattoo. Tattooing isn't science, it's art and you can't set a clock by how long a tattoo will take. Your artist, who I assume you trust to tattoo you, will always give you a best guess. It may take longer; it may take less time. You do realize how much goes into tattooing, right? Your artist has to come up with a design, a piece of art, from whatever concept you have in your head and translates that into a tattoo on your skin. There's design, drawing, and setup among other things that happen way before the needles hit your skin. If you feel like you are being ripped off over what you think is 30 minutes, you need to think long and hard if tattooing is for you. Enjoy the ride! Let go a little and you will have a better experience. I have never seen a menu of prices and that concept will not serve you well on your tattoo journey. Where do you live where you haggle over everything? And I really hope that you tipped your artist.

Most artists only charge for the actual time they start inking until when they set the machine down for the last time. Every tattooist has their own personality and interpretation of time - but the main thing is that you come away with a great tattoo you get to wear forever.