Rates

CLIENT-FOCUSED, ONE-ON-ONE, APPOINTMENT-ONLY STUDIO

I work ONE PERSON PER DAY in order to give my full attention to that person’s project and to not create any tension between scheduling different appointments

HALF DAY & WHOLE DAY FLAT RATE
The Majority of My Projects:
- Full Day Session 12-8 pm $1000
If you’re someone who needs to be included in the design process, then I recommend paying for a full day session so I can afford to accommodate you.
- Two Day Sessions Back to Back: $1700
Im offering a discount to incentivize people to do two days back to back when appropriate. This is ideal for starting large projects, and if you travel from out of town or out of state.
- Half Day Session 12-4pm $700
If your tattoo is 3 hours or less, it will fall under the category of a “half day session”. If you want small tattoos, you can get several for the cost of a half day session.

Why do I do half and whole day sessions? I determined my rates based on the rates of my peers with similar experience in the industry who do similar style and quality as I do, as well as the general rates of the area in which I live. I am not really a walk-in type of artist. I’m more specialized, and what I do requires more time beyond the tattoo itself, therefore doing day rates made a lot of sense for me and the way I work, the demand it puts on my body and time, the number of tattoos I can realistically do in a week without harming myself, and the total overhead of my cost of living. In essence, I want to be happy and have health insurance.

It became evident to me that there is a lack of available, experienced, tattoo artists who can give you their attention without pressure/time management issues due to having to schedule so many people in a day. I wasn’t that interested in lots of tiny tattoos and cramming my schedule and otherwise mimicking an unhealthy work environment. I wanted an artist who wasn’t rushed, who is creatively inspired, who can draw and design well, who ate food and drank water, and who would truly attempt to put together the best design for my body and placement.

I wanted an artist who cared enough to make sure I loved what I got, but talented enough to do better than I would, who cared about making sure the tattoo fit properly, and who could do a combination of styles that I wanted. I didn’t want a stressed out artist who was rushing my design because they had another appointment after me. And artists can’t afford to give you all that extra time if you don’t pay them enough for their day. They have to get you in and get you out. So, the cheaper and smaller the tattoos, the more I have to do in a day, the less I can provide more courtesy accommodations.

Artists can’t spend hours of time walking you through your concept, and why it will or won’t work, and making revisions or pivoting plans, drawing and redesigning and answering all of your questions, giving you tattoo education, managing your anxiety, and stenciling a tattoo only for the tattoo to suck more and take an hour to tattoo, while only getting paid for that hour.

Not only all of those logistics, but if I wanted large, cohesive tattoos that flowed with my body, I wanted a female artist to work with me. I didn’t want any random guys touching me, or being butt naked in an open-concept tattoo shop.

So not only were there a lack of artists like this, but there was definitely a lack of female artists that I could work with. So I decided to become that artist myself.

So to give a calm, unrushed, experience, working in half and whole day rates streamlines the elements of the business so that it is sustainable. All in all, 5 hours of tattooing was costing me my entire day, 11 am-9 pm on average, Or even 3 hours of tattooing was still taking 5-6 hours of my time, leaving no room to fit in much else. If I was doing a small tattoo that only took 30 minutes, it often cost me 2-3 hours of time with that same person because they came for a surprise consultation at the time of their tattoo that I didn’t plan for. Then you add in touch-ups, and even more of my time was disappearing without any extra financial incentive, reducing the number of billable hours I could utilize to make ends meet.

In contrast, many artists have poor boundaries and health. They can only give you so much of their time due to their schedule and resources, and often this means you end up not getting anything remotely like what you asked for, not being informed of the design or not given a choice without losing your deposit, and sometimes a lot of resentment from not making a living wage.

Average Appointment Schedule for a Full Day
The average appointment schedule looks something like:
12 pm arrival, greetings, paperwork, settling in. Have you eaten or brought food?
+ 1-2 hours designing and stenciling (varies by project phase)
4-6 hours of tattooing

For the reasons all above mentioned, I ask that you do not make strict plans for after your tattoo appointment. Please clear your schedule or have loose plans that wouldn’t cause an issue if you were to go late.

Average number of appointments per project varies by the style AND scale of the project, as well as the placement and size of the person wearing it, the number of ‘items’ desired in the tattoo, and will likely be hard to quote prior to an in-person consultation/design session… which is why I would recommend being prepared for a to start with a full day session.

PAYMENT OPTIONS

ZELLE is GREAT. It’s free.
Cash
Venmo/Paypal is OK, but not ideal.
Use the ATM the day before your appointment if you plan to bring cash.
You must pay at the time of appointment, before you leave the shop

Deposits

The deposit is a non refundable $200 per day scheduled

Deposits are non-transferable to other people, unless I love the project.
Generally non-refundable, but do go toward the total at your last appointment when you finish the project. I do not credit your deposit at each appointment; I only credit it to your last appointment when the project is complete.

Rescheduling

An automated email goes out 3 days before your appointment, which has links for cancelling or rescheduling. A text goes out 24 hours before, and at that point it would be too late to reschedule.

You may reschedule with proper notice, twice. If you make it a habit, I will ask you to wait to book when you’re really able to commit.

Any short notice reschedules cost me an entire day’s work; you must forfeit your deposit and pay a new one.

Do what you need to do, but please be very mindful, thank you.

Design Fees

Standard Consultation: We meet in person to discuss and mock up your design concept digitally. This is your opportunity to ask questions, and receive my time designing your tattoo with you. I like getting to meet you at least once before we tattoo you in order to get more familiar and comfortable with each other.

There are so many logistics that are hard to plan for or to communicate about every step of the way. At a certain point, I just need to drop in and do what I need to do, so the consultation is the time I make available for you to SEE what we can do, and begin to flesh out the plan. It is not an invitiation for your mom or spouse to give unsolicited advice, nor will I offer a second consultation. If you require more time, you can pay for additional design time @ $200/hour.

Some projects require me to draw outside of the consultation time, and some require me to draw during the appointment time, with or on the client in person. For the most part, it is all included in the full-day session price, unless you need more time.

Design Policy

Every Artist, client, and project is different. People these days tend to be a bit more picky and need a lot more one-on-one time explaining, showing, and educating, than in previous eras of tattooing. As such, I have modified my process to accommodate, but it is also why I generally charge a flat day rate.

My clients have come to appreciate the extra effort I take to consider making the design match their vibe, and also how much work it takes to problem solve and design for flow and anatomy. I regularly need to have 1-2 hours of design and stencil prep time with you in person, before we get to tattooing, particularly at the first session or start of a project. This is largely due to a love for placement, composition, & anatomical considerations, as well as wanting to secure your complete trust and confidence.

Rarely is it a rough ride, but sometimes it can be harder than others. Even though my practice is a bit more generous than some, there are some boundaries as there are practical considerations around time and revisions, schedule management, and so on. So please just be considerate of the back-end ecosystem of the biz so it doesn’t get awkward, m’kay? If it takes longer than the time I have made available, it could result in not having enough time to tattoo. It may require some compensation as a drawing fee or need for a new deposit or both. Not as a punishment, but because it is significantly more work and time.

No micro-managers. It doesn’t work with my personality. I struggle to identify a polite neurotypical way to tell you that you’re being difficult and might waste our day, and fearful of you being non compliant if I ask for compensation.
There are only so many revisions and versions of something before it’s no longer sustainable for me to give you my time.
As a side note, Micromanaging is different than communicating your preferences to get the art you want. That is an acceptable form of collaboration. I always consider your ideas fully. If it’s good, I’m down. If it has technical issues, I’ll tell you.
In addition to your familiarity with my portfolio, you should have a good idea of what I will deliver, stylistically. Neither of us has the final picture yet. You must leave room for the tattoo spirits and muses to whisper in our ears.
To be clear, I am the tattoo artist and designer in this relationship. You should not be dictating the design unless you can make art better than I can.
Design Process: Make your concept, wants, desires, and limitations (if any) clear in your BOOKING FORM, and start communication by email.
If i can prepare some things, I do. But otherwise… Come to your appointment, to work on the final version of the design in person, so I can help you make it better. You hired me for my vision and experience, not to tell me how to do it.
I can provide you a mock up of your stencil over a photograph of you, so you have a pretty good idea of where this is all going, visually
We’ve talked and got excited and made a general plan we both like, and that’s where you stop overthinking, and I take over.
We stencil and tattoo you, and you are thrilled.
We do some photography and video content
You go home with some aftercare goodies and take really good care of the healing process
I usually book your next appointment right away, to avoid long wait times between appointments as the calendar fills in.

Drawing Schedule: For the majority of you, I no longer draw your designs in my personal time. I draw most of my tattoos at your consultation, or at your appointment in person, which has for the most part gone very well. If I am unable to get it ready within that time to tattoo it that day, because it requires more time, you can pay a ‘design fee’ to cover that service and we will reschedule the tattoo appointment for a different day. I feel this is a small price to pay to get the tattoos you want.

Working one appointment at a time, I work in the order of the appointments booked in my schedule, therefore do NOT message me about whether or not I have drawn anything for you, a week or more in advance of your appointment. It feels naggy. Thank you for real.

I am mainly only aware of the artwork that is next in my appointment queue. After your consultation or appointment, I will not make any revisions or respond to any requests for more revisions. I have to put my attention on what or whoever is next in my calendar. The time I am available to you personally is during your consultation or your tattoo appointment. Please do not text my cell phone.

WHAT IF I DON’T LIKE THE DESIGN?

You are welcome to REJECT a design!

Just understand that it will cost you the deposit/drawing fee, or you will pay an additional re-design fee for a new design, or we can stop working together. You do not hold any claim to the design if rejected, and I will post it to my social media for anyone who may want to claim it. If it’s not working out, I won’t be mad at you for deciding it’s not for you. Artists just want to be compensated for the time, so that is what the security deposit is for.