Tattoo Pain: Why Does It Hurt So Good?

Tattoo Pain: Why does it hurt so good?

Your brain is 100% unique to you and only you. The way you feel and perceive pain can be vastly different from one person to the next. When we feel pain during a tattoo, sensory receptors in our skin send a message via nerve fibres to the spinal cord and brain stem and then onto the good old brain where the sensation of pain is registered, the information is processed and the pain is perceived. The response from there is what is unique to us.

So, if it hurts, why do we do what we do? Why are we so willing to put money into countless hours of what could easily be described as torture? A long time ago tattooing was more of a cultural ritual in which the pain was precisely the point! You earned your stripes, patterns, and designs. This holds true in many cultures.

Here in the US the popularity of tattoos has exploded. On average 1 in 5 persons have tattoos. 70% of those have more than one, 20% have more than 5. 32% of people with tattoos claim that it’s an addiction. (historyoftattoos.net) 

On the other hand its easy to argue that tattoos are not addictive at all but really just a perception of what truly draws them to tattoos. Many simply enjoy the collection of art accumulating on their body. Much like a collector of art or classic cars, nothing beats the excitement of getting something new.

When we receive a tattoo, yes it hurts but the pleasure and enjoyment we get from having that piece of art on us forever makes the pain worth it. Whatever the reason behind the tattoo: a memorial of a loved one, a design from a favorite artist, something that helps us find our identity, or even something absurd that makes us laugh when we look at it. We go back for more and more because we appreciate the way it makes us feel.

                                                                                                                                

Blood Borne Pathogens and Bacteria: What are they and what do they mean for your new tattoo?

Blood Borne Pathogens and Bacteria: What are they and what do they mean for your new tattoo?

One of the many aspects of getting a new tattoo that is over looked by many is the need for a clean and sterile environment. In today's world we have seen a rapid increase of pop-up tattoo parlors and an increase in home tattoos. Sadly, this has been over looked for far too long. The biggest issue here is blood borne pathogens and a clean sterile environment where the tattoo is being performed.

So, what exactly is a blood borne pathogen? A blood borne pathogen is infectious microorganisms in human blood that cause disease. Some examples of these diseases are but not limited to hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Having a proper field preforming tattoos is crucial to preventing the spread of these diseases.

Aside from blood borne pathogens there is also a risk from bacteria causing infections such as staph or MRSA (a staph super bug)

How are these contracted you might wonder? They are due to cross contamination that occurs around an open cut, wound or abrasions. What’s cross contamination? It’s process by which bacteria or other microorganisms are unintentionally transferred from one substance or object to another, with harmful effect. Meaning this can occur from not washing your hands properly, and having uncovered and un-sterilized equipment being used to preform a medical procedure, a piercing or even a tattoo.

That’s why pop up shops and kitchen tattoos with no knowledge of blood borne pathogens or bacteria aren’t just unethical it’s deadly. In order to protect yourself it is crucial that you do your research! Find an established studio, take a look around and see for yourself!

Here at Lucky Bamboo Tattoo we cover EVERYTHING that the artist could touch during an appointment. Everything is wiped down and disinfected prior to setting up with sterile single use items. Such as drape sheets, pillow cases, bottle bags, clip cord sleeves etc. 

Artists are required by the health department to be blood borne certified. Which means they are trained to know how to prevent cross contamination to protect the client. These precautions shouldn’t stop here in the studio. After your appointment we send you with a sterile bandage that is designed to keep your tattoo safe and clean during the crucial phases of the healing process. Any new tattoo should be handled with care. Wash your hands before switching out or removing your bandage. If your unsure of what to do you should contact the studio/artist and follow their directions.

We can not stress enough the importance of not doing home tattoos and to do your research!

Touch Ups: Misuse of the Term and Why They Are Not Free

Why touch-ups aren’t touch-ups and why they aren’t free.

It’s all too common for artist’s to be asked if their artwork is guaranteed for life. If their client will receive endless touch ups as long as they keep coming back. While any experienced tattoo artist cares about the way their art will look for years to come, they take that into account while designing and even during the tattooing process. It is one of the many reasons that artist’s will make recommendations for your tattoo long before beginning the process. Such as suggesting a more defined outline, or going with black and grey because it holds up longer than color. These are just simple examples of how an artist will show that they care. Another example is planning on doing a follow up appointment after the tattoo is healed. This allows the artist to go over every aspect of their work and ensure that the tattoo is the best that it can be.

The human skin is the largest organ of the human body, many forget that your skin is just as alive as you are. It heals, it sweats, it moves, it stretches, and bends. One of the biggest factors to healing is client lifestyle. What they eat, drink, and their overall health. All of these things can be a factor during the healing process and how a tattoo might turn out. An artist only has so much control over that tattoo. Once they are finished, they wrap it up and send you home with care instructions. They don’t know if you are going to follow said directions or listen to your friend who “has a lot of tattoos so he must be an expert”!

Depending on the design, artists can spend countless hours and even days designing and preparing your tattoo. They put in this dedication because they are designing a one of a kind, handmade piece of art that you get to take with you wherever you go. Anyone who collects handmade items knows that they aren’t perfect. If they were, they would be manufactured by a machine and massively reproduced. Having a unique custom piece made just for you is the reason why you searched for your artist.

With all of that in mind, a quick “touch-up” doesn’t exist. It costs on average $60.00 just to set up properly for a tattoo, plus the tattoo artist’s time. While we know that no one likes to work for free, tattoo artists are no exception.

Utah State Regulations on Tattoos

Utah State Regulations on Tattoos

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures tattooing a minor without parental consent is against the law. This is the only actual law put into place about who can receive a tattoo. There isn’t any for who can give one.

This offers only a small protection to a vast majority of issues that come with a lack of regulations. Currently anyone can operate a tattoo machine without any specific licensing. The health department only regulates tattoo facilities and requires tattoo artists (operators) to have certifications in blood borne pathogens and CPR/First Aid. While these are good to have, they aren’t exactly difficult to get online. These requirements also can vary from county to county. So, becoming a tattoo artist is relatively easy in the state of Utah. These regulations are also not heavily enforced in Utah, many shops pop up and begin tattooing without even getting a proper permit.

What this means for you as a consumer is that your risks of getting a bad tattoo and an infection along with it are pretty high.

It is crucial to do your research on not only the artist that you are selecting but also the studio. You want a highly established studio or shop, that is clean, friendly, and will allow you to check the place out prior to making any appointment. You’ll want to research your artist. How long have they been tattooing? Where did they come from? Did they have an apprenticeship? Do they have the necessary certifications by the health department?

Important things to look for:

-Cleanliness

-Covering on equipment, while a tattoo is being preformed any surface that an artist could touch during the process is completely covered. This includes trays, machines, bottles, and cords. Also, the surface where the client is being tattooed. This is necessary to avoid cross contamination that can lead to a serious infection.

-Permits displayed where they can be seen by the public.

Giving a tattoo in any location that is not permitted as a Body Art Establishment is a Class B misdemeanor in the state of Utah. So, your friend’s boyfriend who is trying his hand at body art isn’t just a bad idea it’s illegal.

Due to the lack of regulations it is up to the consumer to do their research and make a smart decision. Lucky Bamboo Tattoo’s owner Jared Preslar has acknowledged the danger and is currently seeking to create more regulations in Utah out of concern for the public’s health and safety. Creating awareness is only the first step to change.

-Lucky Bamboo Tattoo

National Average: Costs of Tattoos

Tattoo Pricing: National Averages

The national average for tattoos is $150 per hour. One of the first things many clients ask us is how much their idea is going to cost them. There are many factors that determine time. Such as size, placement, color vs. black and grey, amount of detail. It’s almost like asking how much a house is. Factors like location, size, or if it’s been newly remodeled. At this point in time a reputable artist will charge by the hour.

Averages:

Solo Tattoo Artist (3-5 yrs)      $120-$150 per hour

Established Artist (5-10 yrs)    $150-$180 per hour

Teaching Artist (10+ yrs)         $150-$220 per hour

Popular Artist                           $180+

The rate that an artist charges depends on a number of variables as well. Such as years of experience, time to do a certain style and volume of detail that goes into the tattoo, many artists base their rate on their ability and quality.

It’s important to research your artist. Find out how long they’ve been tattooing and see a large variety of their work to see if their style will fit with your idea. This is a much better way than trying to price shop from one studio to the next.

Often you will get what you pay for. Good tattoos take time and money, and cheap tattoos just aren’t good. Usually if an artist is charging under $150 and can get you in right away it shows inexperience and neediness for clients. Be aware of this as the results could be damaging.

-LBT

Tattoo Cover Ups

Tattoo Cover Ups:

Expectations Vs. Reality

All too often we hear, “If I hate it, I'll just cover it up later” If only it were that simple. There are a lot of different things that go into a tattoo cover up that many may not realize. First of all, most cover up tattoos aren’t even really a cover up at all. Meaning that the new tattoo might not cover the tattoo completely. It more or less camouflages the tattoo in a way that the original isn’t as noticeable.

Next more times than not you would have to go much larger than the original tattoo to be able to position the new artwork in a way to best camouflage or cover the tattoo. If the tattoo is heavily lined with black or has a lot of black throughout it, pretty much plan on your cover up being pretty dark.

With all of this in mind your tattoo cover-up options are limited but not impossible. There are some options available for fading or removing a tattoo such as laser removal however this option tends to be risky. It can often hurt more than getting the tattoo in the first place. Lasers also push tattoo ink deeper into the body leaving you with unknown possible health side effects.

Some newer treatments allow you to extract the tattoo out of the body but this too can be a costly process but a good way to lighten a tattoo to the point where it may be more easily covered. Some more experienced artists can even tattoo over the existing tattoo with flesh tones to lighten the tattoo. While this can lighten it, it won’t be removed completely. It can improve the options available to you.

So, if you’re stuck with a tattoo your less than thrilled about, you should contact an artist you trust and set up a consultation. 

Here at Lucky Bamboo Tattoo we offer free 30-minute consultations. This is a chance for you to sit down with an artist, discuss what your options are and where to go from here. You can always contact the studio directly and we are always happy and ready to answer any questions you may have.

-Lucky Bamboo Tattoo

How tattoo artists take your ideas and turn them into tattoo reality!

From your imagination to the tattoo on your skin:

How tattoo artists take your ideas and turn them into tattoo reality!

Step One:

Whether you know exactly what you want or a general idea the best thing to do is research. Look at multiple artists portfolios and see which of their styles stands out to you the most. Odds are that if you like what they have already created you will have more trust in them to help you design your own personal ink creation.

As your reviewing portfolios make sure to check for consistency throughout the portfolio. If you notice that some tattoos aren’t as good as some others there is a chance that they are inexperienced or even borrowing other artists work to help them gain clients.

Step Two:

Contact the studio either in person or over the phone. Your interaction there will tell you a lot about the studio and how things are done. Lucky Bamboo Tattoo offers tours during business hours. A major thing to look for is how the artist’s set up. Is everything that they could touch during an appointment covered? Look around for over all cleanliness. If the studio isn’t clean what makes you think the artists will be?

The amount of time and items required to set up fully costs us around $60 this is to ensure your health and safety. This is done for every client every time. Everything is single use and discarded after each client.

Step Three:

Book a consultation! You can have a little one on one time with the artist you have selected and share with them your ideas and any details that you want to have incorporated into your tattoo. This will help the artist understand more of what your wanting and be able to design it for you.

One of the more common questions we get from clients is if they can see a drawing of their tattoo prior to their appointment. While this request may seem reasonable to most. Its just not something that many artists feel comfortable with for a few reasons. First is that the artist is setting aside time to design your tattoo that is unique not only to you but to them. Sending out an image of that drawing comes with the risk of it being shared and then copied. Secondly if you have done your research and selected an artist you trust, with their own unique style. You will surely love what they have created for you.

Step Four:

Place a deposit and book your appointment. Placing a deposit not only secures your appointment time but it secures the artists time to allow them to prepare and draw up your design.

Step Five: Show up to your appointment! After all the work that is put into getting to your appointment between you and your artist, you should always arrive on time.

Things to remember

Things to Remember with getting small vs. large tattoos

Small Tattoos

Some important things to remember are that the smaller a tattoo is the less room there is for details. So, keep this in mind when your asking for a lot of information or details to be incorporated into your piece. For example, trying to fit everyone’s birth date into a 3” X 3” tattoo might not be able to be possible. Also, small items like finger tattoos and lip tattoos, not only is there not a lot of room for detail these are areas that tend to fade and not last very long. It is just as important to take care of your small tattoo as you would a larger piece. Your body still needs to heal the same way and it will help with the longevity of the tattoo.

Large Tattoos

Now for your larger pieces the important thing here is to keep an open mind when having an artist design your custom tattoo. Letting the artist have some freedom, especially with the background this can really help with the flow of the tattoo and make it have a better end result. Trying to fit too many concepts into one piece also can make for a busy project in a negative way. Try to focus on one aspect that means the most to you and allow the artist to create it. Often clients get an image of what they want in their head and are so focused on getting that exactly, sometimes your exact idea doesn’t look quite right on your skin. Tattoo artists do this every single day, take a moment and listen to what they have to say.

Tattoo Etiquette: Lucky Bamboo Tattoo

Tattoo Etiquette

By: Lucky Bamboo Tattoo

                                                    

Consultations:

When booking an appointment to meet with an artist, that artist is taking valuable time out of their tattooing schedule to sit down with you and go over every aspect of your artwork. Please don’t book appointments lightly. We value your time so please try to value ours. Artists are also real people with real feelings. If you absolutely have to cancel, make sure to provide ample notice (more than 24 hours). This way we have the opportunity to fill your open spot.

At the time of your consultation if you have inspirations bring photos but it isn't required. Lastly, bring an open mind. The artist may have suggestions and ideas for you to enhance your tattoo so that it can be a custom one of a kind piece that you will love for years to come.

Booking Appointments:

Before booking for your tattoo, there are some things to remember. Our artists have full schedules and often waiting lists. Please try and be flexible; saying things like, “I’m only free on Tuesdays” or “I can only start after 3.” While we always try to be accommodating just be aware, we may have to schedule you months in advance. So, unless you truly want to wait weeks to get started, try to move things around.

Also, be patient and kind with the receptionist. First, she is not your artist and most likely won’t be able to answer all of your tattoo related questions. She’s thrilled to get you scheduled and answer basic questions for you. Secondly, getting frustrated and hostile with her is not going to help her magically make an earlier appointment appear for you.

The Day of Your Appointment

Tattoos hurt, in-case you weren’t aware. They are not licked on by kittens!

Avoid topical numbing agents and painkillers. This can only make matters worse and compromise your artwork and safety. The very best thing that you can do prior to your appointment is to HYDRATE! HYDRATE! HYDRATE! Being hydrated is crucial for your body to function and heal properly. Also, consider cutting back on your caffeine intake or eliminate it completely.

Tattoos and Pregnancy

What if I am pregnant and want a tattoo?

“Think it through. The main concern with getting a tattoo during pregnancy is the risk of contracting an infection, such as Hepatitis B and HIV. Although the risk is small, it is recommended that you wait to get a tattoo until after your baby is born” American Pregnancy

While getting a tattoo is an emotional decision, hormones in your system can lead you to be impulsive. Here at Lucky Bamboo Tattoo we always want to encourage health and safety. If you decide your tattoo just can’t wait, you are always welcome to call or come in and discuss it with the shop.

Can I breast feed after getting a tattoo? test

This is a more common question than you would think. While generally the advice from us is still to always to check with your physician if you have any concerns regarding your health.

“There is no evidence that tattoos have any adverse effect on breastfeeding,” she says. “However, what is concerning to me is the infections that can happen if you don’t use a licensed tattoo parlor. I feel moms should wait until they have weaned their baby off” Today's parent

Since we are a licensed tattoo parlor we are always happy to answer any questions you may have. Just give us a call 801-497-9700.