Drawing Fees

Standard: I don’t generally charge for this as an added fee. I price my hourly rate to include what I need and have a pretty good system for designing for people. If it seems like I had to do an unusual amount of prep work, or there was a lot of indecision and changes requested then I may communicate about paying a drawing fee. Most single pieces take several hours to prepare. Sometimes up to 6-10 hours of research, prep, sketching, design, problem solving, and value studies., depending on the style, scale, and anatomical challenges. My Design Policy below will outline more.

Design Policy

Every Artist, client, and project is different. Sometimes it’s very straightforward, and there’s really just not much to talk about, and they are excited and happy, and they don’t really have any input or influence they feel the need to impart. Sometimes the client gets to be very involved in the art. The majority of projects tend to be a mix of the former with a pinch of the latter.

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.

  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.

  Design Process: We discuss your concept, wants, desires, and limitations (if any) prior to booking your appointment and deposit. At that point, you really have to let go a little bit. 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.

• I usually touch base with you by email as I start to get to work on your design, but not always. I review your reference materials extensively and get a sort of feeling for the concept and placement.

• I don’t typically draw anything if I feel unclear or like I don’t have a strong communication from you that also feels right to me, in which case I may message you when I set out to work on your design.

• If I feel unclear, I may wait to finish the details with you at your appointment before we tattoo you. I can generally accommodate an hour to finalizing the design.

• 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

• After this step, I may make a value-scale mock up, a general idea of my lights, midtones, and darks.

• 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: 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.

Redesigning Fee: Substantial changes, and completely new designs will be charged a new deposit and may possibly require a complete reschedule due to time management issues. This is very rare. But it’s not the end of the world. Trust in the Muse, take the time to get it right.

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.

Payment

• ZELLE is GREAT. It’s free. Your banking app probably already has it.

• Cash

• Venmo/Paypal is OK, but not ideal. 

• Can do Credit Card but they have fees

Tipping

This is sort of a taboo topic to speak openly about, I guess because it’s just sort of awkward, and I know a lot of people actually would like to know a straightforward answer about this, so I’m going to tell you what I’ve seen to be true.

Tips are greatly appreciated, and they are part of the culture of our industry, although nobody would say they are ‘required’. It is more of a social code. Although tips are ‘not required’, it’s sort of bad juju to not tip due to its cultural relevance as a sign of appreciation, respect, and a job well done.

First time tattoo collectors are the most likely to not tip. They just don’t know about the industry and culture, and they have no way to know with zero experiences. The average tip is $20-100 cash, depending on the skill, time, size, and difficulty of the project.

Tips do not always have to be money! If you don’t have room in your budget to tip, or maybe the cost of your tattoo was more than you thought and it ate up the tip you had planned to give, there are other ways to give appreciation and support to your artist friends. Engaging with my social media or giving me a great testimonial on yelp or google is also extremely kind and helpful to an artist!

Many clients choose to give their artists gifts… DON’T MAKE IT A BIG DEAL. We aren’t trying to shake you down. You don’t have to do it every time! It’s just a gesture of thanks and recognition that what we do is hard, and you see us trying to do it well.

I love when clients think of me and express their gratitude with pre-rolled joints, chocolate, or snacks, or words of affirmation, and it’s fun to share those items together. My cousin once gave me an entire lasagna, and I really appreciated that. The convenience of an easy meal that can last for days is not underrated in the life of a tattoo artist! Ask your artist if there is anything they love :) They might not say anything, but guaranteed most like caffeine, a small sweat treat, or any positive review on yelp or google pages.

Again, it’s not “required” but if you’re feeling nervous about your tattoo appointment, showing up with good vibes, kindness, patience, and little snacks never hurt. It’s a lot of work to reach into the void and procure your design and got damn, a latte can help.

Memes, Active Engagement with our posts by sharing, liking, commenting, or otherwise hyping us up to the people you know are also great ways to spread the love and support us.

AFTERCARE

As part of my service, I provide an aftercare kit at the start of most projects. Subject to being in-stock, the aftercare kit includes an aftercare card outlining instructions, unscented antibacterial soap, and a 1 oz tube of curel lotion. It also includes some vitamin C, a snack, some stickers, and some temporary tattoos.

I also have a page on the website which outlines BEFORECARE suggestions and AFTERCARE instructions, and products available on Amazon or in your local CVS.

CAN I BRING A FRIEND ?

If you have anxiety and you *must* have a security person, you may bring ONE person, but they cannot stand in the procedure area. There is a nice seating area in the main shop, with tea and wifi and books.

It’s better for me if my energy isn’t scattered with social demands that are not essential toward the project, so I generally prefer if you don’t bring extra people. There is also not a lot of space for them in my work area, especially if other artists are in that day and also have clients.

If you must bring someone, hopefully they are independent at entertaining themselves, or maybe even helpful? Can always use help with video/photo documentation of the process :)

Touch Ups

• I can do touch ups on TUESDAYS

• I highly encourage you to be responsible with your aftercare and follow my instructions. Issues created as a result of your own actions will be charged my hourly rate to fix, so don’t let your dog scratch your new tattoo, stay out of the sun, don’t sweat it out, and use the right ointments for your skin type.

• There is a difference between needing more than one appointment to finish a tattoo, and a “touch up”

• Due to a busy schedule, I cannot do touch up appointments on a weekend.

Birthdays

I don’t really have the ability to guarantee your birthday for your appointment. If it happens serendipitously, that’s awesome, Happy birthday.

More likely, you will get your birthday tattoo on a date somewhere within the same month as your birthday. If you book 1-2 months in advance, then maybe you’ll get your birthday week.

Astrology

I’m a Sagittarius.
Artistic Influences: Mars and Jupiter in Pisces, Moon in Leo
Manifesting Generator, but I don’t really know much about all that.
Fire Tiger. Yellow Warrior. All the ‘Tism.
If you’re into that stuff.

Translated for Others:
1 - Wise Goofball Life Coach Energy; Kinda Stoney but Learns & Repeats whatever cool shit we are into to any willing student.
2 - Peaceful Warrior Dreamy Artist Poet Vibes, Big Go With the Flow Energy, Intuitive AF
3 - BYOB — Be Your Own Boss. Really Into Shit When I Am Really Into Shit, and can make cool shit happen when I feel the instinct toward it; self employed workhorse energy.
4 - Chinese astrology + mayan astrology + ‘Tism —- IFKYK, ya know

Cannabis

The tattoo world has always been for marginalized groups, including stoners. We don’t mind it. If it would make you uncomfortable, please mention this on your proposal or by email so we can be considerate of that during your appointment.

Alcohol and other illicit substances are not welcome at the appointment.

At the time of writing this, I am currently a fairly heavy user of home grown cannabis, and feel that you should know this upfront so it’s not a problem later. I feel it currently serves a purpose that is helpful to me in managing stress and sensory overload, and it has been a wonderful ally in creative endeavors. I also work with kava kava, which I love. I sometimes have it available for clients at their appointment as it’s wonderful for sensory issues and anxiety.

Trauma & Sexual Harrassment

Tattoos in general require a lot of trust and vulnerability from the client. It occurred to me that this could be extremely triggering for some individuals, so I wanted to speak on it in advance. 

• Whether it was a botched tattoo that you are seeking to cover up, which can be traumatic and make it more difficult for you to trust the cover-up process and new artist

• Or whether we are getting a new ornamental sternum design, in which you have to be topless on a table in the shop, where other people might walk by (vulnerable!)

• Or at times, the artist has to sort of lean over the client, maybe even somewhat on-top of them, rest an arm on or close to their breasts or pelvis. 

• Or maybe it was an inappropriate experience with a misogynistic artist that left you feeling icky (it’s happened to a lot of us, but the shops I work in are *not* those kinds of shops)

• No matter where I tattoo you, I have to touch you, in general. In booking the appointment and coming to the appointment, you are consenting to get tattooed, which requires being touched.

• I do not want to touch you inappropriately, nor am I thinking about you in “that way”. 

• You are not a sex object during your tattoo session. We are both asexual and only desire to make an art baby together. 

• I am focused only on making sure your artwork is performed professionally on a technical level, and that you are honored and respected in that process. 

• If you are feeling triggered, please communicate so that we can re-establish safety and emotional security. Trauma really does require professional help to address and heal from, of which I am not professional help! But, the best we can all do is be aware and try to support each other to feel safe. 

• If you’ve experienced sexual assault and are still recovering from that trauma, be informed that getting tattooed or touched by a stranger (tattoo artist) could be triggering! 

• My hope is that prior knowledge and self-awareness can help us curtail potential uncomfortable and confusing experiences for all involved!

Running Late

Parking in downtown Auburn can be harder to find these days, and it seems like there’s a lot more people. So, plan to head to town earlier for your appointment. Get lunch or coffee. Grab a snack. The unrushed on-time pace has good vibes. It’s best to show up fed and hydrated.

If you are going to be late for any reason, please communicate. I’m generally pretty flexible since I try to only work with one person per day, but in case I am managing multiple things, a heads up is helpful.

Depending on the day, my schedule can be flexible, but I may have another appointment besides yours, which might prevent me from being able to do your tattoo for you :( .

So plan to be on time, take preventative measures, eat well, sleep well, and maybe even hit downtown a little early.

Cell Phones

It’s an increasing epidemic, but our phones are really hard on our brains and concentration. I have found it difficult to work with clients who aren’t present, because they are dissociating into their phone. When we start designing and stenciling, it would be helpful if you were present and paying attention.

When we are tattooing, it would be helpful if you were mindful of your body and holding still. You can watch movies to distract you, but mindless scrolling is not advised, as you guys often move a lot more than you realize, both while scrolling and when reaching for your phone constantly.

This holds true for calls and text messages. Please put it away.

Neuro Spicy

SENSORY HEADS UP!
Tattoo Machines still make noise! Bright Lights! Crinkly Paper! Multiple Conversations going at once!

I try to have kava on hand, and generally aim for a calm zen-like work space. I recommend bringing noise canceling headphones or eye masks if you have trouble with any of these environmental presences! You are welcome to talk about music preferences, or bring your own. Bring comfy clothes and stim items if you prefer.

I don’t need you to talk the whole time! It doesn’t bother me at all. I also like to go non-verbal sometimes too, and for me it is not weird or socially rude. So, if you prefer not to make small talk, that’s totally fine with me, you can have a SILENT APPOINTMENT. Feel free to mention if you need one.

At the time of writing this, I SHARE a space with two other female artists. Sometimes I have the space to myself, sometimes one of them is there, and on rare occassion all three of us are there at the same time. We are in the Art Gallery of Utopia Tattoo Shop, which operates quite like a private studio, but I can only guarantee that it is semi-private. It is not open to walk-ins or foot traffic.

Products Used

I run a battery operated rotary pen as well as a power supply operated hybrid rotary/coil. One is quiet, one is loud.

I use Dynamic Black, and Fusion Ink. Fusion says they are vegan. I only use black, so my ink is mainly carbon based, that I am aware of.

I use compostable ink caps, bottle bags, rinse cups, and razorblades (handles). I use compostable items as available. Sometimes cartridge needles are available in compostable casing, or packaging.

All items are single use, due to health code and cross contamination prevention purposes.