Starting your own tat business

When starting any business, it’s important to gain any required training and/or education. When starting a tattoo business in particular, there may be certain training, certification and other requirements that must be met prior to opening a studio. Because of the nature of business, you will need to know how to properly sterilize the equipment and educate customers on how to care for their new tattoo in order to prevent infection. The best way to learn about local license and/or industry requirements is to call the local business office and explain the type of business that you would like to open.

Once your training and any necessary licensing are both successfully completed, it will be time to apply for a business license. This piece of paper is very important and must be displayed in your tattoo studio each and every day. The best way to do this is to place your business certificate in a frame and display it on the wall.

Now that you have a business license and any other special licenses required by your local business department, it’s time to choose a location for your studio. Ideally, any place of business would be located in a high-traffic commercial area. The more people that pass by your business, the better likelihood that they will stop in. In addition, when you advertise your business or try and explain to someone where it is located, you don’t want to have a lot of difficult directions. Instead, a simple ‘in town’ or ‘on main street’ would be ideal.

When it comes to advertising your new tattoo business, start small and work your way up. Because your business is new, you are probably working with a limited budget. Don’t worry, most new businesses are. That’s why there are alternate forms of advertising that can help you to get the word out about your new venture without spending a fortune. First and foremost, purchase a large sign to display outside of your business. Make sure that your business name, grand opening date and any special price offerings are noted for every passerby to see. In addition, decorate any windows in your store with samples of your work recreated as clear window adhesives.

Rather than starting out with a large print advertising budget, try writing a press release and distributing it to local newspapers, magazines and/or radio stations. Place flyers throughout town as permitted and on the bulletin boards of local stores. If you can afford it, offer a tattoo giveaway and special grand opening prices during your first week of operation. You may also want to consider contacting local radio stations with your plan to host a tattoo giveaway. This approach requires that you allow the radio station to award the winner on air, which will result in even more publicity for your new business when the DJ mentions the contest sponsor.

As a final thought to starting your own tattoo business, make sure that you explain the importance of proper tattoo care to your customers. Creating a reference sheet will help to keep your customers informed and will remind them of how often to change the bandage and how to avoid infections.

Dolphin Tattoos

Dolphin tattoos are among some of the most popular tattoos currently being designed and inked. This article looks at some of the potential symbolism behind a dolphin tattoo and why they might be so popular. It then describes some tattoo ideas for getting a dolphin tattoo.

Are you interested in getting a dolphin tattoo? A lot of people are they are pretty popular these days. One thing that makes dolphin tattoos so popular is the almost universally positive symbolism behind a dolphin. Close your eyes and think about dolphins for a minute. What do they represent to you? Most people immediately have a vision a beautiful ocean that is wide open and they can often see dolphins frolicking around and having a great time. This of course leads most of us to the obvious symbolism behind dolphins and dolphin tattoos. These animals typically are very free spirited and thought to be very happy animals that have fun. This is the most common symbolism behind dolphins. There are not too people out in the world that wouldn’t agree that freedom, fun out of life and joy are bad symbols. This is why dolphin tattoos and the symbolism behind them is so popular. A dolphin tattoo is a great little reminder to yourself to have fun out of life and spend some time just frolicking around and enjoying life.

Tips for becoming a tattooist!

Tattooing is traditionally an apprenticeship based art.

Apprenticeships last approximately three years before
they are considered professional artists. You are making
permanent, often visible changes to another human being
and if proper procedure isn't followed, you could be
jeopardizing that client's health and emotional well-being. By taking advantage of the knowledge of experienced, professional artists, you will avoid many costly mistakes. Unfortunately it is very hard to get one because very few proffesional tattoo artists wil give away their "Sectrets" to anybody.
Still, there is a chance of getting into one of those apprenticeships and here are a couple of tips what to do:

First of all you should put together a kick ass portfolio, anything reflecting your skills with composition, color and line work. Take your time with creating the flash and have at least two sets of flash ready when you walk into a studio. One set, about 5 pages, in black & white and another set, another 5 pages, in color. The sheets should not be smaller than 14x11 inches. As i said take your time with drawing the flash and be as creative as you can be. Tattoo artists always like to check out new flashes and if you did a good job and impressed him you might have a better chance of getting the apprenticeship. A good artist will see right away if you have the potential to become an artist yourself.

After you're done drawing the flashes start visiting local studios and talk to the shopowners. Here is a little tip for what to say and what to do, too.

Make sure you check out the studio a couple of days before you walk in there asking for an apprenticeship. Check out if the artists are friendly, if the shop is a professional one, if they have any pics hanging on the walls of recently done work so you can get an idea of how the quality of the studio all together is. If somebody asks you if you need some help just say you are looking around. When walking into the shop asking for the apprenticeship make sure the shop is not to crowded. If it is just wait and go there another day cause they might say "We don't need anybody" to you, just because they are to busy at the moment and don't have time to talk to you.

Make a bunch of copies of your flashes and walk into the studio of your choice. Ask for the person in charge and let them know you have some tattoo flash for sale. As I said above, atrists always like to check out new flash so make sure they accidently see them already when you walk into the studio. Don't throw the sheets on the counter or right into his face, just carry them around in your hand, not covered by anything like an envelope so everybody in the shop can see it. But remember, you are there to get an apprenticeship not to make money of tattoo flash, so if they are interested in the flash, keep the price low. If you already got into talking about your flash, mention that you are looking for an apprenticeship and if they are looking for somebody to work in the studio. Your attidude is also important when talking to the artist. Don't be a smart ass and tell him "You Know" when he is talking to you because you don't know, otherwise you wouldn't be there asking for an apprenticeship. Just be friendly, confident and show interest. The rest is up to the artist and your work.

Don't be dissapointed if it doesen't work in the first studio you walk into. Make sure you leave your name and number at the studio and tell them to give you a call if they ever needed somebody.

As I said above it will not be easy to get an apprenticeship at a tattoo parlor but it's not impossible. Still, you will get a lot of "no's" but keep trying and be persistent. The hardest part is to get the artist looking at your artwork and the tips above might help you out. But the most important part is your work, so make sure you do the best you can

Aftercare of Piercings

Handling your piercing at the beginning is the
same as taking care of a little wound. It's
important to take good care of you piercing,
especially when the fistula hasn't formed yet.
Don't wear tight or filthy clothing on your new
piercing. Your hands should be disinfected before
touching the piercing, after all, hands carry a
lot of bacteria.

Don'ts

* Don't take the jewelry out in the healing period.
The wound will heal better and won't close as fast
when you remove the jewelry for a short while.
* Don't apply any ointments on the piercing. It's
best to keep the piercing as dry as possible.
Ointments keep the oxygen out and will slow down
the healing.
* Avoid make-up, shaving cream, strong soap or
perfumed stuff around your piercing.
* Don't hang charms from your jewelry until the
wound is fully healed.
* Avoid sleeping on the piercing while healing.
* Don't over clean. Cleaning the piercing wound
more than twice a day is not advisable, it will
slow down the healing.
* Don't use band-aids on your piercing. There
will not be enough air circulation and the adhesive
can cause irritation.
* Avoid swimming pools, jacuzzis (the warm air
above the water surface harbors a lot of bacteria),
lakes,... If there is sea life, motor oil or children
in the water, then it is not clean enough! If you
are going in water, and you doubt if the water is
clean enough, then you can put a non water-permeable
band-aid that seals off the piercing before going
in the water. It will prevent the dirty water from
getting inside the wound. Cleaning the wound afterwards
will not be effective in preventing any infection!
* Avoid oral contact or body fluids that are not
your own! Your own body fluids like sweat are not
harmful for your piercing, but you do have to clean it.


Do's

* Wash your hands prior to any contact near the
healing piercing!
* Wear clean and breathable fabrics around the area
of your new piercing. Don't wear tight clothing
around the piercing.
* Your bedding should be clean at all time.
* Leave the starter jewelry in for at least the
minimum healing time.
* A healthy lifestyle will help your piercing heal faster.
Staying away from drugs and alcohol, eating nutritious
foods and avoiding stress will show their benefits.
* Take a shower instead of a bath. A bath tub tends to
contain lots of bacteria. If you insist on bathing,
clean the tub with a bleaching product each time before
bathing, and rinse it with water. When you get out of
the bath, rinse your piercing with water.

Cleaning solution

Mild seawater soaks are recommended (daily), they give
the best results for accelerating your healing and
increasing your comfort. Dissolve 1/4 teaspoon of sea
salt in a cup (8 oz.) of warm water. Make sure the
cup is clean. Don't make the solution any stronger
because too much salt can get the piercing to burn.
Invert the cup over the area and soak directly for
a few minutes. You can also use a cotton ball soaked
in the salt water in stead of the direct soaking when
the piercing is on a difficult place.


Cleaning instructions

Clean your piercing twice a day during the initial
healing period. Don't clean it too much, it will
cause irritation. Stay away from your piercing the
rest of the day. Before the cleaning, wash your hands
with soap (recommended is that you take one with an
antibacterial working) and hot water. First you have
to rinse the area of the piercing with warm water to
make sure the crusts that have formed are removed.
Otherwise they can get into the piercing and the
piercing can get infected. Cleanse the area around
the piercing and the jewelry with the cleaning solution.
Carefully move the piercing jewelry up and down to
get the cleaning solution into the piercing. Let the
solution do it's work for a minute.
You may bathe normally, just don't get any other
products then the cleaning solution into your piercing
on purpose. Rinse the piercing with running water.
All of the cleaning solution must be removed. Pull
the piercing jewelry back and forth real gently while
rinsing so that the solution from inside the piercing
is also removed. Pat the area dry with tissues or
gauze. Avoid cloth towels, they can be a source of
bacteria.


What's normal


Bleeding, bruising and swelling are normal,
they don't point to an infection. Tenderness,
discomfort are not abnormal in the first several
weeks. You can feel burning, stinging or aching
on the first days on and off. Itching is also very
common.

The secretion of a whitish fluid forms crusts at
the openings of the piercing. This is not pus. It
contains blood plasma, lymph and dead cells. It's
completely normal and indicates the healing process.

Keep cleaning.


If you notice anything abnormal, or the piercing
gets badly infected, contact the piercer or a doctor.
If your piercing secretes pus, you should go see a
doctor for an antibiotic treatment. The piercing
should be left in at all times to ensure the drainage
of pus. If the jewelry is removed, the piercing
can close and you can get an abscess... Leave your
jewelry in!!!


Healing Time

Ear lobe: 6-8 weeks
Ear cartilage: 4 months - 1 year
Eyebrow: 6-8 weeks
Nostril: 2-4 months
Nasal septum: 6-8 months
Lip: 2-3 months
Tongue: 4 weeks
Nipple: 3-6 months
Belly Button: 4 months - 1 year
Male genitalia: 4 weeks - 6 months
Female genitalia: 4-10 weeks

Piercing Methods

Body piercing literally means making a hole in a
part of the human body with the purpose of wearing
jewelry in the opening created. After a process of
healing, a fistula will be created. This is an
abnormal 'passageway' in your body or skin so that
there's a genuine 'hole'.

Body piercing Methods

* Needle Method (Standard)
The most common method used in the United States
to make a piercing is with a medical hollow needle.
The needle makes an opening in the skin you want
to have pierced but doesn't go all the way through.
The jewelry then is inserted and follows the needle
back. It's necessary to insert the jewelry
immediately to hold the slit the needle made open.
The needle method doesn't involve removing any flesh
(some methods do). The opening is always made with
a needle larger than the initial jewelry to be worn.
This is done to reduce the pressure on the healing
piercing, giving it more room to heal and allow a
fistula to form.

* Piercing Guns
Piercing guns are gun-shaped devices that mechan-i
cally makes the piercing by forcing a stud through
the body part.You can compare it with a stapler.
This method is often used by non-professional piercers
and mostly to pierce holes in the earlobes. You
should avoid this method because the piercing
gun is hard to sterilize. The risk is infection
and transmission of bulletproof pathogens.

* Cannula Method
The cannula method is similar to the standard method.
The difference is that at the end of the needle there's
a cannula (a hollow plastic tube) where the piercer
puts in the jewelry. So at the piercing process, the
cannula and the jewelry is entirely pulled through
the opening. This method is often used in Europe.

* Scalpel method
When you want an opening for a large gauge body
piercing, a medical scalpel can be used to make
a slit. This method is often used for large gauge
ear piercings. It's also used to correct an
asymmetry for example if the ear piercing on one
side is larger than the other because of an
incorrect placement. When you don't want your
piercing anymore and you remove the jewelry,
the fistula will not shrink or close from itself. The
only solution there is surgically.

* Pierce and Taper
This method is for larger gauge piercings and
only works on body parts where the skin is very
elastic. It's similar to the standard method, but
after the hole is pierced with the needle, the
piercer inserts a tapered steel bar (one of larger
gauge then the needle) in order to make the opening
bigger. The jewelry is directly inserted, following
the tapered bar.

* Dermal Punching
Piercings in the upper ear require removal of
skin and cartilage to lift the pressure of the
piercing and guarantee a longer viability of the
piercing. Therefore, a dermal punch is used to
remove a circular area of tissue, where the jewelry
will be worn. Like scalpelled piercings, the healed
fistulas will not shrink or close on their own.