FAQ

Here are some of the common questions we get asked...

You must be 18 years old to get a tattoo in South Australia. Not 16. Not 16 with your parent's permission. Not 17 years and 364 days.

* 18. *

Ah, the BIG question...well, that depends on a number of things and we've found that all things being equal, everyone's different. There are a few general rules:

Areas with a lot of muscle are usually better than areas that are bony

Areas that are likely to be tender include stomach, ribcage, inner thigh and generally anywhere it feels good to be kissed. Genitals need no comment.

Girls tend to handle it better than blokes

mmmm... the other BiG question. Again, it depends on what you want and where you want it. Our minimum charge is $80.

All walks of life: from businessmen to bike riders, both sexes young and old.

Japan was a major influence, though to date it is the USA, Europe, Australia and New Zealand who contribute work of current world standards.

Tattoo You Emporium artist KOODGEE had this to offer:

yes, it is possible to tattoo over scars, however, I couldn't guarantee the result 100%. This is  because scar tissue is very different from normal skin. Large blocks of solid colour may look  shiny and/or textured compared to the rest of the tattoo. Parts of the tattoo may also drop out  due to the different tissue. 

Having said all that, I have successfully tattooed over lots of stretch mark type scarring and skin  discolouration scarring. Over the years these seem to have held up pretty well and at the very  least look better than the scars.  The best results are usually from something busy, like feathers  of a bird's wing or scales on a fish/snake/dragon. The right Celtic design might be OK too. Lots of  lines tend to draw the eye away from the shape of the scar.

Tattoo You Emporium artist TAZZ had this to offer:

Personally I advise them in many ways:

First-tattoo customers with apprehensions are advised to think it over

Body contour should be considered at the advice of the tattooist.

If the customer is considering more than one tattoo, a theme is a must – rather than adding tattoos in a haphazard manner.

I do quite a few cover-ups of old work plus covering recent work by backyarders.

Tattoo You Emporium artist TAZZ had this to offer:

It requires a large amount of dedication and time, watching and learning without pay. The apprentice must be able to learn the workings and maintenance of the equipment and the shop, learn the use of the tattoo gun and then can do stencilled outlines (off the wall work) then it takes quite a while to learn the art of shading and colouring, depending on the individual. Learning is continuous. A personal collection of art courses, tattoo paraphernalia, anything from books on anatomy to the surreal fantasy, all depending on personal involvement and incentive.

Tattoo You Emporium artist KOODGEE had this to offer:

Being a tattooist involves an apprenticeship with a professional studio and it is encouraged that tattooists be members of the Professional Tattooing Association of Australia (PTAA).

Operating outside a professional studio is STRONGLY discouraged.

An apprenticeship involves all the usual hard yakka such as mopping the floor, general dog's body duties, low or no wages and a lot of time spent helping the tattooists during what most people would consider to be after hours.

Formal art training e.g. Uni or art school is not a pre requisite but certainly helps with composition, light, colour theory etc.

A broad knowledge of history and different cultures is often valuable. People skills are an advantage.

Working in a studio offers many benefits, such as exchange of info/techniques, awareness of health and safety procedures and often access to years of experience learnt the hard way.

Practices vary from studio to studio. It's not an easy industry to break into but I suggest that if you're really keen, you either befriend a tattooist (getting lots of tattoos might help!) or approach studios and basically hang around until you're encouraged to leave or are taken on board.

We often get requests for info from students studying Visual Arts. Since Tattoo You Emporium artist KOODGEE used to lecture in Visual Arts at Uni, he's agreed to repost his responses to common survey questions here. Feel free to use them as a study reference:

Yes

 ummm...-lost count: they're all merging into one big one, anyhow.

I feel a personal connection with the various themes.

 status among my peers and social groupings, rites of passage, many artists go through a period of self-mutilation and....they look cool.

placement, research, planning, perhaps a bit of rebelling against the establishment.

People get tattoos for memorials, peer pressure, membership of a group, rites of passage, objective possession, decoration, cosmetic vanity, medical info, symbolic focus…the list goes on.

possibly one of the only things you can pay for and keep forever

social status

expansion of the artform

can accentuate the body in a positive light

still a social stigma attached

not choosing the right artist can be disastrous

media sensationalism

Yes. Consistent exposure to the general populace slowly desensitises society into acceptance.

It depends on the industry: most face to face customer contact positions still have to deal with customers who don’t like exposed tattoos. It makes sense, from a business point of view, that you’d want to attract customers rather than repel them…for whatever reason. Personally I wouldn’t have a problem, but not everyone’s as tolerant as I am.

Tattooing is one of the oldest art forms known to man > circa 5000BC. It is a tradition I am proud to continue.

It's one of the oldest art-forms known to mankind and when you find something you're good at...you should do it.

I was always fascinated by tattoos, even when I was a kid I'd paint and draw designs on my arms... and probably my peers and social group had a lot to do with it ( yes, I'm a bike rider)

I have a H1 honours degree in Visual Arts - you bet I'm an artist.

I think the art is more socially acceptable amongst gen x due to high exposure in popular culture. Other generation groups such as the baby boomers still seem to hold on to old stigmas

see above

tools: obviously a tattoo gun and tattoo ink but during the composition and research stage of custom work I make use of traditional media such as pencils and markers as well as my beloved Apple Mac and Adobe Photoshop. I draw on traditional and modern tattooing techniques as well as general art skills such as perspective and colour theory. I spend quite a lot of time doing historical research for custom work too.

Yes, custom work is one of our specialities. I get inspired by nature - especially Australiana

Everyone is different: sometimes it's a rite of passage, sometimes it's religous, sometimes it's for a sense of belonging, sometimes it's just to look cool - the reasons are as varied as the clients.

Tribal designs are very popular - probably because of popular icons'/celebrities exposure via the mass media.

We have a saying:

"The only difference between tattooed people and non-tattooed people is tattooed people don't care if you're not tattooed"