Black and Grey Tattoo

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Black and Grey Tattoo in Bury 

Hey everyone, thanks for looking at my tattoo blog, in this blog I would like to mention about the latest black and grey tattoos I have been up to, and also talk about black and grey tattoos in general, black and grey is a style that has been done a lot lately, it is the preferred style by most of tattoo collectors nowadays. 

I was approached by Mark for a thigh black and grey tattoo. He loves heavy metal, so he wanted the album cover of the Slipknot album “Lowa” on the front of his thigh, the Lowa album was released in 2001, so the art work of the album is a little dated in my eyes, but I was glad when Mark was open minded to listen to me, and allow me to re-design the Slipknot classic second album. So I designed to album for him, and he was happy with the end result. The front of his leg, the Slipknot part, was done in 2 sessions, working with Mark on the first session I was really happy as he was so patient and chilled, so I knew it was going to be a success. A successful tattoo also comes with a lot of patience and having a good attitude when getting tattooed. 

After we finished the Slipknot front of his thigh, his second request also brought a smile to my face, which it was, a Five Finger Death Punch album cover or logo, I believe it was a logo more than an album cover. Craig was sure to request that around the skull logo design he wanted all bio-mechanical, I knew it was gonna be fun, as soon as he mentioned that, as I love to free-hand bio-mechanical on the human body, you can make it look like the client was already born with the tattoo on their body, following the human body shape. 

Studying Victor Portugal’s work, I was able to free hand that bio-mechanical around my clients thigh tattoo. Studying textures really help when you are about to tattoo objects that requires texture, and as we know most objects contain textures, we can not see texture in every image we see, or use for tattoos, however, most objects when observed in real life from close they do have texture. So when approaching a black and grey tattoo, it is important to understand texture. 

Mark was in to heavy metal as you can see on his request, it’s easy to tattoo Heavy Metal fans for me, as I can resonate with it, I’m not a metal head as people call it, but I did used to be, and it was a big part of my life. As Mark was a big 5 finger death punch fan, he requested for me to play the band in his last session, I must admit I enjoyed it and I liked them, however, to be totally honest, everyone I listen to another heavy metal band, I appreciate them, however, when I’m listening to them, in the back of my head, I’m thinking Sepultura is so much better than that. I try to find a band that I think is better than Sepultura but I can’t. I think from Beneath the remains to Roots, they became a new band every album they released. 

Back to black and grey tattoos. Black and grey tattoos are very peaceful to do, as a Tattoo Artist, it is less stressful than colour tattoos, and it does flow a lot more natural in a tattoo session. Black and grey tattoos are also easy to heal too, they are more likely to have a better heal than colour tattoos. 

In the beginning of my career, I worshipped some black and grey tattoo artists like Victor Portugal, Carlos Torres, and Bob Tyrell. I would say Bob Terrell was the first one, because he only didn’t do horror tattoos like Paul booth, but he also did a lot of portrait and wild life, he was the first black and grey Tattoo Artist to do black and grey in general really clean and almost perfect looking.

Nowadays we see a lot more black and grey artists, and a lot of good ones as well, so many that sometimes I forget about those classic guys who first inspired me, however, as soon as the love for black and grey tattoos does not die out, I will have the passion to learn and study black and grey tattoos, as it’s infinite to enter a journey about shading and to really learn how the shadow falls in the object, it requires a lot of study and interest in the subject, however, only the passionate ones, will sacrifice their free time in order to learn something new, or what they are passionate about. 

I believe black and grey tattoos are always going to be a part of Tattooing, however black and grey tattoos may evolve. 

Fine Line Tattoos

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Fine Line Tattoo

Fine line tattoos, are the new and favourite tattoo style most asked and admired nowadays, therefore, we would need a full blog on that subject, not only to explore about this new tattoo style that has taken the internet by storm, but also find out the truth behind fine line Tattoos. 

The Tattoo world is like a wave it’s always going up and down in styles and what people ask for. Back in the day realism was the style that everyone was asking for, however there was a big debate about longevity in realism, and that is the same discussion that we have with fine line tattoos. 

Fine line tattoos are temporary- A lot of tattoo artists in Bury doing fine line tattoos have not been tattooing for that long so they haven’t seen their work aged in 10 years, and fine line tattoos will not even last more than 5 years, when all those fine line tattoos age, fine line tattoos will have a decline in requests, everything that raise falls, and fine line tattoos will fall when they all start to age. 

Why will they age not well? They will not be in the skin, as the lines are so thin, it will disappear over the years, in tattooing, contrast is so important, and so is a solid line, strong edges. I know you mite be listening to this and think, but I want a fine line tattoos, I would say, you have the right to have a fine line tattoo, however, you will have a temporary tattoo. 

Don’t get me wrong, I understand why people get fine line tattoos, as it does looks nice, it looks very delicate and subtle. And that’s why so many people get them, because people buy what they see, and with online platforms like TikTok nowadays, it’s so easy to start a TikTok trend, and make tattoos look good online that looks nothing what it looks on skin. 

Is it worth it getting a fine line tattoo? If you really really want it, I would completely understand, however, please consider that in 5 years the fine line tattoo will not be there, so you will have to cover it up with something more solid in the future, re-work the same tattoo with a solid line, or laser the tattoo off which it would be a quiet painful experience best to be avoided. 

Another fact to mention about fine line tattoos, is that, when you outline a tattoo with a really thin line, with the intention to achieve a fine line tattoo, there’s a chance that the line will spread, specially with black ink. So in order to avoid the spread in the lines, some fine line tattooists are mixing black with white, to tone down the black in, creating a dark gray tone, and in order to create that dark grey tone, which at first it looks great. As the tattoo outline is not black, it will fade away even quicker in that case. So if we resume, a fine line tattoo has a really think line in the skin, as thin as possible, and the black ink gets mixed with white to give a even more subtle look, so that’s a double reason to make a temporary tattoo.

TEMPORARY TATTOO TRENDS ARE FOR TATTOO ARTISTS WHO HAVE JUST ENTERED THE TATTOO INDUSTRY, AND THEY HAVEN’T HAD ONE OF THE BIGGEST LESSONS IN TATTOOING WHICH IS LONGEVITY. 

So if you are sensible about your skin, consider that when you getting a temporary tattoo trend you are opening the window for making your body for life with something temporary, which it will cost you more in the future trying to fix it, or reading it from your skin. 

Respect yourself and respect your skin, be smart, do not fall for temporary trends, you are better than that. Tattoos are forever which is the opposite from temporary trends. 

So you are deviating from the main reason of what a Tattoo is. 

Fine line Tattoo

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Cover Up Tattoo

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Cover-up Tattoos

Hello everyone, thanks for reading my blog, in this blog I would like to focus on cover-up Tattoos. Cover-up Tattoos is a type of work that I have been dealing with since the beginning of my career, and the more experience I get on in covering up a tattoo, the more I realise I can never stop learning. So lets dive in deep in to everything you need to know about getting your tattoos covered up.

I do enjoy doing cover-up tattoos, and that’s only because I like the challenge, doing a cover-up tattoo can go extremely wrong, however, in order to avoid that, I’m happy to share with you some key elements and principles on how to approach a cover up tattoo.

One important foundation for a successful cover up tattoo, is the balance between dark and light. Where the tattoo that needs covering is placed, that’s is where your dark is going to be, so now in order  to make a successful cover up tattoo, you must make sure the light is the same amount or more than the dark area. It has to be at least 50% dark and 50% light. Or even 50% dark and 60% light.

If your cover-up tattoo is 60% dark and 40% light, you will not achieve a successful cover-up tattoo. So as you can see, the light area has to be greater than the dark area.

Cover-up Tattoos require a lot of patience from both tattoo artist and customer or tattoo collector.

I make a decision if I should take a cover-up tattoo job on or not based on the client’s attitude. Cover-up tattoos are challenging, and it requires a lot of time spent on it, if a client requests a cover-up tattoo, and they do not seem patient or willing to put the time necessary to achieve the cover-up, I prefer not to take the job on. The client has to understand that, taking on a cover-up Tattoo, it means, having to put more time than necessary than a normal tattoo, so in order to take on a cover up tattoo challenge, you as an artist have to evaluate if its worth giving all this extra time and effort, therefore as an artist you have to be honest to yourself and make the decision if you want to spend time with that client.

If you are looking for a cover-up tattoo, you must realise that, the tattoo artist has to make a decision if it is worth or not, to take on the job, based on how dark your tattoo is, based on your attitude, your patience, and if you are willing to spend time and money on it. It is important to mention also that cover-up tattoos are more expensive than a tattoo that is not a cover-up. A tattoo that is not a cover-up or fresh skin, the process is a lot more simple than a cover up process. So the patience required is a lot greater.

See a cover-up tattoo, like painting a black wall white, you know it will need a few coats, in order to achieve the white wall, a cover-up tattoo is a similar process to that. Of course to paint a black wall white, it would take around 3 coats for instance, as you are going from extremely dark to extremely white. However, if you are painting a Grey wall to white it will not take as many coats to complete, as if you were painting from black to white. So a cover-up process works similar to this, it depends on how dark the tattoo is, it will dictate how long the cover-up will take to complete.

So if you are looking for a cover-up tattoo, there’s a lot to consider, you definitely need a consultation with your preferred artist, an a lot and a lot of planning, patience and time spent.

If you are looking for a cover-up or re-work tattoo, I’m happy to help, of course a consultation would really help, so if you get in touch with me on what’s app, just click the what’s app link on my web site and I’m happy to help, thank you.

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Hand Tattoos

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Hand Tattoos

Hello everyone, and welcome to Louis Santos Tattoo. Winter is coming and it is time for me to get my pencils and painting brushes ready, as I love to paint and draw in winter time, its my pleasure to stay in and enjoy my art.

In this blog, I would like to talk about hand tattoos. Hand Tattoos for sure it deserves a entire blog focus on the subject.

Hand Tattoos, in my point of view, is the hardest area of the body to Tattoo. If you ask a majority of Tattoo Artists, which is the part of the body that is the hardest to tattoo, they say hands. Tattooing hands, it was the part of the body where it took me longer to learn to Tattoo, why is that? Because when you tattoo a hand is really easy for the ink to fall off. Why is it easy to fall off? Because you can not ask your client not to move his or her hand after the tattoo session.

One thing I have learned about tattooing the hands, is that, it does not matter, how good the Tattoo Artist is, it is more likely the tattoo is going to need touching up. Everyone works in different conditions, some people work with their hands, so it is more likely to affect the healing process. Is it possible to do a hand Tattoo without needing touch up after, yes it is, I have done some hand tattoos where it went in first time, however, to be on safe side, as soon as I book a hand tattoo, I make sure the second session is also booked, to ensure I get the opportunity to do a second pass.

There are 30 small muscles located directly inside the palm and the base of the hand. Not all muscles in the hands are located between the bones. Some muscles are based in the palm, but the area that gets tattooed, it doesn’t have many muscles, so maybe that’s why tattooing hands it doesn’t feel the same as other areas in the human body, and it is so challenging to tattoo.

So if you are considering getting your hand tattooed, please bear in mind, the patience you will need to achieve a successful hand tattoo, and your Tattoo Artist in Bury, could have 5, 10, 15, 20 years experience, and it is more likely that you will need your hand tattoo touched up.

As Tattoo Artists we can not predict in which condition the client will be in once they leave the Tattoo studio in Bury. If you get tattooed in your hand, and you work in a building site, or you work with food, or surrounded by hot temperatures it is more likely that your hand tattoo will need touching up.

I did once tattoo a hairdresser, and he did not keep his hand tattoo covered after the tattoo session we did. So imagine, an open wound in his hands and he is cutting people’s hair. As you can tell, the tattoo did not heal well, and it needed touching up, and not only that, I did not get the opportunity to touch up, he was not happy for the fact that the tattoo did not heal well. I love clients with a common sense, as it does really help with the process. If you choose someone to tattoo you, that means you trust them, there is no point in choosing someone to tattoo you, and having one foot behind, if you as a client have an issue with your tattoo, go and talk to your Tattoo Artist about it, instead of turning your back on someone who you trusted in the first place.

Tattoos can not heal well sometimes, everyone has a different type of skin, so sometimes, your tattoo artist is getting to know your skin, so not going back to your tattooist if your tattoo does not heal well, it is such a shame, as your tattoo would be sorted if you come back to the tattoo artist who did your tattoo, and gave the artist the opportunity to touch it up. That really includes with hand Tattoos for sure.

Thank you for reading my blog, until the next one.  

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Black and Grey Tattoos in Bury

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Tattoo Blog in Bury

Black and Grey Tattoo in Bury

Hello everyone, thanks for visiting my blog. The summer is over; we had a quiet, hot summer, which slowed my paintings and drawings a bit, as when it is a hot day, all you want to do is rest, the energy level decreases a bit, but as winter is approaching, I will have extra energy to focus on my art after I finish my main job is tattooing. I have been enjoying tattooing and drawing Mythology a lot, however, lately I have got the opportunity to do some really nice black and grey tattoos in Bury, so in this blog I would like to talk about 2 Black and Grey tattoos, I was grateful I got the opportunity to do it, and I really enjoy working on a horror portrait tattoo of Chucky of the movie Child’s play, and a surrealism black and grey skull tattoo.

Lets start with the Horror Tattoo piece. I love doing tattoo portraits, I have drawn a lot of faces out of love throughout my career, and drawing faces, it really contributes and enhance the knowledge of tattooing a portrait. I’m not a big fan of horror movies, however, I do like Child’s Play, I remember watching the first one when I was a kid in Brazil, and the story behind is quiet spiritual, as the doll is possessed by an evil spirit, that sort of voodoo practise is not something out of ordinary when you are born in a spiritual country. In Brazil we have an African religion called Candomble, best known as Macumba, if you want to look up, and in many occasions they do practise spiritual possession in human bodies, so that’s why when I first saw Chucky, I was familiar with what I was watching.

Child’s play is not based on a true story, however I believe that it has been cases of possessed dolls in human history. In Africa, they are very spiritual and there are a lot of cases similar to the Child Play movie, believe it or not

This Chucky tattoo, was done in one session, it took around 4 hours, I always ask my clients to come back after doing a realistic tattoo as you never know how its going to heal, realistic tattoos requires a lot of layers, and you have to slowly build up the skin, the skin has a limit, and you try to take it up to the limit, once you take it to the limit is time to stop. It is almost like dealing with a wet paint, you have to wait until it dries, with a tattoo you have to wait until it heals, doing too much tattooing in one area is dangerous for the tattoo healing, nowadays you get a lot of tattooists specially in Bali, tattooing full leg tattoos, sometimes both legs, that’s too much for the client to take, but some people appreciate quantity and not quality.

Portrait Tattoos also requires a lot of skill in drawing the human face, not so much with a Chucky Portrait, as its such a recognisable face, so it’s a little less pressure than tattooing a full on Portrait of someone’s parent.

Hopefully, I will see this Chucky tattoo healed, and be able to go back to it, if I get the opportunity to.

The second black and grey Tattoo I worked on, he was limited with a budget, however, because it was such a cool piece, I tried to help him out, I always try to give more to my client than what they spend, that is in order to make the tattoo the best it can be, I believe if you want to do the best tattoo as possible you have to spend more time than a tattoo artist would spend naturally. Usually Tattoo Artist’s charge exactly  by the hour, I do charge by the hour as well, however, when the tattoo is all done and paid for, and I still can see improve on the tattoo I will spend the extra time necessary to make sure the tattoo reaches its full potential.

When I did this black and grey skull Tattoo in Bury, I studied a little,to be able to deliver something a little more custom. People still want custom tattoos, and it is the way I still approach my work, being able to give something unique to my client is still one of the benefits my clients can have when getting tattooed by me, as I draw a lot, it also helps with the ability to give something unique to my clients.

The skull tattoo was done in 3 hours, his budget was a little lower but that’s what you have to do if you want to build a portfolio with tattoos that you want to do.

Thank you for reading my blog.

Skull Tattoo in Bury

Louis Santos Tattoo

Mythology and Realism

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Born in Olinda Brazil, Tattooing full time for 20 years.

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The Best Tattoo Studio in Bury

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Best Tattoos in Bury

 

Getting tattooed in Bury can be quiet a decision making journey, sometimes you know what you want to get tattooed, however, you have to decide where to go to, which studio to choose. This is a very important decision to make, as every studio has a completely different way of thinking and operating as a business, so in this blog I would like to guide you, in order to find the best Tattoos in Bury for you, and also what are the advantages of getting Tattooed at Odin’s Eye Tattoo Collective.

 

Bury is a town with rich industrial heritage, and vibrant modern culture. Bury has evolved in to a significant town for Tattoo artistry in Greater Manchester.

 

In my beginning in 2006, I started tattooing in Bury, back then there was only 2-3 shops in Bury, the shop I worked it was the one to go to back in the day, however I knew Bury back then it wasn’t very advanced in Tattooing, I used to go to Tattoo conventions and notice that, other artist’s were better than us, however the guys I worked with would never admit that.

 

So I decided to move to Leeds, in order to learn, and I was glad I did it, as it was the first time I worked with real artist’s, guys who would finish a day session Tattooing and go drawing or paint at night, that was a moment in my life where I literally lived for art, you kind of get in your safe pleasure bubble, and that’s all you know, or want to know. I had a great experience working with artist’s, but then times changed, and I opened my own studio.

 

I really enjoyed opening my own studio, it was more chilled as I wasn’t working for somebody else  anymore, I was private as well, so people would message me through Google. So before approaching me they already searched about me.

 

After 13 years, I felt like my time in Leeds was over, and I decided to move back to Manchester where I started, I missed my Mum, and I missed my English home.

 

Coming back to Manchester, I tried to open a studio in Whitefield, but that was short lived, as the lease on the building was over, so I was walking in Bury, where I used to live, and I found Odin’s Eye Tattoo collective.

 

Odin’s Eye,  is owned by an old friend called “Sween” he has been tattooing longer than me, so he was the guy I looked up to. I spoke to him, and as he knew me from back in the day when I lived in Bury, so the transition was natural. I was really grateful I had a place to work, from someone who already knew who I was. Also meeting Tony, it made me really comfortable as he was very welcoming.

 

Bury was a quiet town, not much happening, the only thing we would look up to would be Sol Viva, the night club, where I used to loose myself before I started Tattooing. Coming back to Bury to be tattooing, it made me realise the number of tattooist’s and Tattoo Studios in Bury had increased a lot. So it was nothing what it used to be. However, I knew at Odin’s Eye, we would have the opportunity and potential to be on top.

 

When you have a lot of Tattoo Studio’s around you, you have to focus on what you can provide as a business, and we certainly consider that. Here are some advantages, of getting tattooed by us at Odin’s Eye Tattoo collective.

 

Every Client gets directed to the right artist for them. We have 3 artist’s more than capable to handle any tattooing style. So the client always wins.

Privacy when you get Tattooed. Each artist have their own private room, so you can have a one to one experience with your artist, so our focus is on you only.

WE give an honest advice on your idea, we wish the best for our clients, so we would rather turn away business than accepting to do something that will not work. Honesty is the best policy.

We serve the best coffee in town, if you make an appointment, don’t be shy to ask me for a coffee, I’m the barista, Tony is good as well, but he is always busy, so you can ask me, no problem.

We are multi award winning Tattoo Studio.

All 3 artists have been tattooing for 20 years plus. We all have more than 20 years experience each, so we have traditional tattooing values, that you can only build with experience.

You can feel the love when you come in the studio, we all get on well, and have each others back, that is quiet rare in a Tattoo studio. In my 20 years experience, that is the first studio I experienced working with other artist’s who are all for each other, every other studio I worked at, they were civil, however, deep down, they were all out for themselves, it was each to their own. And most tattoo studios you will walk in, they will make out they are a team, however, the truth behind it, it will be each to their own. It is just how it is.

 

Thank you for reading my blog, if you made it until the end. Come and get tattooed in Bury, we have the biggest arcade club in Europe, you will not be disappointed, until our next blog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Right Tattoo Artist for You

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How to find the right Tattoo Artist for me

Hey everyone, Thanks for visiting this website, in this site you will find Tattoo Blogs, Art Gallery, and Tattooing. It has been 2 years working at Odin’s Eye Tattoo in Greater Manchester, and what a ride it has been. The Tattoo World is evolving, so should our ways of thinking and approaching tattoos. So in this blog I would like to help you to find the best Tattoo Artist for you, I’m going to mention how the Tattoo world has evolved, to how Tattoo Artist’s present themselves nowadays, so you can notice some behaviour and make the choice yourself, to who, you will choose as your Tattoo Artist.

Nowadays, with social media and the number of Tattoo Artist’s raising everyday, Tattoo Artists have been going way beyond what normally Tattoo Artist’s should do, in order to attract business.

I believe you as a client should have the freedom to choose the right Tattoo Artist for you in Greater Manchester, based on your philosophy, your beliefs and request. You will build your beliefs when researching for your tattoo artist, and researching is a very important part of the process, when looking for the right Tattoo Artist for you in Manchester. Who am I to tell you where to go, you will have the right to make a choice yourself, based on the tattoo Artist who you resonate the most with, in my part, in this blog, I’m going to guide you so you can educate yourself about getting Tattooed.

Getting Tattooed is a big thing to do, and it can mean a lot to someone, so first of all I would like to mention about getting tattooed of chance is not the best way to get tattooed, getting tattooed requires planning, and planning it well. Doing your research is crucial, read about the artist, look at artist’s who are doing the style you are looking for, travel if you have to, getting tattooed by the right person, it mite mean having to travel for it, and book a hotel, it seems like a lot of hassle, but when it comes to put something on your body for life, distance should not stop you to get the right work on your skin.

Online, specially on TikTok, I have seen lately a lot of artists posting videos of them speaking, and their speech is, I have been tattooing for 6 years, and if you are looking for a Tattoo, look no further. That kind of approach is quiet desperate, and it is not giving you the option to make your own personal choice. When a Tattoo Artist mention if you are looking for a Tattoo, look no further, that is a statement where, I believe, is no needed. An artist should present themselves introducing who they are, and explaining what they do, and the approach should be, if you like my work, please contact me on What’s app.

 I must say that 6 years tattooing, is not that long, I learned to Tattoo after I have been tattooing for 10 years, when I saw my Tattoos healed after 10 years, that is when I really learned to tattoo. So any Tattoo Artist, Tattooing for 6 years or less be careful, I’m not  saying they are all a no go, as there are some good new upcoming artists, I would just say, be careful, and special alert when they say, the only option is me, that is definitely a very egocentric way of approaching Tattoo clients.

Of course if a Tattoo Artist seems egocentric but you like them or resonate with them, is totally up to you, you can approach any Tattoo Artist you would like to, or feel comfortable with.

 I would like to recommend before approaching a Tattoo Artist, research about them before you book a consultation, some clients are booked with me for a consultation, and they do not really know what I do, or how I work, a client who  did a bit of research on me, will make me enjoy our consultation a lot more, and everything will flow a lot easier and natural. Don’t get me wrong I am happy to answer questions, I believe, the client should ask as many question as they would like to, however, if they research into their artist, they will ask good and progressive questions, instead of obvious ones. And someone who  researched for their artist, will not feel the need for the artist to convince them to tattoo them, they will be looking forward to have their work on their body for a life time. And be very proud of it. So research in to someone before approaching them.

Getting Tattooed is a big commitment, and it should not be a last minute idea, get prepared, be smart. You mite not be able to afford what you want to get it done now, so I recommend to save your money as long as I needs, until you have the money for your tattoo by the artist who you love, instead of just getting Tattooed now, just because you found an artist who charges your budget. You should get tattooed by someone, because you love their work, and not because of their prices.

I believe, if all Tattoo collectors recognised getting Tattooed as a serious commitment, we would see more amazing Tattoos, instead of budget Tattoos. What you pay cheap you pay twice, trying to save money on your Tattoo today you are risking future problems, which it could end up costing the double of what you originally paid for.

It is very rare to see someone covered in good Tattoos. Quality work takes time, and only the ones who are patient will deserve good quality work.

Thank for reading my blog, until the nest one.

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How to become a tattoo Artist

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I want to Become a Tattoo Artist

Welcome to Louis Santos Tattoo, thanks for taking the time to visit this web site. I would like first to Thank Ross for all his hard work, working his magic on this website, the guy has a talent with websites, and he looks after all the behind the scenes, technical stuff, which I can only be grateful for, you guys don’t realise how much work is involved in the background, to keep a website running, and Ross is passionate to keep the website running smooth so I can blog, and keep updating what I’m up to, and you guys can enjoy this web site.

In this blog, I would like to focus on helping those who have an interest in becoming a Tattoo Artist in 2026

The Tattoo industry is in a weird place at the moment, as it felt the high of the early 2000’s with tattoo programs of LA ink and Miami Ink, tattooing was booming, not only everyone wanted to get Tattooed, but people could afford to get Tattooed as well, so being a Tattoo Artist seemed like a Great idea, and the perfect career to pursue.

Nowadays we see Tattoo Artist’s abandoning the boat, the industry is over saturated, and no tattoo Artist is as busy as they used to be, so the first thing I would like to say to someone considering being a Tattoo Artist is, please be aware that The Tattoo Industry is not what it used to be any more. I remember looking up to some artist’s around 2013, messaging them, dreaming to get tattooed by them, and their waiting list was 2 and a half years, I doubt that would be the case nowadays.

So, if you have read this blog so far, and you still want to be a Tattoo Artist, this blog is for you. I will select key points to follow, what you need to believe in, and work towards.

So first and most important thing is, how do I get an apprenticeship?

The best advice I would recommend to get a Tattoo apprenticeship, is to, invest in your artistic development, do art classes, pay for online classes with artist’s that you look up to. Developing your artistic skills, there are 2 points to focus on, 1- Study and 2- Practise. The more focus and dedicated you are at study and practise art, the quicker you will climb the ladder of becoming a good artist and to achieve a good  artistic capability. After achieving a good artistic skill, you will look at a Tattoo Artist who you look up to, follow them, save up your money and go and get tattooed by them, and that means sometimes having to go over seas for it. When you get tattooed by someone who you love their work, they will not only get to know you, and respect you, but you will collect a Tattoo that you love for the rest of your life. Getting tattooed by your favourite artist, you will build a relationship with them, so if you are planning to get a half sleeve or full sleeve by someone, go for the artist you would like to learn from. Every client I tattooed a half or full sleeve on, I remember them even after 10 years. So if you become a good artist, dedicate yourself to the art craft for years, get tattooed by a tattoo Artist who you admire their work, your chances of getting an apprenticeship will increase a lot.

Why is it so important to become a good artist before becoming a Tattoo Artist?

If I Tattooed someone who was an amazing artist, It would be my pleasure to offer them a career, i would offer them an apprenticeship, as I would love to see how they would develop their artistic capability in to Tattooing, it would be exciting to see it.

So while Tattoo Artist’s are busy tattooing, you have the time and opportunity to study art and practise art. You have the time to become a better artist, than a Tattoo Artist who is busy Tattooing everyday, and if you show your drawings skills and painting skills to a Tattoo Artist who is an artist, they will consider taking you on as an apprentice a lot more, than if you ask for an apprenticeship without any dedication and previous efforts.When you apply dedicated previous efforts to what you want to do, everything else falls in to place, and when a Tattoo Artist see that you are a good artist, it means that you are passionate about art, and when you are passionate about art, it means you will have a better flow in becoming a Tattoo Artist, I would say a natural and beautiful flow.

So dedicating yourself to art is the best way to get in to Tattooing, instead of believing in short cuts, taking a Tattoo academy, before even learning drawing skills. Tattooing will come naturally if someone learn to be an artist previously.

–  Tattoo Academy does not make you a Tattoo Artist

How could I forget to mention about Tattoo academies, they have been popping out in the last few years, and they have promised everyone who joins on a course, to learn to Tattoo in a week, do you remember the last trade that was learned in a week? To be a plumber you have to go to college for years, how come in tattooing it only takes 1 weeks? That’s because, so many people want to be Tattoo Artists, and they want it at any cost, so they believe that if they pay for a Tattoo course, they will be Tattooing straight way,, so Tattoo academies take advantage of that. I have had so many parents coming to me, and asking me to train their kid up, and I could well take advantage of that and say OK, it will cost 3 thousand pounds, and I will train him or her in 2 weeks. Me personally I would not be able to do that, as I know if I wanted to help someone to be a Tattoo Artist, it would at least take a few years, so Tattoo academies are doing nothing but taking advantage of people who want to learn to tattoo. Tattooing is a lot more than a Tattoo course in a week, you have to be around Tattoo Artist’s with experience 24/7, work in a few Tattoo studios before you open your own, travel and go to Tattoo conventions, to learn and get inspired.

Tattooing  is not just a job, tattooing is a life style. And a life style of dedication to your craft, in order to respect someone who is willing to let you put your art work on their skin for a life time.

Thank you for reading my Manchester Tattoo blog.

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Tattoo Artist In Greater Manchester