The Dangers of Being Tattooed Outside of a Studio - Part One: At-Home Artists - Comments

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This was really handy to read! I'm getting my first tattoo today from an At-Home artist, but he had a studio once and I've seen all his awesome work already since his wife gets a tattoo every other week XD

@ kuriheartsyou
I just can't believe people will actually accept that they got a crappy tattoo and not realize it.

@ TacksForSnacks
Ahhhhh I hate, Hate, HATE that excuse. Tattooing is such a get-what-you-pay-for business that I'd much rather get my tattoo done in multiple sessions because I can't afford it all at once, than getting it all done and looking like poopy. I once saw on the side of the road, some guy holding a buy one get one sign so, of course, I gave them the benefit of the doubt and dropped by. Dear lord. Their portfolios were so shitty that I couldn't even stand to go through them all. D:

I think this is a great article. I want to be a tattoo artist one day (not an at-home artist) and I saw that two of my friends got script tattoos.
They look absolutely terrible! The lines are squiggly and just messed up. Since I want to be a tattoo artist, it irritates me every time I see it.
Last time I brought it up to one of my friends, he said "well it was only $10"
What a shame... they're pretty big too.

@ Hilltop Hi-Jinks
; u ;
Yay

I didn't even read this before I recommended it. It's really, really nice to see someone else with a bit of sense.
Nonetheless, after reading, I thought this was brilliant, and definitely worth the rec I already gave it! You've explained things in a way that even the simplest, most stubborn person could understand and certainly couldn't argue with. For that, you have my absolute, utmost praise. Job well done ^-^

@ asteroid
I actually did mention a lot of that, but, Mibba staff ended up cutting bits of it because they felt the article was too long :/
But, in tattooing, you ALWAYS assume that germs and bad bacteria is everywhere. Just like in an operating room. If you touch something that isn't completely brand-new and sterile, you assume that you're contaminated and you change your gloves and, in some cases, wash your hands again. Being paranoid is VERY necessary when you're in a business that is exposed to blood-borne pathogens and the like.

This article is very thorough and great. I enjoyed reading it immensely although I have no knowledge of getting tattoos or how the business is run.

I do have familiarity with the necessity of sterilization, since I'm training to be a scientist and I work in a genetics/microbology lab. I just want to point out a few things that could be cleared up. First of all, I LOVED that you mentioned autoclaves. A bit of information on temperature and time would be even better (for my lab, we sterilize hard goods at 121 degrees Celsius for thirty minutes, pressure at 15 PSI; liquids have the same settings but a different, slower cycle). Finding out what is appropriate for the tattoo business would be fantastic. We do thirty minutes for our cycle just to be safe; other labs on the same floor do twenty.

As for the kitchen section, you mentioned how there's bacteria and germs in the tap water. Good. However, you mentioned that tap water isn't filtered enough, which leads to the water holding these unwanted organisms. Filtration would do nothing about them. What you should say is that the water isn't sterile. The water should be autoclaved beforehand to kill the bacteria just like the instruments should be in a glass jar with a cap on but loose to avoid pressure building up and the jar exploding.

Also I want to point out that although the possibility exists that nasty bacteria could be anywhere, that doesn't necessarily mean that they are there. Microbes are the most abundant organisms in the world and exist on every surface. Most are unharmful and even beneficial. It's unlikely that you'll randomly find a really awful resistant strain of something in your kitchen (although again, it is POSSIBLE but rare). Modern microbiology tries to calm down popular rumors on that subject--being paranoid is not necessary. But it's always better to be safe than sorry which is why this possibility should always be known and assumed to be a constant risk and precautions taken to avoid it.

This is a great article and it's really informative. My ex boyfriend had a former buddy of his tattoo his ring finger to prove his love for me, or something along the lines of that, and it's not exactly the best thing in the world. I'm amazed that a simple black band could look as terrible as it does. When I had expressed my thoughts on getting a tattoo of my own the same buddy offered to do one for me but I politely declined. I consider myself lucky that the majority of my dad's friends are licensed tattoo artists with their own shops who have gladly offered to tattoo me free of charge. People don't seem to understand that the art of tattoo is just that... an art! It's not a hobby, it's not something that should be taken so lightly, it's something that takes time and patience to master. Again, thank you for this, I hope people who are considering getting tattooed read this and take it all into consideration.

You hit every fact right on the head, kudos. Though, all of my tattoos have been done at home. My uncle does mine. He works out of his house now, has a sterile room to do it in. He worked in a shop for 15+ years, but recently retired about a year ago. All of my ink has come out PERFECT, and I couldn't be happier. You do have to be careful if you do get at-home tattoos, though. Because like you said, there's increased risks of infection and everything.

I know, when you take off every bacteria off of a surface, there is nothing on it. Then at some point a resistant strain of something very very bad, gets on the surface and at that point, every other one is removed. Well, look there! This really bad bacteria has an open range on which to multiply and completely take over.

@ kuriheartsyou
No, it's on my arm and I don't show my arms. But it either fades or seems darker.

@ MusicTrans
That may be just because the ink is beginning to blur at the edges. It happens sometimes - does it get a lot of sunlight?

I got an "at home tattoo" by my friend for my birthday. He wasn't licensed, but studied under someone who was. I didn't know the dangers, and if I had read this a year ago I might have rethought the idea. Thankfully it came out well with the only side effect is that it sometimes looks like the ink is spreading from under my skin.