Tattooing vs. TATTOOING

Yesterday's posting brought to mind a trend out there where cosmetic tattooers are breaking into the more traditional form of tattooing. There is nothing wrong with that - I have a tattoo studio where we offer both services. The problem is, just because you have a needle and ink, it does not make you a body artist. Just because you have a few sheets of flash does not make you a body artist, either.

"I just do small decorative tattooing," is the common response from them. "You know, butterflies and hearts." Yeah, I know - black outlines filled with a couple colors - yaaaaaaaay...little Mary knows how to stay within the lines! Yes, exactly that - coloring book work at best, and most often fast-fading junk with shaky, uneven lines - or thick, heavy stuff trying to correct the mess.

I am not saying every cosmetic tattooer who takes on body art works like that, but there is a trend for some suppliers, in order to sell more pigment colors, to throw in some small flash and there ya' go.

Body artists go through months of apprenticeship for a reason - respect that concept. If you want to do body art - really want to do it, you need to learn how first. Traditional tattoo artists rarely cross over into cosmetic tattooing for the same reason - it requires a LOT of education - not just a week to become truly good.