hey just wanted to clear something up before anyone misunderstood me...

when i referred to no-name hidden gem local tattooers, i was referring to local tattoo shops.

not the dude that tattoos out of his apartment that your friend got her butterfly on her lower back from.

i basically mean that in any given city there will be a hidden gem of a shop that cranks out top-notch work and doesnt have to act like (and charge extra because of the fact that) they have a celebrity status.

support your local tattoo shop.

yeah. I'm having the delema right now. I got really good prices on my tattoos from the dude who has done 5 of the 7 I have. He I'd great and I feel really comfortable with him. But now I want to collect a few others from tattooers I really like however, the prices are gonna go up and I don't have a bond with these people. What should I do?

And to cite a specific example. I really want a cholita pinup from tim hendricks. Ive always wanted him to do my ribs. But now he's gone and joined Miami ink. You think the price just tripled?

Man I agree with you about 98%. If the artist you are going to now does good work at reasonable prices why go to someone else? Even you say that a good artist is that way whether he charges $150hr. or $250+ an hour. People get so hung up on the "Celebrity Artist" that they pay outrages prices to get inked. I have had about 8 artists work on me. The only reason I switched is either their prices went way up, they moved or I moved. Melissa the artist I am going to now has been doing my work for about 4 or 5yrs. I have no intention of changing, if she can't do it nobody can.

Hmm... well i got 7 hours of work for $250.00, but only because
i knew the owner and worked for her part-time. the tattoo is definitely
quality work so i guess you can say i got a really good deal.i wouldnt
mind paying a standard price but there definitely needs to be a bond. by bond i do not
mean that we have to take yoga class's together or anything else of the sort,
but i do need to feel a connection w/you as a artist.

tripled LOL his price has quintupled at least.

well from my personal exp, i have paid 200 hr and been very happy with the work. BUT at the same time i have to say, when i had bigger pieces done, like my right thigh or left half sleeve we worked out a price in advance,My leg piece we worked out 500 to do it and it took 1 sesion of 4.5 hours,,,,,so if i was paying hourly rate id be broke lol. I allways recommend working on a piece rate instead of hourly if tat will take more than 3 hours.

Bad attitude?..nah i wouldn't say that. I completeley agree with you. Its just that tattoos have become so common now that there are actual idiots that will pay out the #*% too get a tat. I actually have 2 guys that tattoo me now and there both amazing, but one charges by the hour and the other one by the piece, i do prefer paying by the piece, but i love my other guy too! I haven't paid more than $140 a hr for a tattoo and thats perfectly fine by me!

XO!

yeah, i like per-tat prices too, always works out cheaper!!

but hey, in the case of wanting a particular tat by someone who has coined an amazing personal style, i cant blame you. tim hendricks does amazing work, and nobody does it like him. hell, id love to be tattooed by him. but definitely not at miami ink. anyway, if we're talking someone like that, who actually has his own personal style and you want to wear a persons signature style, rock n roll get ur tat. he's amazing. but please, for most people getting most tattoos, they dont need kat von d to do their portrait of their cat. and they dont need ami james to do their tribal. o, i digress. ill shutup now. point made!

So....Good tattoos aren't  heap and cheap tattoos aren't good. Unless you're fucking a good tattooer, but then that's still not cheap, is it?

    Those people on the tattoo TV shows were good well-known tattooers before they got on TV.

    Tattoos may seem expensive, but what else can you buy for any price that will last you your whole life?

    More than $150 an hour is steep, but if you want that person to tattoo you and that's what they charge, then buck up and pay it. What else is there to say? I man, how much does it cost to see The Rolling Stones? Why are they more expensive to see than your favorite local cover band? Enough said.