When approaching a tattoo that does not rely heavily on the traditional use of black outlines and shading, the techniques used can be very different from what one may expect when getting a tattoo. Many tattoo artists begin with an outline, followed by shading and then a coloring session. This is not the procedure I follow in bringing a project to completion, so it's important to understand the steps involved.
The first session is to lay out the design. My focus is on creating the composition and basic color structure of the piece. After the first session is healed, the piece may appear finished, although light and sparsely colored. From this foundation, future sessions allow for further development by focusing on tightening and reinforcing the piece's saturation. I never consider a tattoo finished after one session. The color layers are essential for the longevity of the piece; the best work I do has the most hours put into it.
For singular pieces, I'll book one-day sessions spanning anywhere from 5-8 hours per day. For a bodyset, I like to book two days per visit, at 7 hours a side. I do not like to exceed an 8 hour work day, so the collector will have to allow for multiple visits to complete their look. It's important that the need for these multiple sessions is understood before beginning the process. I am located in Southern Illinois with the closest airport being Saint Louis (STL).
Appointment Questionnaire
In order to narrow down my appointment requests and get a better feel for your project, I have created this basic questionnaire. I am looking forwards to starting new work and would love to hear more about what you are interested in. If it seems like a project that would be right for my style of tattooing I will get back to you with more information, and a quote per session based on the time it would take to do the piece.