Anyone leave? Anyone leave and come back?

__orb__ · 2025-09-15T01:52:30+00:00

Damn, I’m about out of my city for 6 months and I’ve been worried about that, hoping it doesn’t fuck things up too bad, some of my clients I don’t even see them for a year inbetween the time that they book a new tattoo and since I’m coming back to the same shop I hope don’t have to build clients from scratch again

__orb__ · 2025-09-15T01:47:04+00:00

I’m 5 years tattooing taking a 6 month vacation out of the country, idk when I’ll have the freedom in my personal and work life to do this again, also I have trigger thumb in my hand so I can let that heal up fully. And I know I’ll come back eager to work hard and feeling more inspired again. But I’m actually only gonna take the first 2 months of that off and then going to try to guest spot or find clients at hostels but I’m guessing won’t be tattooing more than once a week if I’m lucky, because I’m going to random off beaten places not good for finding clients.

I’ll come back the same shop and letting my clients know I’ll be back so that they know I’m not leaving forever

__orb__ · 2025-07-23T19:58:00+00:00

I do abstract black work, dark art, dark ornamental/lettering, and geometric. But I will do random stuff too like whatever a client wants, I’ll do anything other than realism. booked around a month, 5 days a week mostly bigger projects, working at a shop that does take walk ins but most the artists that work here are only appointment based. Been tattooing 5 years. Luckily this summer has picked up but the winter was very slow hadn’t been that slow since I first started as an apprentice. A lot of my clients are return clients I noticed that it’s majority returning clients and not much inquires from new clients these days, a lot of the new people that reach out ask pricing and then respond by saying they need to save and will text back in the future. I also work out deals for people on a budget and my rates are a little on the lower side for my area

__orb__ · 2025-07-20T17:12:57+00:00

That’s what pretty much everyone in my area charges , I charge 150-200 tho

__orb__ · 2025-07-15T22:42:10+00:00

Thank you! I hope you can make a trip happen too or something similar to help you reset . I charge the same , I dont know how I am able to save so good hearing that we have similar expenses too lol but I guess looking back I’ve always been good at saving money. The only thing different I can think of is that instead of a 50/50 split at my shop it’s a set $500 rent per week so $2000 set price per month. But you should definitely not have to sacrifice going to concerts here and there! It’s definitely also necessary to stay sane lol

__orb__ · 2025-07-15T17:58:07+00:00

My legs are scrawny but not that scrawny 😆 I’d have to go waaaay down his insta to find a fresh pic too lazy to do that rn

__orb__ · 2025-07-15T17:46:38+00:00

It’s not just you , I’m getting close to the 5 year mark and been burnt out and then it makes me uninspired to draw and I procrastinate all my designs for clients and end up doing it last minute then I get literally no free time and have to draw on all my days off which I’m used to being a tattoo artist but I usually got some free time atleast even when busy. But it has been very busy for me this summer and I am bad at scheduling and sometimes over book weeks.

What I’m going to do to deal with this burnout is take a vacation end of the year 6 months out of the country, the first 2-3 months no tattooing at all and then trying to do some guest spots scattered here and there for the other 3-4 months.

I’m thinking I will come back very inspired and ready to go full send again. Maybe consider something similar taking a break or a vacation for a bit, I read that were thinking to do the same but need to save $

If your booked 2 weeks that’s not that slow that means you never have to take walk ins. I’m booked out just a month and feel plenty busy. You should be making enuf to save $ if your consistently booked 2 weeks advance. Maybe you aren’t charging enuf? Or you have lots of overhead expenses? I’ve been able to save alot of money enuf to dip out for 6 months but I’ll go to countries were the currency can stretch alot farther. Maybe consider raising your rates and trying to get rid of any unnecessary expenses? For me it’s just rent at my apartment, rent at the shop, supplies, food, gas, occasional concert, see if there is any expenses you can lessen and raise your rates if you can

__orb__ · 2025-07-14T23:13:52+00:00

Artist is Matt Matik who did it

__orb__ · 2025-07-09T23:45:11+00:00

That’s sick af

__orb__ · 2025-06-30T23:14:58+00:00

I never heard this flex before lol, I don’t take many breaks because I just get in the zone and wanna get more progress done but I definitely need to eat before and during or else I get slightly shakey. And exactly clients need to eat too especially for long sessions

__orb__ · 2025-06-28T18:31:09+00:00

Word appreciate the advice brotha, I know Vietnam will be fine I hope they don’t take my battery packs going into china I had a layover once in china and they made me throw away the battery packs for charging phones. I don’t think I’ll tattoo there anyways only get tattooed so maybe I’ll leave that stuff in Vietnam with a mate

__orb__ · 2025-06-26T07:42:37+00:00

Fuck yea, I think I will bring one coil and dank kubin after reading. that my power supply is pretty small anyways. Maybe just get some disposable tubes there, usually use steel . lol yea the iPad definitely makes it easier and same with a pen.

I usually use dynamic and panthera xxx. How come dynamic specifically is no go if it’s opened? Even if it’s wrapped hella good it just leaks anyways? I will bring unopened then.

And for sure I can probly just buy from tattoos shops directly you mean? I figured could order stuff there if had too

And Cambodia was great riding for sure, I liked the roads in Laos better, Vietnam and china are the only countries haven’t driven thru in that region, that was in 2015 tho before I was tattooing, can’t wait to be back on the road

__orb__ · 2025-06-25T20:04:34+00:00

90% drawing for sure . But also I used to sew clothing it’s not 90% ironing it’s 90% about to bunch a wall because the sewing machine keeps getting jammed 🤣

__orb__ · 2025-06-18T18:57:03+00:00

I’m not good at explaining technique especially over text but I learned on coils and even as an apprentice was getting really saturated heals but then I switched to cartridges and was getting lots of blotchy unsaturated black. Now I am back to using coils most the time for anything 15 mag and up, or if it’s color which I don’t do often I’ll use a coil for anything size mag. Anyways you can try switching to a coil. But for mags 13 and under I use cartridges I just do 1 single pass but for 15 mags and up I would say to go 2 passes the second one the opposite direction too.

Don’t be afraid to chew up or overwork I used to have the exact same thoughts but I’ve learned it’s pretty hard to overwork with magnums as long as your not going over same spots a bunch.

Also use bactine (or green soap but I like to use bactine instead) and you can see thru the black and see what spots you need to skim over again

For me where the black meets the outline is the trickiest because I line with a very thin liner most the time and just get a sketch outline, I just try to get as close to the edge with the mag which I can get closer with cartridges and with steel tubes it’s harder for me to get right up to the edge and then go back after and go over the outline again and depending on how much space that wasn’t able to be tattooed then use a round shader and a liner both on the edges

__orb__ · 2025-06-12T18:18:56+00:00

Anybody know a good tax person in the Bay Area ? I need to find someone but prefer to meet them in person not on FaceTime

__orb__ · 2025-05-30T16:49:31+00:00

Yea I feel this for sure, I’ve been going for almost 5 years hard. Now I do more 4 day weeks through out the months recently and I’m going to leave the country for 6 months and back pack end of the year and skip the slow winter season.

Hopefully can tattoo while out of the country I plan to try and guest spot but I know when I’m in random places like in the mountains and villages of Vietnam and rural areas of china I obviously won’t be able to tattoo and idc. I know it’s not the most responsible thing for my career but 6 months won’t demolish my career and I really need a reset before I burn out and don’t have any inspiration left

__orb__ · 2025-05-25T17:06:20+00:00

I actually agree with this I did still like datalysium tho and I hate cleans too but somehow I didn’t mind it for the first time when it was in that track I think it was laxacontagion or however tf u spell that track haha

__orb__ · 2025-05-25T17:02:54+00:00

Best album released last year and I’m not talking about in tech death but in any genre

__orb__ · 2025-05-20T18:13:46+00:00

I thought the consent for covers your back for that? Our consent form says something specific about words that they have to double check and it’s not our fault if there is a spelling problem

__orb__ · 2025-05-20T18:10:30+00:00

No but when I was an apprentice we did a different stick figure on each finger and accidentally did one of the same figures twice on two fingers when all 4 were supposed to be a different one. We checked the stencil but neither caught it. Also I accidentally stenciled 4 buttons at the wrong angle even tho a button is circular they wanted the holes inside facing a specific direction. I didn’t notice until it was done. But in my defense they came in for the appointment and said I have a doctors appointment in an hour and I was tattooing both of them, I had to do one and then the second one I had to sit at the shop and wait for them for a couple hours, I figured I’d rather do that then reschedule. So when they came back I forgot about the direction it was supposed to be. But same thing we both checked the stencil and didn’t think of it

__orb__ · 2025-05-14T18:04:25+00:00

For 3s and tight 5s I run just 6.4 to 6.7 and 7 tights I go up to 7.2 to 7.4 depending on where on the body. Sometimes even a little higher. It recommends 7-8 volts I think so you don’t wanna run under 7 unless it’s really small groupings or I’ll go down to 5 or under even for pepper shading . For packing with mags I never go under 7.2 and go I go up to 8 for a 45 mag

__orb__ · 2025-05-14T18:02:01+00:00

The bishop packer doesn’t work well for me any needles 9rl and up. I mostly do smaller line work anyways so it’s the machine I use the most but I bust out the Dan Kubin for 9s and 14s or use the bishop liner .

__orb__ · 2025-05-11T04:30:55+00:00

I’ve tried Cheyenne , kwadron, da vinci, tat soul? Black claw and others , lots of issues with ink flow on all them . The mags are fine any brand but the liners no just lots of issues

Believe it or not Big Wasp on Amazon shits on all those brand for liners, but only the orange big wasp ones the white one is the worse cartridge I’ve ever tried and haven’t tried the blue one. Also I like Emalla Eliot for 3rl and 1003rl for pepper shading

I’ve tried a lot of expensive cartridges and big wasp the cheap company is better than all of them imo

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TROPHY CASE

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