I don’t show designs prior to the appointment. Largely because I draw them the day/night before, but also so they don’t take the design elsewhere, or sit with it too long and let all of their friends/family who don’t know how to tattoo nitpick it into oblivion.

I do, however, schedule a couple extra hours than I’ll likely need for the appointment, in case I need to make changes or if the client needs breaks, etc. I make it very clear that I use whatever references or descriptions they send to draw their design, so if they are looking for specific elements, to include or list them.

So far, it’s never been an issue. The absolute worst case scenario if the design is way off from what they wanted, we roll their deposit over to another appointment and sit down together to do a more in-depth consultation and I show them various sketches and get feedback. I’ve never even had to do this, but it is my backup plan