Frequently Asked Questions

You may bring someone with you to your appointment, however they are not permitted into the tattoo area. This is for several reasons:

Due to health and safety- during the procedure we are dealing with bodily fluids and essentially open wounds-we need to minimise the risk of contamination.
The dignity of our customers- for some tattoos our customers are required to adjust their clothing and discretion is required. Many people also prefer privacy during the procedure so they can get in the zone or have a quiet chat with the artist.
We can feel overcrowded and overwhelmed if more people than necessary are in the tattoo area.
Local legislation- the City of Edinburgh Council dictate that nobody other than the staff and customers should be present in the tattoo area during the procedure.
Chatty Chattersons- whilst we do love a good natter, however, at times we just want to get our heads down and focus- having someone else in the area does mean you will be talking more which means you will likely be moving more. It’s difficult to tattoo someone who is constantly moving about to engage with another person.
Making your own informed decision- the tattoo is for you and all input is from you to the artist- we are happy for you to consult with your plus one over the design and placement, however once we start it can be problematic having another person overseeing and making suggestions during the process.

☆ There is an exception however- due to some people’s needs they may need to have a plus one with them in the studio- if there is any reason why another needs to be with you in the studio area due to disability/ hidden disability please state this in the consent form.

□ We are happy for you to bring a plus one to your appointment though they will be required to wait in the reception area until you are finished and they will be subjected to Sandies pish patter.

Unfortunately, prior to an appointment we do not provide sketches- this is standard practice for most artists and studios. Without an appointment and a deposit, the artist is essentially working for hours for free. They must create multiple designs for every day they work- these are usually done in their free time, in order and a day or two prior to the appointment (this saves them wasting time over rescheduled or canceled appointments). We have also in the past had customers take the design and have it tattooed elsewhere- stealing that person’s work.

When you show your design to everyone you know, people with no artistic or tattoo knowledge can weigh in all their opinions until you no longer like the idea anymore. When you’re enquiring with a studio or artist you have decided that their work is what you like, therefore we ask that you trust us to do the best job for you. Thus, designs will be ready on the date of the appointment.

Any changes you wish to make can be made there and then with the artist before they create the stencil. They will not tattoo you unless you are 100% happy with the final design and placement. There is absolutely no rush at all and we will only start when you feel ready and confident with the design.

Your body = your rules. Please give us more than 72 hours notice should you need to change the design. For something bigger or more complex we would require more time to facilitate the tattoo which would mean we may need to reschedule the appointment. Moreover something smaller and less complex may cost less and therefor take less time meaning the artists could potentially lose out on earnings. It will also save the artists losing their own free time creating drawings that were never used.

Our prices are relative to each tattoo; body placement, size, intricacy, colour usage and whether it is a custom piece or not and which artist will be facilitating the procedure. We charge more for tattoos on the ribs, hands, face and for cover-up/ re-works.  We do not have an hourly rate.

Please also take into account that you are not only paying for the artists time in the studio- the price is also reflective of the time they have spent drawing up designs and for the equipment they use.

We use vegan stencil paper, stencil stuff (the cream put on your skin to apply the stencil), vegan inks and we stock vegan aftercare cream.

We do try to be as sustainable as possible- we have a private recycling company who collects our refuse weekly. Many of our products are biodegradable also.

Unfortunately post Covid and Brexit the cost of our staple products and equipment have exacerbated- we recognise that there are numerous products which are more sustainable that we could be using, however as a small business we are doing everything we can to keep our costs low whilst maintaining sustainability.

We would never contaminate our products with any foreign substance. If you were to mix ashes into the ink it would never bond with the liquid, instead it would lay at the bottom of the ink cup ending up disposed in our hazardous waste bags and incinerated. (Not a nice way to treat the remains of a loved one).

All of our products are from verified suppliers and manufacturers, they are sealed when they arrive- we would never compromise any of our customers’ health by adding a foreign substance into our products.

Please do not shave or wax the area for 4 days prior to the procedure. We will shave the area on site immediately prior to the tattoo. This is to lessen the likelihood of razor rash, ingrown hairs and cuts- if these were present on the tattoo area we may not be able to tattoo you. If you prefer you can bring your own razor and shave the area in one of our restrooms. As adults I’m sure our customers are more than competent in shaving themselves, however in the interest of what is best for the procedure- it’s best to shave the area immediately before the tattoo.

It may seem counterintuitive, however taking painkillers prior to a tattoo will likely make the procedure worse for you. Many painkillers thin the blood which make tattooing harder to do. After the procedure you can take painkillers, however we would suggest abstaining from painkillers or blood thinning medication for 12 hours prior to the tattoo. If in doubt please seek advice from your GP.

We do prefer customers not to use numbing cream, however if you do feel you need it we would suggest using the black packaged TKTX.  Emla cream is generally not recommended as it tends to harden the skin, making it more difficult to tattoo. Should you decide to use TKTX, use a generous amount and apply thickly spread at least 5 cm wider than where you plan to have the tattoo. Wrap it up in clingfilm two hours before the tattoo and leave it wrapped until the appointment. You generally get around three hours where the sensation will be numb, however once it wears off the pain tends to be sudden and will tend to hurt more. Some research does suggest that when a tattoo is facilitated with numbing cream it can take longer to heal also.

We accept cash and card payments, American Express included. Please note that if your tattoo is with a guest artist we can only accept cash payments.

If you are using fake tan we may not be able to continue with the tattoo- particularly if the tattoo is in colour as the chemicals in the tan can react to the colours and change the saturation. Please do not apply fake tan for at least 3 weeks before and after the tattoo.

As we stated on the email when taking deposits, on the deposit section of our website when you made the payment and always stated verbally and in large bold lettering at the reception desk- our deposits are non-refundable. This is to protect the income of our self-employed artists for cancellations, to cover the admin time sorting out the initial appointment and advertising for the cancellation space and also to cover the artists time spent drawing up the designs in preparation for the booking.

If deposits were refundable there would be no reason to have a deposit system in place.

Appointment reminders are sent via email 72 hours before the appointment. If you give us more than 48 hours notice we can reschedule you to a different date. You will lose the deposit if you make the cancellation less than 48 hours before the appointment. We would be happy to hold the deposit here for you for a one year period should you decide to reschedule in the future.

We will require photographic proof of identification- passport or driving license/ provisional license.

Unfortunately, we do not keep a cancellation list as they would be too long and problematic to efficiently manage.

We no longer accept apprentice positions. We have in the past been persuaded to take on apprentices, however we no longer feel it is worth our time emotionally or financially.

If you are pregnant or breastfeeding we will not tattoo you.

Although the risk of infection is very low, we cannot control how you look after your tattoo once you leave the premises. Please inform us if you fall pregnant and have a booking in place.

Yes tattoos can hurt, pain is relative and subject to the individual, some areas will hurt more than others. 99.9% of our customers coming away from a first tattoo state the tattoo was not as painful as they anticipated. Take as many breaks you need and hold up your hand if you need a breather.

Our artists work on a percentage basis as opposed to renting a space. Tips are most welcome and 100% goes back to the artist.

Our studio is at street level, all on one floor and has an accessible bathroom. The whole space is fully accessible with a wheelchair and there are no steps to enter nor throughout the floorspace.

You are welcome to bring your children to consultations- at no time are they permitted to enter the studio area. Do not bring anyone under 18 with you to your tattoo appointment as they are not allowed unsupervised in the studio and we will not supervise them for you.

Dogs are welcome in the reception area so you are permitted to bring them for consultations only. We do often have our dog Gino in the reception area. Gino does bark at times when people come through the door but he is otherwise very well natured and friendly.

Unfortunately we do not offer piercings nor stock piercing jewelry. We are also unable to remove or add your own jewelry. We are considering having a piercer in the near future, however we are still settling into our new premises and we would require to undertake some renovation to create a separate space to facilitate piercings.