Maybe. Some engagements may require a formal consultation regardless of how experienced you might be with tattoo. Our consultations are designed to give you and the artist an opportunity to thoroughly discuss what it is that you are looking to have created. A tattoo is something that has the potential to last a lifetime so we believe it deserves our mutual time and attention to make sure we tackle the project correctly. Our team will determine if a formal consultation is necessary after reviewing your Application For An Appointment.
Our formal consultation process takes approximately 30 minutes, and is conducted virtually via a Zoom Meeting.
To book your consultation, there is an upfront fee of $100. This fee covers your artists time and attention during your consultation.
Our minimum fee for any tattoo is $250. Whenever possible, we try to quote a comprehensive fee for your desired tattoo by the conclusion of our initial correspondence or the formal consultation, whichever path your journey takes you on with our Studio. However, some artistic engagements may require a significant investment of time for upfront design work, prior to the actual tattoo work being done, and would be better handled via our hourly rate of $250 per hour. In such situations, we will provide you with a range of estimated hours it will take to complete your work -- all inclusive of the upfront design work and actual tattoo creation. Again, before your tattoo appointment is booked, you should have a good understanding of what your investment will be for your custom art.
Yes. At the time you book your tattoo appointment we require a 20% deposit (minimum $100) before we block off a time on our calendar for your appointment. All deposits are non-refundable and non-transferable, and will be applied to the final cost of your tattoo. Our calendar is in high demand. If you fail to make your appointment without 48 hour notice, your deposit will be forfeit.
We accept all major credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, and American Express). We do not accept checks.
Our calendar is in high demand. When you schedule an appointment you take away someone else's ability to secure that same time slot. Please understand that when you forget, cancel, or change your appointment without giving enough notice, we miss the opportunity to fill that appointment time, and clients on our wait list miss the opportunity to receive services.
Your appointments are very important to the Zodiac Black's team. They are reserved especially for you. We understand that sometimes schedule adjustments are necessary. Therefore, we respectfully mandate at least 48 hour notice for cancellations or rescheduling of appointments.
Zodiac Black's values our staff’s time. We understand that they may have other jobs, family commitments, and friends with whom they could be spending time. We pay our staff their entire wage for any missed or late cancelled appointments out of respect for their valuable time. Therefore, we have a strictly enforced 48 hour cancellation and rescheduling policy.
Any appointment missed, late cancelled, or changed without 48 hour notice will result in a charge equal to 100% of the consultation fee paid or the deposit for tattoo services submitted at the time of booking.
As a courtesy, your appointments are confirmed electronically in advance of your scheduled appointment by email and/or text messaging from our online appointment scheduling software because we know how easy it is to forget an appointment you booked weeks ago. Please understand that it is your responsibility to remember your appointment dates and times in order to prevent any missed appointments which result in a cancellation fee. Not receiving an electronic notification of your appointments from us is not sufficient reason to miss an appointment if the original confirmation notification was received timely.
Any late arrival will shorten your appointment time and will not be made up by running into the next client’s scheduled appointment. As such, it may be necessary to cancel and reschedule your appointment if you do not arrive on time. Such circumstances will be considered a late cancellation.
Emergency absences will be considered on an individual basis by the Zodiac Black's team. You may request not to be charged for a late cancelled appointment in writing within 7 days if you feel such action is warranted. Decisions to honor such requests will be made on a case-by-case basis and a team member will respond back to you in writing within 7 days.
It is mutually understood that if a cancellation is due to circumstances beyond any of our control, such as power outage, unfortunate incidence, or weather that requires you or us to have to cancel or be closed during regular business hours, we will reschedule your existing appointment and no additional charges will apply.
Our 48 hour cancellation policy gives us time to inform our wait list clients of any availability, as well as keeping our staff schedules filled, thus better serving everyone. Zodiac Black's policies are presented and provided in the best quality and tradition of excellent service for our established and future clients. Thank you for viewing and supporting our 48 hour cancellation and rescheduling policy.
Word of mouth is typically your best source of information regarding the quality and talent of a tattoo artist. If you know someone who has amazing ink, ask them who created it. Absent a direct referral, we advise that you invest some time getting to know the work of the artist you are considering. Investigate their portfolio. Don't rely on your tablet or smart phone to view it online. Pull it up on a large monitor and zoom in. A great artist has the knowledge and resources to invest in excellent photos of their work. Yes, zoom in. If the lines don't look straight or the image is blurry, that may be a sign that you need to investigate even more thoroughly. A great tattoo should look amazing from far away and very close up. It's your skin and you have it for life. Don't go half-way when considering something so permanent.
There's no question, body modification, regardless of the degree, carries risks. Our perspective is that any sane person should seek out professionals trained in, and who appreciate the benefits of, a hygienic work environment. The practice of body modification through tattoo requires much more than just equipment and a place to have it done. We truly understand that your skin is both your largest organ and your number one defense against those things that have the sole purpose of causing you harm. Getting a tattoo is safe if done in the right environment by a professional who values your health and well-being as much as she does her own and all those she cares about deeply.
In order to provide for a safe environment for our clients and our team, we have implemented the following COVID-19 Policies.
1. We will be operating strictly "by appointment only" and staggering appointments to allow time for cleaning between clients.
2. We will not allow extra persons in the studio as guests.
3. Customers will wait outside until their exact appointment time.
4. No walk ins. All appointments must be booked in advance.
5. We will require everyone, including staff, to wear a mask at all times while in the studio.
6. Immediately upon entering clients must use the provided hand sanitizer and get a temperature check.
7. Consent forms and a special COVID-19 waiver will be provided and must be completed and signed prior to the start of your appointment.
8. All surfaces/high touch areas will be cleaned at least every 2 hours. Tattoo stations will be sanitized after every client. We will deep clean the Studio each day after closing.
9. If clients are sick, have been in contact with a sick person within the prior 48 hours, or have been visiting a high risk area within the prior 14 days, they must reschedule their appointment.
10. We ask everyone to wash your hands thoroughly and avoid touching your face. These are simple steps that we all can do to help reduce the spread of Corona Virus ... Oh, and just to emphasize our point ... wash your hands ;)
Great question! Our artists absolutely appreciate when you show them how much you love their effort and skill by gifting them a gratuity over an above the cost of the tattoo itself. We encourage you to feel welcome to provide a tip directly to the artisan who crafted your custom art using cash or via a Cash App payment like Venmo. You can also add the gratuity to your final credit card payment at the conclusion of your tattoo appointment.
Another great question! The short answer is that it's entirely up to you. Tattooing in a professional service. It takes years of dedication and special certifications to be allowed to perform tattoo work for clients. And just like every other service industry, tipping is common practice in tattoo. While there is no hard set minimum or maximum, the industry standard is 20% of the total investment for your tattoo. So if the investment for your tattoo was $300, a standard tip would be in the range of approximately $60. Remember, the hour or two or three it might take to create our custom art on your living canvas likely took years for your artisan to be able to accomplish it in the short time you invested in her chair. Show your love accordingly.
Absolutely! But in the best possible way. For most people, during the process of having your tattoo created, your brain will release endorphins. These are amazing neurotransmitters designed to minimize the impact of pain and often stimulate a feeling of euphoria. So it will definitely hurt, but you'll kind of like it.
It can take up to two weeks for your tattoo to heal properly. However, your skin may take up to two months to fully regenerate after your tattoo has been created. Your artist will discuss the healing process with you and help you to better understand what you can expect in the weeks and months after your tattoo.
Each artisan has their own recommended approach to caring for new and existing tattoos. We will review our specific care protocols during our consultation and again after your tattoo has been created.
You must be at least 18 years of age or older, and you must be able to prove your age with a valid government issued photo ID. While there is a minimum age, we do want to point out that you are never too old to get your first tattoo! Contact us today to get on the calendar!
Honestly, we have no idea. Stop procrastinating and reach out today!
Our process is simple. Everything begins with an Application For An Appointment. On that application, you will provide your full name and contact information. You will also provide some general details regarding the custom art you would like created. Our team will then review your application and determine which path your journey will take you through with our Studio.
Path 1: Limited Electronic Consultation Leading To A Tattoo Appointment.
Prior to crafting your custom art, sometimes our artisans may only need to collect a limited amount of information from you in addition to the information that you provided on your application. In such cases, you may be able to simply correspond with our team electronically to supply this needed information and then our team will schedule your tattoo appointment.
Path 2: Formal Consultation Leading To A Tattoo Appointment.
Whether this would be your fiftieth tattoo or it's your first time getting some ink, some situations may require a formal consultation with one of our artisans. During your consultation, we'll more thoroughly discuss what you are looking to have created, along with where on your body you'd like it placed. We'll also review logistics like approximately how long it will take to craft your work of art and how much it's likely to cost.
Whether your journey takes you on Path 1 or Path 2, our goal is to ensure that by the time you're actually sitting in one of our tattoo chairs, all of your questions have been answered and you know exactly what to expect.