Do to overwhelming demand on my appointment scheduling in the past several months, as well as a current global shortage on the availability (and associated cost increase) of PPE, I need to make some changes to my pricing and scheduling as follows:
My hourly rate will remain at $225/hr, however my minimum charge per session tis now $675 (3 hours). While I understand that this may be inconvenient for those looking to get a smaller tattoo, I need to make sure that each appointment that I book is cost effective, and while I would love to accommodate more, I simply can't. I only book one appointment per day to ensure that my client's safety and my own, remain of the utmost importance. So when I book a day on my calendar it needs to be a significant enough amount of work or pricing to justify the use of the supplies and the scheduling slot. While I am still willing to do smaller tattoos, and can often spend extra time making them look even better, the minimum charge will remain the same. I have many clients that are more than happy to pay the minimum and other potential clients that feel it's too expensive for their idea. Neither of those is a wrong answer. It is important to me that you feel happy and comfortable with your decision to choose me as your tattoo artist and only you know what is the best decision for your tattoo experience.
I am being more selective about the work that I accept. In order to continue to offer a premium specialty service to the clients seeking what I offer, I will only take on projects that I am excited about and confident in. This isn't limited to any certain style or group of styles so feel free to send me your project so that we can discuss it. As much as I wish I could cater to everyone, in order to continue to be able to offer the private nature of my studio and the safety measures I have in place, as well as the high standards of art, I need to make sure that the work I accept is the work I am best at. This may not be the right environment for everyone to be tattooed in and some people may enjoy a more traditional shop experience. I've grappled with ways to offer both experiences, but there is no way that I can and still follow the mission of my business. If you submit your tattoo idea and I don't accept it, I will let you know my reasoning. It is never about it being a bad idea or anything negative towards the potential client. If I don't accept an idea, then it is only because I don't think I would be the best person to do the job and I would never want to take on someone's project if I weren't 100% confident I could achieve it to a very high standard for them. I have been doing this job for many years and have learned my strengths and weaknesses and this decision is simply to move forward with my strengths and offer the best of myself to each project I do take on.