Best Tribal Wings Tattoo

Tribal Wings Tattoo

Tribal Wings Tattoo

Tribal Wings Tattoo

Tribal Wings Tattoo

Tribal Wings Tattoo

Best Tattoo Suppliers

Getting started in tattooing is not like getting started in any other industry. It is more on par with old fashioned times, wherein which a person who wanted to learn a skill or a craft would have to find a mentor and apprentice underneath them, picking up the skill the old fashioned way: by doing it!

This is mostly still the case for the tattoo industry. One side effect of this is that it is a bit harder to come upon information on all the "tools of the trade" so to speak. There are no textbooks out there called Tattoo Supplies 101! With this in mind, this article will look at the basics involves for tattooing supplies, with the beginner in mind as the reader.

When discussing the basic tattoo supplies involved in this line of work, there are a handful of key pieces. Let us look at them one by one.

1. The Tattoo Machine. Also sometimes called a tattoo gun, a term usually shunned by profession artists, the tattoo machine is the central tool used to give tattoos. They are a ton of different tattoo machines of not just different quality, but of different purposes and even size and shape. On this note, it is very important to have a tattoo machine that fits correctly into the hands of the artist!


2. The Power Supply. Tattoo machines are not battery powered. This means they require an external source of power. Many prefer the power supplies that affix via a cable to the machine and then are turned on and off from an attached foot pedal. This is similar in technique to a sewing machines set up with a foot pedal.

3. The Needles. Needles are what pierce the skin and deposit the ink into the skin itself, creating the tattoo. Artists use shader and liner needles to create different effects of various depths to create the tattoo. Needles are to be used once and then thrown away.

4. The Different Types of Ink. Of course ink is also needed to make a tattoo. Tattooing ink is available in all colors, although black is the most readily available and readily used color out there.

These 4 above tattoo supplies are the main equipment pieces used to make tattoos, but there are actually dozens of other supplies that assist. This goes all the way from gloves to grips to rubber bands to cleaning equipment to ink caps and more. As evident by the contents of many tattoo kits available, when starting with the basics - it is the tattoo gun, needle, ink, and a power supply that allow for the bulk of work to be done by any tattoo artist out there.

Best Tattoo Schools

Tattoo Schools

Tattoo Schools

There are two schools of thought (excuse the pun), on this subject.

The first - tattooing should only be taught the old fashioned way of doing a long term apprenticeship, with no pay and filled with months of cleaning the shop, being somewhat of a slave to the working artists, and sometimes being treated in a worthless manner. You can get an idea of the process from Miami Ink. I have talked to a couple of local shop owners and not only is this their method of teaching but it usually requires a substantial fee from the apprentice. Eventually, the future artist is allowed to practice the art and progress from there....

The second - and more current approach is to actually attend a school or take a course in this popular art. These range from a quick 2 week course to months in duration. And yes, they are costly also, but the focus is on teaching the art of tattooing and using a hands-on approach. I am more familiar with this method and think it is a straight forward and valuable option to people searching a way to break in to this popular vocation. Unfortunately, some people are of the opinion this way is lame and not a reputable approach.

Tattoo Schools

I believe both approaches are valid and the idea of "tattoo schools" does not deserve the criticism it currently gets. There are a lot of people that have to work for a living and taking a course packed with instruction is their only option