FAQ

What does your work cost? 

• My rates are sliding scale, hourly ( between $100 and $200 /hour – suggested sliding scale calculator included below) and a $75 design deposit (which will be counted towards the cost of the overall design, and is required to hold an appointment slot and begin the design process). While I can give you a general time estimate, we won’t have an exact time for pricing until the session is complete.
• Sliding scale tiers are a suggestion and guide, but ultimately is just a best estimate at equitable pricing. Paying lower tiers will cover my base expenses, paying higher tiers will help make space for me to do more free community work, offset costs / help make tattoos accessible for those who cannot afford to pay as much, and allow me to take more time for more sustainable pacing. 

Sliding scale suggested tiers; 

• Rate 1:  $200/hour
• I feel stable in my finances (I am able to pay bills/ am not late on payments, I am able to buy the food that feels best for my body, have regular access to medical care, have savings, etc.). I have job stability, housing stability, reliable transportation, can travel when I want, and have access to money (my own or my family’s) if an emergency comes up. 
• Rate 2: $170
• I feel stable in my finances (I am regularly able to pay bills/ am not late on payments, I am able to buy the food that feels best for my body, have regular access to medical care, have some savings, etc.). I have job stability, housing stability, reliable transportation, but would be nervous about finances if an emergency came up.
• Rate 3: $140/hour
• I have pretty tight finances- I sometimes have a hard time paying bills/ am occasionally late on payments, and I can’t always buy the food that feels best for my body. I sometimes have to skip preventative medical care, and have little savings. 
• Rate 4: $120/hour
• There is no wiggle room in my finances- I regularly have a hard time paying bills/ am regularly late on payments, am not able to buy the food that feels best for my body, don’t have consistent access to medical care, and don’t have savings. I am dealing with job loss, housing insecurity, transportation barriers, etc. and don’t have access to family wealth if an emergency comes up. 
• Rate 5: $100/hour
• The world is burning but I need a tattoo!

Additional adjustments

• If you are QT/ BIPOC and/or disabled and experience impacts on your daily life due to micro and macro aggressions, I encourage you to take an additional $10-15 off the hourly rate a tier suggests
• If this range still feels out of reach, I am also sometimes open to offsetting more of the costs through trade if I am able. Current trades I am seeking can be found in my announcements loops/ newsletter, or can be sent 1:1 if you need. Please note in the ‘anything else’ section if you have a trade you would like to consider. 

Can I see the design before our appointment?

• Your tattoo will be on your body! Forever! It’s really important to me that you like it! If you are a control freak or perfectionist about your tattoos (like me) and want to see the initial layout to make adjustments before detailing please make sure there is at least 2 weeks of time between your proposal submission and your desired appointment. If there is, I can do my best to send you a draft 1-2 weeks before your appointment, but need you to send your adjustments within 2 days of receiving sketches so I can make sure to have the full design completed in time for your appointment (no additional cost). I can also have the finalized layout available to view a few days before the appointment if desired. If you want the final design reworked again, I am happy to make edits with you in person at your appointment- that time will be charged at 50% the tattoo rate 

Where are you located?

I work out of a private studio in west Asheville, address provided upon confirmation of booking! There is a small flight of stairs to access the studio, if this is a barrier please let me know so we can make alternate arrangements

Are masks required?

Yes! Health safety is important to me and my ability to do good work- and is important to my immune compromised loved ones. If you have a covid exposure within a week of our session, please let me know so we can reschedule. I ask that upon arriving at our session, you wear a mask for the duration of our appointment (I can provide it if you don’t have one). Getting tattooed while sick is no fun! It hurts more and might have a harder time healing, and I would rather reschedule than push through an uncomfortable experience that may not turn out as well. 

Should I bring food?

I will have some snacks and drinks on hand, but please make sure you eat before our appointment, and if you have a particular comfort food or drink, feel free to bring that to make sure you have what you need throughout our session. There is space to store it with a mini fridge and you can heat things up if you bring a microwave safe container.

What else should I bring?

If you have fidget toys, a book, headphones, or anything else that helps you feel grounded throughout a session, please bring them! (So long as we can keep the tattoo area clean)

How can I reduce the pain?

The best tattoos come from listening to your body and not pushing too far past your limits with pain. If you are pain sensitive, you are welcome to use a tattoo numbing cream beforehand, but please ensure it is fully washed off before the start of the session. I also have numbing spray which can be used during the session, but it is intended for use once skin is already broken so cannot be used for the beginning of the session. I recommend not taking aspirin or ibuprofen beforehand (due to their blood thinning properties). Regardless, if you get to a point during the session where you need to stop, I prefer a minimum of 4 weeks before we book a follow-up session. Usually, pieces large or detailed enough to take longer than 5-6 hours will be best suited to multiple sessions.