The decision process – making the big plunge: Where can I find a good tattoo artist, and what should I look for in a tattoo artist?
The bane of the tattoo world is the shadowy, unprofessional person called the “scratcher.” A scratcher is somebody who: • Does not have the proper training in either tattoo art or of running a professional operation; • Does not know and/or care to use responsible sterilization methods; • Promises to provide tattooing services for an incredibly low fee, for free, or in exchange for drugs (ack!); • Chooses not to apprentice through a legitimate tattoo shop because of one excuse or another (but lacks the knowledge one needs to work in or run a professional shop); • Will hurt you because they don’t know what they’re doing; • Will give you a permanent tattoo you will regret for the rest of your life; • You should stay away with a ten-foot pole. Never, never, never get work from a scratcher unless you are willing to accept all the hazards listed above. Of those in a study by Clinton Sanders who regretted their tattoos, more than two-thirds of them regretted their tattoo because of poor quali
