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13deadppl

hi gies
look im a young bloke from aus and work in a tattoo shop but all the boys there all say the same thing "right place, right time".
due to the shops size and how bizzy we are there is not a chance hear for a apprentership any time soon so what can i do? and how did you all do it?

Garyzda1 · Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2008 6:18 pm Post subject:

I hate to say this............ right place, right time.

It's true. Stay there and keep collecting knowlage while you can. You're in a better spot than many.

Bren · Posted: Fri Apr 11, 2008 3:50 am Post subject:

For sure. You are in a good place. Unfortunately, because of all these shitty so called tatt-kits on line these days. Too easy for people to start stuffing their mates up, then going off and setting up shop? Claiming to be professionals. Kudos to you for wanting a proper apprenticeship mate! At least you will learn the right way. Wink

kerry464 · Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2008 6:18 am Post subject:

hey my boyfriend is an apprentice at the moment, and although he is loving every minute of it, frankly speaking they're treating him like dirt!!
he's been doing it for about 6months now and has only been on practice skin 3 times in that time.
he's basically the slave of the shop, making tea, running errands etc, which he expected to do, but surely they should be teaching him how to tattoo right? he knows how to sterilise all the equipment properly, he knows all that stuff but not the actual stuff he needs to know!!
how long until he will be taught these things? should they be treating him like this?
how long until he will be ready to tattoo??
this has been his dream for years, and from what he is saying he's looking for a new apprentiship........any advice for us please?!

tormented · Tattoo lover Joined: 01 Apr 2008 Posts: 20

most apprenticeships last about two years for the first year he should be sweeping floors and being a goffer for the shop as stated but they also should be having him setting up and breaking down there work area and have him sterilizing equipment for them also drawing flash alot in this time after six months he should be tattooing fruit or fake skin for awhile before he is tattooing anyone
the only advice i could give is tell him to talk to his teacher about his issues and see why they arent teaching him the things he feels he should have learned by now but he should also be using his time between doing all of his other duties there to watch the artist there do a tattoo and ask questions if he doesnt understand something apprenticeships are the best way to go but most give up because they feel they arent being taught fast enough

Bren · Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 11:15 pm Post subject:

Hi Kerry. By now he has no doubt had enough of serving drinks and running errands. I served 3yrs the old skool way. It sucked! And worst of all, was paid basically nothing. I think they could be throwing him abit more serious skills. machine set up, break down, making needles etc.
Still alot to learn yet, but yeah he could at least be doing some kanji and small simple stuff to get confidence up for sure! Wink

nicknot · Tattoo lover Joined: 06 Jul 2008 Posts: 1

I guess a major question is how often is your boyfriend at the shop? Time there can also determine the pace of the apprenticeship. As it stands for me, I'm an apprentice and I've been there everyday for almost 5 months while working a full time job. And all the things that I've done thus far are set ups, tear downs, scrub tubes everyday, sterilize tubes everyday, set up the machines, sweep the floors, wipe the floors down, refill everything that needs to be done, wipe the windows of the shop down, restock all the artists booths and so on and so forth. This is common. And also something I came to expect in the beginning. I'd say take it in stride.

And I gotta agree with the "Right place, right time" bit, too. It took me two years to even get a notice for an apprenticeship. And in that time, I drew and got tattooed, getting to know the shop a bit more and making sure that's where I wanted to learn from. I'm very pleased with my choice.

devilduckie523 · Posted: Tue Jul 08, 2008 9:43 pm Post subject:

It took me a year of answering phones and booking appointments for the other artists before I was allowed to touch a machine(to clean it)...

lucky for me it was only 6 months til I was able to pierce people so it made it a little better

mattrock82 · Tattoo lover Joined: 26 Aug 2008 Posts: 7

i was lucky, got a tattoo from a great artist , he saw my drawings online and i went to get another tattoo from him .. this time he asked me if i was interested in learning how to tattoo

and again lucky for me, i cleaned and learned about the equipment for a month , then with his advice bought my own equipment ...

i still clean around the shop , set up / tear down boss , get food , and do other things he deems as 'apprentice job' . but i also tattoo and build my own clientele

you have to prove to someone that you'd be an asset to the shop ,

and yes, there are a lot of dicks in the industry who treat apprentices like trash

i feel blessed

when you gonna man up and have a 'talk' with the artists ?

trouble#1 · Tattoo lover Joined: 17 Oct 2008 Posts: 8

ug. the first place i went to i did my homework on....went to talk to the shop owner...and the guy was suspicious i was a cop....LOL. bad sign...I didn't get in there. About 6 months later I pursued one at a new establishment. That shop owner asked me to bring somone in on a moments notice to see my work/skill level. Basically....he said it was a 2-3 year process...he generally charges between 12,000.00 (his current apprentice was paying 8,000.00 he said... after seeing my work...he decided he'd need 1500 up front, and another 2,000.00 (a total of 3500). I'd make only 30% of my work for the first 2 years as apprentice, and 50% for the rest of my time there....Hope this helps.