PORT TOWNSEND — After about seven years with no place to get a tattoo, Port Townsend now encompasses two new businesses for people who seek to express themselves through body art.
Body Works at 1225 W. Sims Way offers tattooing, along with piercing and a tanning booth, while diGee Ink at 220 Tyler St. provides fewer options but more
specialization.
Both shops are riding a wave of tattoo acceptance, as body art is no longer just the domain of bikers and rebels.
“You find more and more upper-class businessmen who, when they take off their long sleeves and ties, their arms are covered with tattoos,” said Victor Archibald, an artist at Body Works.
“It’s all about self-expression,” said shop owner Susie Erickson.
“And it helps you heal, if you lose someone,” she said. “Getting a tattoo in their honor can make them feel better.”
“Our motto is that we provide tattoos for the rest of us,” said diGee Ink owner Gary Laxson,
“Tattoos have been more of a subculture thing in the past, but today there are soccer moms and retirees who want to get tattoos, and we are looking to supply a place where people can feel comfortable.”
Laxson of Sequim has worked out of his home in the past.
“With the way the economy was, tattooing was the only thing that was expanding, so we decided to go public and open a shop,” he said.
Laxson said that the newly popular tattoo reality shows make tattooing look easier than it really is.
But the process still is not that complicated.
People entering the shop either have ideas of what they want or they don’t, and he works with clients to create or refine the designs.
Once the design is finished, the skin is shaved and prepared and the ink is applied.
Laxson charges $100 per hour plus $50 an hour if complicated design work is required.
Erickson charges $100 an hour for monochrome tattoos and $125 for color.
And it hurts a bit, akin to being scratched by a cat or a thumbtack, Laxson said.
“I give customers an estimate about how much time it will take and how much it will cost, and can usually get it down to the minute,” he said.
Laxson reminds customers of a tattoo’s permanence and advises them to get a design they can live with, presumably forever.
“We tell people to never get anything they will regret,” he said.
“A lot of young people want to get something that is wrapped up in current popular culture, but they need to know that in 20 years when it’s not relevant, no one will understand what the tattoo means.
“It’s best to go with something timeless and avoid tattooing the name of your girlfriend or someone you have been married to for less than a year,” he added.
“In that case, it’s best to get an image of something that represents the two of you.”
Laxson said tattoos have become more accepted because of their increased complexity and quality and the fact that many skilled artists are now working in the field.
Tattoos also are more accepted in the workplace — but with limits.
“If you went into an office 20 years ago, there were very few people with visible tattoos. But that has changed,” he said.
“One person would get a visible tattoo, then another, and there was a snowball effect where someone would have no problem getting hired if they had a tattoo.
“But it has to fit in,” he added.
“Someone with a beautiful filigree of flowers that complements their body will fit in, while large tattoos of zombies will work against a job candidate, no matter how well they are done,” he warned.
A tattoo reflects the wearer’s personality and is a conversation starter, according to Thresa Locke, who is now working as Laxson’s apprentice.
“People love telling stories about their tattoos,” she said.
“Someone might hear one of these stories and decide they want their own story to tell.”
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
