Everything people ask us.

Yes, seven days a week. Walk-ins are welcome for smaller tattoos, flash and almost all piercings. Larger custom work and specific artists book out in advance, so call (586) 949-6200 first if you have a particular piece or a particular artist in mind.

Call the studio at (586) 949-6200 or stop in at 50185 Gratiot Ave, Chesterfield Township. For custom work we'll set up a free consultation to talk through the design, placement and budget, then book your session with a deposit that comes off the final cost.

Always. Come in, talk through your idea, look at portfolios and leave without booking anything. Most of our larger projects start with someone who came in twice before they were ready, and that's exactly how it should work.

Yes for booked appointments, and it comes off the final price. Deposits hold your artist's time — they're non-refundable but transferable if you give reasonable notice to reschedule. Walk-in work doesn't need one.

Small work and piercings are usually same-day or within the week. Custom pieces with a specific artist typically book a few weeks out, and large-scale projects with our busiest artists can be longer. Call and we'll give you a straight answer on current availability.

Small pieces are priced flat starting at our shop minimum; larger work is billed hourly. Cost depends on size, placement, detail and how many sessions it takes. You'll get a real number at your consultation before you commit to anything — we don't do surprise pricing.

Yes. Every tattoo, no matter how small, requires a fresh set of sterile single-use needles, tubes, ink caps and barrier film, plus the artist's setup and breakdown time. The minimum covers that. Call for the current figure.

Piercing prices are quoted as a service fee plus jewelry, since jewelry ranges from implant-grade titanium to solid gold. We'll give you the full price before anything happens — there are no add-ons revealed halfway through.

Cash, credit and debit. Cash is always appreciated, particularly for tips, which go directly to your artist and are never expected but always noticed.

We don't reprocess anything, because nothing gets used twice. The studio runs 100% disposable: needles, tubes, cartridges, ink caps, razors and gloves are all single-use, opened in front of you and dropped in a sharps container or the bin the moment your appointment ends. All body jewelry arrives pre-sterilized from the manufacturer in sealed packaging and is opened at your station. Stations are barrier-filmed and stripped down between every client. Going fully disposable removes the single biggest variable in studio safety — whether a sterilization cycle was actually run, and run correctly.

Yes. We operate as a licensed body art facility under Michigan's body art regulations and are inspected by the county health department. Our artists hold current bloodborne pathogen training. Ask to see the paperwork any time — a shop that hesitates on that question is telling you something.

Never, for anything, including lobes. Guns force blunt jewelry through tissue by pressure, which crushes rather than cuts, and they can't be fully sterilized. Every piercing here is done with a sterile single-use needle at no extra charge.

Tell us before your appointment. Latex allergies are easy to accommodate — we have nitrile alternatives for everything. Diabetes, blood thinners, autoimmune conditions, keloid history, pregnancy and recent surgery all affect how you heal and sometimes whether we can proceed. Bring it up early rather than on the day.

Sleep well, eat a real meal within two hours of your appointment, and drink water throughout the day before. Skip alcohol for 24 hours beforehand — it thins your blood and makes the tattoo harder to do well. Wear clothing that gives easy access to the area and that you don't mind getting ink on.

No, leave it. We'll shave and prep the area with a fresh single-use razor as part of setup. Shaving at home a day or two before can leave microscopic nicks and irritation that make the skin harder to work on.

One person, yes. Space around the chairs is limited and an audience makes it harder for your artist to concentrate. For piercings and longer sessions a companion is genuinely helpful — bring the person who'll keep you calm rather than the one who'll film it.

Avoid aspirin and ibuprofen for 24 hours beforehand — both thin your blood, which means more bleeding and worse ink saturation. Acetaminophen is fine. If you want numbing cream, tell us in advance so we can recommend a product that works with our process; some creams change how skin takes ink and we need to plan for it.

A valid government-issued photo ID for every tattoo and piercing, no exceptions. For minors getting pierced, the parent or legal guardian must attend with their own photo ID plus documentation showing the relationship.

The surface closes in two to three weeks, and the deeper layers finish settling at around two to three months. It looks healed long before it is — which is why swimming, sun and heavy sweat should wait a full month even when it feels fine at week two.

Leave the initial covering on for the time your artist specifies. After that, wash gently with clean hands and unscented soap two or three times a day, pat dry, and apply a very thin layer of unscented lotion. Don't pick or scratch the flaking. No swimming, soaking, sun or heavy sweat for at least three to four weeks.

Spreading redness, heat, swelling that increases after day three rather than decreasing, yellow or green discharge, a foul smell, or fever. Some redness, tenderness and clear-to-slightly-cloudy fluid in the first couple of days is normal. If you see the warning signs, contact a doctor promptly and let us know.

The first touch-up within the first year on our own work is free, provided the aftercare instructions were followed. Hands, fingers, feet and other high-wear placements are excluded, since those need periodic maintenance regardless of how well they were executed.

Since 1989. Founder Mike Jeziak opened the shop in the late eighties and it has operated continuously in the metro Detroit area ever since, making it one of the longest-running tattoo studios in Michigan.

50185 Gratiot Ave, Chesterfield Township, MI 48051 — on Gratiot between 22 Mile and 23 Mile, with parking directly in front. Phone (586) 949-6200.

Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 10am–9pm; Wednesday 10am–8pm; Friday and Saturday 10am–10pm; Sunday 11am–7pm. Open seven days a week.

Michigan law requires anyone under 18 to have a parent or legal guardian physically present and consenting. The guardian needs government-issued photo ID and documentation of the relationship. We apply this strictly — please don't ask us to make an exception.

Yes. Bring whatever you have — a full drawing, a rough sketch, reference photos or a description. Our artists will adapt it so it works on your specific placement, which usually means adjusting proportions and line weight rather than tracing it as-is.

Yes, both. We stock aftercare products we actually use, and implant-grade titanium, niobium and solid gold body jewelry. Bring in jewelry bought elsewhere and we'll check the material, threading and fit for free.