# Charging Too Much Tattoo?



## FreeSpirit777 (May 19, 2015)

Last year I got a tattoo at a fairly reputable shop.. my tattoo was a coverup of a tattoo I got years ago that I didn't want..

the cover-up piece I wanted was just a black diamond on my arm, about 8 inches long and 4 inches wide maybe.. like the length of a pencil.

all they had to do was literally color in the shape. it took one hour and they charged me $260.

I was shocked, since it didn't take long at all. I've had other tattoos done at way nicer shops downtown for cheaper, but are more complex.

Was this so expensive because I used a lot of ink in a smaller space??


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## Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar (Apr 9, 2015)

FreeSpirit777 said:


> Last year I got a tattoo at a fairly reputable shop.. my tattoo was a coverup of a tattoo I got years ago that I didn't want..
> 
> the cover-up piece I wanted was just a black diamond on my arm, about 8 inches long and 4 inches wide maybe.. like the length of a pencil.
> 
> ...


Maybe they charged you extra for boring work  .


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## FreeSpirit777 (May 19, 2015)

does anyone think they charged more because it was so much ink??


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## VinnieBob (Mar 24, 2014)

all depends
tattoo's are considered a art form
this is no different then hiring a artist to draw, paint, sketch a pic for you
prices will vary from different shops


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## FreeSpirit777 (May 19, 2015)

@Vinniebob right, though most reputable shops charge about $100/hour, and my tattoo was $260 for about 50 minutes.. that's over 2-and-a-half hours of work for under ONE hour...and I went to a reputable shop.


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## Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar (Apr 9, 2015)

FreeSpirit777 said:


> @Vinniebob right, though most reputable shops charge about $100/hour, and my tattoo was $260 for about 50 minutes.. that's over 2-and-a-half hours of work for under ONE hour...and I went to a reputable shop.


They probably hated every minute of it.


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## VinnieBob (Mar 24, 2014)

FreeSpirit777 said:


> @Vinniebob right, though most reputable shops charge about $100/hour, and my tattoo was $260 for about 50 minutes.. that's over 2-and-a-half hours of work for under ONE hour...and I went to a reputable shop.


how was the quality of the work?
was it superior to most of the other work


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## Arzazar Szubrasznikarazar (Apr 9, 2015)

Vinniebob said:


> how was the quality of the work?
> was it superior to most of the other work


Read the OP again. They probably charged him for the amount of ink used and sheer boredom of doing it.


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## stiletto (Oct 26, 2013)

I paid $3000 for my giant custom side-piece for an artist that is now off the grid and only has celebrity clientele. It was a 12 hour job and the money was well spent.

I had another TINY piece done at Miami Ink in SoBe by Jose Santiago, it was like 2 x 1 inch and I was charged just over $100. If I had asked someone who was on the show to tattoo me, it would've been double the price. That one was less worth it, but it was a bucket list item for me.

So it really depends on:
1) artist reputation
2) size of tattoo
3) hours of sittings
4) complexity of tattoo (is it standard, or custom?)
5) the market in the area


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## FreeSpirit777 (May 19, 2015)

@stiletto amount of ink is not a factor? I men I was about 6 inches X 3 inches, it's a diamond/coffin shape filled completely with black ink.


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## Tad Cooper (Apr 10, 2010)

FreeSpirit777 said:


> Last year I got a tattoo at a fairly reputable shop.. my tattoo was a coverup of a tattoo I got years ago that I didn't want..
> 
> the cover-up piece I wanted was just a black diamond on my arm, about 8 inches long and 4 inches wide maybe.. like the length of a pencil.
> 
> ...


Individual artists charge different amounts, so the more experienced/higher up they are the more expensive they are! I got mine for $80 Canadian dollars when I was there and gave a $20 tip cause the guy was so nice and my tattoo took an hour and it was a reputable place with lots of after care etc. You can shop around and ask people about it? I looked around on facebook and reviews on the internet!


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## FreeSpirit777 (May 19, 2015)

does anyone think they charged so much ($260) because that includes tip, future potential touchups, and b/c it was a lot of ink for the amount of space? (about 8 inches by 4 inches.


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