Spider-Man: Far From Home is breaking box-office records and for good reason, it gives the fans what they want! This bright, beautiful Spider-Man is what Matt wanted and he got it! several of the artists at Lighthouse Tattoo are huge comic book fans, so if it’s comic-based work you’re interested in, swing on by Lighthouse Tattoo and get what you really want from the best artists suited for the job!
Here’s some of the best tattoo art Lighthouse Tattoo has had to offer in the last year. If you don’t see your tattoo here, you should probably swing by the shop so we can get a good photo of it! We’d also like to take this time to sincerely thank everyone who has supported us during this trying time. Battling an existential threat like COVID-19 and the ineptitude of government we have not only managed to survive, but to thrive and that’s all because of our clients, many of which we consider family. Thank you, we love you, and here’s to next year!
Here’s just a few of our favorite tattoos by Will over the last year. What a year it’s been. This blogger thinks I speak for everyone when I say 2021 can go fuck itself. Here’s to a better 2022!
This Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of our our Lord and Savior, please take the time to remember those less fortunate than yourself and give to a charity of your choosing, or possibly donate your time if you can. Thank you and Merry Christmas from Lighthouse Tattoo!
At Lighthouse Tattoo we want to be the best. We want that for a lot of reasons: We’ll make consistently more money and live better lives because of that; we’ll be able to provide education and influence the greater industry and clientele for (hopefully) generations to come; but most importantly, if we are the best, then we’ll be able to give YOU the best. The best service and experience at the best prices, resulting in the best tattoo you could ask for. That’s our dream.
We have some ingredients for that. We have an accomplished master tattooer in Will Wood, who believes that people are more important than money, to train us. We have an ever-evolving 4000 square-foot facility in an easily accessible location minutes from one of the fastest growing cities in the country, Nashville. We have an experienced team of veteran tattoo artists and piercers to help guide a small group of talented young artists on their path to greatness.
But we can’t accomplish anything without you.
Without clients who are willing to trust their artist’s expertise and skills, to challenge us, and build lasting relationships that lead to wonderful bodies of work (pun totally intended) we can’t accomplish our goals and we can’t grow to give you what you deserve: The very best.
So, this Christmas season; this tax refund season; or just the next time you think about getting that new tattoo, please think about giving Lighthouse Tattoo a try.
Here’s a quick (slightly blurry) shot of a portrait of an indigenous person. We’ve seen several versions of this on the INTERNET and we think this one stands up well against those. Please keep in mind this is only after the first session, the headdress was completed in a second sitting. If you love this artwork and want a similar quality for yourself, know that Will is currently booking for March and doesn’t book more than three months out at a time, so please let us know immediately so we can put you in the queue! Call 615-784-4500 or click the Set An Appointment tab on this website to start the process of getting your next great tattoo form Lighthouse Tattoo!
Good ole’ Fred Krueger. The life of the party. Quick-wit, a wry smile, and let’s not forget, great on the grill! Will has done some staggeringly good portraits of Freddy over the years, exhibiting one of the most comprehensive Freddy Krueger tattoo portfolios in the world. Like horror movies? Visit Lighthouse tattoo to indulge your dark side! Appointments can be made by calling 615-784-4500 or by clicking the Set and Appointment tab on this website.
Man, I have to say that was the best party we’ve thrown this year! Everyone got to see the new shop decor (a surprise meant for partygoers); we smashed 15 pizzas and enough booze to muster up a little holiday cheer; listened to some great live music and even sang some karaoke, just for fun.
Then there’s the contests.
Britney (Brittany, Brittney, etc) won the Naughty nighty contest in impressive fashion with her formidable pole dance routine (it’s okay moms and dads, the pole’s removable, so it won’t be here when you bring the kids by to get their ears pierced!), but Will made sure that everyone who participated won- All participants received $100 for their efforts, even Scott, who went above and beyond to give us all nightmares for the rest of our lives. Special shoutout to the Krampus who arrived a little late, keep in touch, we’ll take care of you, great outfit!
Our Ugly Christmas Sweater of the night went to Tora, for her sweater with Santa asking ‘Where’s my HO’s at?’ The crowd loved it. Honorable mentions would have to include Shane’s Baby Jesus sweater, which was ugly and adorable at the same time!
We had a young man who came all the way from Huntsville, Alabama to enjoy the festivities and he ended up staying in the shop over night. We trusted you man, thanks for not stealing anything! Some other revellers stayed around the corner with miss Kelly. Hey, if you’re going to throw a party, you need to make sure everyone can be safe!
Well, that’s another one for the record books, we’re considering hosting a crawfish boil in February for our next shindig, what do y’all think? Give us a shout and stay logged into lighthousetattoo.net, or follow us on facebook or instagram to keep up with our future events. Merry Christmas!
With new-ish films about Ted Bundy and H. H.. Holmes, popular culture has found itself smitten with the macabre. Stories about psycho killers have always thrilled, but with the release of the new Halloween movie and the success of serial dramas such as Dexter and the more recent American Horror Story, it seems the nation’s taste for the dark and dubious has been piqued. At Lighthouse Tattoo we are committed to those who should be committed! We tend to prefer the allure of more fantastic horror film stars, like Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees, or even the Leatherface seen below, but we understand the impact even real world psychos have had on the American imagination. Elisabeth Bathory, Lizzie Borden, Jack the Ripper have all drawn interest from antiquity. Charles Manson, Ted Bundy, Richard Ramirez, and Jeffrey Dahmer have all inspired motion pictures in modern times, even giving birth to the creation of characters like Hannibal Lecter and the aforementioned Leatherface of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Silence of the Lambs fame. People have always had a fascination with serial killers, if not with their deeds, than with their tactics or motivation. It would seem more odd if it weren’t for the overwhelming interest so many of us have for these deranged individuals.
Interested in satisfying your fascination with serial killers or horror movie villains? Swing by Lighthouse Tattoo for a consultation anytime between the hours of noon and 10pm , Wednesday through Sunday or call 615 784-4500 to leave your deposit over the phone!
For decades now, custom tattoo artists have had to be mindreaders. They’ve had to take a handful of sentences in explanation for your next tattoo idea and translate that into a masterpiece that you would adore forever. The process was often about as fun as pulling teeth. Breakdowns in communication could lead to frustrating deadends and after endless redraws and consultation sessions, patience grew thin. Sometimes, through sheer fatigue, either the artist or the client would simply give up and quit the process altogether, ending what should have been an exhilarating experience with a dull thud. Far too often, prospective clients would be soured on the tattoo experience forever, never getting the piece they really wanted because they couldn’t find an artist that could read their mind.
That is where the internet comes in. With an infinite resource of images, any client can quickly collect images that represent what they want or at least a strong direction to point their artist to. These images also provide the artist with a jumping-off point for their questions as opposed to trying to decipher vague language. References provide the artist with a map of not only which direction the client wants to go, but what they don’t want as well. A great way to use your references is the ‘I like this and this, but not this’ format. That way, the artist has a more concrete version of your idea from which to start their original drawing.
Feel free to email your references to info@lighthousetattoo.net or simply bring them in on your cellphone, although emailling them with a written description provides the artist an idea that they can reference at will, so it’s preferred. Also, this sort of correspondence is preferential during the current Covid-19 pandemic. Please remember to be as thorough as possible when writing the description of what you want. Someday soon we will post about the laughably inadequate descriptions some people offer us through email: ‘I want a tattoo, how much?’ with no name or picture is particularly difficult to figure out and usually gets ignored. Ah, the life!
We sincerely hope this description of the tattoo artist as amateur mind-reader goes far in helping new clients understand how they can help us become more efficient at giving them exactly what they need! Hope to see you at Lighthouse Tattoo soon!
Jason was referred to Lighthouse Tattoo by Neil, a client and mutual friend, who understood we had exactly what Jason needed: A frim grasp on visceral, macabre realism tattoos. The ‘see no’ portion of the tattoo is fresh, the ‘speak no’ part is healed, about a month old. We like to let people see the difference as the tattoo lightens a bit and the contrast becomes more clear. Stay logged in to LighthouseTattoo.net for updates on Jason’s dark art sleeve.
Now THAT’s and ugly sweater! This December 11th, at 7pm, Lighthouse Tattoo, in association with MASS DESTRUCTION CLOTHING will present our version of the office Christmas Party and all of our clients are invited (hell, who are we kidding, this thing’s open to the public, we ain’t proud!)
Here’s the deal, we’re asking folks to don their favorite PJs or put on an ugly Christmas sweater for the fun of it. We’re going to be having some fun giveaways for the best sweater/jammys and we’re also going to see who can get themselves on Santa’s Naughty List just in time for Christmas! With our Naughty Nighty contest and model search!
Interested parties need to bring a Christmas-inspired nighty to wear (could be lingerie, could be a sexy costume, use your imagination!). We’ll have a dressing area so you don’t have to wear the thing all night, and cash prizes are on the menu, starting with a $400 first prize! $200 for second place, but the fun part is, you can double your money by trading the cash for DOUBLE YOUR MONEY TATTOO GIFT CERTIFICATES! First place will also win a free photoshoot with MASS DESTRUCTION CLOTHING as a sponsor of this model search! Third place will win a $100 gift certificate to Lighthouse Tattoo. Honorable mentions will also be eligible for prizes. We want people to take part in this and we want them to go hard into the paint, so be creative! Fellas, you’re not gonna want to miss this!
If you’re still not interested then we’ll go ahead and mention the live musical guest will be Bellsenberg, followed by our guy Kevin at DJ and karaoke. There’s also the matter of the disputed Twister Championship that has yet to be resolved, so be ready for anything!
In our last post we examined some of the ways in which artists charge; some less-that-ethical tactics some use to keep prices high; and some of the pitfalls a prospective client should try to avoid when considering an artist. This all involved the legitimate tattoo business. We didn’t mention those people tattooing illegally from their homes and the false idea that someone can save money by getting tattooed by them.
First, we understand that no one who would even consider getting tattooed by one of these knuckleheads would go so far as to read a blog (or anything for that matter) so we’ll have to rely on our dear customers to show this to their friends who are dumb enough to go to these people out of desperation.
Read this aloud to them: RAAARGH! Humma lub-dub. Tika no-no humma glub glub. Raarh rah rah, summa tum nub doo.
The previous being translated from ancient cro-magnon man, you know, someone on their level. It reads something like this: Hey! No one should ever get tattooed by one of those home-grown assclowns. You should know better. Not only will the artwork be terrible, but even if the tattoo is free the subsequent cover-up won’t be and you’ll just be spending good money to get rid of something bad instead of getting what you really wanted in the first place. Also, you take a real risk with your health by going to someone who not only hasn’t received any professional training (they also say they used to work in a real shop though), they’re also comfortable skirting the health department and cutting corners. You’ll be lucky not to end up with Hepatitis! Do you really think a person like that knows how to prevent infection or cares if you get sick?!?!
Seriously though, if you DO know someone who’s been scarred by one of these assholes, don’t bring them here, we don’t need that kind of problem! Fact is, if you associated with people dumb enough to get tattooed by some kitchen magician or out of a hotel room in order to save a buck, you’re probably worth losing too. I mean hell, the truth hurts sometimes.
Excuse me while I take the time to shed some light on things here. Excuse me because this post, truthful as it is, will likely piss some people off. We’re going to take pains to avoid naming names here, but these people can probably figure out who they are and some of them are not going to like what I am about to say. The question is : How much more would it cost to get tattooed by the best artist (in any given style) than by the worst artist working in a tattoo shop in Middle Tennessee?
The answer? Not enough to make getting a shitty tattoo worth it.
Let’s examine. As best I can tell it, the average tattoo artist in Middle Tennessee charges around $100-$120 per hour of tattoo time. What’s tattoo time? The actual amount of time spent getting tattooed, not including drawing time or what we call egg-timer tattooing, which doesn’t deduct breaks from the cost. The best tattooers in Middle Tennessee all charge about $160-$200 per hour. So on the extreme end of things you could expect to pay up to double your money for the very best tattoo work in Middle Tennessee.
But wait, you say? Something doesn’t add up? You’ve paid too much for a tattoo that wasn’t very good?
Well, no shit Sherlock, you’ve been had.
The problem isn’t in the pricing, it never has been. Most people don’t care how much a tattoo costs AS LONG AS IT’S WORTH IT.
The real question is, what’s ‘worth it?’ and how do you know the artist can do the job?
One of the big problems with tattooing near a tourist destination like Nashville or say, close to a military base, is the predatory nature rife within the tattoo industry. There are far too many so-called ‘artists’ charging waaay too much for work that could be done, and done better, for significantly less money.
So, lesson #1: Stay away from tourist traps. If it is part of a chain, or there’s a bunch of them scattered around the country all bearing the same name, you’re going to pay too much for the quality. Getting tattooed close to military bases is also similarly likely to get you ripped off. Even if the tattoo quality is pretty good, getting tattooed right off base will likely cost you significantly more than it could have at an equivalent quality level. The reason for this is one of high real estate prices/rents and a reliance on one-and-done business so the given shop never has to worry about developing a reputation for overcharging of sub-par work. Why do you think there’s so many shops across the street from military bases all the time? Guaranteed paychecks.
Lesson #2. Some people just charge more to make more. That’s right, some artists have learned to prey on people who don’t know any better by charging more than they should for their ability level. I’ve had arguments with artists about ‘how can it be possible that someone is charging too much as long as people are willing to pay it?’ The answer is this: You’re charging too much if you’re charging significantly more than the other artists in the area at the same ability level. Some artists have adopted doing this in order to make a clientele believe they’re actually better than they are. That, ladies and gentlemen is what we call a positive feedback loop and it is actually a very negative thing to have happen. Read that again: Some tattoo artists charge more than their competition in order to make people think they’re better, without actually being able to back it up. It’s a nightmare. How do you combat that sort of thing? RESEARCH, that’s right kids, do your research.
Here’s the best experiment you can to tell if an artist is worth it. Simple side-by-side comparisons of similar tattoos (style and subject matter) will do the trick. If you can look at each artists work next to another’s and consistently pick one over the other, that’s the artist you want. Additionally (and this one is my favorite), go and ask that artist who they would get the tattoo you want from, then ask them who’s better between them and that person and ask them to tell you why. Then go talk to that artist and ask them the same question. While most folks won’t go to this extent, it really is good advice, and worth doing if that tattoo is going to be on your body forever (which it is, so get to work!) A good artist is a confident one, not afraid to complement other’s work and most of us are familiar with the styles and abilities of the other good artists in the area, so they’ll know who they’d get tattooed by if they had to. A good artist will also have enough technical knowledge to explain why their work is better when compared to another’s. Here’s the kicker, a good artist will also be successful enough to tell you where to go if someone else might do a better job, rather that hoarding clients like there’s some kind of shortage of people who want good tattoos.
Lesson #3. You have no idea what you’re doing. I’ve seen it a thousand times, people getting tattooed by someone who’s not any good for fear that the really good artist will charge them more than they can afford. They’re often so paranoid of this kind of ‘rejection’ that they don’t even bother to ask! Sound crazy? Nope, happens all the time. I can’t count how many times someone has come here fearing what price they would be quoted only to hear ‘that’s all’ followed by nightmare stories that they’d heard Will was charging $2000 or $2500 per day! The fact is, Will has never charged anyone more than $1200 for a single days work and probably never will (barring inflation… but that’s another blog)!
We’re going to follow this post up as part of a series about how not to pay too much for a tattoo. Stay logged in to lighthousetattoo.net for more!
Man oh man! This guy is a doozy! This Albus Dumbledore portrait is in a sensitive area (the hamstring), so we’ll be finishing it over a couple of sessions. We hope you like the progress shots, showing how these pieces come together. If you do, when you come in to the shop, please let us know, it helps inform the direction we take this website and it’s made entirely for your enjoyment, so feel free to weigh-in on the content you see.
This piece was done in about 2.5 hours, getting the face laid in and grey lining the parts that are going ot be completed later, in order to save young Christa from having to endure more than her fair share of the pain getting a tattoo like this tends to come with. Still, 3 hours on the table is plenty.
Think you have what it takes? Love Harry Potter? Then come on down to Lighthouse Tattoo, a block off the historic Lebanon, TN square, anytime between noon and 10pm, seven days a week and let’s get you set up for something great!
Still need to finish the dragon and add background on this super rad piece!
Brett is a warrior by nature and a wrestler by training. He wanted something to represent his spirit in the gym and celebrate warrior culture. The best thing we could come up with is the strength of a dragon and the spirit of a samurai. This Work-In-Progress piece has been completed over a couple of sessions (because it’s enormous!) so the red in the mask is healed and everything else is fresh. We’ll be posting a finished shot once it’s done so you can see the brightness of the yellows. We’ll also spend a couple of hours working on the teeth and horns before building a background to really bring this piece to life!
Mechanical tattoos (often wrongly referred to as biomechanical) are pretty cool for gearheads. When you spend so much time working on and enjoying these machines that really becomes a part of you over time. Whether it’s being a biker, racing cars, or like this guy, you own your own garage, these objects can start to find themselves developing a personality in your mind.
Think it’s weird? How many of us don’t remember getting their first car and the sense of freedom to gave us? Didn’t it represent the beginning of adulthood and autonomy for so many of us? Bet you named it. Some old clunker sitting out in the driveway (or front yard), just waiting to take you on your next adventure. Well, some of us never got over that feeling. Judging by the amount of money spent on motorsports each year, it’s safe to say we’re in good company!
So if you’ve ever busted a few knuckles turning wrenches for your family, friends, or just your own needs, swing by Lighthouse Tattoo and celebrate your status as a gearhead with a little ink!
We’ve all lost someone. It’s our belief that one of the very best ways to honor the memory of that person is by carrying a likeness of them with you forever. A photo in your wallet pales by comparison and so many other things just don’t seem personal enough to satisfy the intense sense of loss the untimely passing of a loved one can leave you feeling. We sincerely hope something like a portrait tattoo can offer a small semblance of closure to someone who has experienced such great pain.
Fabian’s sister was killed in a car accident a few years ago. Having carried the weight of that loss for so long, he finally decided to break down and get the memorial portrait tattoo he’d wanted. Lighthouse Tattoo is honored to be the establishment he chose.
Whenever we’re faced with doing a memorial tattoo, we understand that the photo reference that is available might not be ideal, as was the case with this portrait. Our resident realism artist, Will, did a great job capturing her likeness and helping realize Fabian’s dream of having a beautiful reminder of his beloved sister to carry with him for the rest of his life.
This representation of the deadly sin of Pride from the show Full Metal Alchemist was done in a single session by our very own Matt Steele.
Sometimes the simplest things can be the most sublime. Straightforward lines and bold shading coupled with a petite frame can yield a delicate complement to ones’ natural beauty. This is frequently the goal of tattooing, throughout antiquity to modern times, to complement the form of the canvas. Expertly applied by Matt Steele, we expect to see more of this style of beautiful artwork in the near future!
This Christmas Season (we say Christmas ‘round these parts, not ‘hippy holidays’) Lighthouse Tattoo will be hosting a pajama party for the ages! Christmas-themed jammies, or an ugly Christmas sweater are the only tickets you need to enter! We will have contests with cash prizes and tattoo gift certificates up for grabs for the most creative sweater and best pajamas. We will also be offering a grand prize to the winner of our first-ever Naughty Nighty contest!
The Naughty Nighty contest will be lingerie-based, contestants can change at the party so they don’t have to wear the outfit all night, and ladies-it’s not gender specific! The guy’s can enter too!!! Creativity/originality and pure sex appeal are the categories here, so dress appropriately for Santa to rock that body under the Christmas Tree!