Fuck the care Bears, this dude means bidnez! With enough teeth and bad breath to make Leo Dicaprio rethink his life’s work, this grizzly bear portrait is intimidating, even WITH a giant scratch running right through it like three weeks after it was done…(way to go Forrest). This whole thing was done in single five hour session by Will as the first session in a full leg sleeve.
He’s lean, he’s mean, he’s lime-green, he’s RattFink, Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth’s claim to fame. It’s okay if you don’t know who he is, not everyone can be cool, kids. RattFink is a staple in car culture and motorcycle culture, so squares won’t get it, they never do. Want to be one of the cool kids? Swing on down to Lighthouse Tattoo and we’ll change your life for the better, or worse, whatever!
That’s the whole point isn’t it? If you’re not living on the edge you’re taking up too much space, right? So move forward, put the hammer down, and lean into the wind, ‘cause whatever it is, it won’t last, might as well enjoy the ride!
This sweet traditional American-style piece was performed by our very own Matt Steele. Call 615 784-4500 or swing by the shop between the hours of noon and 10pm seven days a week to schedule your next appointment with him!
If you love something, you should celebrate it, be it bands, movies, books, or any of a number of things. Some people showcase their love for their favorite stuff by wearing shirts, some people perform in cover bands, and some people even dress up as their favorite people and impersonate them for a living!
One of the most common objects of affection for our clients (and people in general) is the inimitable art of the video game.
Video games teach us valuable truths about patience, perseverance, morality, and just how much Mountain Dew a body can hold before it completely shuts down. Lessons like that are why they have been able to spend the last 40 years not only “rotting our brains”, but our hearts, as well.
If you’re a game lover and are wondering where to immortalize your passion in the form of a tattoo, consider Lighthouse Tattoo for your next piece!
This April 2nd, we will be celebrating the pending birth of Jake and MK’s baby. Lighthouse Tattoo has held a family-close relationship with many of our clients and we enjoy being able to shower them with affection in a time such as this. We thank those of you who celebrate with us during this joyous time!
Marsellus Wallace sold his soul. That's what's rumored to be in the briefcase in Pulp Fiction anyway. What for? Probably the hand of Ms. Mia Wallace, his wife, played by the incomparable Uma Thurman. Pulp Fiction is the linchpin of Quentin Tarantino's career, alongside so many others: Reservoir Dogs; Kill Bill vol. 1 and 2; Django Unchained; The Hateful Eight; Inglorious Basterds, the list goes on at a frenetic pace, belying both passion and genius, things not commonly paired enough. Mr. Tarantino has an affinity for certain actors, as evidenced by Ms. Thurman's appearance in several of his films, much like his love of Mr. Samuel L. Jackson, for which we can all be thankful. Without this dedication to certain performers, we might have missed Mr. Jackson's portrayal of Major Marquis Warren in The Hateful Eight. These two tattoos were performed on consecutive days while Will was doing a guest spot in our nation's capital Washington D.C. Enjoy and stay tuned to lighthousetattoo.net for updates on this awesome work-in-progress!
Bobby came into Lighthouse Tattoo at the behest of his wife, Samantha, who has been working on a horror sleeve for the past few months. On leave from training with the Army, he was excited to get this version of the Heath Ledger Joker. You can probably see why! Feel free to compare our work and rates with any other shops in the Nashville area, we're confident you'll see why Lighthouse Tattoo is the best choice for you!
Photos of photos NOT done at Lighthouse Tattoo, and with good reason.
There has seemed to be an increase lately in the popularity of finger, hand, and even face tattoos and as fashionable as they look when first tattooed, that's as far as they go. We have some very particular requirements for us to tattoo your hands or face and that's for a few reasons that are not for our own benefit, only for the benefit of our clients.
But who has these style tattoos? Well, a lot of people in fact, especially celebrities, the people who many teens and young adults seem to look up to. Whenever a fad pops up among celebrities, you'll see the same rise in the general population, and lately that seems to be VERY visible tattoos. Unfortunate as it may be though, not all of us are celebrities, and while we are not here to tell anyone that this is a bad look or nobody should ever get a hand or face tattoo, we are here to remind you why you might not want it for yourself.
Now we all know that the face is the first thing everybody sees when they first meet you, so first impressions matter, especially at job interviews. Many employers these days are starting to relax on tattoos and piercing (Which is great!) But in almost every place of business you still need to be able to cover it up or be able to hide it in some fashion. That's where hand and face tattoos run into a bit of a wall, you can't hide those without gloves or make-up and many employers will turn you away purely over visible tattoos making job searching near impossible.
"What about just a little side of the finger tattoo? I can hide that, nobody will even notice it's there!" While that argument may be valid on some level, unfortunately finger tattoos don't hold up. "But this tattoo from Pinterest looks great!" While they look great when initially done, notice how you never see any healed photos on these tattoos, that's because they either look terrible or are completely gone by the time they heal. The sides of your finger, along with the palm, loose a heavy amount of skin cells on a daily basis seeing as they are our main mode of interacting with the world around us, this makes for very poor healing on tattoos. Most of the time with a finger tattoo you'll loose at least half, if not all, of the ink in the tattoo making it look unfinished, poorly done, or like you never had a tattoo there(see picture above for example).
Will we tattoo your hands or face? Maybe, if you meet the requirements. So what are the requirements? Well if you already have them done or are heavily (HEAVILY) covered your in luck, you are already aware of the stigma and issues you will run into so we will tattoo you. Are you filthy rich(or at least substantially wealthy) and can prove it? Well what are you waiting for get in here, you already got things figured out and we have no issue tattooing your whole forehead, or whatever else you're wanting. And if you are unfortunate enough to have a felony charge, you already are well aware of the struggles you face in finding meaningful employment, but on the plus side we will tattoo you.
So, are we saying you shouldn't get your hands or face tattooed or condemning those who do? No, we are just trying to inform you of why we here have such high requirements which isn't the usual thing for a lot of tattoo shops. We are purely just trying to look out for our clients best interests and not just here to make a quick buck off the misinformation or lack of detailed knowledge of tattooing that those who aren't tattoo artist themselves might know.
We understand that not everyone wants to break the bank with their next tattoo. Not everyone wants something that requires the highest skill levels in the business. Some folks want names and little stuff, simple things that don’t take up a lot of space. We understand that in these instances, paying the top-tier priced of some of our more experienced artists is prohibitive for many. So we have developed a tiered system to make getting smaller, less complicated tattoos less painful-ON YOUR BANK ACCOUNT!!!
At the top echelon we have realism artist Will Wood, who charges $160/hr and has a 5 hour session rate of $600 for repeat clients (1st-timers pay $800 for that first session, then they get the ‘buddy discount’). Will is the best we have and one of the very best tattooers around, but he still tries to keep the price of his work affordable.
Next we have Deuce and Dave, who each have 5-hr session rates of $400. These two are veteran artists with decades of experience doing tattoos between them. You can’t go wrong here folks, the value you get at those price points is startling!
Next we have Matt and Brady, younger artists with less than 5 years in the business apiece. Both capable, growing artists charge $300/ 5hrs, and we would argue a better value can’t be found anywhere!
We also have a couple of newbies who will tackle pieces for half-price, or $50 per hour, sometimes even less than our shop minimum. These artists have a limited skillset however, so the things they are allowed to tattoo are limited. With time we are sure they will grow and become wonderful artists along with the rest of the staff here at Lighthouse Tattoo.
This healed gladiator is the best photo we got, just as an afterthought, while getting ready to continue this client’s sleeve. We think it speaks for itself and we certainly hope you like it!
Deuce has been working on his black and grey and clearly it’s paying off! He just did this single session piece on a great client and we managed to get a decent photo of it for a change (Deuce is admittedly the worst photographer on the planet)! To schedule your next session with this veteran tattooer, visit Lighthouse Tattoo at 328 N. Cumberland st, a block off the historic Lebanon, TN square; fill out the set an appointment form on this website; or call us at 615-784-4500.
It happens like this sometimes: For some reason or another, we’ll end up doing several of the same tattoo, on completely unrelated clients, within a few weeks of each other. We’re not complaining, we absolutely love this image! The texture and intensity of the piece is enough to draw the viewer in a hold them for a while, which we love.
Matt Steele’s high contrast blackwork style has caught on with it’s impactful intensity. Stark and bold, like the tattoos of the Old School, Matt has something of an old soul about himself. If you like this style and want to know more, feel free to stop by and speak with Matt himself, between the hours of noon and 10pm, Wednesday through Sunday! You won’t be disappointed!
Next Saturday, March 19th, at 7pm, is our annual St. Patrick’s Day party. Everyone’s invited, just no children please.
Another Freddy portrait tattoo wonderfully performed by Will Wood. It’s amazing the amount of staying power some of these villains seem to have, playing on our fears seems to have a lasting effect. The great thing about this particular tattoo is the way Will managed to capture the expression on his face even with all of the added texture from the movie make-up he’s wearing. We think it’s awesome and we hope you’ll agree! Schedule your appointment with Will Wood today by calling 615 784-4500 between the hours of noon and 10pm.
Going along with our Johnny Depp kick, this Mad Hatter is definitely one of his more outrageous and memorable characters. This is an in-progress shot taken with a cell phone, so apologies for the quality, we just thought some of you might want to see it. Enjoy!
Johnny Depp’s portrayal of John Dillinger is a career highlight, if not the flashiest of his characters. This portrait was completed over two sessions for a total of just over 8 hours by resident realism artist Will Wood.
As with the Wu-Tang Clan, this tiger is nothing with which to fuck.
Matt Steele’s transition for apprentice tattooer to Journeyman artist is almost complete. Working with his mentor, Will Wood, the founding father of Lighthouse Tattoo, Matt has become a capable young artist. He has learned to work on more difficult areas of the body and turn out clean, bright work, as in this tiger hand tattoo. In just over a year and half of hard work (he’s been here longer, but the time since the government’s Covid shutdown has been the most meaningful), Matt has become a growing force at Lighthouse Tattoo. Call today to beat the rush and schedule your next appointment with this great young artist! 615 784-4500, between the hours of noon and 10pm, or fill out the appointment request form on this website, under the ‘Set and Appointment’ tab.
If you’ve been to the shop any time in the last three months you know Lighthouse Tattoo has been going through some serious changes. We added some new faces and the shop got a facelift of its own. We like it because it goes to show how much hard work we’ve been putting in and you MUST like it because we’ve gotten pretty busy here! In fact, we may have actually gotten a little too busy for comfort. Everybody’s got problems y’know?
Our realism artist, Will Wood, has gotten so busy his normal 3-month limit on booking has become woefully inadequate. Something had to be done. Will has now changed his schedule to allow for two sessions per day at a rate of $600 apiece. This is a discount from his usual $160 per hour rate, which fits better into our tiered pricing system, taking out the guesswork for his clients. First-timers and clients who wish to book time other than the 5-hour window of the offered session will still be charged at the $160 per hour rate.
This is a little funny: We hired a new shop manager some time ago and she took us to task on certain issues. The first thing she did was work to significantly increase our capacity to do walk-in tattoos, the second was to address people who try to abuse us for our deposit policy. The last thing she did was notice that Will only scheduled one tattoo per day, then left once he was done. He also had a tendency to offer discounts to his loyal customers (which all of them are, Will has a huge repeat clientele). She decided to try scheduling him the same as the other artists and build in the discount, because while many of his clients can sit for more than 5 hours due to Will’s famously light touch, it’s not usually more than a couple of extra hours and that meant Will wasn’t making as much as he could!
Will is old. He could go at any minute. He has five kids, all of which like to eat EVERY DAY. To get the most out of him before he dies, we decided to work the old workhorse a little more.
The results were dramatic. Repeat clients have been rescheduled with shorter wait times between sessions; The shorter sessions are less taxing to the client, who appreciate the loyalty discount; and Will’s calendar has opened up so he can start taking new clients again (because he’s technically doing twice as much work now, but don’t tell HIM that)!
It looks like there’s a new sheriff in town and we like the direction she’s taking things, we hope you do too!
A Hanya, or Hannya is a type of demon from Japanese folklore and this one is a real badass. Performed by Matt Steele and steeped in contrast, you wouldn’t want to run into this fella in a dark alley! Matt has availability starting at about two weeks out, so plan a little bit ahead and great artwork like this can be yours!