Tattoo shop correcting lots of do-it-yourself tattoos
Tattoo shop correcting lots of do-it-yourself tattoos
June 9, 2012
By Lindsey Reise
CBS 5
EMPE, AZ (CBS5) -
Local ink experts tell us a lot of people are giving themselves tattoos using household items. Many people take a needle, wrap it with string, drip it in ink and poke the skin until it makes a mark. While it may be a cheaper alternative, they say it can be very dangerous.
Mark Walters has been tattooing for 25 years and owns Living Canvas in Tempe. He says several people a month come into his store wanting to cover up what are known as stick-and-poke tattoos or hand-poke tattoos.
"They'll take a safety pin and sharpen it and like, wrap some thread around it, dip it in some India ink," Walters said. While a lot of people - especially the younger crowd - see it as a cheaper alternative, Walters said it's not worth it.
"They're usually pretty raw and nasty," he said.
"There's a little scar on my leg where it was," said tattoo artist Christian Carden. He said he gave himself a hand-poke tattoo when he was a teenager because he was bored and rebellious. But in hindsight, he said it wasn't the best idea.
"I couldn't think of a less sterile way to tattoo yourself," Carden said. "The safety pin was in my pocket with some random ink in my art class."
Walters said there are a lot of health risks involved because of the transmission of fluids and because, at some hand-poke parties he's been to, the same needle is passed around.
"Somebody doesn't want to pay $60 to get their girlfriend's initials or boyfriend's initials or a little tiny cross or something until you have a $600 medical bill because you got an infection because you hand-poked it," Walters said.
He added that using a lighter or some rubbing alcohol to sterilize needles doesn't do the trick. He claims you're better off saving the money and getting a tattoo at a reputable shop.
Copyright 2012 CBS 5 (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
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