Tattooing

Tattooing is the art of putting ink permanently into the skin to create a design. A tattoo machine moves a needle up and down very fast, placing tiny dots of ink just under the surface. Beginners and apprentices learn on synthetic practice skin first, so they can master the machine and their line work before anyone's arm is involved.

There are two main types. A coil machine uses electromagnets to drive the needle, and it's the one that makes that classic buzzing sound. A rotary machine uses a small motor instead, so it's quieter and smoother. Many modern rotaries are shaped like a chunky pen.

Needles come in groupings for different jobs. Round liners, with the needles clustered in a tight circle, are used for outlines. Shaders and magnums, with needles in wider rows, are used for shading and filling in colour.

Flash is a sheet of ready-drawn tattoo designs, traditionally hung on the walls of tattoo shops for customers to pick from. Classic flash is full of bold, simple images like roses, swallows, anchors, daggers, hearts and panthers, drawn with thick outlines and a strong, limited palette.

These designs are great for learning, because clean, confident lines are the foundation of every good tattoo.

First, the design is transferred onto the practice skin as a stencil, so you have lines to follow. You hold the machine a bit like a pen, rest your hand to keep it steady and pull the needle along the line at an even speed and depth. Go too slow and the line gets heavy and overworked. Go too fast and it looks patchy.

Practice skin is usually made from silicone and feels surprisingly lifelike, which makes it ideal for learning how the machine handles. It's also far more forgiving than a real person.

On practice skin, absolutely. Your Activity Leader walks you through the culture of the craft, how to handle the machine safely and how to pull your first lines, then you pick a design and tattoo it yourself. It's fully hands-on, and it's a proper eye-opener into how much skill goes into every piece. You'll never look at your mate's sleeve the same way again.

You might also like Lino Printing, Pyrography and Landscape Painting.

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