Son wants to be a tatoo artist!

[triplets]

After 3 years of wanting to be a Royal Marine Bandsman he now has said out of the blue he does not want to re apply (failed the medical last year because he was wearing a dental brace!) and had applied for an apprenticeship at a tattoo parlour in a near by town! Did this all himself, going for an interview on Monday! He is an amazing artist and has designed a tattoo for a friend but we thought this was just his hobby. Dh is upset as we would love to have seen him in the band service, he plays drums an bugle. His brother is up in Harrogate just completing his first phase raining in the Army and his sister is doing Art and Design at college, going on to Uni we hope in Sept. Think he is a little lost, at the moment he is still in 6th form at a local school which he hates. Should we encourage him to pursue a career as a tattooist? Just a bit of a shock from his original career choice!

His life, not yours. It's only his first career, there is plenty of time to change if he decides it's not for him.

Good for him to have discovered his own path. Sounds like he's s talented artist. People will alway want tattoos!

as valid a job as any. Might be an idea to keep his own tats under control to keep options open; being covered in them works if you are a tattoo artist but limits many other jobs.

Tatoo artists make a good living and if he's good then he may be able to open his own business one day and hire other artists. I'd encourage him to try it and see how he feels in a year or so.

He hasn't got any tattoos, says he is not sure he wants any! I said that may look odd to customers if you get the job. My other worry is he has no transport to get there, the train will cost him £8.40p a day, then its a 20 min walk from the station .Cant imagine the pay will be very good. He will just have to go and see what Monday brings.

If given the choice of my Son being a marine or a tattoo artist....... I know which one I would support!

Probably a growth industry, too. He should try & see if he likes.
Any chance he could cycle or Liftshare?

A friend of mine is a tattoo artist, the first 2 years apprenticeship he was very poor. However, he's now a sought after chap earning a lot of money and is looking for his own shop.

My sister is a tattoo artist. She works extremely hard and very long hours (in the studio and at home) but has got to a point where she can choose to do only commission work and not flash.

She started by interning part time at a studio for a year, she didn't get paid and the first three months was nothing but drawing practice and hygiene. Then practice on pig skin. She's at the same studio now and earns good money, but has done guest spots in studios in the US and Japan in the past two years.

Done well I think it's at great career. If he has the talent and is willing to work hard.

Being a tattoo artist is a great job, if he's successful he'll earn a lot of money and have lots of opportunity to travel.

However . . . I wouldn't trust or go near a tattoo artist who doesn't have any tattoos. I'd seriously question their commitment to working in the tattoo world. If he's creative then why not try another artistic avenue, why tattoos?

I honestly don't know pinkyredrose, I don't think he knows himself tbh. Think he is just so fed up at college, its been in special measures for 3 years! At one point he was going to go to college in Canterbury doing Art and design but as his sister is there it put him off! Here is a couple of samples of his work

and here he is playing in the local Air Cadet Band at the bandstand in Deal, they were the support band before the Royal Marine Band played.

It can certainly be a very lucrative career! If he's talented (as it certainly does appear!) and a studio are prepared to train him, then we'll done to him!

If given the choice of my Son being a marine or a tattoo artist....... I know which one I would support!

I'd support both but i know which one i would prefer.

Btw his artwork is amazing. I only wish i had a talent like that.

Wow he is very talented. Good luck to him. Much safer more comfortable job than the other option imho.

His artwork is the dog's bollocks. Seriously. He can't not do something with talent like that.

wow those pics are beyond cool

He hasn't got any tattoos, says he is not sure he wants any! I said that may look odd to customers if you get the job.

Not necessarily, I had a tattoo artist who hadn't had any and he said that lots of customers felt he was very approachable because of it. Some people can find an artist covered in tattoos a little intimidating and also it can make them embarrassed about their reaction to the tattoo, so they don't speak up, take a break etc and pass out!

Also, he is very talented. I think he's making a good decision. If he decides that he actually doesn't like it in the end can he reapply next year for the bandsman position?

Thank you so much for all your comments, yes he is very talented and yes I would like to see him use that talent. He needs to go on Monday and at least have the experience of being interviewed, it will be his first. Will get him to gather as much of his work together this weekend to take over, get him to think of everything he needs to ask. You have all been a great help, its cleared my mind a lot, so thank you. My daughter is also very talented, her art work is amazing too, different to my sons. The third of my trio still draws stick men lol!! She has various styles but here is just a sample.

If you are a good artist (as your son is) then you will make a fortune as a tattoo artist. Your standard local tattooist won't necessarily make a good living but those at the top of their game earn ££££ and get to travel all over the world having a fantastic life! My dh is involved in the tattoo industry and honestly I am regularly shocked by how much money people earn and what a great life they have.

Do you know Fairylea if its the norm that if he got taken on as an apprentice he has to pay them?

That seems a bit unusual to me. Normally what happens is they earn a low wage, the same as any standard apprenticeship but they are expected to carry out basic duties such as learning how to set up and take down the workstations etc for the other tattooists for several months before they even set foot near a tattoo machine themselves. In quiet moments they are expected to keep drawing and maybe work on the reception desk to build a portfolio of work, they then practice on close friends and family or even on synthetic skin before progressing to actually properly tattooing.

Dh has never heard of anyone having to pay to do an apprenticeship. There are tattoo courses you can pay to do and end up with the reverent hygiene certificates to open your own studio (although you don't need to do these - you can apply to the local council regardless) but generally these courses are frowned upon in the industry and it is far better to get a proper apprenticeship with a highly sought after tattooist with many years experience.

Very very talented!
Does he know you've put his picture up though?