Healed
Three tattooists, a piercer and a guest chair on Skirving Street, Shawlands.
Work
Tue–Sat · walk-in piercing Thu, Sat
(Why healed)
Every photo here was taken After it healed
At least six weeks after the sitting. For the first week the top layer of skin holds ink it will shed, so a fresh tattoo looks darker and sharper than it will ever look again.
(One sitting, and the weeks after · Swallow, Tomasz, 3 h 10 min)
Stencil
Lining
Lined
Fresh
Day 3
Day 7
Week 6
10 years
0:00The drawing is printed onto thermal paper and pressed onto your skin in purple. We move it until it sits right on you, not on paper.
0:40Outlines first, working from the bottom up so a hand never drags across the stencil. The needle moves 80 to 150 times a second.
1:25The stencil wipes away as we go and the lines take over. Break here if you need one.
3:10Shading done. Red, raised and shiny, and the black at its darkest. We wash it and seal it under second-skin film.
Day 3Tight and a little cloudy. The film comes off and you start washing it twice a day.
Day 7Peeling. The top layer of skin flakes away, taking some surface ink with it. It looks milky and dull. Leave it alone.
Week 6Settled. This is the tattoo, and the stage every photo on this site shows.
Year 10Lines soften a little with time. A drawing with room to breathe, and sun cream, keeps it readable.
(Who you’ll sit with)
The people
Guest chair: Lena Brandt, ornamental dotwork, 3–14 November 2026
Healed work
(Thirteen pieces, all healed)
All artists
01Rhinocerosafter Dürer, 1515RibsHealed 3 yearsTomasz Wrona
(Piercing, with Niamh)
Piercing
Needles, never guns. The price includes implant-grade titanium jewellery, threadless, and a check at six weeks to fit a shorter bar.
- Lobe£35
- Helix£40
- Septum£50
- Navel£50
(How booking works)
Four steps
- 01
Send a request
Tell us the idea, where on the body, a rough size and who you’d like. Photos and references help. We reply within three working days.
- 02
Consultation
20 minutes, free, in the studio or on a video call. We talk placement, size, how it will heal and age, and the price.
- 03
Deposit
£50 holds your date, £100 for a full day. It comes off the final price. Move your date with 72 hours’ notice and it carries over; less notice and it’s lost.
- 04
The sitting
The drawing is ready on the day. We place the stencil on you and move it until it’s right, then we tattoo. Touch-ups in the first three months are free.
Minimum £80£120 an hour£650 a dayDeposit £50
Book a consultation(The guest chair · 3–14 Nov)
Lena Brandt
Ornamental dotwork, from Hamburg. In the studio 3–14 November 2026.
Lena builds ornaments out of dots, from Haeckel’s drawings of radiolarians and from geometry worked out with a compass. These two are from her last guest spot here, in November 2025.
Book with Lena
Radiolarianafter Haeckel, 1904ForearmHealed 11 monthsLena Brandt
(What people said after)
More reviews“I’m scared of needles and Isla talked me through every line. The hyacinth healed exactly like the photos on her page.”
“Three sittings for my carp and Callum planned them around my shifts. Two years on it’s still sharp.”
“Niamh swapped my helix bar for a shorter one at six weeks. First cartilage piercing I’ve had that didn’t bump.”
(Clean, every time)
How we keep it clean
- 01
Single-use needles
Needles and cartridges are opened in front of you and go into the sharps bin after. A modern machine moves them 80 to 150 times a second, so nothing is ever reused.
- 02
Everything wrapped
The machine, cord, bottles and armrest are sleeved in barrier film for each client and stripped after.
- 03
Ink in single caps
Ink is poured into small single-use caps for your sitting only. What’s left goes in the bin, never back in the bottle.
- 04
Autoclave at 121 °C
Reusable piercing tools are sterilised in pressurised steam at 121 °C, sealed in pouches and logged by date.