Ink is sexy. Ink is expressive. Ink is intriguing. These adjectives describing body ink are easily applicable to infamous tattoo artist Boneface, who was recently recruited for VH1’s all new “Black Ink Atlanta” franchise. Today’s couples are notorious for getting their lover’s names, faces and even birthdays drawn over various parts of their physique and while it may be a passionate display of affection for a moment, is it really a good idea to get your lover’s name inked on your body? According to Boneface, getting inked in the name of love is not always a good idea.
“I had one woman who came in and got her man’s name tatted on the side of her neck. Her man was there cheering her on, but he got her name much smaller in a less noticeable place,” he recalls. “I think it can be a jinx on your relationship. People come back in six months wanting me to cover up their ex’s name. I just don’t think it’s a good idea.”
In the case of a lovestruck customer who insists on having a representation of their loved one on their body, Boneface suggests getting a symbol that represents that person or even their initials. “Initials are smaller and easier to cover up,” he says. When asked about the new craze of wedding ring tattoos i.e. Jay Z and Beyoncé, Boneface surprisingly was all for it. “I like the wedding ring tattoos. That’s dope. I mean if you’re getting married that’s forever, so you shouldn’t be back needing it covered up. That’s with you forever.”
Besides customers needing names and faces removed from their bodies because of jilted love, Boneface sees a lot of bad work done by other artists. “If you are going to get a tattoo, first of all you shouldn’t be cheap. People will spend all kinds of money on cars, clothes and be cheap with their tattoo but that’s going to be on your body forever. Most times you get what you pay for,” he says.
He also suggests customers visit their tattoo artist of choice before going to get inked in order to make sure the facility and work areas are clean.
His last piece of advice will no doubt resonate with other tattoo artists: “Trust your artist. A lot of times people end up messing up the work because they do too much to the design. Your tattoo artist knows what will look good on the body. If you choose them, you have to trust them.”
I definitely trust Boneface. He hooked me up by re-constructing a tattoo I’d gotten over 15 years ago and did a great job.
Black Ink Atlanta debuts this summer, but you can catch Boneface on ‘Inkmaster: Shop Wars’ on Spike TV every Tuesday 9/8 CST. Follow him on social media at @bonefaceink
See more from my conversation with Boneface after the break.
