Hello Sailor!

Louise says hello to the lovely ladies of Hello Sailor tattoo studio and finds out about their move to bigger premises.

Due to popular demand and outgrowing their previous shop, the ‘Hello Sailor!’ tattoo studio has recently celebrated moving to new and bigger premises.

Unusually, this studio is run by two female tattooists, Kat and Chelsea. They have both been tattooing for around 3-4 years. Kat is self taught and Chelsea completed her apprenticeship in Australia before tattooing over here. Kat’s favourite subject is portraits whether in colour or black and grey, while Chelsea’s style is delicate and illustrative and she enjoys utilising water colour effects. Kat recently won their 2nd award of the year at Manchester International tattoo convention (the first one being at Tattoo Freeze in Telford). As a result their success, the girls are planning to attend a few conventions every year.

When asked about a typical day in the studio, they said it starts with the fresh smell of Dettol and mopping in the morning, setting up their work stations and carboning designs and then spending anything from 20 minutes to 7 hours tattooing. This would be followed by packing down, cleaning and more cleaning, then home to draw designs for the next’s day’s clients. These are very busy ladies, with a very loyal customer base. Some clients have returned for multiple tattoos or have committed to large scale pieces, which will take several months to complete.

As for their own tattoos, the girls believe that they are both losing count of how many they have and are getting to a point where they are beginning to merge into one, as they are running out of blank skin! If you are thinking of getting a tattoo, the girls advise that you do your homework first. Look around a few studios until you find the right tattooist and environment for you. If you are not comfortable and relaxed, you should leave! You need to have a good idea in your mind of exactly what you want and be able to convey your idea. Even if you are no good at drawing, if you can explain your concept well to the tattooist, they should be able to produce design for you, to collaborate on a permanent piece of art work that you are happy with, before putting a needle in your skin.

Since expanding the business and moving to new premises they have also recruited new staff and would like to welcome Perry their ‘front man/receptionist/brew maker and all round awesome guy’. Sean Powell (previously of Blackpool body piercing clinic for the past 10 years) will also be joining Hello Sailor as they now also offer a full body piercing service too.

In the face of the current financial climate, it is good to hear that local creative business is booming.

You can find Hello Sailor at their new premises at: 314 Church Street Blackpool. You can also call them on  01253 752032, email them at [email protected] or like them on Facebook. Images courtesy of GJGriffiths Photography.