Sunset Tattoo are heading to Tauranga this month!

The New Zealand International tattoo expo will be held in Tauranga on the 18th and 19th of February this year, and Sunset Tattoo will of course be attending.

Fabian, Mash and TomTom will be heading down to the Bay of Plenty to show off their skills and catch some sunshine.

NZ International Tattoo & Art Expo

The New Zealand International Tattoo & Art Expo is a lively and interesting experience.

Now in its seventh year, the expo continues to outdo itself. This year featuring an even more impressive line-up of artists and performers at Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre, Tauranga.

Top of the must-see list for many will be our Ink Masters travelling all the way from the USA. We have Kamil, Tatu Baby & Jime, and over 150 tattoo artists from all around the world, including the very best New Zealand tattoo talent, will also be present over the weekend.

Other attractions not to be missed this year include: Tiki Tane, plus the ever popular Miss Tattoo NZ, NZ vs Australia 4 man HMB (Historical Medieval Battles), a fashion show, and aerial silk contortionists.

We have a selection of store to browse in our Market Place and a some of your best local NZ chefs with a series of food trucks.

Don’t miss out on this must-see event for anyone interested in having a good time, surrounded by the unique and quirky! Be sure to book your tickets now to secure a space for your friends and family today.

Sunset Artists at the Expo

Fabian, Mash and Tom will be there, each specialising in their own styles.

Originally from Chile, Fabian is experienced in western traditional tattoos. Mash also specialises in western traditional, but adds his own unique twist. Tom, the founder of Sunset, is skilled in Japanese style tattoos.

All our artists have years of experience, and are open to discussing anything you would like designed. Contact the studio now to make your booking.

Tattoo Myths Busted (Part two)

Following on from last week’s article about tattoo myths, here’s part two. How many of these do you believe?

Myth: You can’t donate blood after getting a tattoo

You can absolutely donate blood after getting a tattoo, but there is of course a waiting period. It differs from country to country, but here in New Zealand, you can give blood six months after getting a tattoo. We recommend donating- you can save someone’s life, and maybe someday someone will save yours.

Myth: Anyone who can draw can tattoo

This one always gets us. Remember that one kid in class who was amazing at drawing, but pretty dumb at everything else? He could draw Eddie from Iron Maiden and it looked AWESOME, so one day his friend decides he wants a tattoo. “I’ll do it for free!” Bad idea. Just because someone can draw, doesn’t mean they can tattoo. Without the proper training, equipment, health & safety knowledge or technical ability, all you’re going to end up with is a mess that will need to be covered up by a professional anyway. Don’t even think about it.

Myth: Black ink tattoos will turn blue over time

While this may have been true 50 years ago, the advancements in tattooing ink have made sure it doesn’t happen today. That old, faded blue tattoo your uncle has isn’t a true representation of tattoos in the modern world. With the latest tattoo supplies, your new ink will look awesome for years to come!

Myth: You should take a painkiller before getting a tattoo

This sounds like a good idea, but it’s not. A lot of painkillers have anticoagulant properties, which will thin your blood and make it difficult to clot. This in turn means you’ll bleed more, and that brings its own problems, such as a higher risk of infection. Popping a couple of aspirin before going to get your tattoo may seem like the sensible thing to do, but please don’t.

Tattoo Myths Busted (Part one)

For those who would never dream of getting one, a tattoo can seem like something dangerous, rebellious or even crazy. Of course, if these people would simply sit and talk with anyone who has a tattoo, they would soon realise they are just normal, everyday people.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of myths about tattoos. Some of these myths go back hundreds of years, but others appear along with new technology or cultural watersheds. In this article, we bust a few of the most common tattoo myths.

Myth: Only gang members have tattoos

Oh please, do we even have to debunk this one? Especially here in New Zealand? We have perhaps the most tattoos per capita in the world, and obviously not everyone is a gang member! And yes, it’s true gang members are notorious for their tattoos, but that doesn’t mean everyone with a tattoo is in a gang. That’s like saying both Hitler and Stalin had moustaches, so everyone with a moustache is an evil dictator!

Myth: Tattoos only hurt if you’re a wimp

Ask any 'tough guy' if his tattoos hurt, and you’ll probably get a “Of course not!” in response. Maybe even a “I fell asleep during mine!”. Here’s the thing- pain is subjective. What hurts one person may not hurt another. People have different sensitivity, especially when it comes to skin. And of course, WHERE you get a tattoo is also a huge factor in how painful it will be. It’s true some people feel nothing, but it’s also true others scream the studio down. You just don’t know which one you’ll be until you go!

Myth: Getting a tattoo can be a health risk

Ok, let’s be clear here; anything can be dangerous if not done correctly. Tattoos are no exception, but as for the myth that you’re risking catching Hepatitis or HIV, well the statistics don’t agree. Licensed tattoo studios must undergo strict health and safety checks by the council, and for this reason, there has NEVER been a single documented case of HIV transmission from a tattoo in New Zealand.

So how many of these myths about tattoos did you believe? Check back next week for part two of our bullshit-o-meter!

Interesting facts about Japanese Tattoos

Did you know that in some Japanese bath houses, anyone with a tattoo is refused entry? Seems a bit harsh, even for a conservative country like Japan, but the reason goes back hundreds of years…

Irezumi is the name given to tattooing in Japan, and refers to many different forms of traditional Japanese tattoos, or modern forms inspired or derived from them. Just to confuse things, the word can be written AND spoken in several different ways, and also translate into several different words, although the most common is literally “insert ink”.

Japanese tattoos date back thousands of years, but their meaning and role in society fluctuates with different time periods. It was around the Kofun period (300-600 AD) that tattoos began to take on negative associations. Criminals were tattooed as a form of punishment, so others would know they had committed a crime.

Tattoo fads came and went over the next thousand years, but the stigma lingered, and at the beginning of the Meiji period, tattoos were outlawed altogether. Of course, when you outlaw anything, you only drive it underground, so tattoos were now officially the cool thing to have, and as Japan opened up to the West, many came to seek the skills of traditional Japanese Tattoo Artists.

The connotations with criminality still persisted, with many associating tattoos with the Yakuza, Japan’s infamous mafia. This gave tattoos in Japan a stigma which is still seen today in the bath houses and other Japanese businesses. Japanese tattoos were legalised again after the war, but even today, a tattoo studio is hard to find. It is estimated there are around 300 tattoo artists in Japan; an incredibly small percentage considering its 127 million population.

If you’re interested in Japanese tattoos, then come see Tom at Sunset Studios. He's spent years studying Japanese tattoos and is always up for a chat about any design ideas you have.

Sunset Tattoo are proud to launch our new website: Tattoo Station

Sunset Tattoo are excited to announce our new range of tattoo supplies and aftercare products. Our new sister site, Tattoo Station is now up and running, bringing you great deals on high-quality tattoo products and equipment.

High Quality Tattoo Supplies

After years of buying tattoo supplies at huge mark-ups from people who don't even tattoo, we became frustrated and decided to do it ourselves. This new range of products is for tattoo artists, by tattoo artists. We know the difference between quality tattoo equipment and the cheap, nasty stuff, and we make sure you don’t get the latter.

Tattoo Aftercare

Tattoo Aftercare is an essential part of the tattooing process, and we like to make sure it’s getting done right. From basic health reasons (don’t pick at it) to aesthetic reasons (moisturise to keep the colours bright), there are do’s and don’ts to follow once you get a tattoo. Follow them and everything should be fine.

Protat Tattoo Aftercare Cream

At Sunset, we suggest Protat Aftercare Cream. Protat are the world’s first tattoo aftercare company. By using chemists from their development team and overseas they are constantly researching new ingredients, with natural products receiving special attention.

Each Protat product has been precisely formulated with highly experienced members of the tattoo and piercing profession. New developments by Protat can only benefit the industry and enhance respect for body art practitioners everywhere. Protat Premium After Care cream has been designed to be the primary product in the Protat range. It utilises the technology of the Soothing After Care Cream with the added ingredients.

So there you have it, our new venture into the tattoo supply business. Please take a look at our new site, Tattoo Station, and if you have any questions about tattoo supplies for your studio, don’t hesitate to contact us.