Cynical Tattoos

Got piercings in upper area of both ears today. Yes, it hurt. I would have been shocked if it didn't. Well worth the pain. I was in and out in about 30 minutes and they look hella cute on me😊😜
Thanks Miss. Ann👍

In late December 2013 when I dropped in for a chat with the artist. Chris Howton was his name. I asked Chris if he could do the cover up tattoo that I was looking for. He looked at my arm and said "Yes, email me some photos and I will take a look, then you can come in to discuss it further". I took the email address and left.



December 30th, I emailed Chris with some ideas of what I wanted and where I would like it to be. Chris promptly responded and asked if I could take a photo of the tattoo I had and send it. I sent it. I then got another email from Chris to say: "If you can come in Wednesday at 1:00pm we can sit down and have a consultation. That way we can sit down and discuss the new piece that you are wanting and get on the same page with it".



I agreed to the appointment, which I made for Jan 15th at 1:00pm. Chris responded in an email stating: "...1:00pm will be fine".



So, 2.5 weeks since I first met Chris Howton, I made my way to Cynical Tattoos for my consultation. I walked in the door at 1:00pm exactly. I explained to the girl at the reception desk that I had an appointment to see Chris. She said "You will have to book a consultation".?? She then asked my name after and said, "Oh, that is Chris, right there". Chris looked up and said "Yes?". "Well? What is it? Tell me".



I felt a little confused. I had booked a consultation, I had taken a day off work for the appointment, the email said "sit down and discuss". Now I could tell I was not the only one booked for 1:00pm, which didn't bother me so much: simply ask me if it was possible to wait or come back.



Chris did not seem happy to do this, the approach he took was basically to cut me down in front of his staff and approx 8-10 customers. For what? I forgot I was the one that made an appointment almost 2 weeks in advance.



Chris begun to tell me, basically, that he was a top, top tattoo artist; which I do not dispute. He went on to tell me, after I was hoping I would save him some time by drawing something for him to go from, "If you draw something up for me, I will throw it in the garbage" - Charming.



Chris was not done cutting me down, he explained, "I get phone calls from people in Oregon, California, Canada asking me to draw their tattoos, they don't need a second opinion when they get here". Again, I never once questioned Chris's artistic capability, nor his ability as a tattoo artist. I think he is very gifted in those areas. What I was beginning to question was - whether Chris was socially retarded and maybe the store should think about hiding him in the back when there is the need for explaining something to a customer.



Chris's non-evident irritations with me became a little more clear when he explained, basically, "It is tax season, I have a full appointment book, does it look like I need money". I have read this somewhere, I think it was in a book - "The Fundamentals of Running a Business" - (in the words of Chris Howton).



It seemed Chris was still not happy with me in the store. I figured this, when he turned to his reception lady and said "If he wants a consultation, it's $100 and he will have to book an appointment. So, I am thinking Chris had forgotten the email he sent me stating that I had already had an appointment booked for 1:00pm and "my" time as the customer was being wasted with him being as rude as possible. I have not mentioned the fact that I am an extremely polite and mannerly person myself.



Chris was not aware that I spared his feelings with all the customers in the store and chose not to chew him out and lose him any business initially. If I had time, I could have explained to Chris that all business, is business and all customers should be treated equally. I have no idea what I did to upset Chris, I was very polite. I am from Ireland, I am wondering if my accent made me sound rude, but I have never had that issue before. I was hopeful of an apology, no hope.

Love it. Got a tattoo there and they were very helpful. The artist listened to me and drew exactly what I wanted and was very gentle when drawing the tattoo on me. 5 star place, I would recommend this place to anyone in Tuscaloosa who wants a tattoo.