Becoming a tattoo artist can be a great way to live out your dreams of being an artist. As a tattoo artist, ever day will be an inspiring and creative venture and you’ll have stories to tell for the rest of your life. When it comes down to it, the stigma that used to plague tattoo art has truly thawed over the years, which is opening up many new positions in the field. Many people – from all walks of life – are getting tattooed. In fact, the art of tattooing has been an ancient, sacred part of humanity for thousands of years. In modern, Western society, it dropped out of popularity, because for the past couple hundred years it was seen as something only a certain part of the population was interested in. As its popularity has been steadily increasing over the past 20 years, the need for highly talented tattoo artists has become increasingly in demand. Here are some of the requirements to become a licensed tattoo artist.

First and foremost, you need to know that you are ready to become a tattoo artist. When it comes down to it, you need to be prepared for the process of injecting needles of ink into people’s skin, because that is essentially the tattoo process. You may also see blood and you will have people squirming in pain. Not only that, but you have to have a love and interest in tattoo art. In fact, if you visit InkedMag.com, you can learn a lot about tattoos and the tattoo field.

After you decide that you want to become a tattoo artist, you need to get an apprenticeship at a specific tattoo parlor or shop. This can often be the hard part of becoming a tattoo artist, because in any given tattoo parlor, there is a certain hierarchy. So, you have to be prepared for a lot of grunt work that has nothing to do with tattooing, like getting coffees and cleaning the shop floors. You may also be cleaning tattoo guns and needles – as well as other equipment. More importantly, though, becoming a grunt at a tattoo parlor will prepare you for the challenges of becoming a tattoo artist. You will get hands on knowledge in tattoo art. For instance, you will learn how to create graphics and art for tattoos using stencils and tracing paper. You will also learn how to assemble tattoo machines and needles. Not only that, but you will also be practicing the art of tattooing on real people – albeit a few brave people who know that you are new at the whole art of tattooing.

Lastly, after you have a few years of experience, you can get your license as a tattoo artist. In most states, all you need to do is prove that you have a certain number of years of experience and that you are familiar with the rules and regulations of the field. You can learn about the rules and regulations online or by ordering handbooks and other written materials. Because you will be working with tools, like needles, tattoo artists need to be up to date on everything. And when you finally pass your test and get your certification, you can finally live your dreams of being a tattoo artist.