When it comes to tattoo artists, reputation is pretty much everything. If you plan on getting inked, there’s nothing like the recommendation of a trusted friend. It’s worth it in the long run if you do some research about the artist before sitting down in their chair.

In this day and age, it’s rare for an artist not to have a social media page (or several) for their art or shop. So, it’s very easy to get a quick understanding of what their style and range is like. Meanwhile, their business likely also has reviews on Google and social media. You can read some people’s comments to get a feel for their (lack of) professionalism.

If you’re still on the fence, you can always get in touch with the artist via social media, phone, or pop into their salon to have a quick chat face-to-face. They can answer your questions while you get a feel for them as a person. It’s really important that you trust your gut. If you don’t feel comfortable, you don’t have to pick that particular artist. It’s okay to ‘shop around.’

Tattoos might not be forever with the advent of laser removal, but it’s still your time, money, and health at stake!

According to Inked magazine, professional artists take the proper health and safety precautions. They take sanitation seriously. They wear gloves. They clean their machines. They keep a neat workstation. And they have an up-to-date certification for bloodborne pathogens.

Proper artists will also have good linework, can pack color into the skin well, and come up with their personal designs instead of just copying other people’s work.

We could talk about the subjectivity and personal nuances of taste until the cows come home.

After all, folks have very different aesthetic preferences. One person might prefer clean lines and clear concepts. Meanwhile, someone else might love abstract concepts and chaotic, raw, intuitive art.

However, you’ll find very few people who are fans of kitschy and poorly inked designs.

At a certain low-quality threshold, bad art is simply… bad art—indefensible. Tattoos that are based on bad ideas and are executed without skill don’t deserve to be lauded.

They’re examples of what to avoid, both as the person getting the ink as well as the artist.

The ‘That’s It, I’m Inkshaming’ private group, dedicated to making fun of ‘actually bad tattoos,’ is extremely well-known on Facebook. At the time of writing, it boasts nearly 390k members from all over the world.

However, the group doesn’t just focus on shaming other people’s ink. Members can poke fun at their own tats on Sundays, but this can’t be done anonymously. Meanwhile, on Wednesdays, the administrator team running the group lets everyone share good tattoos. There’s a different theme each week.

Meanwhile, on the 1st day of every month, the team running the Facebook group allows everyone to share any tattoos they want, no matter the quality of the art. That being said, the photos still have to adhere to the social network’s standards. Meanwhile, the pics also have to be original: you can’t repost what’s already been shared on the group. However, the tattoos can’t be those belonging to the poster, and they cannot be their designs.

On the 13th of every month, the moderators and administrators share a topic and ask everyone to share pics related to it. It’s similar to what they do on Wednesdays. However, on the 13th, artists can share their own work, as well as their shop names and locations.

According to the group, you should be prepared for criticism if you end up sharing your own work. At the same time, everyone’s expected to be at least minimally polite. “People can tell you your art sucks. While debate is expected, rude exchanges are not tolerated.”

Some themes and topics are outright banned on ‘That’s It, I’m Inkshaming.’ For example, you shouldn’t be posting anything related to Harry Potter, autism, the police, or Twilight. Meanwhile, you should not post any hate speech, nudity, or anything related to potential self-harm scars.

There’s still a lot of freedom when it comes to posting, though. The mods and admins outright state that they don’t care where people’s pictures come from. They also won’t remove any pics, even if they belong to the person who has the tattoo.

“We will protect your identity by requiring identifying information to be absent, but if you identify yourself as the canvas that is your choice. You can ask the OP to remove the post, but we will not require them to, and you will be banned should you choose to harass them or other members,” they explain.

The point of the group is to discuss the quality of tattoo application and art design, not tease the people who got them or inked them. That’s why there’s zero tolerance for harassment or leaking someone’s face, identifying details, shop name, or social media handles. All of this info has to be censored. Meanwhile, the tattoos themselves have to be ‘bad enough’ to be shared.