tattooing

unlocked
tattooing unlocked
By the end of this book, you’ll know the secrets to creating
perfect tattoos, every time.
 table of contents
A Quick Note from Brandon 01

Chapter 1: needles 02

Chapter 2: inks 16

Getting Ready to Tattoo:

Chapter 3:
Adjusting Your Machine Stroke 22

Chapter 4: How to Make and Place a Stencil 31

Chapter 5: Linework 41

Chapter 6: Shading 52

Chapter 7: color packing 62

Chapter 8: Highlights 73

What’s Next 76

Student Results 77
 While this new shop was cleaner, my mentor
was abusive to the artists in the shop. He’d blow
up my work on his computer screen and tear me
to shreds over every tiny mistake. After he threw
another artist against a wall and threatened
their life…I left that shop, too. I thought I’d
burned all my bridges and that my tattoo career
was over, until I found one more shop that was
willing to give me a shot. 



This mentor looked at my technique and told me

that everything I’d learned about tattooing was
wrong. I spent the next two years unlearning all
the bad habits I’d picked up in the old shops and
practicing the right techniques. But even when I
was finally tattooing full-time, the shop was still
taking 50% of what I made for three years.
That’s when I decided to do things my own way
and open my own shop. Now, I tattoo custom
work for my clients and I’m booked out months
in advance. 


A QUICK NOTE...
But here’s the thing: none of that struggle I
went through in the first years of my career
Hey it’s brandon made me a better tattoo artist. It actually set me
back on my journey. If I had just had the right
from Tattooing 101. Before you dive information given to me from the start, I could
into this book, I wanted to let you have started my dream job way faster. 


know just how long it took me to put
all this together for you. I don’t want you to have to go through the same
pain that I did. So to help you out, I’ve
condensed all my tattooing knowledge down
into this book. That way, you can put your
tattooing career on the fast track and not waste
years of your life like I did.

When I started my first apprenticeship, I

worked 60 hour weeks for free - just so my Please take the lessons inside and run
mentor would give me tattoo lessons every few with them. The information I’ve put in
days. But that shop was dirty, and when clients
started coming back to their artists with here is the key to a better life. Once
infections, I decided to try to find another place you learn all the skills inside, you’ll be
to learn. Back then, there weren’t any online well on your way to a fulfilling career
resources that could help me, which meant I as a tattoo artist.
was forced to find a second apprenticeship.
01
 Chapter 1:

NEEDLES
As a tattoo artist, you use tattoo needles to deliver

ink into the skin. Needles come in different shapes

and sizes because they each produce different

effects on the skin.

As a tattoo artist, you must know how to read the box so that you are able to select the right

needle for the job. Using the correct needles for the tattoo you are doing will let you tattoo

faster and more efficiently while causing less trauma to the skin.

In this chapter, we’ll break down everything you need to know about tattoo needles, including:

How to read the needle code on the box

When to use each type of needle

How to pick the right needles for your next tattoo

CHAPTER 1:

02
 Chapter 1: needles

Reading the Needle Box

There are 4 sets of characters on

the box that tell you what type of
needle is inside.




They will be listed on the box

in the following order:

The diameter, or gauge, of the tattoo needle is the measurement of the

Diameter thickness of the needle at its widest point (the base where the needle
begins to sharpen to a point).

The needle count is determined by how many individual sharps make up

Needle Count the whole needle. The more sharps included, the bigger the tattoo needle
will be.

A needle’s configuration describes how the individual needles (sharps) are

Configuration set up on the needle bar. This will tell you what type of needle it is. For
example, whether it is a liner, magnum, or round shader.

The taper refers to the length of the part of the tattoo needle that is
pointed, or how steep the angle of the needle’s point is. The taper
Taper
determines the precision of the needle as well as how fast it can pack ink
into the skin.

A NOTE ON TAPER:

Occasionally, the taper will not be listed, and there will only be three numbers. If the
taper is not listed on the box, the needles are probably short taper (or "standard")
needles.

03
 Chapter 1: n eedles
what diameter should you use?
DIA METER

What is diameter?
Diameter is the gauge, or thickness, of
each individual tattoo needle attached
to the bar in the configuration.

Why is diameter important?

A needle’s diameter controls how much ink is picked up and distributed into the skin. Changing the diameter of
your needles not only affects how much trauma you cause to the skin, but also how quickly and smoothly you can
put ink into the skin.

Thinner needles (with a thinner diameter like a #08 needle) allow you to build up more
layers by putting less ink into the skin with each pass. This leads to smoother blends. But,
because they distribute less ink, they will slow you down.

Larger needles (with a larger diameter like a #12 needle) distribute more ink, allowing you to
pack ink into the skin faster. However, because each needle in the configuration is larger, they
will cause more trauma to the skin with each pass.

Most common tattoo needle diameters

#12 – 0.35mm: #10 – 0.30mm: #08 – 0.25mm:

These needles, called Also known as “Double Zeroes,” These tightly-packed tattoo
“Standard” needles, allow the #10 needles are a bit smaller needles produce a finer effect on
artist to pick up a good amount than #12 and cause less trauma the skin. They are often called
of ink during the tattoo. to the skin. “Bugpins.”

NO TE:

8-gauge needles are rarely used by tattoo artists. In fact, when tattoo artists say
“bugpin,” they almost always mean 10-gauge needles.

04
How do I decide which tattoo needle to use?

Once you decide on a design, you’ll need to figure out what you need to accomplish with the diameter of your
needle. If you’re looking to pack in solid color, you’d pick a standard #12. If you need tiny details or want to get
ultra-smooth blends by building up lots of layers (like in a black and gray portrait, for example), go with a bugpin.

Tattoo needle sizes will make a difference

Not only are #12 needles larger than #10, the spaces between the needles within their configuration are larger as
well. So, while a 12-15-M1 needle will allow you to add color to a large area quickly, a 10-15-M1 will be slightly
smaller even though it has the same needle count because its needles are packed closer together.


This will slow you down because the needle won’t be as big and will put less ink in the skin. However, it will also
provide a smoother color application on the skin. This applies to all tattoo needles: liners, shaders, etc.


It’s always best to think through which tattoo needles you’ll need before starting on a tattoo. This will eliminate
guesswork and ensure you have everything you need at your station (and that you don’t keep the client waiting
while you search for a needle you suddenly realize you need).

What each diameter does best:

Diameter #12 Diameter #10 Diameter #08

Fills large areas quicker but causes Softer shading

Tiny details in portraits

more trauma to skin

Mixes the benefits of standards Not advised for packing solid color

Packs solid black and color

and bug pins
Allow for multiple passes over the
Tribal
Smoother gradients between black skin, causing the least amount of
Traditional work: larger needles and gray trauma to the skin but will slow
leave bigger dots in the skin which down your work

gives traditional tattooing that

“pepper shading” look

Stippling and shading

05
 Chapter 1: needles
What tattoo needle count should you use?

What is needle count?

The needle count refers to the total number of
individual needles/sharps that make up the whole
needle. The higher the count, the bigger the
needle will be. Needle counts can go up to
numbers like 27 or even into the forties.
However, these are rare and most machines do not have the power needed to move a needle that size well
enough to puncture skin (not to mention the pain that might cause the client). When preparing a needle, ensure
your machine can handle the needle count and effectively push the ink into your client’s skin.

Needle count determines how big the A 12 14 RL (with fourteen sharps) will
Why is tattoo needle will be. For example, a 12 03 produce a much thicker line that will
needle count RL (with only three needles) will create the strong outline you would
produce very fine lines that are great want to see in a bold traditional
important? for delicate line work or tiny details.
tattoo.

What size liner should you use?

Needle count determines your line weight. It’s
important to vary the line weights in your tattoo
to provide contrast. This will make the most
Thick lines create
contrast between
impactful parts of the design stand out and make
the different images,
making it easy to the image readable even from far away. (In other
read.
words, line weight is what helps the eye see an
Thin lines fill in the
image instead of a jumbled cluster of lines.) It’s
details without
making the piece best to use two to three different sized-liners to
look messy.
achieve this contrast. We recommend three for
big tattoos and two for smaller tattoos.

NOTE:

Smaller lines are easier to get into the skin, as fewer needles means less resistance

from the skin. However, they are harder to keep straight and easier to blow out.
Larger lines are harder to get into the skin, but are easier to keep straight.

06
What size magnum should you use?

Smaller mags are great for filling in tight areas, shading small details and creating texture.


As a rule of thumb, you should use the biggest mag the tattoo will allow. If you use a small mag to cover a large

area, it will be harder to get a consistent fill or smooth blend.

For Example, if you use a 5 mag to fill in a full tribal sleeve, it will take forever to

finish and cause unnecessary trauma to the skin. Or, if you have a color

background, your color application will be uneven and cause the tattoo to heal

patchy. (An exaggerated image of this would be using a paintbrush to paint a wall

instead of a paint roller.)


If you’re going to be packing large areas of skin, use a larger mag like a 15 or 23.

They cover more space, and produce smoother gradients over a large area than a

smaller needle. Why? Because larger mags require fewer passes to cover the area.

(We’ll cover these “configurations” of liner, shader, and mag in the next section.)

Key points to remember when choosing the size


(needle count) of your needles:

Script: Use the thinnest liner

Whenever you can, make Use the biggest mag that you are comfortable with,

sure to use multiple line possible for the design for this will give you more

weights in your tattoo to easier tattooing and precision, accuracy and allow

you to tattoo fine details.

make parts of it stand out. consistent blends.
Smaller liners increase your

chances of getting blow outs.

07
 Chapter 1: needles
What the Different Configurations Mean

RL Round Liner RS Round Shader F Flat

M1 Magnum M1C, RM Curved Mag M2 Stacked Mag

What is needle count?

A needle’s configuration consists of how the needles are placed on the needle bar.

A configuration can also be called a needle grouping.

Why is configuration important?

The configuration of the needle will have a big effect on how the ink will be deposited into the skin. One of the
most commonly used needles is a “12 07 RL.” This means seven #12 needles arranged in a Round Liner
configuration.

08
 Chapter 1: needles

What each configuration is used for

How should each configuration be used?

This tattoo needle size chart can help you remember which needle configuration to use in each scenario:

Round Liner (RL)

Used for: Clear-cut lines, delicate and thin lines, script, dot work, stippling, small
areas of shading (i.e. portraits
The needles in a round liner configuration are grouped together tighter at the
end. This keeps the ink in a concentrated area and the look of a line is more
clearly seen
A “Tight Liner” is a liner with needles that are particularly close together.
However, this tilting can give a bit of a “pinching” feeling to the client’s skin,
making liners potentially more painful for your customer
1-3RLs can be used for script or delicate details like eyes in portraits.

Round Shader (RS)

Used for: Soft-edge lines, shading small areas, color packin

Great for filling in small areas, texture and highlight
Produce less trauma than a liner because the needles are spaced farther apart
7 RS is a popular configuration used for adding highlights to finished tattoos
Can be used for creating lines. The needles are placed farther apart, so the line
will be softer, lacking the hard edge of a liner. However, for some designs this is
the desired effect.

Flat (F)

Used for: Flats are less commonly used, however they can deliver a good amount
of ink
They allow for precise shading as they are easy to angle.

Note:

It can be very easy to cut a client with a flat, so be careful how you
angle these tattoo needles.

09
 Magnum (M1)

Used for: Packing black or color, tribal designs, color blends, some black and gray,
“All-rounder
This is the most common needle type. It’s considered an all-rounder because it
is one of the most versatile configurations. You can do just about anything with
them
It’s easier to get smooth gradients of color with larger mags because more ink is
able to be deposited. They require fewer passes over the same area. This will
allow you to get a smoother gradient and solid fills that don't heal patchy. (If
you were to pack color into a large area with something small like a round liner,
it would be very patchy and uneven)
These “regular” magnums (as opposed to stacked magnums) are sometimes
called “weaved magnums.”

Note:

Because a magnum is flat and the skin will dip in response to the
needle’s pressure, you need to be careful not to cut a client’s skin
with the edge of a magnum.

Curved Magnum (M1C, RM)

Used for: Packing black or color, softer shading (less traumatic for skin) like in
portraits, realism or out-of-focus backgrounds
Due to its “arched” shape, curved magnums allow you to blend without creating
“defined edges.” This effect is perfect for out-of-focus backgrounds, portraits,
color blending, and having the edges of an image “blend out” into the skin
instead of having it outlined.

Stacked Magnum (M2)

Used for: Packing black or colo

The needles on a stacked magnum are closer together than those on a regular
or curved magnum. The idea here is a stronger saturation of color to require
fewer passes over the skin
Causes more trauma to the skin than a regular magnum.

10
 Warning on using an M1 - Straight Magnum
Because an M1 is straight and is puncturing into curved and cushy skin, it can
potentially cut the client at the edges of the needle. Many artists prefer a curved
magnum needle over a straight, as it bends with the client’s skin.

"Tilting" Your Mags

There are no real rules when it comes to determining which needle you should use for a
specific part of a tattoo.

As you become more comfortable tattooing, it might become easier to tilt the machine and
use the edge of a mag to fill a small space instead of taking the time to change needles or
switch out machines.

11
 Chapter 1: needles

What Needle Taper Should You Use?

What is needle taper?

Needle taper is the measurement from
the tip of the tattoo needle to the point
where the needle reaches its thickest
point.

The taper applies to each individual

needle in the configuration.

Tattoo needles with longer tapers are sharper because the point of the needle is steeper. (The skin will put up
less resistance to a sharper needle, which is why longer-tapered needles cause less trauma per pass.)

Needles come in a variety of tapers, with a short taper (ST), being the standard.

Short taper
Long taper
Double long taper

(ST or S for “Standard”): (LT): (DLT):

1.5mm 2.0mm 2.5mm

Extra-long taper
Super long taper
Extra super long taper

(ELT): (SLT): (ESLT):

3.5mm 5.5mm 8.0mm

NOTE:

While these measurements are the most common, they are not always a hard-and-
fast rule. Some companies will have short, medium, and long tapers at different
lengths before getting to extra-long tapers.

12
Why is needle taper important?
The taper of the needle affects the amount of ink that can flow from the needle. The longer the taper, the less ink
can be distributed. This means the tattoo will take longer and require more passes, leaving you with the risk of
chewing out the skin. However, when working on delicate details or going for precise lining, a longer tapered
needle (and a slower flow of ink) allows an artist to have more control over how the ink is put into the skin. This
slower distribution of ink allows you to build up layers and create smoother blends. While a little less precise,
short tapered needles are considered the industry standard because they allow for a steady flow of ink and
efficiently pack color into the skin without the need to constantly go back over an area.

NOTE:

Every tattoo needle type has pros and cons. And while some needles are better at
certain jobs than others, there are no real rules to which needle you should use. You
can still achieve those same effects with other needles. Much of your choice will
come down to your personal preference.

How is each taper used?

As a general rule, the longer the taper, the less ink you’ll get into the skin because the holes that long tapered
needles put into the skin are smaller. This is great for blending black and gray and executing precise details, but
not color packing. For color packing, you’d want a short taper.

This Taper Cheat Sheet can help you decide what to use in each specific case.

Taper Cheat Sheet

Short/Standard Taper (ST, S)

ST needles pack solid color by putting larger holes in the ski

When packing in ink, precision is not as important as getting the ink into the
ski
Stipplin
Large areas and background
Bold, traditional tattoo
Tribal

13
 Long Taper (LT)

Smooth blends in portrait

Lining thin script (particularly on difficult areas like the ribs). In this case, getting

less ink into the skin and spending more time on the tattoo is worth the extra

precision they give your line work

Longer tapered needles with tighter groupings (bugpins) are ideal for the

smooth blends and shading needed for delicate portrait work.

Double Long Taper (DLT)+

For even more precision or even smoother blends, you can go with longer tapers

than an LT needle.

WARNING:
The longer the taper, the more delicate the needle.

If you hit your ink caps when dipping with a long

taper needle it is far more likely to be damaged

and you will need to change tattoo needles.

Textured Needles

In addition to all the other factors to consider, you can decide to

buy "textured" needles. These tattoo needles have small grooves

in them that hold extra ink, allowing you to deposit more ink into

the skin than a "polished" needle can. This can make them ideal

for color packing.

NOTE:

Textured needles are often more painful for the client and cause more damage to

the skin, allowing for fewer passes.

WARNING:
"Textured" DOES NOT mean the needle is haphazardly dented. It is purposefully

textured by the manufacturer (not the artist) for a specific effect.

14
 Chapter 1: needles

Figuring Out What Works for You

When giving a tattoo, it’s important that you choose the tools 

and tattoo needles that will work for you and your designs.

Think of each needle grouping as a different type of paint brush. You use what gets the job
done, angling the brush in different ways and using your favorite tools, even if another artist
might have a different method.


However, just like with any other art form, the skills to use these less conventional techniques
come with time and practice.

15
 Chapter 2:

inks
Tattoo ink allows you to mark a person’s skin. Knowing
which ink to use and how deep your tattoo ink will make
sure your tattoos look bold and age well.

In this chapter, we’ll be breaking down:

Where to buy all the professional ink colors you need online

Common tattoo ink issues

What’s actually in tattoo ink (and if it’s safe)

CHAPTER 1:
How deep into the skin tattoo ink should go

Tips on blending custom colors, advice for tattooing darker skin tones, and more

16
 Chapter 2: inks
Where to Buy Tattoo Ink: Our Top Picks
Using professional equipment is important to keeping your clients safe. Here’s the
tattoo inks* our professional artists like to use:

*Prices listed at time of publishing

Fusion Tattoo Ink Sample Pack 12-Color Set

$141
Why We Like It
Vegan friendly and organi
Highly pigmented for super saturated color
Good flow rat
Made in USA

Dynamic Graywash Tattoo Ink Set

$75
Why We Like It
Made with #00 Mixing Solution (hospital-
grade water and witch hazel to help with
reducing redness and healing
Heals bold and dar
Made in USA

STYLE TIP:

gray wash is important if you want to do black

and gray tattoos or realism.

17
Solid Ink 25 Color Travel Set

$120

Why We Like It
Vegan, all-natural ingredient
Hyper-pigmente
Manufactured in Miami, USA

STYLE TIP:

These bright colors are great for illustrative or

new school tattoos.

Intenze Snow White Opaque

$7

Why We Like It
Vegan friendl
Perfect for highlight
Made in USA

STYLE TIP:

“White-on-black” tattoos are a coverup option

that’s growing in popularity. However, it
requires multiple sessions to do properly.

18
 Common Tattoo Ink Issues: Chapter 2: inks
Fading, Falling Out, and Spreading
If a tattoo doesn’t turn out as you thought it would, there could be a
few different causes:

1 The Ink is 

Low-Quality
Low quality ink might not be heavily pigmented enough to
remain bright.

2 Incorrect 

Aftercare
If a tattoo artist doesn’t explain how to care for a tattoo to the
client, they might not give it enough time to heal, which could
lead to ink “falling out.”

3
After several years, tattoos will look a little faded compared to
Time’s Effect 
 when they’re fresh. Additionally, lines thicken and spread over
on Tattoos time, which is why some older tattoos look “fuzzy.”

4 The Tattoo’s 

Application
If you don’t use the right needle depth, you won’t be able to
put ink into the skin correctly..

The skin has three layers: the epidermis, the dermis, and the subcutaneous tissue.

Ink holds best in the middle layer, the dermis,

which is about 2mm deep in the skin. If you don’t
put ink in deep enough, you’ll only be putting ink
into the dermis, and the ink will fade. If you go
too deep, you’ll be putting ink into the
subcutaneous tissue, which has a more “jelly”
consistency, and the ink will spread around, also
called a “blowout.”

Going too deep. If you aren’t sure about your needle depth, always err on the side of going too shallow. A
faded tattoo is easier to fix up later on. The only way to get rid of a tattoo blowout is to get it lasered or get it
covered by a skilled tattoo artist.

19
Our Tips for Chapter 2: inks
Cover Ups, Mixing Colors, Considering Skin Tone

Lining black tends to be thinner than other colors. This means that it
is easier to get consistent lines, and your line work ages well because
the ink does not expand very much beneath the skin. However, if you
miss a spot, the gap will be visible when the tattoo heals.

Shading black is designed to expand under the skin over time. This
makes it the better option for cover-ups and large areas of black ink
because it will conceal small areas, even if they are not completely
black ink
saturated when you do the tattoo.

NOTE: Shading black does expand, but it can only do so much. It won’t fill in large areas. 

You want to add shading black as precisely as possible to keep from relying on the ink to fix 

the tattoo for you.

White is the lightest and the most opaque ink, and it easily gets
overpowered by other ink colors or the tone of a person’s skin.
That’s why white fades so quickly and why you want to limit the
white ink amount of white you use in any design.

Foundation Flesh (made by Fusion Ink) is an ink color that closely

matches skin tone. This lets you lighten other colors while still
keeping them vibrant. (Don’t mix colors with white to lighten them,

Foundation Flesh Ink it will mute out the color.)

These colors tend to be the best for cover-ups because the dark
pigment is strong enough to be seen over black.
Blue and Purple Ink

Some clients will have what’s called “Red Reaction.” It’s your job to
let your client know that many people have an unpleasant reaction to
red ink to protect them (and include it in your waiver to protect you
legally). Red Reaction and is often accompanied by swelling and
itching.
red ink
20
NOTE:

Some yellow and orange ink have the same ingredients (like iron oxide) that cause
this type of reaction.

Skin Tone Affects How Ink Shows Up

Clients with darker skin or those who regularly tan
might not be satisfied with their color tattoo, as their
skin tone will affect the vibrancy of color or make
intricate lines less readable.


You’ll want to take the fact that darker skin tone is

harder to contrast into consideration when designing
for your client. For example, using thicker bold lines
and darker tones for better contrast.

Creating Custom Colors

If you want to create a specific color, you can mix ink.
We recommend pouring the right measurements of
each color into an empty ink cap and mixing it with a
sterile needle bar. 


However, you can also dip the needles into one ink cap
and then another to mix the color in the tube while
you’re tattooing (this is a more advanced technique).

21
 Chapter 3:
GETTING READY TO TATTOO:

ADJUSTING YOUR 

MACHINE STROKE
Stroke length in a tattoo machine is the distance
the needle travels in each up and down cycle.

Picking the right stroke length is the difference between a busted tattoo that can’t be
fixed and a tattoo with crisp lines and perfect blends.

In this chapter, we’ll be breaking down:

What machine stroke is

CHAPTER 1:
Which stroke to use for lining, packing, and shading

How to change your tattoo machine stroke

CHAPTER 1:

22
 GETTING READY TO TATTOO:
Chapter 3: ADJUSTING YOUR MACHINE STROKE
Machine Stroke

What is machine stroke?

A tattoo machine’s stroke, or “throw,” is the distance the armature bar travels from its most upright
position to its most down position. In rotary machines, the stroke refers to the amount of travel required
for one rotation. The further the bearing is away from the center of the cam, the longer the stroke.

Rotary Machine Coil Machine Needle Tip View

When the grommet is closer to the The bigger the gap between the
center of the cam, it makes a tighter spring and contact screw, the
loop and shortens the stroke. further the armature bar will travel
with each up and down cycle
Lo ng e r S t r oke S ho r te r S t r oke

G r ommet
G r ommet 1.25 MM IN
CONTACT SCREW
C e n te

 r of C e n te

 r of
C am W heel C am W heel spring
C am W heel C am W heel
2.5 MM STROKE
N eedle N eedle

1.25 MM OUT

How is Machine Stroke Different from Needle Depth?

A lot of people get needle depth and stroke length confused.

Needle depth refers to how far the needle hangs out of the tube.

Machine stroke is not affected by needle depth - it’s just a measure of how much space is covered
in one up-and-down cycle, no matter how much of that space is outside the needle tube. (However,
you might decide to change the machine stroke to work better with a different needle depth.)

23
 Chapter 3: ADJUSTING YOUR MACHINE STROKE
GETTING READY TO TATTOO:

Short Stroke vs. Medium Stroke vs. Long Stroke

3mm Stroke 3.5mm Stroke 4mm Stroke

You’ll find tattoo machines that have various set stroke lengths or have the ability to 

adjust the range within a certain amount of stroke size (for example 1.8mm-5mm).

Short Stroke: 
 Short stroke coil machines move faster and have more power because the
3mm below needle has less distance to travel in each up-and-down motion. Short-stroke
rotary machines move slower and have less power.

Medium Stroke:
 This is widely used by tattoo artists. If a tattoo machine is not adjustable, it
3.5mm most likely will come with this stroke length, or one very close.

Long Stroke:
 Long stroke coil machines hit softer because it has more distance to travel in
4mm+ each up and down cycle. Long-stroke rotary machines hit harder because it
has to move faster (travel a longer distance) each time the cam wheel turns.

NOTE:

Basically, short-stroke coil machines have more power than long-stroke coil
machines. Short-stroke rotary machines have less power than long-stroke rotary
machines.

24
 Why is machine stroke important?
The machine stroke determines:

1 How hard the machine hits.

(A longer stroke in a rotary machine gives the needle more momentum because it travels a longer

distance in each up and down motion. This gives the machine more power, allowing you to use larger
needle groupings more easily. However, increased power causes more trauma to the skin.)

NOTE:

This is the opposite for a coil machine, since it has a longer distance to travel and the needle
isn’t being pushed down by a motor like a rotary machine.

2 How fast the needle moves.

(How quickly the needle moves in and out of the tip.)

3 Your max needle depth.

A short stroke limits how far your needles can stick out. The needle’s depth 

must be shallow enough so that the needle can fully retract into the cartridge at the bottom of each cycle.

25
When to use different strokes

WARNING: The information below applies to rotary machines only. The opposite is

true for coil machines. If you are using a coil, you will want to use a short stroke for lining

because it is more powerful. You’ll want to use a long stroke for shading because it produces a

softer hit, which means you can build up layers without causing extra trauma to the skin.

Short Stroke (3mm): Soft Black and Gray, Blending

A shorter stroke length is good for applying soft black and gray. This style often requires multiple passes to build

up layers of ink. The softer-hitting stroke allows you to create these layered, smooth blends without chewing out

the skin. A short stroke cannot be used for lining. It won’t have the power to push the lines properly, and if you

set the needle too deep it will not fully retract into the tube each cycle. This prevents the needle being

replenished with the tube tip’s ink, which makes getting solid lines in a single pass almost impossible.


Additionally, lining requires the needle to hang farther out of the tube (for improved accuracy), which you can’t

do with a short stroke. This leads to ink pooling on the skin and covering up the stencil.

Medium Stroke (3.5mm): 


Packing Color, Blending

A medium stroke length is best for packing color and blending.

A medium stroke has enough power for lining with smaller needle

groupings, but it will struggle with larger ones. You can also do some black

and gray (but not ultra-smooth portraits that require several passes).

Long Stroke (4.0+mm) Lining

A longer stroke length is typically only used for lining and packing solid color,

as it packs in ink with hard-hitting strokes. It can push large needle groups

into the skin easily, and lets you hang the needle farther out of the tip,

which provides greater accuracy when you’re lining.


However, this quality makes it a bad choice for shading, which requires

multiple passes. Longer strokes make it nearly impossible to get smooth

blends, and the multiple passes shading requires will overwork the skin and

possibly leave scarring.

26
 STROKE USED FOR PROS CONS

Can be so short that

Soft black and Allows for more
it ends up not
gray, blending passes over the skin
allowing the needle
to build up layers of
colors to retract into the tip
in
to pick up more ink,
Less trauma to the
resulting in patchy
skin

ink distributio
Have to dip back
into the cap more
often

Shorter Stroke (3mm)

Packing color Best for beginner Can hit a bit too

Can do a bit of hard to go over with
and shading,
everything multiple passe
performs well
Not ideal for thick
for both lining
lines or for black
and shading and gray.

Medium stroke (3.5) “Standard

Packing lots of ink More painful for clien

Lining
into the skin quickly Easier to chew up the
skin

Longer stroke (4.0mm+)

27
How to Know You Need to Change Your Stroke Length for Your Needle Depth

NOTE:

If you use a short stroke but decide to increase needle depth, the short stroke will

be too short to pull the needle all the way back into the tip. If the needle doesn’t go

back into the tip, then it wont pick up any ink.

The new needle depth needs a longer stroke that will be able to pull that needle all the way back into the

tube. The longer stroke will return back into the skin at the same depth of the short stroke machine, except

this time, it’ll have ink on the needle.


If you do not make this adjustment, your needle will not reach the ink. This will result in weak colors, weak

lines, and a patchy distribution of ink (which will only grow more noticeable when the tattoo heals).

My needle is moving in and out of the tip on a short stroke but isn't picking

up enough in. Why not?

While you might just need a simple refill, the problem could be how you're holding the machine. With a very

small stroke, the needle is barely retracting back into the tip. If you're holding the machine at a tilted angle,

then the ink might be further back in the tip than your needle is able to reach.


When using a short stroke, hold the machine vertically when possible. That allows gravity to move the ink

closer to the very edge of the tip, where the needle will be retracting. Now the ink is back in reach of the

retracting needle, ready for use.

28
 GETTING READY TO TATTOO:
Chapter 3: ADJUSTING YOUR MACHINE STROKE
Adjusting Your Machine Stroke

What stroke does my machine have?

The machine’s stroke or possible stroke range will be listed when you buy your machine. Some machines
can be adjusted and others cannot. You will need to know this about your machine before purchasing

How to change your stroke:

Coil Machine

To change the stroke on a coil machine, you

will need to turn the front contact screw


By having the screw “back out,” you will

make the gap larger, resulting in a bigger
stroke. However, this will change the speed
of your machine.

Rotary Machines

Not all rotary machines let you adjust the

stroke. These are called “set stroke”
machines, and you can get them in a range
of set strokes. For new artists, we
recommend a 3.5mm stroke.


If a rotary machine allows you to change

the stroke, you can buy different cams and
centers, as this will make the length of each
rotation longer (lengthening the stroke of
the machine as a result).

29
NOTE:

Coil machines have “give,” or that “bounce back” feeling when the needle hits the
skin. This quality can often be adjusted. Rotary machines have a “direct drive”
without the extra give.

Using a longer stroke on a rotary machine will give it more

power because the needle will travel faster. This will cause more
trauma to the skin because the needle is hitting the skin more
times.



Using a longer stroke on a coil machine will mean the needle

has less power because it has to travel a longer distance. This
means the needle will hit the skin fewer times.


When you're pulling a line while using a long stroke with a rotary,
you will need to work fairly quickly or at least turn down your
voltage to prevent the additional trauma caused by overworking a
small area.

30
 Chapter 4:

HOW TO MAKE AND

PLACE A STENCIL
Tattoo transfer paper (also called stencil paper) lets you

put your tattoo design on the skin temporarily. You can

then use the stencil as a roadmap while you’re tattooing

instead of “freehanding” it.

When you stencil a tattoo properly, your line work becomes 10 times easier. That’s why, in this

chapter, we’ll be breaking down:

How to use tattoo transfer paper and a thermal printer

How to prepare a client’s skin for a stencil

How to avoid smudging the stencil while tattooing

CHAPTER 1:

31
 Chapter 4: h ow to make and place a stencil
Creating Tattoo Stencils By Hand
Hand-drawing tattoo stencils

is an “old-school” method in the tattooing

world. However, many tattoo artists will choose
this option because it builds muscle memory of
the design before you attempt to tattoo it on
skin. We recommend that new tattoo artists
start off using hand-drawn stencils.

What You Will Need:

Your design printed Thermal 


out on white paper CLIPBOARD PENCIL Stencil Paper

Each piece of a transfer paper packet has a purpose:

White Master Sheet

1 This is where the design will be applied.

Brown Protective Sheet

2 Stops the master sheet from getting carbon on it.

Purple Carbon Paper

3 The “ink” layer.

Yellow or White Back Paper

4 Protects the carbon paper and provides stability.

32
Method 1: How To Make A Tattoo Stencil by Hand

STEP 1 STEP 2 STEP 3

Either print or draw your Remove the brown protective Trace your tattoo design with
tattoo design onto a regular paper (sometimes called the a pencil or pen.
sheet of white paper. “onion” paper). Place the
image face-up above the
carbon paper.

STEP 4 STEP 5 STEP 6

Carefully peel the tattoo Clean the skin with green Cut the image out to prepare
transfer paper off the original soap and shave the area it for transfer onto the client.
design. before applying.

33
 Chapter 4: how to make and place a stencil

Creating Tattoo Stencils Digitally

Some artists prefer to make stencils digitally with Procreate to work faster and create perfect lines.

What You Will Need:

Tattoo 

I PAD Procreate app transfer paper

34
 Method 2: Creating Digital Stencils

STEP 1
STEP 2
STEP 3

Choose your reference image. Digitally draw on LAYER 2. Print your design on thermal
tattoo transfer paper.

Quick Procreate Tutorial for Creating a Stencil:

1 Click the “+” button, and select “screen size” to make your drawing space the size of your tablet.
Click the “Actions” button (wrench) and choose “Insert Flat Image.” Select a reference photo from
2
your camera roll. Resize as needed.
“Lock” Layer One. Select “New Layer.” The button looks like two overlapping pieces of paper.
3
Select the new Layer Two. You must always be “drawing” on Layer Two.
Select the “Brush” button at the top. Use a bright red as your brush color to see where your lines
4
are on top of the image.

5 Zoom into where you want to start and begin drawing your lines.

6 Select a thinner brush size and section off where you will be shading with a dotted line.

7 W hen you are done, recolour your red lines back to black

Click the “Actions” button and then the “Share” button. Send your image as a jpg file and either
8
airdrop it to your computer or email it to yourself.

9 Print the stencil (see Printing section).

10 Cut out your stencil.

35
 Chapter 4: how to make and place a stencil

Using a Thermal Printer

What is thermal printing?

Thermal printing is a method of perfectly

transferring a drawn or printed image onto a stencil
through the use of heat. After your thermal paper
transfer paper and image run through a thermal
printer, you’ll have an exact replica of your image on
a new piece of paper, except its lines will be made of
carbon printer ink instead of computer ink. It is then
ready to be applied to skin.

Why is thermal printing important? Take out the brown “onion” layer.


Thermal printing makes it easily create 2 Set your thermal paper to the side.


multiple stencils if one gets ruined, the client

wants the image in a different area, etc. 3 Open up the back part of the machine and 

load the paper with the dark carbon paper
facing down and the white master sheet
facing up.


How to use a thermal printer:

4 Close the machine over the paper. Let the
place where the papers are attached
together hang out the end.

5 Feed the design into the machine facing

away from you.

Remove brown 2. Load paper with

3. Load image

sheet carbon later facing
facing inward
down
6 Select “Mirror” on the machine.

7 Press “Copy.”

8 Gently guide the transfer paper through

the machine.

4. Select “Mirror”
5. Gently guide 6. Peel stencil off

and press “Copy”. the transfer carbon paper, 9 When finished, peel off the carbon paper
paper through trim and place.
the printer. and cut out your stencil.

36
 Chapter 4: how to make and place a stencil
Are Hand-Drawn or Thermal-Printed

Stencils Better?

STENCIL PROS CONS

Practice drawing design If the stencil is ruined,

multiple times before making a backup is hard
tattooing
Hand-Drawn Stencils If the client wants it
Complete control over the resized, you have to
design. redraw the entire design.

Easily resize. (Printing on Go into the design “cold”

tattoo transfer paper solves without much practice.
any resizing issues in
minutes instead of hours.

Thermal Printer Stencils Print as many as needed

Time-saver

37
 Chapter 4: how to make and place a stencil

Preparing the Client’s Skin

You want to make sure you’re applying the stencil in a sanitary and safe way.

What You Will Need:

Green soap
Unused razor Unscented 
 Stencil 

(with witch hazel) hand sanitizer solution/primer

Sterile surgical 

Paper towels skin marker

38
 Step-By-Step Stencil Application Guide:

Wash the area with Green Soap

1 containing witch hazel to prevent redness

from shaving. Leave the skin wet so it is easier
to shave.
7 Place your stencil,

lining it up with the guiding lines you drew
earlier.

2 Shave the area. 


Brush away any hair with a paper towel 

and dry the skin.
8 Press down 

starting from the center and work your way
out.

3
Hold the stencil

Apply hand sanitizer.

The alcohol will strip the oil out of the skin. 9 onto the skin for a few moments to ensure
the entire design has transferred. You’ll want
to let the stencil stay on the skin for about 30
seconds.

Lightly hold the stencil 


4 over the skin and mark with a sterile 


surgical skin marker where the edges of your
stencil will be. 10 Peel off,

starting at one of the edges.

Apply a stencil solution/primer


5 and work it into the skin. Let it dry until it is
tacky. 11 Pat with a paper towel 

to remove excess stencil ink.

ake sure your client is standing 


12
M

up is a neutral position so they won’t be Wait 15 minutes 


6 flexing or twisting, as this will warp the to allow the stencil to dry.
stencil.

39
 Chapter 4: how to make and lace a tencil p s

Working with a Stencil… Without Smudging

No tattoo stencil is smudge-proof.


Making sure your stencil stays on through the
entire tattoo is essential. There are a few
different ways to watch out for your stencil
while working on the tattoo itself.

What You Will Need:

VASELINE Pro Tips to Prevent Smudging:

1 Wipe away from the tattoo.

Work from the bottom right of the design up to the top left 

(if you are right handed). When wiping the ink, wipe away from 

the untattooed stencil. You can’t smudge what you have already
tattooed. If you wipe ink on your stencil and then try to clean it off,
you will erase the stencil along with the ink.
Distilled Water
2 Keep your hands off the stencil.
The ink will rub off of the client and onto you.

3 Apply a thin layer of Vaseline to the 


whole tattoo after it has dried.
This keeps excess ink from being absorbed by the skin, making it
Paper Towels easy to wipe without taking off the stencil.

4 Rub off excess ink with distilled water.

D o not use anything with alcohol in it at this stage it will smudge the
;

stencil and cause skin irritation.

40
 Chapter 5:

Line work
As a beginner tattoo artist, line work is one of the first skills

you’ll master. However, it’s also one of the most difficult

Understanding the correct techniques makes line work much easier. And after going through

this chapter, you’ll be ready to tattoo lines like a professional.

Hold Your Tattoo Machine Correctly

Use 3 Points of Contact

Stretch the Skin

CHAPTER 1:

Line at the Correct Angle

Tattoo at the Right Depth

Use the Right Voltage

41
 Chapter 5: line work
Hold Your Tattoo Machine Correctly

While lining, you want to keep the tattoo machine as stable as possible. 

This means holding the tattoo machine securely:

1 Rest the cartridge on your middle finger.

12 Wrap your thumb around the side of the cartridge.

123 Rest your index finger on top of the cartridge.

1234 Use your ring and pinky fingers to anchor your hand against the skin.

NOTE: Every tattoo artist holds their machine a little differently, but this is a good

place to start.

42
 Chapter 5: line work

Use 3 Points of Contact

Like a tripod balances a camera, having three points of contact will keep your tattoo machine
steady, which is especially important when pulling smoother lines..



Here is how to establish 3 points of contact:

Put the pinkie finger of your tattooing hand against the thumb
1
of the stretching hand

2 Lock elbow in against your ribs or on massage table

123 Plant your wrist against table or tattoo chair

Rather than move your hand to tattoo a line, you want to keep your hand stiff and hinge at
your elbow to move your entire arm. This will help keep “wobbles” out of your lines.

43
 Chapter 5: line work

Stretch the Skin

When tattooing a client, you

will need to stretch the skin
to get a solid, straight line.

When stretching the skin, stretch in the same direction of the line. If you stretch the skin in the
opposite way, the skin will stretch unevenly and the line will come out looking wavy.

44
 Chapter 5: line work

Line at the Correct Angle

Hold smaller needle groupings at

~65°
A big part of doing perfect lines is making

sure your tattoo machine is angled

correctly. You’ll usually want to hold the

machine around a 65° angle.

However, as you use bigger needle groupings,

you’ll have to make the angle bigger to make

sure all the sharps are getting into the skin

without the whole needle going in too deep.

In larger needle groupings, some Hold larger needle groupings

sharps won’t reach the skin 65°. The closer to a 90° angle.
line will look thinner and lighter than
it should

45
Additionally, the machine should be pointing toward where the line is going.

Machine pointed Machine pointed Machine moving

toward where
toward where
across the skin
the line is headed the line is already with machine
in the skin. leaning away from
the line.

Where the needle enters the skin will be just a little behind where the ink is actually going to be delivered. When
you push the needle forward, the ink continues its forward motion too, leaving you with a crisp line.

If you pull a line “across” or to the side, one side of the line will be sharp, and the other will be fuzzy because the
ink is “blowing out” to the side of the line.

46
 Chapter 5: line work
Tattoo at the Right Depth
“Needle depth” simply refers to how far into the skin the needle is going. Getting the right
tattoo needle depth is important not only for preventing pain, blowouts, and scarring, but it’s
also key to making sure the ink in the tattoo’s image is clear and will last.

To understand tattoo needle depth, you need to understand the skin’s construction. 



And while you don’t need to be an anatomy expert to be a tattoo artist, you do need
to know the three layers of the skin:

1 The epidermis, or the top layer.

21 The dermis, which is the middle layer.

231 The hypodermis (sometimes

called subcutaneous tissue), which is
a layer of fat.

When you are tattooing, you need to put the ink in the middle layer of the skin.

47
 The top layer

of the skin will push the ink out, and the

tattoo will fade very quickly. One good

sunburn can get rid of a tattoo that doesn’t

have ink deep enough in the skin.

The middle layer

is the sweet spot. Unlike the top layer, ink

sits well in the dermis. And unlike the fat

layer, ink in the dermis does not move. In

general, this middle layer is about 2mm

deep in the skin

The bottom fat layer

The particles of the bottom fat layer are

loose and liquidy. If tattoo ink is put in this

layer, it will disperse. This is what causes

“blowouts.”

How to Tell if You Have the Right Needle Depth

Getting the right tattoo needle depth is something you have to get a “feel” for as a tattoo artist. If you’re

tattooing a line, you’ll feel the vibration in your stretching hand that indicates you’ve hit the right depth in the

skin. (This is sort of a “you’ll know it when you feel it” situation.)

48
Whether you have the right needle depth depends on what part of the body you are tattooing. For

example, the skin on the shins is very different to skin on the arm or eyelid. Additionally, the skin’s

thickness will be a little different for every person.

Should You “Float the Needle” or “Ride the Tube”?

You can use two different methods to determine your needle depth.

Ride the Tube

This means pushing the tube all the way down on the skin.

You can use this method to make it impossible for you to go too

deep in the skin and get blowouts.

However, riding the tube makes ink splurt from the tip of your

machine, which makes it hard to see your stencil. And it causes

Tu b e s l i d e
more pain to the client since you are dragging the tip of the
along the skin.

N e e d l e
machine across a freshly tattooed line.

depth makes it

impossible to

go too deep &

c r e a t e

blowouts.

Ride the Tube

“Floating the needle” means keeping the machine off the skin.

The machine stroke will have to be long enough that you can get

the right needle depth. (Sometimes this is called “hanging the

needle” out of the tube.)While you do have to control the depth

manually, no ink will spurt from the needle tip, and you can see

your stencil, which allows you to tattoo more accurately.

However, blowouts are possible if you’re not sure how to

manually control the depth properly.


Tu b e s t a y s

above the skin,

You must have a long enough stroke to be able to do this so that
making it easier

to see the your needles fully retract into the cartridge/tip with each up and
stencil. Needle
down cycle. If it does not, then you wont get good ink flow, and
depth is

m a n u a l l y
your lines will not come out solid.

controlled.

49
 Chapter 5: line work

Use the Right Voltage

In a tattoo machine, the needle moves up and down, so it’s not necessarily “drawing” a line across
the skin. It’s actually leaving behind a bunch of tiny dots packed so close together that they seem to
make a line.

How fast you move your hand while lining needs to match with your machine speed. For example, if
you are moving your hands too slowly for the voltage on your machine, the needle will overwork the
skin, which can lead to scarring. This can also cause a blowout because there’s too much ink being
deposited in one space.

EVEN STEADY LINE PATCHY, LIGHT LINE SHAKY BLOWN OUT LINE

Each time the needle hits the skin Solution 1: Slower hand speed
Solution 1: Faster hand speed

it leaves a small deposit of ink. Solution 2: Faster machine speed Solution 2: Slower machine speed
These dots are perfectly spaced
and appear to be a solid line.

However, if you move your hands very quickly and the voltage is too low, you’ll end up with a
“stippling” effect with visible dots in your line.

The best way to adjust the voltage while you’re lining is to decide how fast you are comfortable
moving your hands and adjust the machine speed to fit.

50
How Needle Size
Changes Voltage

Thicker needles need to break a

bigger area of the skin with every
hit of the needle. In order to get
the ink into the middle layer of
the skin with a bigger needle, you
will need more power from your
machine.

There is no “one perfect power

setting” that every tattoo artist
can use. Every machine is
different and each person’s skin
is different, so you will need to
find the voltage for you.

However, the following* can help get you off to a good start:

3 Round Liner: 7 Round Liner: 14 Round Liner:

6-7 volts 8-9 volts 10-11 volts

*These estimates are based off our Lead Instructor’s hand speed and rotary machine, the Inkjecta Flite Nano lite

remember:

Your hand speed will also affect which voltage you choose. However, we recommend never
going above 11 volts to avoid causing too much trauma to the skin.

51
 Chapter 6:

SHADING
Shading is what creates contrast in a tattoo and makes

it “pop” on the skin. If your shading looks choppy or is

healing patchy, you won’t be able to get that strong

contrast, and your tattoos will look faded and flat.

In this chapter, you’ll learn how to make your shading sharp and bold. We’ll be breaking down:

The 3 shading techniques you need to know

How to fix the most common shading mistakes and make smooth gradients

Why your black and gray tattoos are healing lighter than they “should”
CHAPTER 1:

Which needles to use for different black and gray effects

How to make your own gray wash

52
 Chapter 6: shading
Tattoo Shading Techniques
The three most common tattoo shading techniques are based on the type of movement the
tattoo artist makes when putting ink in the skin:

1. Whip Shading

What it does: Leaves you with a dark mark on the skin trailed by a lighter gradient.

Touch the tattoo needle into the skin at the proper depth. Then drag it

How to do it:
across then gently flick the machine away from the skin.

The needles go deeper in the skin when you first hit it. As you gently
Why it works: flick the needles across and out of the skin, the needles won’t be in
the skin as deep. The ink will appear lighter as the needles move out.

NOTE:

When moving the needle down, make sure you’re coming down straight with the
tattoo machine. If you come in at an angle and then quickly switch to another angle
to “whip” the needle back, you will cause damage to the skin.

53
 2.Pendulum Shading

After the needle is

Machine removed from the skin,
remains in the the motion can be
place. Grip rocks repeated in the opposite
back and forth. direction. Move back and
forth like a pendulum on a
clock.

Ink is introduced to the skin

at an angle. distributing less
ink and leaving a lighter More ink is
shade that gradually grows distributed deeper
darker. in the skin, creating
a darker shade.

You can use crosshatching with this method to make a “spot” of black that fades into gray

What it does: Gives you a dark mark on the skin with lighter gradients on either side.

While swinging the tattoo machine back and forth, move the needle
How to do it: down at the center of the swing motion and up at the ends of the
swing motion.
By moving gradually in and out of the skin, you gradually distribute
Why it works: less ink, then more ink, and then less ink again. This leaves a smooth
gradient in the skin with “feathered edges.”

NOTE:

Many tattoo artists prefer to use mags for pendulum shading while they build up
one thin layer after another. The lines you create with this method need to overlap
slightly to make sure there’s no patchy, empty space.

54
 3. Packing

Move in small, Big, looping ovals

tight ovals to with spaces in

create a solid between
fill

What it does: Lets you create solid fills.

Move the needle in tight oval motions over the skin. Make sure
How to do it:
pressure on the needle is not heavier on one side of the needle.

Moving your needles in an oval motion covers more surface area and
Why it works:
prevents gaps from appearing in your shading.

NOTE: Use larger mags to cover a big space. Slow your work speed as well as your

machine speed to really pack the ink into the skin.


PRO TIP : Don't “hop around” with your shading. While you're shading a tattoo,

don't move from one area to another. Do all the shading in one area as you flow

with the piece. Continually expand the shading of the area you're working on until

the piece is filled.

REMINDER: Remember to wipe excess ink away with a clean paper towel while you

work so you can make sure you’re not missing any areas.

55
 Chapter 6: shading
Common Mistakes
Most issues with black and gray come down to tiny changes in technique. Here’s the top
mistakes new artists make, why they happen, and how to fix them:

1 Tattoo Healing Patchy or Uneven:

There are multiple reasons your tattoos could be healing patchy, though most of
them will occur when using a circular motion with the needle (AKA “packing”):

PROBLEM 1

Your circles (or ovals) are too

large, leaving empty space
between the circles. Keep your
ovals tight and tiny.

Ovals are too large,

Ovals are tight,

leaving white space properly packing

ink

PROBLEM 2

You’re moving the needle too

quickly. Circular motions
should be slower to pack in the
ink.
Rushed movements Slow, controlled

do not give enough movements allow

time to pack in the you to pack in the
ink and can lead to ink.
inconsistency.

56
 PROBLEM 3

You’re not angling your mag.

If the needle is straight when you’re

moving it in an oval formation, all the
needle barbs will line up and slice the
skin like a razor blade (see the image
left), leaving you with overworked skin
When moving across When the mag is and a patchy tattoo. This is not what
the skin, the needles tilted, you can move

“double up” on the in any direction you want.

skin, causing trauma
without “doubling
& possible cuts. up”

2 Not making the tattoo dark enough:

Black and gray lightens up 30% when it is fully healed. This is especially true when
you’re working on sensitive areas like ribs, inner bicep, or the back of the knee.

During the tattoo, blood seeps through the skin, making your lighter shades look
much darker than they really are. This leads artists to put less ink into the skin, which
causes their tattoos to fade much faster than a normal tattoo.

3 Using Wrong Stroke, Diameter, or Needle Type:

If you’re using the wrong needle or stroke on your tattoo machine while working on
black and gray realism, you could be sacrificing the smoothness of your blends and
causing patchy healing. Here’s a quick cheat sheet:

MACHINE STROKE

Short Stroke
Build up layers in black and gray, allows

3mm for multiple passes without chewing out

the client’s skin.

57
 Medium Stroke
3.5 - 3.8mm Pack in solid black tattoo ink.

NOTE: 3.5 Stroke- If you only have access to one tattoo machine, a 3.5 stroke will
allow you to shade and pack in ink.

You can also pack ink with a 4mm stroke but you need to turn down the voltage significantly
(5-6 volts) so that you do not overwork the skin.
DIAMETER
Bugpin Soft portrait work. Easier on the
#08/#10, 0.25 - 0.30mm skin, allowing you to build up layers.

Standard Better for solid black and packing

#12, 0.35mm dark colors due to its larger (more
even) coverage over a bigger space.
Needle Type
M2 Stacked Mag
Tribal and packing black ink
quickly. Needles are tighter and
make sharper lines.
M1C Curved Mag
Soft portrait work. Easier on the
skin, allowing you to build up layers.

3RL Thin Liner

Fine details like eyes, lashes, brows,
and nostrils.
58
 Keep Realism from Looking Like a Cartoon

While portraits and realistic images might look like they have hard edges, portraits are
composed using only shading techniques.

Just like the human body has no "outlines", realism portraits have no true outline to them
because they're representing a 3-D shape.

59
 Chapter 6: shading

Making Your Own Gray Wash

Having the right technique when you shade is critical. But without the right mixture of gray wash,
your tattoo will either be too dark or so light that it will fade within a month or two. This can be
difficult to spot when you are tattooing because the blood in the skin makes gray wash look darker
than it actually is.

On average, gray wash will look 30% lighter when it heals. To prevent that from happening follow
this simple formula when mixing your own gray wash (if you don't buy premade) to get the best
result:

NOTE: Gray wash will heal 30% lighter when it heals.

Gray Wash Measurements

There's an unlimited number of shades you can create with gray wash. If you aren't sure
where to start, begin with these four caps:

1 Full black 3 1 drop black, witch hazel

2 1/3 black, 2/3 with hazel 4 Full witch hazel

60
The cap of plain witch hazel can be used to dilute the gray wash in the needle's tip to produce
smoother blends and more shades of gray.

For example, if you need something a bit darker than the one drop ink, but lighter than the

1/3 full black cap, you could lighten some of the 1/3 mixture with witch hazel.

Dip in the lightest wash then in the witch hazel to create ultra light shades to smooth out where
the tattoo fades from ink to skin. This combination will be nearly invisible when healed. (Do not
use in large areas; only us to smooth out shades).

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 Chapter 7:

COLOR PACKING
Being able to correctly pack color is what brings a color
tattoo to life. Without the right techniques for packing and
blending out colors, your tattoos will look pale and patchy.

That’s why, in this chapter, we’ll be breaking down:

How to pack color correctly

How to blend out colors to skin tone

How to make sure your colors stay vibrant in the skin

CHAPTER 1:

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 Chapter 7: color packing

materials

We’ll be using the sample rose tattoo below to talk about packing color. However, the

principles we talk about in this chapter can be applied to any tattoo design.

Materials:

Machine

We recommend setting your machine to a 4mm stroke and turning

your volts down lower. That is usually best for color packing.

If you Float the needle, when color packing you will have more

visibility.

NOTE:

A lot of people think that you can tattoo really fast if you just turn up the volts. This

is not recommended. If you’re not super confident yet and you turn the volts up

super high, it becomes much easier to overwork the skin.

63
 Needles

To pack ink, you’ll use standard (12-gauge) needles. We recommend

using straight mags over curved mags for color to cover more
ground.

Use a 7 Round Shader for the white highlights.

inks

Which ink colors you use will obviously vary, depending on your
design. However, there are two ink colors you’ll want to keep in
mind when it comes to packing color:

1 Foundation Flesh: This is the closest color you can get to

actual skin tone. When you whip your colors out and then mix
a little bit of that color with Foundation Flesh, it’ll blend to
skin tone without looking washed out.

12 Black: We recommend Power Black by Fusion. It’s different

from a lining black. Lining black is very thin, and it doesn’t
thicken as much over time. However, shading black will
expand out into the skin as the tattoo ages. (You never want
to use shading black for lining because it will spread and
make your lines super thick.)

NOTE:

Because this ink “expands,” if you have any tiny gaps in your packing, the ink will
expand to fill them in. However, this isn’t a “silver bullet” for shading. The
expanding effect is minimal, and it won’t fix patching shading. However, if there’s
tiny imperfections in your work, shading black will cover it over time.

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 Chapter 7: color packing

warm-up exercises
Packing



To pack ink into the skin, all you have to do is move in really tight oval formations.

If you’re too loose, you won’t get a solid color; you’ll only get a tint of that color.

Make sure that you’re not moving side to side when you’re doing your ovals, or that
will slice the skin (all the sharps will line up and slice across). Instead, go diagonally up
and down. That will give you a solid fill, but it won’t slice up the skin.

Crosshatching



If you are moving up and to the right every time, and then you change direction and
go the other way, you’ll fill in the gaps that are left by the needles when they’re going
up and down and hitting the skin. This is why crosshatching will give you more
consistent fills.

Blending to Skin Tone



To blend your colors, you want to whip the color out a little bit on the edge of your
packed area (use the whip shading technique). The more whipped out it is, the easier
it will be to blend to another color. Once you’ve whipped the color out and there’s
almost no ink in the needle, you want to pinch the needles with a paper towel to get
out the rest of the ink. Then, you can dip into the Foundation Flesh. You’ll see the
color start to mix. Pinch the needles in the paper towel again, and then dip back into
the Foundation Flesh again.

For this example, the combination of the red and Foundation Flesh will make a very light red (not quite pink).

While it might look pink when it’s just coming out of the tube, it will just look like a brighter red in
the skin. When you’re mixing with Foundation Flesh, you’re getting closer and closer to skin tone,
so it gets easier and easier to fade it out to the actual skin tone. After this, you’ll pinch the needles
again in the paper towel, dip into the Foundation Flesh a little bit longer. When you start to pack the
color, you’ll see that none of the red is left, and you’re only left with the cream color. On skin, this
will look like you’ve blended it out perfectly to skin tone.
65
 A lot of beginners won’t use Foundation Flesh, and instead try to dilute their
colors with distilled water. They think if they flick their diluted color out, that the
blend will be nice and smooth, but this doesn’t work. Either you can whip it out
Blending 
 and leave it (the traditional, peppery look) or blend it out with Foundation Flesh
with Water for a perfect transition to skin.

When blending colors, you’ll do the same process. If you’re blending red to
yellow or red to purple, it’s a very similar process.

For example, you would pack in solid red, and then whip it out. You can think of
Blending Color
 the area that is whipped out as if it’s at “50% opacity.” Because of this, when
you put another color (yellow) over the top of that, you’ll still see the red, but
Combinations you’ll also see a bit of the color that you just packed over the top of that
whipped out section.

Like with blending, you put a darker color down first at a lower level of
“opacity,” and then you put another, lighter color over the top.

However, you need to be careful with this. Layering works great if you do it in
Layering Colors the right order. A darker color will always show through a lighter color when the
tattoo is healed - but not when it’s fresh.

dark

BLack purple dark

brown green blue violet red orange pink yellow flesh
white
blue tones

When it’s fresh, you can put a light color over a dark color and it’ll cover it. This is why cover ups look great when
they’re fresh, but when it heals, the old tattoo shows right back up again. For example, if you tattoo red and then
tattoo a lighter color over that, the red is always going to show through.


So when you do your layers and you’re putting your first colors down, just lightly brush them into the skin. Think
of the skin almost like a container. It can only handle so much pigment. So, when you whip a color out, it’s “50%
full.” Then, when you pack ink into the skin, it’s 100% full. You can’t add any ink over the top of it, unless it’s a
darker color and it covers the color underneath.


However, if you only whip the color out a little bit and you’ve only filled the skin 50% full of pigment, and you put
a lighter color over that, the two will mix.

66
 Chapter 7: color packing
tattoo example

step
1
Vaseline

Put a small amount of Vaseline

over the tattoo. You don’t need
much because you can still clog
your mags with Vaseline.

step
2
Black Ink

Techniques: Feathered Edges

If you want to get a natural, feathered edge to your shading, we recommend using the corner of the mag. This
means that one edge will be super sharp and completely filled in (in most cases, you’ll want this edge up against
your line work), while the other side will be feathered because the needles are at different depths in the skin.
Then, when you change the direction of the mag (crosshatch) and start whipping out, it will give you a nice, even
fade out. 



You don’t always have to push the needles into the skin super deep. When you want to get really light fades - or
even just a transition - you can lightly brush them across the top of the skin.

Reminder: Don’t Overdo the Black

It’s great to have areas of black shading in the tattoo, because it helps it age better. Additionally, every tattoo you
do has to have a little bit of black in it to give it contrast and make the colors pop more.

67
However, if you put too much, the tattoo ends up being very dark. Because of this, instead of having a ton of solid

black, we recommend just having a little bit whipped out.


That way, when you put the colors over the top, it’ll still darken the areas that you want to have a little darker, but

it won’t be overpowering and make the tattoo way too dark. If you put too much black in, you’ll run out of space

to blend it out to skin tone.

Add Darker Tones to Things that are Further From the Eye

If you’re brand new to tattooing and art, and you don’t have a ton of drawing experience, a good rule of thumb

of where to put your darker tones is to add shading to items at the “back” of the drawing.


Making those areas darker and the things at the “front” of the drawing lighter, will give your image depth.

This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but it’s a great start. For example, if you’re tattooing petals like the ones in this

example, you would add shading to show which parts are furthest away from the eye, or where one petal is

under another.

Hang Out Your Needles to See What You’re Doing

We recommend having your needles out fairly deep so you can float the needle. This lets you see what you’re

doing, and when you dab, you’ll be able to get rid of all the excess ink. If you have your needles set very shallow,

as soon as they touch the skin, ink will dump everywhere, and you’ll have to wipe the tattoo a lot more, which

adds extra time to the tattoo.

If you float the needle, though, you’ll have to manually set the depth. Use your ring and pinky finger to set the

depth and keep your middle finger connected right beneath the cartridge to keep it nice and steady. From there,

you just rock the machine back and forth.

NOTE:

You’re not moving the machine with your thumb and forefinger. Instead, you’re almost

“pushing” your elbow and just pivoting on the fingers that are setting the depth.

“Brush” the Skin with Your Needles

To get smooth blends, you can crosshatch your whip shading, making sure to lightly brush across the skin.

This will keep you from fully saturating the skin with black ink while still getting a smooth transition.

68
 step

3
Color

Pick the Right Mag for the Job

Normally, you want to use the biggest mag that the tattoo allows. However, it’s sometimes faster to use a smaller
mag when you’ve got lots of intricate, tiny spaces. If you’re using a huge mag, you’ll constantly have to maneuver
it and use the corners. This increases the chance that mistakes are going to be made and you’re not going to get
super smooth, clean fills. For example, we only used an 11 mag for this tattoo. It’s big enough to cover a lot of
ground, but it’s also small enough that you’re able to move through small areas very quickly.

GREEN

In this tattoo, we packed green right over the black. So

instead of solid black fading out to green, it just looks like a
darker green toward the base of the leaf.

It might not be visible straight away when it's fresh, but as it

heals, the black is darker than the green, and it will show
through. To further “fade” the color out, you can do the
same thing with the green ink. By lightly brushing the green,
you leave “space” to put the lighter green over top of that.
Doing this will make a nice, even transition toward the end
of the leaf all the way to skin tone.

NOTE:

A lot of Traditional artists will just whip out the green and fade it out to skin tone.
However, if you want to go through and make perfect blends, you can blend it out with
Foundation Flesh.

69
 PROTIP:

Always do your dark colors first. In this tattoo, you’d want to do green first, then dark
red, then light green, then light red. If you tattoo the red first and then wipe green over
it, it’ll completely mess up the red and make it look “muddy.

Dab Instead of Wipe

When you’re doing color, it’s always best to dab with your paper towel than wipe. It stops ink smearing all over
the skin.

Shading and Packing Does Not Require 3 Points of Contact

We always recommend using 3 Points of Contact while you’re lining to keep your hands steady. However, you
don’t have to do this while shading or packing because you need your hand to be loose, especially when you’re
going for lighter shades and need to expand the size of your ovals. Making the ovals larger will cover more
ground and put less ink over a wider area.

RED

Because red is darker than light green, we’ll move to the

petals before finishing the leaves.

Change Paper Towels When You Change Colors

It’s important when you’re switching colors to change your paper towel (especially if the previous color is
darker). For example, if you have green ink on your paper towel and wipe that over your red ink, it will
stain it. So when you change colors, change your paper towel and rinse your needles out (we recommend
double-rinsing).

Use Negative Space

Remember to use negative space to keep dark areas from blending together.

70
Avoid Rotating the Skin

Try not to rotate the fake skin too much. Instead, practice being able to do different angles that you’re not

comfortable with. When you start tattooing people, you won’t be able to flip them around, and you’ll need to be

able to work with some uncomfortable angles.

Use a Machine with a Harder Hit

It’s easier to get the color into the skin if you have a machine with a bit of a harder hit.

FOUNDATION FLESH

Mixing your colors with Foundation Flesh will help you keep them nice and light.

Tattooing Darker Colors Next to Lighter Colors

When you’ve got a lighter color and you need to go back and do a dark one next to it, you can put a bunch of

Vaseline over the lighter color to protect it. This way, if you get any ink on it, the ink won’t seep in and you’ll be

able to just wipe it right off.

Have Separate Foundation Flesh Ink Caps for Different Colors

Make sure you’ve got a separate ink cap of Foundation Flesh for each color that you dip into it. Because it’s a very

light color, it’s easily tainted. For example, if you used both red and green in the same ink cap of Foundation

Flesh, it would mess up the colors.

71
 LIGHT GREEN

You can pack lighter colors over darker colors you’ve

whipped out to get nice, smooth transitions (like the light
green over darker green).

Mixing With Foundation Flesh Maintains Vibrancy

When you mix a color like green with a white or a black, it mutes it out. Whereas, if you want your colors to look
nice and rich, if you mix them with Foundation Flesh, then they’ll maintain their vibrancy. This is especially useful
for New School and styles where you want to make your colors super bright and have them pop.

How to Get Colors to Gradually Lighten

When you’re mixing colors with Foundation Flesh, every time you dip into the Foundation Flesh, the color gets
lighter. You can use this to your advantage and make new blends that are brighter and brighter as they move
across.

YELLOW

Yellow can be a tricky color to work with when you’re

tattooing on people. As soon as the blood starts to come
through, you’ll get all sorts of red spots through it, and it’ll
be difficult to tell whether it’s in there solid.

Make sure you take your time with it and trust that, if you
see blood on the skin, then the ink’s already in there. You
don’t want to keep going over it because that will overwork
the skin.

72
 Chapter 8

HIGHLIGHTS
Highlights are hints of white ink in your design that

help make the image “pop.” This adds more dimension

to your design and keeps colors from feeling “flat.”

In this chapter, we’ll explain how to add highlights to your tattoos, including:

Which needle to use

How to use highlights to create texture

When to put in your highlights

CHAPTER 1:

73
 Chapter 8: highlights

Adding White Highlights

We’ll be using the sample rose tattoo below to talk about packing color. However, the
principles we talk about in this chapter can be applied to any tattoo design.

Once all the other colors are done, it’s time to use white ink. You want to make sure that you pour
the white at the very end of the tattoo because it dries much faster than all the other colors. If you
pour it at the start, by the time you get to the end of the tattoo, it’ll be hardened enough that you
won’t be able to use it, and it’ll just waste your ink. We recommend doing the white highlights with a
12-gauge 7 Round Shader. Because white ink dries so fast, it can easily get clogged in a liner.

Less is more when it comes to highlights, and you want to put them in the same way you would
normal lines: slowly arc in and don’t push the needle in the full depth right away. Instead, start
shallow and then slowly get deeper (this will make the line thicker). Then, as you taper out, the line
gets thinner and you get a clean line.

Don’t Use Steel Grips for White Ink Using White Ink Over Colors
When you’re doing the highlights, don’t use a You can put white ink over a light color
steel tip grip - always use a disposable grip. and the white will show through.
The metal filings from the needle filing against However, if you put white over black ink,
the tube will taint the white and it will go it’ll just get hidden again, or the black will
slightly gray. just show through it when it heals.

74
 Chapter 8: highlights

Create Texture Using 3 Tones

You can create texture by tattooing a circle in a midtone, adding a shadow in black, and adding a
highlight just outside the midtone in white.

White ink dries very quickly. It’s best to wait until

you’re almost done with the tattoo - and you’re
ready to add in the final highlights - to pour your
Wait to Pour White Ink Until
white ink.
the End of the Tattoo

75
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 Full-time accountant and mother
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 Logan was working as a restaurant

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79
 “Landed a Shop today!! Six months
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80