License, schmicense, say local tattoo artists
March 19th, 2008, 6:55 pm Hobbies News
Tattoo and pierce parlors can be found all over the Poconos, and none of them are licensed. They don’t have to be. It is not required under commonwealth law.
“I’ve worked in areas where there were regulations. There are people who work underground. It’s not the reputable artists you need to worry about. It’s the people who do it at home,” said John Dudek, 47, owner of Moving Pictures on Route 209 in Marshalls Creek. Dudek has been a tattoo artist since 1977.
He says it is easy to get tattoo equipment cheap online. Piercing kits are available at the flea market. People ink and pierce friends in basements. Then three or four times a week, customers stop in to Dudek’s shop to fix shoddy home work.
Single-use needles and an autoclave for equipment sterilization are the hallmarks of a clean shop. Hobby shops are not likely to have these tools.
Dudek doesn’t advocate licensing. There’s no need, he reasons: Shops that send customers away with an infection won’t stay in business for long.
The sale of piercing and tattooing equipment would be the wiser thing to regulate, he said.
“There should be regulations of wholesalers selling to public, that includes needles, tattoo machines and ink,” agreed Tony Paternostey, co-owner of Rock’n Willys Tattoo & Piercing on Route 611 in Stroudsburg. Paternostey has worked in the business for 18 years.
Shop owners say they are self-educated within the industry for safety.
“Give me the list of things I’m supposed to do, and if I’m not already doing it, I’ll do it,” said Robert Sawada, owner Images Tattooing in Sciota and a 25-year tattoo pro.
“What does the license mean? That I can put a straight line on? Or I’m clean and I don’t suck?”
Because the profession is his life’s passion, Sawada says he would comply with any rules necessary to be in business, and added that it is simply common sense to keep a clean shop. It protects customers and the artist from transferring disease.
“Tattoos are regulating themselves. We keep up with the standards through associations and at conventions.
“The state will come in eventually,” Sawada said. But if they do, he thinks it will be more raising money than regulating safety.
Tags: 18 years, amp, Hobbies, Hobby, Hobby Shop, Hobby Shops, passion, willysRelated posts
