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This week we take a look at an instagram post that shows Michelle DiDonato Quinones' tattoos fresh vs healed as we learn what works and what doesn't. 

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Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, and guest Aaron Davis (Atlanta-based tattooer specializing in Afro-Americana, tattooing 7+ years) discuss what makes a tattooer hireable if they had no reputation, including how shop hiring has changed, the importance of portfolio, attitude, reliability, and the ability to pay rent by bringing in clients. They weigh social media presence versus consistent walk-ins, emphasize professionalism and respecting clients’ time, and name major red flags like drug/alcohol issues and personal drama spilling into the shop. The conversation covers the value of peer critique and being around strong artists, how apprenticeships have shifted with information online, changes in needle and machine culture, and secondhand gear marketplaces. They compare illustration and tattooing economics, touch on AI’s impact, and close with advice for aspiring artists: show up, build trust, study fundamentals, curate only your best work, be humble, seek critique, and ask whether you’d hire yourself.

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Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano sit down with special guest Joe Redding (@coyoteeyes), a fine line and black-and-gray micro realism tattooer who apprenticed in 2017 and went full time during COVID after bartending and other work. They break down misconceptions about fine line tattoos by reacting to a reel and its polarized comments, then discuss what makes fine line work last: consistent depth control, avoiding blowouts, using “bloodlines/train tracks” and “scrubbing” to create a pocket for ink, and often lining with diluted black or grey wash to reduce pigment spread while selectively adding contrast. They also cover limitations on darker skin or heavy sun exposure, crosshatching and ink choices, plus how Instagram algorithms, boosting fees, video frame rates, and AI are reshaping tattoo marketing and workflows.

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On the Honest Tattoo Podcast, Jon Mesa and  Matt Truiano welcome guest tattooer Eoghann McGregor, a Scottish artist now working in  New York, who has been tattooing about seven and a half years and describes his style as “weirdo trad”  The group recaps the intimate Third Coast show in Chicago, talks about convention tattooing, walk-ups, and how body positioning can drastically change stencil size and placement. Eoghann shares how he got into tattooing through hanging around a shop, losing an early opportunity, eventually landing an apprenticeship, and then moving from Scotland to England and to New York after a visa sponsorship. They emphasize the value of constructive critique in shops, discuss shop culture versus private studios, and announce Ermis is leaving New York for Greece in five weeks with plans to return to tattoo in the U.S. periodically, 

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Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano  welcome guest Russ Abbott back to the Honest Tattooer podcast and discuss his major fitness changes, how improved health impacts tattooing, and the ergonomic setup he uses to stand while tattooing. Russ explains his magnifying dental-style glasses, reading glasses, and custom prescription polarized lenses with a polarized headlamp to reduce glare. The conversation shifts to the Abbott Color Wheel, why ink pigment transparency and lightfastness matter, and Russ’s plan to redesign the wheel by learning ink bases and building a more intentional palette. He also talks about focusing on Japanese kumiko-inspired geometric work, tattooing his son, Tattoo Smart’s slowdown, and concerns about AI and design apps becoming crutches versus learning fundamentals.

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Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, Gabe (“G Money”), and guests Michael L. and Matt Buck play Heads Up Tattoo artist edition hosted by Vega to identify tattoo-related “personalities” taped to their foreheads—some real tattooers and some decoys. They debate messy rules, points, and whether questions should be strictly yes/no, while correctly landing names. Afterward they discuss how to refine the game with clearer themes and fewer points, then each shares recent tattoos and broader reflections on staying inspired, fundamentals, client popularity, apprenticeships, and adapting technique for difficult healers, before plugging the Patreon aftershow.

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Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano talk with special guest Bunny about her path through tattoo culture from the early 1990s to New York City. Bunny recalls getting a first hand tattoo at 14 in Milan, then finding a safe community working around a Milan shop as a teen alongside misfits and bikers. She describes moving to Scotland and London, returning to Milan to see tattooing dramatically evolve, and how Instagram and shifting social acceptance helped tattoos become mainstream and trend-driven. After moving to NYC, she began working in shops including Armageddon, Magic Cobra, and Three Kings, discussing long shop hours, changing business pressures, and the challenge of managing personalities. Bunny shares why she prefers staying behind the scenes and advises shop staff to take the job seriously and respect the business.

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The Honest Tattooer podcast welcomes  guests David and Dat discussing their backgrounds, preferred styles, and the realities of long back-to-back tattoo sessions, including managing skin trauma and the mental side of sitting. They talk about building deep client relationships through honest conversation, navigating fear of judgment around politics and religion, and the importance of expressing love and respect even with opposing views. David shares plans to serve overseas on a mission trip to Vietnam and explains his shift from industry influence to spreading hope through faith in Christ, ending with a concise presentation of the gospel. The episode also covers growth through criticism, humility in apprenticeships, social media’s impact, committing to a craft, and Dat’s journey from early “hot garbage” drawings to rapid improvement through work ethic.

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The hosts interview Ses about how tattooing was harder to enter in the early ’90s without the internet, leading him to start underground as a “scratcher,” build a mail-order tattoo supply/flash hustle, and eventually learn by hanging around Fat Mike’s biker shop, where he began tattooing with a homemade machine and later inherited clients after Fat Mike died. Ses describes the importance of flash to shop identity, collecting and drawing flash, and meeting key artists like Jack Rudy and later collaborating with Boog and Nemo on a major flash set after connecting via Myspace, including Boog’s demand to see him draw in person and his intense travel/work ethic. They discuss hand-drawn vs digital flash, algorithm-driven “timeless” trends, AI references, client guidance, numbing products, and the need to respect and preserve tattoo history, ending with the host presenting a NYC Tattoos coloring book project and Ses showing framed gifts and original flash pages.

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On the Honest Tattooer podcast, Jon, Matt, Ermes, and Pony read listener letters about common tattoo shop problems: shops favoring artists with big social followings, two artists dating and bringing relationship tension into the workplace, and a shop owner whose talented friend drives away managers and staff through harsh communication. They discuss balancing shop promotion across artists, encouraging simple, consistent content for introverted tattooers, and separating business from friendship when addressing behavior that harms shop culture. They also talk about posting frequency and algorithms, show examples of a fresh-to-healed tattoo with online criticism differences between Instagram and Facebook, debate pricing and logistics for a convention collab tattoo, and end with thoughts on daily practice for drawing and creativity. They mention attending the Third Coast Tattoo Convention in Chicago.

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