I went in a few months back to get my "Monroe" piercing. The lady at the front desk was somewhat rude, and not very helpful. The piercer was very nice, and sterile. Although I listed in my paperwork that I had sensitive skin, and couldn't use any Jewlery other than stainless steel, or nickel free, my piercing got infected the second day, and I did nothing other than what the piercer told me. So I had to remove it. A big waste of $90.
To summarize I wouldn't go back here for another piercing, but possibly a tattoo.
I went here just to look at jewelry in the hopes to start the stretching process. I was happy to learn that they would do the gauging for me for just a tip. The girl at the counter tried selling me $40 each piece jewelry cause that was supposedly all they had...then an actual piercer comes out and asked ME why I wanted to spend so much on jewelry when they had clear retainers for just $10 each...I opted for the cheap ones. The girl at the counter was very rude to me and barely spoke to me, when she did, she criticized the fact I could have pierced my ears at a gauge rather than slowly do it over time. They were getting everything ready and I had another person in front me so I had to wait about 15 minutes, wasn't so bad, gave me a chance to see their awesome collection of jewelry made out of almost anything. While I was waiting two young girls came in and were asking questions about some piercing they got. The rude girl at the counter was very nice to them, mostly just flirting. Then the person who was in front of me in line to get pierced was done and paid. I sat waiting while the piercer was playing around on the computer in the lobby. After a few minutes the girl at the counter asked if she remembered there was a person waiting to be stretched. The piercer went back up the stairs to get everything ready finally. When she came back downstairs she noticed a tattoo I have, actually moving my clothing so she could read it(its lyrics). After a minute she said "I don't get it". I almost told her that she didn't have to cause it was for me...but I was being polite. She was asking questions about the tattoo the whole walk upstairs. When I said it was an Amy Winehouse song, she finally understood that it wasn't supposed to be a happy song. She was very knowledgable and answered all my questions. The process was fast and painless, even though my ears were a bit sore when I went in. It was just an odd experience. I'm still on the fence about going back.
Review Source:I decided to get my nose pierced and a spiral loop in my ear. I was charged an arm and a leg for jewelry and my nose never healed quite right. The policy of the shop is to not help out for free and it would cost $55 to have my nose redone again. I would recommend going to a shop that specializes in piercing and has less of an incentive to sell tons of jewelry to you. Buy nice jewelry from a local artist or on Etsy.
Review Source:I am a big fan of Adorn... :)
My very first experience was a piercing. My roommate, who is an Adorn frequenter, and I came in on a whim. Luckily they take walk-ins for piercings... My roommate got a nose piercing, super quick, mostly painless. My piercing however was a bit more complicated, I ended up getting one on my collar bone.
Initially I wanted to get a dermal anchor behind my ear- the piercer, Ruben (who unfortunately was just visiting), kindly explained to me that it wasn't an ideal spot- shampoo, hair brushes, styling products would most likely piss it off, but he said he would look into it anyway. Apparently, I have a huge blue vein across the area I wanted to place the anchor, final nail on that coffin... sad day. Sensing my NEED for something he allowed me to think of another place I would want one, he patiently waited while I pitched ideas, and kindly vetoed all the terrible ones.
Even though Ruben was not a permanent employee of Adorn West, his level of customer service created a permanent customer in me. I'll be back for another soon!
I have been to Adorn West twice and each time have ended up with an awesome tattoo. Â Justin Lee would listen to what I was looking for and then help make them the best tattoos! Â I love both of my tats and can't wait for the next one to be done by Justin. To the person who said he is quiet, he's not going to be a chatty Kathy. Â They are there to give you the best tattoo they can. Â I would rather they don't talk too much or I would be concerned they weren't focused on their work on MY body. Â I have found the staff fun and upbeat and honestly interested in what I was getting done. Â Each time the cost came out slightly lower than estimated and I never felt they were trying to rip me or anyone else off.
Review Source:My review is mostly for Anne and tattooing, since I wasn't pierced at Adorn West, but Ben helped me pick the perfect jewelry and although I needed a bit of a stretch, it was painless...much to my surprise.
I wanted a half-sleeve of my cats, past and present. Â It was important to me that the artist I chose liked doing pet portraits and I know Anne's a pet lover. Â I talked with her for awhile, left her with a stack of photos and some filler ideas. Â She took some measurements and I was on my way.
Fast forward a couple of weeks and while waiting for her to get set up, I asked Ben if I could see the diamond nose jewelry. Â He turned me on to a new type of jewelry I wasn't aware of and I'm REALLY happy with it. Â He had to stretch, but it was very minimal and painless.
The artwork Anne came up with was better than I could have imagined. Â There were a couple of changes she was happy to incorporate into the design and we worked together to get the best colors...I LOVE color and sometimes need to be reined in a bit.
The entire outline was done in about 2 hours...and there's a lot of detail. Â I'm going back in a few days for my first coloring session and I'm very excited to see what she comes up with.
The shop is clean and everyone is very conscious of sterility issues. Â There are signs everywhere that say "Don't touch your piercing", because YOU SHOULDN'T TOUCH YOUR PIERCINGS!!! Â
Bottom line...it's your body, it's your money...if you're not comfortable with your artist, it's not the artist's fault if YOU DON'T SAY ANYTHING.
This review is only for piercing and jewelry, at Adorn West. Â I had an exact idea of what I wanted (2G hoops) and I'd had little luck finding exactly what I wanted. Â It was a weeknight so there weren't many staff there, and the one lady behind the counter was already helping other folks. Â So she very nicely had me wait on the couch. Â No big deal.
When my turn came up, she apologized profusely for the wait (which again, was no big deal, but I appreciated the apology) and asked what I needed. Â I had never actually seen the hoops I wanted, but I described what I was looking for and she replied, "Like these?" and produced the ear jewelry I am wearing as I'm typing this. Â So yes, exactly like those.
I have pierced ears, which I had stretched some time ago, but I hadn't worn jewelry in them lately and they wanted to make sure I could wear this jewelry before I spent money on it. Â So I was immediately taken to the piercing room which seemed quite sterile to me. Â My piercer was very friendly and knowledgable. Â After sterilizing the hoops, my ears were "re-stretched" to a very small extent and everything was fine. Â I was given plenty of care instructions and a discount on the jewelry. Â I had a great experience all around and plan to be back when I want more jewelry.
Couldn't ask for more from a tattoo shop. Â It is your one stop shop for tattoos and body piercing. Â I have been going to adorn since they first opened. I followed my favorite artist Anne when she left 21st century to open up this great shop. Â Anne has been tattooing me since 1999 and is the greatest most down to earth artist I have ever met. Â When I am uncertain about what to use as filler for my tattoos, Anne comes up with the most creative art and instantly makes me feel stoked about my next piece. I will continue going to see Anne and Adorn until I can no longer fit tattoos on my body. Â Love that place!!
Review Source:So unprofessional. I scheduled and appointment with Anne. I have never been treated so rudely by another human being let alone someone who is supposed to be providing a service. She was rude, did not listen, and was just unprofessional. She made me feel dumb, uneducated and just stupid. "Bad idea, bad area to do it, backwards..." "I'll try to talk you out of it three times then I will just shrug my shoulders." She agreed to do a design and it was a $50 deposit for the whole design. Took 10 days to get the design done. It sucked. So thrown together in 5 minutes, crappy sketch and she had not listened at all to what I wanted. I called and asked them if I could change my mind, did not like the sad little design and asked for my deposit back. Anne replied that it was a $50 drawing. Nuff said. I made an appointment at Tigerlily where they charge no deposit and are wonderful, professional and nice.
Thanks for nothing, Adorn. Clean up your shop and attitude.
I'm definitely a fan of Adorn. I have never had a piercing done here, but I have gotten 7 tattoos over the years, 6 of them by Eli (amazing artist!)
If you're looking to walk-in and get a butterfly tramp stamp, Adorn probably isn't for you. I've found the artists here excel over other places because of their creativity. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure they would take a good design and slap it on ya, but I recommend consulting and working out a unique design, as this is where they really shine.
The shop is very clean, amazing selection of jewelry (seriously, wow). If profanity offends you, tattoo shops aren't generally a great place to spend time under any circumstances  Their customer service may sometimes be lacking, and that is honestly the only negative I have. Overall, I've been wowed.
I came in here some years ago and then some how got talked into (rudely by some heifer hippie) moving a desk. Then I walked out because frankly, its over the top nonprofessional and dirty looking. I have also been here with friends before multiple time, its always the same BS. There are some descent artist here but walking into a place and hopping you get treated well shouldn't be a failed expectation when you are a customer anywhere, especially at a tattoo/piercing business. There a LOT of them around town, no need to settle for this one.
Review Source:I hate to do it, but sorry, kiddies. Â My Adorn days are done. Â I've been a loyal customer (tattoo and piercing) for a few years and have finally decided it's time to cut 'em loose. Â I had a bad piercing experience a few weeks ago as a result of some poor communication between me and the piercer, which is what finally sent me over the edge, but the sometimes shotty customer service is the real problem for me. Â Since I've been going there for so long, I've gotten used to how they do things, so I overlooked some less than stellar customer service and have accepted it just because I'm familiar with it. Â For example, I go in to schedule a tattoo appointment. Â I need to ask the artist a question before I could schedule the appointment. Â Rather than bringing the artist up front or scheduling a consult to meet with him, I'm sent (on my own) to the back room where he's tattooing someone else. Â I have to interrupt him and ask him my stupid little question while he's mid-ink on some half neked girl who's giving me the "get the hell out outta here" look. Â That was uncomfortable for me and the other girl. Â It's little things like that that have sent me packing.
And I don't think I'm being overly sensitive (well, probably not). Â I do expect a certain "Nordstrom-level" customer experience when I go most places like the hair salon, waxxing salon, the tattoo shop, and, well, Nordstrom. Â Hair and tattoos and waxxing are not inexpensive and there are lots of options out there to get good quality results. Â What will keep me coming back are the little things like an extra 5 minutes of your time to talk about what my expectations are or to be offered a diet coke while I wait. Â This is where Adorn falls short. Â And I know it's not just me because the friends and family that I've introduced to Adorn typically don't go back because of the unwelcoming experience they have. Â
Now, in all fairness, Adorn is a very clean, hygienic shop with a good selection of jewelry. Â I have a lot of piercings and some tattoos from the artists at Adorn and am usually happy the end results, hence the three-star rating. Â I just think that I can get the same or better quality piercings and tattoos elsewhere with better service for the same price.
I've given Adorn a lot of my business (2 tattoos and Monroe piercing.) I am happy with the work, but the service is something to be desired.
Both times I was tattooed by Justin. The first with my mother (we got matching tattoo's.) Her artist was very sweet and talked to her the entire time while Justin gave me the silent treatment. We were charged a reasonable amount and I even tipped him despite the lack of empathy for getting my first tattoo. The next time I went by myself and got a simple shooting star design on my arm. It took him 45 minutes and I don't think he said more then two words to me while he chatted up a storm with the other artist tattooing another client. I was then told the cost of the tattoo AFTER it was done which was over 200 dollars. I was in complete shock!
Taking advantage of people and being unfriendly is not good business practice. I don't care how much I like your work, I will NEVER be back and NEVER recommend anyone to this shop. Horrible customer service.
This review is only for piercing, and really only for the piercing jewelry.
I went in to this shop to buy some new jewelry for my ears, because I'd been wearing the same metal in them for the past 3 years. Â I wanted something that I could easily remove so that I don't have to wear the same stuff day after day. Â I was helped by a girl and also a taller bald guy (didn't get his name). Â They were both very helpful with locating pieces that would fit my current gauge (was 10) or that I could stretch to easily. Â I ended up getting two spiral pieces, one hematite, one bone.
He swapped out my old ones and inserted the new ones. Â I wanted to move the ones in the bottom set of holes to the upper set of holes, but the gauge difference was much greater, and I would need to stretch the upper ones, but the old jewelry wasn't suitable for this because it has notches in the ring, and he was smart enough to tell me that this was not a good idea, as I'm sure it would hurt like hell to insert, and would probably tear a bit and cause it to heal badly. Â So I'm holding on to the old ones for now.
The jewelry selection here is huge and top-notch quality, some really unusual pieces.
I recently got a tattoo here for my birthday. Â Justin Lee was my artist and he did an excellent job! Â The tattoo is in the classic rock 'n roll style with beautiful coloration. Â Justin was more than willing to work with me on the design and the price. Â I will definitely be back for more tattoos!
Review Source:I've been coming here for years and have introduced a few friends to this place. Â I've consistently had nothing short of a great experience. Justin has always listened to my ideas and put his own style to them. He's never balked at redoing a design when I didn't like it and often suggests ideas I didn't even consider. I've never had any trouble with healing from his work. Â
My wife has a large back piece that Justin's been doing for her and has had multiple piercings done by Lisa. Â I know I'll be back when it's time for more ink.
Not quite sure what the deal with frances h's 1 star review is. Â If you didn't like the design, you shouldn't have gotten the work done. Period. Â Study your artist's other tattoos to get a sense of their style. If it's not you, move along and find someone that does what you like. You asked a French chef to make you sushi and it's not to your standards?
Terrible tattoo. I am so sad and disappointed with the work I received here. Everything was wrong and I ignored all the signs that this was going to be a bad experience. i made an appt for a consultation but the artist was working on someone else. I had to come in and explain / discus what I wanted while he was workig on another customer. he was obviously very distracted and I felt bad for the person being tattooed, if it were me i'd want the artist's full attention. He looked at pictures of the ideas i had and asked me to leave the pictures, pay a deposit and schedule an appt. I left feeling like he didn't really understand what I wanted. I came back a week later for my appt and he wasn't there. He arrived 40 min late, said hello to me and said he woudl go draw up the tattoo. Wasn't that why I dropped off the pics a week in advance? It took 20 min for him to re-emerge with the drawings. Honestly, waiting wasn't an issue for me, but I was the last appt of the night and his tardiness  rceated issues during the session (I'll get to that). When he showed me the drawining it was nothing like the pic I had submitted earlier. Not just a different artistic rendering, but a totally different style. his style. generic, flash looking work.  I should have hit the door right then and there. Totally my fault and I reminded of this mistake everytime I look in the mirror. I think it was a combination of anticipation, waiting so long, adrenaline and hope that made me go through with this tattoo.
I told him that what he had drawn was very different from what I wanted and all he could say was 'it'll look great'. Just to clarify, I got 2 symetrical tattoos one on each side of my body. The first one was a breeze, he was working quickly and I was pretty comfortable in the chair. when it was time to start the second one he got up for a smoke break. Im not sure what time it was but I coudl hear the sounds of other employees cleaning up and getting ready to close. He came back in to start the 2nd tattoo and was obviously in a hurry. This one hurt, BAD. He was digging in and rushing. When he was done I was rushed out to pay and was shocked at how expensive it was. About $75 more than I was originally quoted. At this point it wasn't a horrible experience and I left on the 'new tattoo high'.
A couple days later as I started to heal I noticed the lines on the 2nd tatt were blurry. I assumed ti was just part of healing and that it would look better when totally healed. Now I realize that the lines were blown out (caused by pushing to hard). Now i'm stuck with his careless, rushed work, which is totally different from what I requested.
These aren't the worst tattoos ever, but they aren't "me". All my other work is done in a particular artistic style and these old school, flash style things just don't fit in. I am more bitter about his neglecting my specifications than I am about the sloppiness. Â
Some other things to mention:
when i went to pay they forgot to deduct the 'deposit' I had already paid. I had to remid the counter girl that I had already put $50 towards the tattoo. My friend was with me and got tattooed as well. She failed to mention this and as a result paid $50 more than she should have. Her tattoo was done by Eli and it looks great. it is creatively drawn and well done. So, it's not the shop, it's the artist. I found the counter staff to be friendly but the over charging takes another star away. Â I am positive that there are better shops in town. In fact I am already planning my next work and will be getting it done at Infinity Tattoo.
I'm only giving this place two stars because it was clean and had unique jewelry. However, the service could not have been worse! Upon entering, I was rudely asked what I wanted by the girl attending the front desk. When I motioned to my nose ring, she snapped at me to not touch my piercings. Understandable, but did she really have to be so rude? After I was left standing there for awhile, ignored, and not informed as to whether or not I was going to be helped, I was swept into a back room to have my silver nose ring swapped out for a gold one. That's it. The piercer didn't close the hoop all the way so that a jagged edge kept snagging the inside of the piercing. I had to fix it myself. After all that, the girl at the front desk still asked me if I wanted to tip (again, rudely). After I gave her my card, I waited around, wondering if I had to sign something and was again just left standing, completely ignored until I finally just walked out. I've never been treated so badly at a piercing joint. I hate the fact that I even gave these people my business.
Review Source:i did not love my experience here. i had researched piercing shops versus mall jewelers to get my daughter's ears pierced. despite the fact that all her friends had been pierced at the mall, i felt strongly that her ears should be pierced by a professional. the piercer was nice enough, but reeked of cigarette smoke and looked like she had just rolled out of bed. just in time for her shift that started at NOON. i'm all for kick backed and relaxed, but there's something to be said for professionalism. she was also having a conversation with a co-worker that included foul language. i might have chuckled at this had i been there by myself, but i was, in fact, with my daughter. i'm far from a prudish parent, but i didn't appreciate the fact that there was zero respect paid to the fact that my daughter could hear every word of the conversation. the information given by the piercer about length of time to heal didn't match up with what i'd been given when i initially called, and the overall "vibe" i felt from the piercer was apathetic. i really wanted to love this place, but our experience just wasn't great. we ended up not getting her ears pierced because she's in the middle of a sport season, but i was secretly thankful that it didn't work out. i will choose another piercing salon in the spring.
Review Source:I love Adorn, not just for the super sanitary conditions and not just for the superior quality body jewelry and not just because their tattoo artists do some of the finest work in Portland. Â They are professionals, they are community-minded and they love what they do.
I have had piercings done and new jewelry inserted at Adorn and have always walked away happy. Â They are thorough in explaining aftercare and if you have any problems or questions afterwards, you can always call or go in to get your concerns addressed.
A friend of mine has had all of his body mods done at Adorn and he couldn't be happier with his tat and piercings. Â They treated him well and were professionals from start to end. Â
Being woman-owned and so community-minded doesn't hurt either. Â Their willingness to give back to the community that has helped them get to where they are now is admirable.
My body is a temple - and boy do I love decorating it with ink and shiny metals!
Most of my encounters have actually been through adorn.
They pierced my cartilage before I was 18, then after I turned 18... boy, did I spend a lot more time there.
I got my nose done, then belly button, nipples and then started with my tattoos.
My grandma became very sick with cancer and I wanted to get something to commemorate her life and decided on a lotus flower.
Jade (who is no longer there) helped design me a beautiful flower that was placed in between my shoulder blades.
Next I wanted something to go on my hip, that was similar to tribal, but not the typical looking type. Justin drew me up this awesome looking design that is quite a conversation starter.
I love all the work they do.
They are SUPER SUPER sanitary and are always fully willing to answer any questions you might have about care.
Their jewelry is somewhat expensive, but since I've been buying my jewelry there, I haven't had ONE infection or reaction to the materials.
Much love to adorn!
Both the wife and I have had piercings done by Adorn in the past. The wife needed some new jewelry, so we decided to stop in on a Friday night. It was packed! the waiting area was full and things were hopping, as to be expected on a friday night.
After about 15 of waiting, Lisa came out and brought us back to a room. She gave us some great advise on future piercings and changed out the wifes jewelry effciently.
For anyone out there that has not been inside Adorn and are interested in piercings, you MUST check them out. The staff is great, the equipment and rooms are all perfectly clean and all the jewelry they sell is ONLY top notch to avoid problems with your piercing. If you have something in mind that they don't carry, they will gladly special order.
Come on, be brave, get that piercing you always wanted ! (lol)
I've never actually had any actual work done here myself, but I've been there a few times for various reasons. The first time I went for advice on a piercing that wasn't healing right. They girl at the counter didn't impress me at all.
My boyfriend always goes on and on about how great they are there though (he got his tattoo done there [it really is a great tattoo]), so when I needed a new barbell for my industrial and needed someone else to put it in for me, I went back.
The girl found me the perfect sized barbell and did such a good job changing the jewelery for me that I didn't even feel her do it which was amazing for how sore that piercing still was. And she was super knowledgeable about various factors that can influence how your piercings heal.
Since I only have one tattoo, I can't really make comparisons about this place vs. another. I was fairly pleased with the quality and cleanliness/safety of the place, but if I did decide to go back, I'd leave before they started if it started to again look like I was not going to get exactly what I wanted. Their place for an hour, but my body forever.
In more detail than anyone probably wants to know, here's how it went (or skip to the end):
I knew exactly what I wanted and had kind traced some and freehanded the rest (I'm no artist) and talked with the woman at the front about how it could be done . With some minor detail changes so that it wouldn't be too cluttered and run together over time, we settled on something we all thought would be perfect. So I showed up for my appointment a few days later and realized that the portion I'd drawn free-hand was pretty much how that was going to be (which was OK, but I kind of thought the tattoo artist would sketch it out a little more). I knew what colors I wanted, and those were included in the first discussion and copies I'd left. So, I'm there, a little nervous but excited, too, and after my tattoo artist shows up (and admits that he is very hung over) and puts the outline on my skin, and I'm as ready as I'll ever be. Then, at this point, he tells me that, oh, by the way, they are out of certain colors (the dark blue I wanted for one part), so he can kind of mix colors to come up with something not really all that close to the color I wanted (something more like a turquoise color), but it will look fine because he can add shading to still make it seem darker. Made some sense - again, I'm no artist.
If I had it to do over again, even with all the excitement and being that close with my body part already outlined, I'd have just said no thank you and left.
So the tattooing starts, and it wasn't so bad. Even the color seemed OK. Then it was time for him to do the kanji (Japanese characters), and I had some trouble getting him to understand that it really does matter that the "strokes" look a certain way (I've studied plenty of Japanese, lived there, etc., and know how kanji should look - especially the particular ones that I'd chosen and had written daily for years in my real life). Trying to be diplomatic since he's the one with the needles and thinks he knows how the kanji should look, but since it's my body and my knowledge of how they really should look (without wanting to sound like little miss know it all), I managed to explain my way through one of the kanji so that it looks perfect. The other one is close, but not quite. Lesson learned - any possible future tattoo involving kanji will be done by someone who has studied the written language or has dead-on perfect samples in their portfolio.
The price was fairly reasonable and in line with other places I'd checked, but even though they could take the down payment on debit card to hold the appointment, the balance on tattoo day had to be cash, requiring a trip to the convenience store ATM (and its fees) next door, so you may want to check on this policy before going.
In the end, the tattoo itself does seem to be pretty decent quality, and the place definitely seemed sterile as it should, so with a clearer discussion on actual tattoo day itself with the actual tattoo artist himself/herself (preferably sober and not hungover) and confirmation that details such as the right colors are available so that it looks how I want to see it every day for the rest of my life, I would consider possibly going back again for the next one, someday.
On November 16th, 2001, I turned 18. On November 17th, 2001, I got my first tattoo.
No one, including me, knows exactly why I got it, but no matter-- I was so into it! Nothing about my personality screams "tattoo me"-- on the contrary, really. Unlike the eternally-bumbling Britney Spears, who has a not-even-Hebrew "Hebrew" tattoo AND a Japanese tattoo she thought symbolized "mysterious" but actually says "strange" (she was supposedly heartbroken when Taryn Manning, her Crossroads co-star, broke the news), I did my homework, and hit up the Portland Public Library for a translation of a favorite word.
I'd also done my research on what a "good" tattoo parlour should look like-- sterile as a doctor's office. Adorn Body Art takes that to heart. It also has, or had, at least, a full wall of crushed velvet art and other groovy accoutrement that made me feel totally at home. According to its website that I just perused, it's female-owned (which kicks so much ass!) since 1999.
My awesome artist--whose card I carried around in my wallet for about four years, just due to the warm memories, but recently threw out-- was about 90 minutes late to work that day, and looked hella hung over, but no matter. He walked in the door and was ready to do business. He sanitized my back, cranked up the death metal, and was ready to rawk. When my legs started to shake involuntarily from the insane adrenaline rush, he kindly put a stool under my dangling feet, promptly changed his rubber gloves (religiously sanitary) and got back to work. The whole thing took less than 30 minutes, and came in at a very fair $60-70 bucks. The tattoo looked flawless, exactly as I had brought it on the page.
Five some years later, it's still looking good. Their website says they do free touch-ups, which I may take them up on one day, though the ink still looks good, and perhaps my tattoo will just have to age like fine wine.
So, who knows why I got it, but I'm glad I got it here. If you want to put some permanent marks on your body (or get pierced) I would definitely trust Adorn to do you right.
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