Hannah Wolf is the only person I will let tattoo me again. I found Hannah on Instagram, and saw right away that this was the artist I needed to be talking to about doing my cover up. Her range in different tattoo styles is what drew me in and I was blown away by some of the full color tats I saw on her page. I eventually got a consultation set up with her two months later. (she was on tour)
Since August I've gone to Hannah 3 times and on all 3 occasions she just blows my mind at what shes able to pull off. My cover up is everything I could have hoped for and so is the second piece she did on my arm. When I see them in the mirror I just stop and stare in awe and still cant believe what she was able to do.
She makes every aspect of the tattoo process enjoyable. Whether it's a quick meeting to discuss ideas, or a long ass session, I have a great time. Something that was of huge importance to me was her confidence in her own abilities to just slay whatever she's doing. I trust her. I know I'm not going to walk out of the shop with anything other than greatness.
Hannah is a BOSS.
Aside from being a totally kick-ass person, Hannah Wolf is an amazing artist. Met her in San Diego and try to get tattooed evertime she swings down South. I'm looking forward to visiting her at Castro when I'm ready for more work - totally worth the trip. She's done five tattoo's for me and four for my boyfriend and we couldn't be happier with them. She does an amazing job of making the vision in my head into actual artwork. Colors are vibrant and lines are clean. Â LOVE.
Review Source:Where do I start?
Hannah Wolf is a bad ass. I met Hannah through Social Networking years ago, she was living down south, and was doing a lot of work on one of my friends, and I loved it. At the time, I was just starting to get tattooed and I knew that I eventually wanted some work done by Hannah. Flash forward 3 years, and she is now working at a shop a little closer to home, and I have been making the commute once a month from Sacramento to San Francisco, just so that Hannah can work on my back. She is worth every bit of effort it takes to get here. Hannah Wolf is savage. If you are looking for clean, custom, quality work. Castro Tattoo, and Hannah Wolf are the answers to the equation.
Tori is the bomb. Wanted to get a crescent for my septum which I got pierced months back, and wasn't sure on the exact size I wanted. So she ordered me two, and I got to pick the one I wanted. Cicatrix definitely has their stuff together! Every time I walk in the staff is super personable and friendly
Review Source:I went into Castro Tattoo because I won a raffle for a hour with tattoo artist Michael Boyle. Â I will definitely go back to get more work done with him for sure and pay his rates. I have no idea what the two girls that were visiting and wanted to get matching tattoos are talking about. Michael was professional, east to talk with and did an amazing job on a tattoo that I have been wanting for awhile.
Review Source:I went in today and got my ears re-pierced today and saw Tory who was awesome. Â Not 10 minutes after as I'm driving away I was forgetting I had had my ears pierced it was so well done. Â Now a few hours later it honestly looks like they've been healed for years. Â I'm a total needle phobe and this was nothing. Â Yay!
Review Source:I'd give them a 5 star review, except this is the only place I've gone. So I can't say for sure that "This is as good as it gets." However semicolon I have been here twice and the work that was done on me has received RAVE reviews from friends and strangers alike. Both tattoos were fairly uncomplicated (one on my leg, another on my back) nevertheless the work was fairly impressive. The artist for both was TJ. On both tattoos I approached TJ with an idea of what I wanted, and he was able to draw it all up and present me with different options to choose from, laying out pros and cons of the different versions. Would I return here for more work? Sure. Would I look elsewhere before getting another tattoo? Very unlikely.
As for the unfavorable reviews regarding TJ and another artist here ostensibly being homophobic, I don't buy it. Quite to the contrary, TJ made it clear to me that he is NOT homophobic. We chatted extensively and shared snark and opinions on a variety of subjects. Sure, he is openly heterosexual. Interesting, common sense opinions, mind you. Gays came up, naturally (I think we were talking about the 'nude guys' who used to congregate and sunbathe outside in Jane Warner Plaza). He made it clear that he values and appreciates the gay clientele and knows who butters his bread. So that's my take on THAT.
Important ps: The prices on both tats was very reasonable. I actually stumbled in here while price shopping on the FIRST tattoo. I think TJ charged me $100, and I had been to 4 other shops price checking, and the quotes ranged from $150 to $200.
Went in on a whim, was thinking of my deceased brothers and had their names tattooed on both my wrists by Victor Trujillo. Â Victor is an outstanding artist and it shows in his work. Â He listens and excels at incorporating your thoughts into your tattoo. Â He has great vision and an eye for detail. Â Four tattoos later, all by Victor and and I love each and every one! I highly recommend Victor for all your ink needs!
Bring him a snicker bar, he loves them! Â On another note the entire staff is highly knowledgeable and all make your stay enjoyable.
Victor Trujillo- the best Tattooer out there!!! He has been tattooing me for 3 years and could not have picked a better Tattooer. Very skilled and professional in the art of tattooing. I feel it's my duty to pass the word about his work because I am so pleased with his work that I recommend him to others. See for yourself, check out his website <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fhellacooltattoos.com&s=f9df8fd4ae74f8b7fb67574efb9a4236cf9a0d20fc9c3748ef44c46ed0bd9ebd" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://hellacooltattoos.…</a>
Review Source:A friend came up to visit JUST so we could get piercings together in the city. It was around 6ish and we couldn't really find a place that wasn't overly booked. We called Cicatrix to ask if we could still do walk-ins and they allowed it.
Although the sign outside says Cicatrix, the actual name of the place is Castro Tattoo and Piercing. They're working on getting a new sign right now.
Thank God they let us do the walk-in because we had no where else to go. We weren't aware of it at the time, but they generally close at 7PM on Saturdays so it was very nice of them to let us in just before closing.
Our piercer's name was Tori. She was very nice, chill, and informative. Easy to talk to which made the actual piercing process less tense.
We each got septum piercings (and another friend decided on impulse to do it with us as well). It cost us $60. With a check-in deal, it's 10% off!
Tori did a great job piercing us. Not painful, very clean. I have had no problems with my piercing thus far. Now I'm just waiting on my chance to change my retainer to a hoop.
Recommend.
This review is for Michael Boyle.
I was here with Lex B. back in July during a mini vacation. We wanted to get matching tattoos with simple line work, and Cicatrix had decent portfolios as well as yelp reviews, so we decided to give it a go. It should have been easy enough, it took under 10 minutes to do each of ours.
It took about 10 minutes for me to become rather unsure of our situation. Our artist wasn't overly friendly, and seemed irritated when he was asked to redraw the line work after it wasn't perfect the first few times. Sorry.. it's only going on our bodies permanently. :
Things got a little better once we all agreed on the final drawing. I was a lot more confident when he warmed up to us and even started chatting a bit. He was quick, the line work looked okay once he finished, and we paid and headed off after thanking him. We thought everything was fine at this point.
Over the course of the next day I got pretty worried with how uneven in width the lines looked, in some spots they looked blown out. I've been overly worried about tattoos before they finish healing before, so I tried to let it go. Lex B and I have both been tattooed before (she has way more than me.) so we know it wasn't anything we did incorrectly with aftercare. We were extra careful because of where the tattoos were.
I just don't understand how something so simple turned out so bad. I HATE giving bad reviews. Really. I'm not just complaining for the sake of complaining. Unhappy customer, right here. :(
This review is for Michael Boyle.
Me and Nicole F. decided to get matching tattoos on our mini vacation to SF. Â We ended up in the Castro, so popped into Cicatrix to look at portfolios. Â It was a really simple line drawing we both wanted, so while looking at the books, all the line work seemed well done, and when we met Michael Boyle, his art also had very meticulous line work. Â The Yelp reviews checked out as well, so we went for it.
We first got nervous when upon showing him exactly what we wanted on N's iPhone, he nodded flippantly and said he'd go draw it up and just went off to do it with no reference. Â We were a bit confused that he didn't want to take it or get a better look, but hey, it's simple and maybe he has a great memory. Â He came back after about 25 minutes and it was not right. Â He seemed irked. Â He went back to change it. Â 10 minutes later he came back and it was still not right. He was agitated, which made us agitated. Â We should have just left then, but we decided if it wasn't right this next time we were gone. I gave him my phone and he re-drew it. It was then perfect so we stayed.
From there it seemed to go just fine. Â Michael was pleasant and he stayed late to do our tattoos, which we thought was exceedingly nice of him for a Friday night.
The next morning Nicole was unsettled. Â The tattoo was looking a tad blown out at the edges. Â So was mine. Â I re-assured her, thinking we shouldn't worry until it's healed. Â We both have other tattoos (I have quite a bit of work) so I came up with all kinds of justifications to me and her. Â I mean, sometimes things look not-quite right until they're healed. Â I've had that worry before and they've turned out wonderfully. Â We continued to take incredible care of our tattoos - no swimming, keeping it out of the shower for the most part et cetera... Â We've done this before. Â
Fully healed, both of our tattoos are blown out in most areas. Â I showed it to one of my tattoo artists at home and he was pretty shocked and said he hadn't seen a tattoo so blown out in a long time. Â After talking to a few artists (and comparing tattoos with Nicole) it has become apparent that this really wasn't some freak occurrence... This was a mistake. Â I'm not sure what he did wrong, I am not the expert, but it must have been something.
I hate to leave a bad review about a tattoo artist, because I know it can seriously adversely impact their business. Â (Yes, hi, I am a Canadian tourist and in true style am apologizing for a bad review even though it is very justified, haha..) However, I wish someone else had reviewed Michael Boyle and warned us. So dear Yelpers - here is your warning.
My tattoo artist was "Michael Boyle". Â He is a seriously talented artist. Â He did a re-draw of some artwork that I brought to him and I must say that I was impressed with both his drawing abilities and his insight as to what I was looking for. Â As far as the tattoo itself, he worked a great pace and was light handed. Â The pricing was also very reasonable and competitive. Â I am 110% satisfied with his work and HIGHLY recommend him. Â He will most definitely be my go to guy for any future Tattooing I have done.
Review Source:Dude. Tori rocks. Got my third nose piercing there , and it is flawless! Its not red, swollen, or painful, which blows my mind (my nose tends to get angry at piercings). And the price was perfect -- $50 for the whole she-bang.
Also, the shop itself is rather comfy. You feel like you're in someone's home rather than a tattoo/piercing parlor, and there's a sweet little succulent garden to look at and calm your nerves before you get a hole punched in your face.
Truthfully, I used to swear by Body Manipulations because of their professionalism and quality, but Cicatrix is just as wonderful, and has much, much cheaper jewelry. Â Highly recommended.
Minus one star for not letting me hold lover's hand while getting pierced :)
Wow, awesome shop. I went for my seventh tattoo because Barnaby Williams is now there for up to the next nine months. Every single person there was incredibly friendly, patient, and welcoming. Very clean everywhere. Can't recommend this place enough. Here's my blue chrysanthemum tattoo: <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.saabnet.com%2Ftsn%2Fmembers%2Fphotos%2F13%2F17333.jpg&s=177b81ad3c78015a39d4ab396f5af6e2de8840e32e6404b17c1b82f19d3ef307" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.saabnet.com/t…</a>
Review Source:This place gave me an acceptional piercing, well, just a regular lobe one of course. The lady behind the desk was informative, knew the answer to every question i had, and was very professional all the way through. She told me when the needle was going through, and how good i was doing. This was actually a few years back, and it was my first time getting my ear pierced with a needle.
The piercing hurt...a tiny bit, and the earing kept the hole open, and the selection of studs and rings are great! Unfortunately, I was charged almost $60 for a lobe piercing. I could have gone to the Mission or the Haight and got the earring and piercing for $40 or so.
Either way I was really happy with the service and the crazy selections of earrings and body jewelry there.
I wish they had nose to ear chain earrings though...i'm craving one of those.
I went to TJ for my very first tattoo ever. Â He listened patiently to my vague ramblings about what I wanted. Â He then designed for me something that was far beyond my expectations. Â I think it is exquisite, and I will be going back for more. Â What he did not only looks beautiful, it makes me feel beautiful. Â TJ is a visionary, and a fine human being.
Review Source:Tee Jay ROCKS. The guy is an awesome artist--and a deft tattooist. In fact, of all the tattoos I've had, Tee Jay's was the least painful. And his work is phenomenal!
When I went in for my consultation, he not only got excited by my idea (dancing Ganesha)--he showed me in his portfolio a piece he did eight years ago that is a very similar design. He went on to discuss with me the mythology, color theory, and symbolic elements of my design. I was thrilled! (We also discussed Pacific Northwest tribal Indian designs, and a few other tattoo topics.) He knows his stuff! (He even knew one of my old tattoo artists, and recognized a idea sketch I brought with me as being another artist he knows.)
He also doesn't book up months in advance (like a lot of other artists), and is quite competitively priced for an artist of his caliber (and with 20+ years of experience).
Go with your gut and find the artist you feel most comfortable with, of course! But stop by Cicatrix and see if they are the artists for you.
I felt immediately at home in their Castro location. Not sure why someone keeps harping on Tee Jay as being homophobic. I'm gay and it is a total non-issue with him.
I often wander into Cicatrix when I'm in the Castro because I really love the selection of gauged earrings so when I decided to get another couple ear piercings, it seemed like a natural choice.
Compared to other modifications I have had done, piercing the upper ears isn't much to write about but I was really blown away with Tori - she was super friendly, very patient and explained every step of the process (which I'm a huge fan of - I don't like painful surprises). I was able to get it done right then and even though I am a bit of a wimp (sigh), she was super accomodating and very nice about the whole procedure.
I highly recommend Tori! Plus, she has rad jewelry to boot....
I went in to get a navel piercing while I was in SF purely due to the awesome Yelp reviews Tori got. I didn't actually think it would be painless like everyone on here said it would be, given that my first navel piercing was done so crappily and was really painful. Tori was totally professional and very knowledgeable about piercings and aftercare, not to mention the process was next to painless. She was also super friendly and took the time to look at my old piercing scar, and told me that it was pierced crookedly before. She gave me a bottle of natural cleaning soap that she recommended and took extra time to explain the whole aftercare process to me. All instruments/needles are sterile and packaged, and the shop is very clean. I would've totally gone out for a beer with this chick, she is awesome and I recommend her to anyone getting any type of piercing.
Review Source:I think TeeJay rocks! Â I love my tattoo. Â I have gotten nothing but compliments on it. Â He does really beautiful work and he is a great guy to shoot the sh*t with. Â Not only does he know what he is doing when it comes to tattoos but he is the trivia master. Â I had an over all great experience at Cicatrix and I can't wait to get my next tattoo with TeeJay.
Review Source:I had one of those black-market nose jobs - Â pierced with a cheap salon piercing gun - back when I was a wee teen with poor judgment. The kind that leave a huge well that fills up with product every time you put sunscreen on? You know the ones: pretty. Anyway, I let that and my other proofs of coming up in the 90's close up long ago. But I recently moved to the suburbs and with the move came a twinge of midlife crisis. So, on a lark I walked into Cicatrix one afternoon while waiting for some appointment or another. The place was clean, friendly, and efficient, and within a half hour Tori had re-pierced my nose, with a proper tool and a smile. Her vibe is friendly and professional and though this was just a little re-do I am sure I would have felt comfortable getting any other piercing work done with her.
Review Source:I just had my first tattoo from TeeJay, he was correcting an older tattoo that wasn't done correctly. He not only fixed the tattoo, he embellished it a little bit and it looks f&*$ing amazing. Very talented and I highly recommend him for a tattoo. He knows his stuff and will help to guide you in the right direction.
As per the previous reviewer complaining about him being homophobic, you are COMPLETELY wrong. I have had several interactions and a tattoo by him. I even chatted with him about my boyfriend, and he was perfectly nice, funny, fun, and respectful. Why would he be working on Castro and Market if he were homophobic?! Your review is garbage. Furthermore, Yelp will only remove reviews if they are unfair and harassing, so I'm not suprised that they removed your BS. It's fine that you had a bad experience with him, but I'm tired of my fellow queers labeling straight people as homophobes because of a disagreement. it is obvious in your review that you can never be satisfied by anyone, as you take to unfair accusations in order to prove your point. Something does not become truth by mere propagation, so get over it and go somewhere else. Â
Aside from the jaded, bitter queen on here, it's obvious from the reviews that this place is the Beez Neez. Tori has done an over-the-top job on all my piercings and stretchings, and I trust no one else. My septum piercing didn't even hurt a bit. i recommend this place to all my friends, and both Tori and TeeJay have provided the most professional service to them.
Take my advice, this place is amazing and they have a great selection of jewelry.
Ryan
I haven't been pierced in a long time and I really wanted some holes reopened. (Along with adding a new one.) Tori helped me out, and after talking to her and my friend, I decided to just go big and get 6 gauges punched into my ears instead of like 12 or whatever the norm is. I was seriously impressed with Tori's knowledge on her tools, jewelery. and the anatomy of the body. She told me which jewelry she was going to insist I have for safety measures, instead of letting me purchase whatever jewelery I wanted that might mess me up. (Which I was going to).
The thing was...I had a traumatic experience recently while trying to give blood for my doctor. Long story short, the extracting equipment broke while the needle was in my arm, and instead of getting a new one, they tried to just make it work, as I screamed in anger.
Now I'm no wimp, but I admit I was just a bit nervous about having a needle go into me once more.
She was so calming and told me on a scale of 1-10 how bad it was gonna hurt. She listened to my little trauma story and assured me I would be ok.
It was almost a rush having her do my gauges! Shes so quick and the sensation is eerie but kind of awesome.
I'm going to send my friends to her, just as my friend recommended her for me. GOOD LOOKIN' OUT TORI!
I had a really horrible experience when it came to my tattoo. I previously had a tribal drawn out freehand. This artist Beth told me she could fit me and that she had to redraw the tattoo cause the the lines were to meshed together. The fact is that she wanted to go to New York to get her tattoo done by a artist in NYC .I spent 650$ on this in one session .
She was rude and obnoxious and wasn't even paying attention and completely ruined my tattoo it was obvious by the shading. She eventually came back from her trip and I called her about getting it touched up.
It was obvious that she cares only about her worthless trip she rushed me out the door from 1 session to do this half sleeve .
However , the other artist seemed very focused on what they were doing. Were polite and were professional .I would recommend going back to Cicatrix but warning about this artist Beth so ridiculously unprofessional. Thanks for the tattoo but no thanks your attitude . I have no respect for a artist that do this when I pay hard earned cash for it .Now I have to spend more money to fill it in  from another shop...Thanks Beth of Cicatrix maybe you should pay attention more and act as a professional and not unprofessional !!!!
Tee Jay has tattooed my sleeves, my hip and entire back. Â He does great work and is a very good listener. Â More helpful is his honest feedback. Â I've had some ideas that Tee Jay helped make better. He shares his point of view and I've never been unhappy with the outcome of any of our work. Â The shop is clean and easy to get to...the MUNI F Market stops right in front of the shop door!
Review Source:Went here at the reccomendation of my best friend who got a tattoo done. First impression, very clean, welcoming atmosphere, unlike other tattoo parlors i had been to before. TeeJay is a very awsome, dedicated owner who makes sure you are comfortable before, during, and after the tattooing process. He also completed my tattoo very quickly, and the work is phenominal. I highly reccomend Cicatrix to anyone looking for a great place to get tattooed.
Review Source:I've been to this shop a few times and have nothing but great things to say about the work I've received and seen done on my friends. This place is not just a great tattoo shop and piercing shop for the Castro but simply a great tattoo shop period. The piercer tori has done great work on a few of my friends, although I have yet to get pierced by her personally.
The shop is clean and staff is rad, plus the bathroom smells like fresh backed cookies because of hot cookie being so close.
I've been tattooed by quite a few people in a few different shops and this is one of the best shops I've been to.
Simply put its a quality shop with some really awesome tattoo artists and a great piercer.
Just finally completed my full sleeve on my left arm with T.J. and I thought I better give his shop a little yelp love. T.J. is a talented artist, rules at what he does and I definitely now consider him a friend. He will make you feel totally at ease and you won't get that stuck up vibe from him that other elitist shops tend to put out there.  If you  have been shopping around you know who I'm talking about. Go check out T.J. for a tattoo or Tori for a piercing, you will not be disappointed.  They have a really cozy, welcoming shop in the Castro.
Review Source:Tori- she is amazing!
I read SO many reviews about her, and they all talk very highly of her. Â I decided to go to her and have her pierce my belly button. She took great care of me and the three other girls I brought along, to also get their piercings done. Â They all loved her! Â She knows how to make you feel very comfortable and secure. Â She is very professional, yet funny at the same time. Â I am planning on going back to her tomorrow to get my tragus pierced. Â I trust her! Â Believe me, she is amazing and percise! Go to her and you will NOT be disappointed :)!
Tee Jay did a fantastic job with my tattoo, I came in for my appointment this afternoon. He is polite, smart and honest with the suggestions and work that he does. Most importantly he is patient with actually listening to ideas that you have and what you would like the end result to look like, I left very pleased with my tattoo and I will definitely come back for more. Â The shop itself is very comfortable and I felt right at home.
Tori did a great job with my nipple piercings, the girl has great personality that made me at ease.
COME IN LEAVE HAPPY!
Thank you thank you Tee Jay & Tori!
Professional, knowledged, reasonably priced and very friendly. what else can you ask for.
Our teen daughter went in for a navel piercing (she brought my wife and I for the ride). We read and signed  the required paperwork, and Tori took care of my daughter piercing in less than ten minutes, efficiently and (per my daughter) almost painlessly. I have only one thing to say: "Thank you".
Both my Husband and I wanted to get a tribal type tattoo. Â Our friends, Fred and Tom just finished their tattoos and were extremely pleased with Tee Jay and the Cicatrix shop.
 A little apprehensive at first but Tee Jay was outstanding, making me feel very welcome and at ease.  This is a big Tattoo and I have been there alot and always feel welcomed when I show up.  The shop is very clean and the staff professional.  I interviewed 4 artists before we decided on Tee Jay.  He is awesome and will use him again on other projects that I have planned. Both myself and my husband are very pleased and would recommend this shop in the Castro to anyone , gay or straight.
Tee Jay was great, very professional and did exactly what I  asked for and more. Believe me I had a pretty bad tattoo on my lower back and to come across  an artist who listens and who can delivers the visions I had for my cover up, Tee Jay made it all happen. He did such a great job that I'm thinking of getting more done on my back. Every time I show people my cover up tattoo they can't even see the old one. I can't even see old one. That's how good he his!! I highly recommend this place.
Review Source:I was pretty nervous about getting my first tattoo, and after many years of putting it off, I finally got the courage this year after figuring out the right idea on a design that I wanted.
I checked out a number of local artists, and looked at Yelp reviews, and went to Cicatrix because of the reviews touting their originality.
I immediately connected with TJ, and was impressed at his fresh approach to my tattoo. Â I came in with a basic idea, and within a few days, he had drawn up an original stencil that blew me away. Â I particularly like the way he designed the tattoo around the curvatures of my shoulders and arms.
TJ was very good about recommending the right size and proportion of the tattoo, and gave me advice without being pushy.
It took 3 sessions to do the tattoo, which we did over a few weeks since it involved a lot of detail and multiple colors. Â TJ was very professional about setting and keeping appointments, as well as gearing the length of the sessions to my tolerance level. Â
In the end, I was absolutely amazed and thrilled at the result, and can't wait to do the next one.
Since then, I've referred a number of people to TJ, and they have had the same experience. Â
I can't say enough about Cicatrix and TJ, and can't wait for my next tattoo!
I have been a long time follower of TJ Hernandez! Â I met him at his currently location when it was Gotham tattoo and I have followed him for the last 10 years. Â His work is amazing! Â I am so glad to have him back full circle in San Francisco at Cicatrix.
I have sent all my friends to him and my partner also gets all his work done by TJ. Â Now I can finish my sleeves and my partner can get to work on his! Â Thanks TJ!
TeeJay is the man.
I got my very first tattoo with TeeJay when he had his old shop in the Lower Haight, years before he bought this shop. I now have 6 tattoos (and still hoping to add more when I can). All of my tattoos are done by TeeJay. It's obvious why I have been TeeJay's loyal customer. He's a great artist who's also very professional. He takes pride in his work, but never lets his ego get in the way.
The shop is very clean and the people are friendly. Now, although I have moved away from San Francisco to SoCal, I still find ways to come back to the City for his tattoo. I think that says a lot about how much I trust TeeJay.
On another note, since one of the reviewers made a point to mention that TeeJay is straight, as if it was a monumental issue. Being straight doesn't make one homophobic, you know. I am a gay man and I don't understand what this has to do with anything. I go there to do business, not to get laid. He's a very talented artist, very open minded, non-judgementaI and very honest. I have no problem doing business with anyone regardless of his sex, age, race, or sexual orientation, as long as he's professional and honest.
Do yourself a favour, go check it out yourself. You'll see what I mean.
After brunch in the Castro, I spontaneously decided to get my right rook pierced. Â I had never been to Cicatrix before, but it was conveniently located, so I wandered in.
My experience at Cicatrix with Tori, was excellent. Â Tori is very personable, and she runs a very clean shop. Â Her demeanor is calming and comforting. Â Pricing is also very affordable.
Tori was able to pierce me right then (a nice change from appointment only shops)...so I selected my jewelry, filled out the appropriate paperwork, and was ushered into a private room. Â Tori answered all of my questions and concerns/anxieties. The piercing was quick, professional and mostly painless.
Months later, while at a club in SOMA, Â I saw Tori doing piercings -- so, I decided to get my left rook pierced (I like symmetry). Â She worked with the same precision and professionalism as she did at her home base.
I love my rook piercings, and really appreciated and loved both experiences -- I highly recommend Tori and Cicatrix!
PS: They have gift certificates!
I've been wanting to get my rook done for a REALLY long time and I already picked Cicatrix to get it done because its so close to my house. I guess the reason I stalled getting it done for months was I knew it would hurt....but it didn't!!!
This being my 3rd piercing (my ears done when I was 9 at Claire's does count) Â I knew what to expect. I thought it was going to be the most painful one since its all hard cartilage but it was done in 2 seconds and pain free. Tori was amazing and I would recommend this place to EVERYONE. Â
Now I just need to pick what else I want pierced now...
Tee Jay
I am a somewhat recent transport from the east coast and have been looking for an artist in the bay area with whom I could continue to build upon my on going body art project. Â I feel extremely fortunate to have found Tee Jay and the shop at Cicatrix. Â Between the creative collaboration and the completed work, my expectations have been far exceeded. Â
In addition to great skill and quality work, Tee Jay also brings a sense of integrity and commitment to the tattooing process which unfortunately seems to be loosing precedence in the industry.
Needless to say I am already planning my next project and look forward to have more work done at Cicatrix.
Tori; Piercer Extrodinaire.
Let me start by saying that I'm heavily tattooed, so one would think, not faint-of-heart. The idea of getting pierced, however, gives me high-anxiety. I decided, despite said anxiety, to proceed with two new piercings in each ear... something I had wanted for ages but never followed through with. And I wanted them done the right way. The real way.
The shop was extremely clean and the environment inviting, and Tori was amazingly calm and professional... she put me at ease right away. She spent a lot of time talking to me about exactly what I wanted in terms of the look I was going for and the jewelry I had in mind, and when it came down to the piercings themselves, well it couldn't have been easier. She worked quickly and effieciently and I greatly appreciated that.
The entire experience was simple and easy and the results were exactly what I wanted. I cannot recommend Tori enough...
I had been searching for about 3 years for the right person to do my memorial tattoo in memory of my father. Â I had checked portfolios in both NY and CA and then I met Brian, a recent addition (NY transplant) at Cicatrix. Â I wanted an exact copy of a very intricate pen and ink drawing. Â After spending some time with Brian and reviewing his work I went for it and I couldn't be happier with the result. Â He paid attention to every detail, right down to the signature. Â I didn't look in the mirror until the piece was complete and I was stunned. Â It looked EXACTLY like the drawing I gave him. Â he was wonderful to work with and I'm sure I'll be back. Â he's a talented artist in his own right and I can't wait until I have something that will afford him a bit more creative freedom.
on another note...
Tori is one of the most professional piercers I've ever been to. Â I've had several piercings done by her including a corset and a few play piercings. Â I've always been extremely pleased with her work and have healed perfectly. Â I love that she's so thoughtful about what she does, and takes it very seriously. Â I would highly recommend Tori.
In the recent months I was ink'd by Beth and she did an AMAZING job! She took the time to find the images that best suited what I was trying to explain and Murder depicted on my arm is flawless.
Today I went in and Tori stretched my gauged ears for me. She gave superb advice, voiced her professional opinion and respected what I had to say. She talks you through every step and never once does your confidence in her falter.
Beth is the only person I will let ink me in San Francisco! She is an amazing artist. I can always trust her to take a concept and run with it.
As an artist myself (hair artist that is), I think it's important to collaborate with the artist and the one receiving the art! That said, I'm always pleasantly surprised at how stoked we both are after every session!
Has anyone without a tattoo asked you "did that hurt"?
That is a stupid question--yes they hurt! But I've had tattoos from several artists and Beth is by far the most gentle hand.
I think that's especially good for guys who want tattoos, since I hear they have a lower threshhold for pain. No, that isn't an insult it's a fact. Sorry guys ;)
Anyway, about the studio...this place is really cute and was recently remodeled so now it's even cuter. There is a lot of great art on the walls, and they have plenty of books of work the artists have done. There is also a pretty good selection of jewelery if you're into piercing.
It's a very clean, relaxed atmosphere. Everyone there is all about having fun while still being totally professional. I haven't had a piercing there, but I can tell you that Tori is pretty rad, and if I wanted anyone to put a hole in my body I'd definitely ask her!
Walked in looking for a tattoo of a sparrow, but didn't want a generic one. Beth, my tattoo artist, was very accommodating and helped design a unique sparrow design.
Once she sketched out the sparrow and received my complete satisfaction, she showed me some amazing colors for the sparrow!
The tattoo took about 45 mins and i was absolutely stoked about my end result. She didn't have a heavy hand, she was extremely meticulous about her work and in the end i got an amazing tattoo.
Make sure to come in and check out Cicatrix Tattoo, Beth is an amazing tattoo artist!
After my move from SoCal to the city and taking my time finding a tattoo artist and a piercer I could trust for good quality work the only people I recommend here in the city are Tori and Beth.
Tori
Patient and will walk you through your piercing, any questions you might have you go to her, she's awesome!
Beth
She'll do a clean job and respect your opinions, she'll give you advice and you can trust her on having a good steady hand with her machine. Weather is your first or your 5th tattoo shes the person to go to. One of my tattoos didn't heal quite well and she did a re-touch at no cost which was quite awesome!
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