I had a tattoo done by Cara M. at Golden Age. She was amazing! I had her make a colored drawing of two Painted bunting birds, one male and one female. For the tattoo, she used a lithograph by Audubon for the male and a picture I had taken for the female and combined them. They are gorgeous! This was a tattoo for my 50th birthday, and I cannot be more pleased. Even folks I know who don't like tattoos have told me it is beautiful. Thank you, Cara!
Review Source:Cara's color work is quite possibly the best in Austin! I had her do a piece for the inside of my left arm. I'd had the piece designed by a graphic artist and we hunted through portfolios of different artists in town. Cara's work POPS!! It really is amazing! Don't take my word for it, check out her portfolio online. Also, for would be searchers, her rate is reasonable and she works quickly. She doesn't sit and chat and try and stretch the time to get more per hour. She's clean and truly a great artist!! She's not a walk in-you have to set an appointment, but if you care about your tattoo that shouldn't matter. It's been two months and my tattoo has healed without any problems and still has GREAT color. I would definitely recommend her to friends in the Austin area.
Review Source:Cara Massacre is an amazing artist! She gave me exactly what I asked for, only better! I also have to say, that she is a breath of fresh air to the tattoo community -- She is sweet, personable and listens to what you want. It is truly a pleasure to work with her. I can't wait for my next session!
And yes, part of the 5 star review does include 'very clean'. For all of you who are asking that question right now :)
Annie just did my first tattoo and words cannot express how amazing the whole experience was. Somehow I knew when I walked in and saw her sketch that it was going to be exactly what I wanted...and it was! I looked at her sketch for 2 seconds and said, perfect! She was very gentle and executed the whole thing in about an hour. The tattoo is absolutely a work of art and better than I could have ever imagined. This will definitely not be my last tattoo and I will definitely be going back to see Annie! HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommended!!! :-)
Review Source:Cara Massacre is an amazing artist. I got a gorgeous tattoo (my eighth) from her, and I'm scheduled for my next with her next week. She has a two month wait but it's worth it. The shop is nice - large and open, but each chair has a little privacy. Check out her portfolio online to see her work.
Review Source:Annie did a tattoo for me and it turned out great. I had a concept going but wasn't quite sure how to execute it, she took my concept and turned it into an amazing tattoo. Shes good with communicating from start to finish, and her execution is phenomenal. Def recommended.
I've also been tattooed by Daryl (once) when he first started, great guy and his skills have only improved. Another recommended artist.
What can I say that hasn't already been said. Â This shop is amazing, comfortable, clean, and everyone there is just awesome. Â Lilly Hill is working on a back piece for me and it is beyond what I ever imagined it would be! This place is top notch. I wont be going anywhere else for my tattoos!
Review Source:I'm happy to say that I found my go-to tattoo shop at Golden Age. Darryl and Annie have been extraordinary in their talent, customer service, and creating a welcoming atmosphere for every client.
I first got tattooed by Darryl Hanna 6 months ago, on very short notice (I called first). He worked with me on the design (a sugar skull), was flexible, and very helpful. He has a light touch, meaning that the work did not hurt too much, an it healed well. I came back to him for another arm piece a month later, and again he saw me on short notice (same day tattoo). Darryl is a super nice guy, he's honest about the love of his craft, and has proven himself to be a hard worker. Nowadays he is busier (he's in higher demand), so for if you're thinking about walking in, I would call first. Just goes to show how good these artists are. But they do take walk-ins, so no worries! : )
The most recent tattoo I got here was a portrait of my mother, done by Annie Mess. Breathtaking realism, my mom has really come to life on my arm. Annie has lots of experience and talent under her belt. She's a very gentle artist, easy to talk to, and makes sure you have everything you need to be comfortable and at ease. Wonderful treatment, personality and artwork, what else can I say?
No deafening death metal here, just cool tunes providing a relaxing ambience while you are getting your ink done by professionals. I recommend Golden Age Tattoo highly: you will not be disappointed. They made me a loyal client.
Sooo, I only have one tattoo. I don't really know if I am spoiled or just naive, but I LOVE this place. Annie was super friendly and accommodating. She made a few suggestions to my original idea and the light bulb went off in my head, "Aha! That is why they are called tattoo artists!" (see my naivety there?) But I gather from all the other raving reviews that it is not ignorance but rather I lucked into finding a great artist for my first time.
Annie Mess is an artist. She gave me my lovely, bright green laurel wreath around my wrist and I am already planning and plotting my next one to be done by her. Â I can't wait!
Scheduled an appointment with Lilly Hill while she was in transition from her old establishment to the Golden Age. I was drawn to her work because of the detail to shading. If there was a gentle tattoo artist, Lilly would be it. She was very professional, sweet and fast. My tattoo came out flawless and beautiful. Not only that, but the shop itself is... one of a kind. The music they had on also played a huge role on my rating, because all of the tattoo places I've been to have played metal... Golden Age played a decent station on Pandora that was very chill and really helped me relax during my tattoo. Would highly recommend this place, especially Lilly!!
Review Source:Cara Massacre is amazing. Period.
I had emailed her some ideas for a goldfish tattoo I wanted, and she took it upon herself to find some additional ideas she thought would work. When I arrived at the shop, she had a beautiful sketch ready.
Cara was extremely professional, sweet as hell, and brilliantly talented. Her color work is out of this world. Everyone who looks at my new ink says, "I can't believe how colorful it is." I know. It's hard to believe. It's just so. Beautiful.
She gave me very clear aftercare instructions along with a paper I could refer to later. My tattoo is a little over a week old and it is healing perfectly.
I am already planning my next piece and can't wait to discuss it with Cara and get her input on design. Highly, highly recommended.
Annie Mess is an incredibly talented artist. I've followed her around Austin no matter what shop she is in, because she just does such amazing work. When I first came to her a couple years ago, I brought her a couple poems and a couple thoughts I had regarding turning those into imagery. She came back to me with some incredible sketches and ideas, I was really impressed. I get compliments all the time on my tattoos, which says a lot about her quality of work. She is also really enjoyable to sit with for a couple hours!
Highly recommended, she is one of the best in the business and I wouldn't go to anyone else.
I just had my first session on a pretty big side piece with Annie. I was nervous going in as I hadn't seen the sketch, but let me just say all my worries faded the second she showed me! It was beautiful, even better than I could have ever imagined! Annie is so talented and has a gentle touch. I still have a couple sessions left to finish and I cannot wait! There are just not words to express how happy I am with Golden Age Tattoo and Annie!
Review Source:I have been tattooed by a few different artists in Austin and the talent at this shop, by far, is my favorite. Â Not only is the shop itself beautiful and comfortable to be in but every artist that works there is exceptionally talented. Â The shops owner, Annie Mess is easily one of the best artists in Austin and she has built up a team of AWESOME including Cara Massacre, Bradley Closson and Darryl Hanna. Â All of these artists are unique in their style but there is no question that I would let any one of them equip me with a piece of permanent art.
Review Source:Love this shop! Annie is such an incredibly talented artist. I've been wanting to finish my sleeve for awhile, and originally had some misc. tattoos that I wanted to be tied all into one large piece. Some artists don't necessarily like working around other large pieces (and touching up/fixing), but Annie came up with a beautiful, creative way of tying everything together, and it's turning out better than I could have imagined! She was so enthusiastic about the tattoo, able to listen to my ideas and what I wanted while adding her own artistic touch. Annie has a light hand which makes sitting in her chair a breeze, she's great at making you feel comfortable and makes sure you are 100% happy with her work.
The shop itself is beautiful, set up more like an art gallery in the front, the rest of the shop is clean and stylish. All the other artists there are always friendly and professional, absolutely no snooty custom tattoo shop vibes here (which can't be said about a lot of other Austin shops). You can tell everyone there enjoys what they're doing, which creates a really great atmosphere. Overall I couldn't be happier and plan on visiting Annie many more times in the future.
p.s. Great location! Right across from Soup Peddler, perfect for some much needed post-tattoo deliciousness.
While I have not yet been tattooed at Golden Age, I have spent many hours being tattooed by Annie. Â Annie does great work, is a rad person to hang out with, and easily has the lightest hand of anyone I've ever been tattooed by. Â To top it off, Golden Age has to be the classiest shop I've ever been in. Â I understand that some folks like the whole old school seedy side to tattoos but that isn't for me. Â In addition to doing really great tattoos they also sell unique art work and some really cool jewelry. Â Golden Age had their opening party this past weekend and I was really impressed with what I saw...plus free beer and cupcakes are a sure fire way to keep my business. Â As someone who has spent dozens of hours and thousands of dollars getting tattoos over the years I can honestly say Annie is the best I've ever had work done by.
Review Source:I haven't actually made it in to Golden Age yet, but Annie started my back when she was still over at Resurrection. Â It's far from complete yet since I had to postpone a couple of visits, but its already by far my favorite piece I have. Â I wanted a tree of life, and I have a big... and I mean big! canvas area for it on my back. Â We were in for a little under 4 hours, and the amount and quality of work she was able to get done was amazing. Â She's my favorite artist in Austin by far, and she's super sweet and a pleasure to be around as well. Â Every time my shirt comes off (and its summer time, so quite often) someone else comments that its amazing... And I wouldn't even put it at halfway done. Â I love it, and anytime anyone even mentions a tattoo I'm happy to plug her name in.
Review Source:I got my first tattoo from Annie here just last week after a couple weeks of correspondence. You will not be disappointed by the atmosphere of the shop, which is both clean and artful, the personalities of the artists, who are all inviting and friendly, or the quality of the work, which is top notch. Before deciding on an artist I read a lot of reviews and was very impressed with Annie's portfolio of work and that previous customers noted the care she would take in her work. I got an upper back piece, which was not uncomfortable, and you can take a few breaks if need be. The work that Annie did was beautiful, better than I imagined. I had not picked out a font yet, but the font she brought out to show me was PERFECT, after weeks of looking at fonts, this was EXACTLY what I wanted. If you want a really artful piece, this is the place to go.
Review Source:Annie is the absolute best . My husband I  both have been tattooed by her multiple times She is professional and thoughtful and a true artist .  She really put herself in each of her pieces.  I recommend her to everyone . She makes each interaction personal and  enjoyable .
Every tattoo we have by Annie is a source of compliments .  People always want to know who did that beautiful "artwork" on your arm , it is indeed a piece of art not just a tattoo.  She does and amazing job. I think anyone considering a tattoo should research artists and I think you will find that Annie is one of the best  here in Austin
We will be life long clients of Golden Age and Annie !
Love, just love is all I can say about my tattoo. Â Annie did a phenomenal job. She gave me my first tattoo on my left side which as seasoned tattooed people may know is not the most comfortable place. She gave me breaks, dispelled tattoo myths, and overall made a beautiful work of art on my body. She is very intuitive and tied my hawk, moon, cherry blossom branch, and implied wind into gorgeous scene. I cannot thank her enough and if I decide to get another tattoo she will be the artist I go to.
Review Source:I went here recently  to get some work done because my artist Cara moved to this shop. As I walked in the building the first thing I noticed was how nice this shop is. I almost didn't feel like I was in a Tattoo shop.. I felt like I was in some sort of modern art gallery.
I wish more shops had the sense to be like this.. No garishly bad flash art work on the walls.. just framed pieces that the artists are very proud of. The floors are some sort of stained granite.. the tattoo chairs are large plush leather recliners.
I've never been more comfortable in a tattoo studio honestly and if you want a tattoo I would say you should definitely set up an appointment with one of the awesome artists here.
My artists Cara is probably the greatest thing to ever happen to my tattoo's she always seems to know exactly what I want and has so much artistic integrity I can feel comfortable letting her just go with what she does. She always makes my sittings as comfortable as possible and provides great friendly conversation during the process.
I have quite a few tattoo's and I've been to more than a few shops. I honestly cant say I've seen better than this. I couldn't recommend any place higher and I feel so comfortable giving them five stars which isn't something I normally do.
Go in and see Cara and check out how awesome this shop is!
Always telling it like it is ...
JUST IN! Â Come see a video testimonial! Â Just type in Golden Age Tattoos on youtube and the Cobra's testimonial should be on top!
In one's life there will be a couple of seminal (yes I realize you're waiting for me to start this off with a bang with a quick sexual innuendo here, but it's time to get serious. Â Surely you can't be serious. Â I am serious ... and don't call me Shirley.)
From the top:  In one's life there will be a couple of seminal moments that shape and influence the development of future events.  A few days ago, I had one of  those seminal moments.  A definite fork in the road, Mr. Destiny type of 'things are going to roll in a different direction' moment.
Obviously that moment was a tattoo by Annie. Â As it was my first, and since you can see my Yelp name (and yes people call me that), it's not too hard to deduce that the tattoo is in fact, the Cobra.
If I were asked for a website testimonial, I would simply say:
"This Cobra tattoo by Annie is the greatest thing I have ever seen." (feel free to use that)
Wow, really? Â the greatest tattoo you've ever seen? Â No genius, I said the greatest 'thing' (tattoo or otherwise) that I have ever seen. Â The reason it came out so great is I stayed out of the way. Â Cobra and arm were about the only things I told Annie. Â I completely believe in her Artistic Greatness (you had me at 'steak tattoo'). Â I find it annoying when people put a bunch of restrictions on other people (this has to be that, don't do it that way). Â Obviously it's your body, but I'd much rather have the "Picasso of the Ink", Annie, shine brightly and do what she does. Â I would have been happy if she drew an "S" on my arm and called it a snake; instead she's created a living, breathing creature on my arm. Â Tattacular!! (ok, I'm making up words now)
Someone asked me if it was real, and I thought he meant -did I have an actual snake taped to my arm- Â as it looks like it. Â I've been feeding this thing mice for a week now. Â Annie's ready to craft (had to throw in an artsy term there) the rest of the body in a few weeks. Â Hell, if she wants to tattoo the Golden Age logo on my cheek (face or butt), she can do that also! Â Did I mention how great the shop looks? Â
Don't ya love the 'clever' reviews that say "well, I didn't really want to tell you about this place as then the line will be too long ..." ... uh, hogwash! (I had to edit that down from #@$%^&*!). Â Annie's 'line' is already a month out, and I'm going to help her get it to two months out! Â I think I'll start by wearing a gorilla costume outside the wonderful looking shop ...
Never fear folks ... I realize you might want a tat (can I shorten the word now since I have one?) ASAP. Â Head down there. Â Annie has a bad-ass group of teammates with her at Golden Age. Â Bradley is 'walk-in' available (according to their facebook). Â When I was there, I asked him what he was working on and I can't think of a word more creative than the word creative to describe it. Â (let's go with ingenious!). Â You have an off the hook idea, go to him. Â Shout out to his girl Amelia also! She doesn't even work there and was welcoming to me, the first timer (and not in that obnoxious Rudy's BBQ 'first time here' welcoming kind o way). Â Annie also has Cara on the team, and Annie said to me "I can't wait to get tattooed by Cara!" Â Uh, all the endorsement you need. Â Finally, Darryl was ready to tear down the walls down there (did I mention how great the walls look?). Â Go give him an arm or a leg or some other part to work on!
Maybe you're on the fence about getting a tattoo ... let me help you get off of it. Â Uh, you will love it! Â I'll drive your ass down there if that's what it takes. Â Maybe you're worried if it hurts. Â Well I'm probably the wrong guy to ask there as I've had more than one medical professional tell me I have the highest threshold of pain that they've seen, but I'll go down there and hold your damn hand if need be!! Â Think of it this way, are there quite a few tattoos out there now? Â Well, obviously it can't be that bad, can it? Â Is my passion about this oozing through your screen yet?!?!?
Many eons ago, there was an Ice Age. Â Around 2500 B.C., the Stone Age ended. Â The Bronze Age concluded around 1200 B.C. Â The Iron Age took us through around 200 A.D.
Here in 2012, we have the Golden Age.
Stop on by Golden Age Tattoos and let's make some seminal moments together (ok, I couldn't go the whole way without inserting the innuendo).
I've been tattooed by a lot of really great artists over the years and I'm so proud of the work I recently had done by Annie. Â She was absolutely amazing, took the time to understand what I had in mind, and then made a good idea even better than I had originally imagined! Â This is the difference between a good tattoo artist and a GREAT tattoo artist! Â
She is so thoughtful and smart about her work. Â She loves what she does and takes it seriously. Â This is what makes her a standout. Â I recommend her wholeheartedly to first-timers and old-timers alike. Â I am so excited about her new shop that I plan to return again...and probably again and again! : )
After searching for quite awhile for just the right artist I found Annie. I wanted a medium size tattoo on my shoulder/back of poppies and once I saw her amazing flowers I knew she was the one to do it. She was in transition at the time I met with her but I was able to get in within a month and I'm glad I waited. Her touch is light and the art is fantastic. We are a little over halfway done it but I already get lots of compliments on it. "so beautiful" is the most common comment I get. anyway, you cant go wrong with Annie.
Review Source:I did tons of research on artists before I decided to have my piece done by Annie Mess and I couldn't be happier. Â Everyone who has seen it has asked me who did it, including people who had never considered getting a tattoo before. Â She does incredible work and has a wonderful personality. Â I doubt if I'll ever want to be tattooed by anyone else!
Review Source:I don't know anyone who has a tattoo by Annie that doesn't love it, and that's actually quite a few people!! Â Her work is just beautiful. Â She is a true artist and it shows in her tattoo work.
I have a piece on my upper arm and people stop me all the time and ask me who did it. Â I think that says a lot about a tattoo artist.
Annie is the most talented artist I have ever worked with. She can create a design based on what you have in your head, but make it so much better it hardly seems like you could ever have thought of it yourself. It's like your vision, squared. I have one piece from her that is so beautiful, it doesn't even look real. Everything from realistic portraiture (the reason I went to her in the first place, for my dog portraits) to surreal imagery, Annie is a true talent. She is also a delightful person, and the new shop, Golden Age, is gorgeous.
For you wimps out there, she also has the lightest touch ever. I have 3.5 pieces from Annie (one was started by another artist, and she was amazing gracious enough to finish it for me when he moved away), and am already prepping for my next one - a big step - my first full sleeve! I know she will help be realize my vision in a way that will be perfect and gorgeous. I can't recommend Annie and Golden Age highly enough.
I have received two tattoos from Annie Mess. I absolutely love them. The tattoo's themselves are beautiful. I'm always getting compliments as well as asked for information on the artist (which I happily share).
The experience itself is always a blast. I love going to see Annie. Shes super funny and keeps the atmosphere enjoyable. I've received tattoos from other artists, who just put off a weird vibe and it really hampers my experience. With Annie, this is a non issue. She always checks to make sure I'm comfortable and not in too much pain.
I can't say enough awesome things about Annie. If you want an awesome tattoo while having a great time, look no further!
Annie is an amazing artist. I was living in a town in Texas about four hours away from Austin last year while I was in college, and was looking for an artist in Austin to create  a tattoo that I had been wanting for two years. I knew I wanted a compass rose on my back, with black, red, and purple coloring blended into the design. I spent hours researching artists in Austin, and looked through Annie's portfolio. I decided to see her for my first tattoo immediately. She was great about responding to my emails, and asked for picture examples of my desired design to come up with her own idea of what I wanted.
She was so friendly and laid back when I showed up at the shop, and welcomed my husband and our friend to sit in her studio while she worked on my tattoo. She had a design ready when I showed up, and discussed colors with me and made sure it was exactly what I wanted before we went back to her studio. She designed it perfectly, exactly what I had imagined.
It was my first tattoo as I mentioned before, and I love it!!!! Â She gave me simple and very effective after care instructions. The colors were also blended perfectly, and I have received so many compliments. I wish I could go to her again for my next tattoo, but now I live in Miami and I still want to go to her although there are so many talented artists here.
Thank you, Annie!
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