Memorial tattoo is the best tattoo shop around! My husband and I have been getting tattooed by Phil Colvin for years (got tattooed by him today actually) and we just love that dude. Not only is he amazingly talented but he's an incredibly nice guy that is just fun to be around. We love every piece he's ever done for each of us and get stopped all the time by people dying to know who does our work. We obviously can't say enough good things about Phil and his crew at Memorial.
Review Source:Went here today to get my 3rd tattoo, but first from Memorial. It was really easy for me to find and I am BAD with directions. And listen. I've been to tattoo shops where I've walked in, taken one look at the place and the snarky, rude looks of the employees, and walked back out without a word. I'm extremely picky with the person who jams a needle into my skin, and after a few minutes of being in Memorial, I felt very at ease. There were so many pictures on the walls of tattoo art and a ton of Christmas decorations, and it felt like a place that I would enjoy just hanging out. Now, to be fair, I've never had and didn't get a tattoo with a really intricate design, considering I'm in school and still on a budget. But, that being said, the tattoo'd quote I got on my forearm was flawless and painless. I can't promise that everyone's tattoos won't hurt (I have a pretty high pain tolerance) but I can promise that it will be worth it in the end! Loved it. Definitely will go back!! :)
Review Source:Father's Day 2012- I went to another tattoo place.. got really pissed off and called Memorial Tattoo.. they were very friendly and accommodating. Â I went in, met with Dustin (great guy) and walked out of there as a new dedicated customer. Â The staff is friendly, the atmosphere enticing and very professional. Â Their pricing is probably the best in town. Â Another important issue for me is inclusiveness. Â They obviously like their LGBT clientele, mentioning to me they want to be involved with Pride 2012..I've already called the Pride committee to let them know. Â I recommend them and will never go anywhere else. Â Well done Dustin.. love what you did
Review Source:Malia Reynolds has done over 30 hours of work on my back and I have never had anything to complain about...nothing. I recommend her and the shop to people all the time, and if you have experienced anything different, you have her and shop confused with some place else. They are 100% the best tattoo shop in Atlanta.
Review Source:I've been getting tattoos for a few years now and usually I go to a parlor based on the artist, which is how I ended up at Memorial Tattoo. Malia did an excellent job on my most current tattoo and I love it!  She couldn't be friendlier or more accommodating, and  she is so easy to chat with while under the needle, not to mention she is a phenomenal artist. She gets an A++ for this review. Memorial Tattoo itself is a very nice parlor with lots of character.  It feels very clean, which of course is a plus.  However, in my personal experience, that's where the warm-happy feelings stop.
I understand that a tattoo parlor may not be the place to go be around the most "PC" of people, but I still believe the tattoo industry is a service based industry where employees should be conscientious about making customers feel welcome and comfortable. And in ANY business, there is a line that should never be crossed; namely, inappropriate racist comments. Unfortunately, my otherwise positive experience at Memorial Tattoo was marred by the inappropriate and racially-charged language of a female employee working the front desk. She repeatedly spewed anti-Semitic, bigoted and racist comments while I was sitting in the waiting area, which although not directed at me, made me extremely uncomfortable to overhear. Â I gathered from her loud conversation that her choice of language was because she had had work done on her car that she was unhappy with. The phrase I remember her saying over and over is, "They cannot Jew me like this..." and similar sentiments. Needless to say, this was not the most positive way to spend the minutes leading up to being tattooed, and it made an otherwise fun and enjoyable experience disappointingly unpleasant. I sincerely hope that if higher management is aware of this employee's conduct, they take steps to make sure she corrects her behavior, or risk losing otherwise satisfied customers like myself for repeat business.
AND, another amazing tattoo by Malia Reynolds. Â She rocks hands down. Â The Wizard has a great team/family of experience at Memorial and I would recommend ANY of them.
Oh, and for the record, all the artists at Memorial are well versed in sanitary/health practices. Â There might be folks hanging around in the lobby area, gee - that's where you wait to get tattooed OR God forbid, stop in to say hello to friends in the community, because that is what this place is - a welcoming, small business in our community with a friendly atmosphere.
I just read some diva's review on the shop and Malia. Sounds like someone got their panties in a wad. Â Get over yourself, honey. Your tattoos are pretty, your fake boobies look nice now, but what is rotten in the core, starts smelling very quickly....
I can see why Memorial Tattoo is the highest-rated and respected shop in the metro-Atlanta area!
I think we got very lucky, as we walked in without an appointment. Â Serendipity stepped in and we were there a very short while when Mikie Webb showed up. Â As it turns out he, like myself, is an Army vet. Â We struck up a rapport very quickly, discussed what I wanted (an Army insignia), and we got started within about forty minutes of stepping through the door.
A few words about Mikie: Â Maybe I am biased, but I really enjoyed chatting with him as he worked. Â He is very personable and likable, and the entire experience was pleasant. Â His art was nothing short of phenomenal. Â There are tattooers and then there are tattooers. Â Mikie is in the top tier of artists, and for good reason. Â He isn't satisfied until his art is perfect. Â As a result, I couldn't be more satisfied.
Also, Memorial's prices are competitive with most of the shops around here. Â As far as bang for your buck, not only will you get top-notch ink, but you get it for the same cost as some less-reputable or capable shops.
All in all, I will be going back. Â Mikie has a fan and I will trust him with any other work I have done.
I *highly* recommend Memorial to anyone wanting a tattoo.
Ended up at Memorial Tattoo after reading the reviews here on Yelp. Â Me and my BF drove by just to get an idea of price and the tattoo artist and their many talents. Â
The manager (sorry bad with names) she is a bad ass chick that is very knowledgeable. Â We picked her brain about my BF tattoo (he had existing tattoos) and she recommended us to meet with Mickey. Â She was dead on! Â This dude is super fcken cool!!! Â He met with us and reviewed our ideas and wants. Â He was able to give us great ideas and made us feel super comfortable. Â
Lucky us, we've been back 3 times and looking forward to adding more ink to our bodies! Â My recent piece was an idea to give tribute to my parents and what he did was tear jerking (in a super awesome way) and was a beautiful piece. Â The colors are FABULOUS! Â I get a lot of compliments on it daily...when ppl see it ;-)
Memorial tattoo - and especially artist Malia Reynolds - are amazing. Malia recently inked my first tattoo ... it turned out awesome, and she made the whole process super easy.
After researching Atlanta-area tattoo artists and studios, I settled on Malia because I loved her portfolio. I sent her an inquiry email and we set up a meeting to go over my ideas in person. I brought her a pendant and a story as go-bys, then she did all the internet research to come up with a design that was really personalized for me. When we met the second time, she showed me the completed design; we made a few minor modifications together on the spot and then I was tattooed!
She had an open, friendly attitude through the whole process. Even though I was a total virgin, Malia and the whole gang at Memorial Tattoo made me feel welcome. The finished tattoo still amazes me to this day, because it is even better than I imagined it would be! I've recently moved to Austin, TX but I will definitely be making trips back to Atlanta just to have Malia expand on my gorgeous tattoo. (That's how good she is!)
For every 50 awful, disease filled, sketchy tattoo shops in metro Atlanta there is a gem like Memorial tattoo. I've had work done here many times and always been beyond delighted with the work done on me. Â When friends ask for suggestions Memorial is always on the top of my list. Â Something I really like about this location is the house and private rooms instead of booths. Â Not to say I haven't had tattoos done in the booth, I'm saying the private room just has a nice feel overall, especially when you have that occasional cringe of pain. Â Everyone who works here is friendly, does excellent work and I Â wouldn't think twice about coming here. Â There are many great tattoo artists in Atlanta, luckily Memorial has a lot of them.
Review Source:In short, Memorial Tattoo rocks. Very professional, personable and they know how to make you comfortable and give you an amazing piece of art.
In long, Lee is a total blast and super friendly. We walked in for my appointment and were greeted by her and a big smile. As I introduced myself Phil walked up and introduced himself. I, being a tattoo virgin, was a little on the nervous side (maybe not as much as others but still...) but was totally comfortable once I met the crew. As we waited a couple of minutes for Phil to set up we spoke with Lee who was a lot of fun to speak with and really down to earth. Phil called us back to his room, clean and comfortable and he got to work. Pretty relaxing during the process, Phil is a true professional and really easy to have a conversation with. Both pieces complete and I'm really happy with the work and with Memorial. So happy that I have a few others I'm bringing with me next time to get their work done.
I had Phil do my pieces but have heard about and seen work from their other artists and you can't go wrong with anyone there.
Thanks again Phil, keep up the great work, much appreciated!
Even though tattoo places were some of the first things I researched when I moved here, it took much longer to get my next tattoo done. Â These things are expensive, yo! Â And I knew the next one I wanted was going to be bigger than any before it, so shekels needed to be saved.
The reputation of Memorial obviously precedes it, but I also had a friend specifically recommend Malia. Â Further research indicated that she was the Flower Queen, which fit the bill for my tattoo. Â Plus, I'd never had a lady tattoo artist before and that seemed wrong to me. Â So I called to set up an appointment with her, talked about my idea some using words like "Art Nouveau" and we set up a meet.
When I arrived for a consultation she already had out a couple of books on Art Nouveau style and design, which let me know she totally understood the look I was going for. Â I showed her some inspiration art and she took some notes. Â I like her right off the bat and the studio seemed rad, and I was super excited by every other word out of her mouth because it just confirmed that she totally understood what I wanted and would make it awesome.
At the appointment itself she showed me the drawing she had done and it was even more badass than I had imagined. Â For the next two and a half hours we bro'd out about our home state of California (which included lamenting the lack of awesome burritos here in Atlanta and missing the water.) Â She checked in with me frequently to make sure I was doing alright (my answer varied at different points) and answered questions about how tattooing works and technique. Â As much as is possible when a needle is being gauged into and dragged across your flesh for a prolonged period of time, the time really flew by!
When it was all over I was totally in love with both my tattoo and Malia. Â In addition to her line work, her color mixing was spot on and her shading was lovely. Â A great overall experience with the studio and I'll definitely be getting tattoos 6 and 7 (and possibly beyond...) with Malia!
Memorial Tattoo is the best tattoo shop in Atlanta. Good atmostphere, Amazing talent, and extreme professionalism. You'd be hard pressed to find a better experience. I've been to a few other shops around town, and nothing even comes close in my opinion. Scour the website, the portfolios speak for themselves. These guys are everything you can really want in a shop..individually, and as a whole.
Review Source:Memorial Tattoo houses the best talent in the city, hands down. Â Phil Colvin has been tattooing me for a while now, and the experience has obviously never been anything less than stellar (he is the BEST... all of the wonderful things everyone says about him and his work is true), but I had previously not had much direct exposure to the other artists at the shop. Â
My son requested a new tattoo as his graduation present, and after perusing the online portfolios on the Memorial website, he decided that he would really love for Mikey Webb to do his work. Â We could not have asked for a better experience. Â Mikey collected the desired image for the tattoo and really made it his own. Â He was so friendly, never rushed us, had a professional demeanor and his work is quite simply impeccable. Â The end result is a piece that anyone would be proud to own, and Mikey has earned himself another loyal client. Â We really couldn't have asked for anything more out of the experience. Â I left the shop utterly impressed and would recommend him to anyone interested in a great tattoo without the obnoxious attitude that some other artists like to serve up along with their work. Â
I'd imagine that this is the precise formula for retaining such a great reputation in the industry. Â You can put your skin in the hands of these artists and know that the result will always be a wonderful one and that the experience will always be positive. Â I'll never go anywhere else.
I've never left a 5-star rating for any business on Yelp before, and I probably won't leave many of them in the future - I'm pretty picky and hesitant to label something "as good as it gets." Â But Memorial Tattoo probably deserves 6 out of 5 stars!
My husband has been seeing Phil for over 3 years to have work done - a full sleeve and a chest piece, primarily. Â I've been present for most of those sessions, and I can tell you that Phil is an absolute master at taking a client's ideas and not only providing the client with what they want, but providing suggestions based on their wishes that make the client's ideas even better.
Phil's work is impeccable. Â My husband can't step out in public without having someone compliment his tattoos - he even carries Phil's business cards with him to give to people who want to know which shop he visits. Â
I can't speak highly enough of Phil - read some of the other reviews and you'll get a good idea of the kind of guy Phil is. Â Mega-talented but down-to-earth, funny, a family man who loves his wife and son, and a good manager who seems to be kind to all of his employees. Â Just type of person you can actually trust to jab needles into your skin and leave you with some permanent marks!
I have my first appointment with Phil scheduled for next month, which I'm excited about. Â But as for my own personal experience thus far, I recently saw Gary for a tattoo of an e.e. cummings quote. Â Gary was very patient with me as I asked him to make his sketch just a little smaller...a little smaller...maybe a little smaller than that...as I figured out what size would look best. Â
Gary even sat down with me at the office computer to look at a wide variety of fonts for the tattoo and when I showed him several that I liked, he created a custom font for me that included elements I liked best from the other fonts. Â
Once I was happy with the font and the size, the tattoo itself was fairly quick. Â Gary didn't seem to have a heavy hand, which made the experience a lot less painful than it could have been. Â We found out that we have a love of our cats in common, and we chatted about that and about the finish he'd applied to the cabinet in his tattoo room as he worked. Â Since the tattoo is on my back, I ended up needing to take my top off, but Gary handled that very professionally and I felt comfortable - I was lying front-side down on the table, anyway, so it was no big deal.
Gary's line work is excellent and the tattoo is beautiful. Â I'd love to see him again for some color work.
Bottom line, you can trust anyone at any Memorial Tattoo location to handle your tattoo or piercing needs professionally. Â Phil only hires the best, and I'd trust anyone who works for him to do a fantastic job.
(6/17/2011)
Updated January 2012: Oh my goodness, I thought tattoos were supposed to hurt afterwards. Â I wanted to update because I had a piece done by Phil over the weekend and I've had virtually no pain in the following few days - which in my experience isn't exactly typical. Either he has a magic gun or he's just that good - regardless, you should go see him!
finally got my first tattoo last week, was about to a year ago and was completely turned off by a couple of artists i met with out in colorado...spoke with mikey webb on the phone first and immediately felt better about it...met with him a couple hours before our appt to talk about the image and got a great vibe...LOVED the entire experience. absolutely f-ing love where he took my basic sketch!!! definitely highly recommend memorial to anyone!!! AMAZING first experience
Review Source:Me and my twin sis got belly piercings here. Kelly was our piercer. She is awesome. She is extremly knowledgable about piercings. She gave us plenty of useful info on proper care and the healing process. We both got some really cute rings. Shes just as  good as the two specialty piercing shops in nearby Candler Park and L5P  and her prices are much more reasonbable. And oh yeah our peircings were nearly pain free! I will definitely be coming back for my next piercing. Be sure to call first. I believe shes only here on Thurs-Sat.
Review Source:malia completed a huge rib piece on me last year. she blew me away at the consultation. "this is just a rough sketch" she said as i gave her my ideas, and it was already beautiful enough to be inked on.
when it came time for my first appt she was very friendly the entire time and really made me feel comfortable during the process. no talking down to me as some places do. i dont want to say shes light handed because the color in my tatt hasnt budged, but it was nowhere near as painful as some of my others where the guys were like digging the needle into my skin. no thankyou. will be back for more from malia very soon!
I got my first tattoo done three weeks ago. Â All I can say is they were absolutely great to work with. Â I had been to several other tattoo shops and was not treated as well as I was at Memorial. Â I was greeted when I walked in the door and they let me look around. Â After about 10 minutes one of the ladies there asked me some general questions so she could understand what I was looking to get. Â Once she understood what I wanted and the style she said she knew the perfect artist for me and asked if I wanted to meet him. Â She took me back to his office and introduced me to Jason Kelly. Â He was great, asked some basic questions and then gave me his card and cell phone number and said to call anytime to schedule an appointment. Â I scheduled my appointment and showed up ready to get my tattoo. Â Jason was great to work with. Â He wanted to make sure I got exactly what I was looking for and didn't try to force his own opinion on me (which happened at another shop). Â He was cool to talk to and before I knew it he was done tattooing me. Â I highly highly highly recommend Memorial Tattoo and Jason Kelly in particular. Â I was only planning on getting one tattoo but I might get another in the future because the experience was so great. Â Oh, and of course Jason did an awesome job and I have gotten good compliments on the artwork.
Review Source:I have been a customer of Phils since Tornado Tattoo. I could rave about the artists and talent I have met in association to him for poorly punctuated paragraphs. I doan multiple tattoos alah Tim Bonagareo, Dave Kruseman, Mikey Jenkins. All superbly talented artists I met in relation to Phil. Memorial tattoo is where I send every yahoo who inquires about my ridiculously good looking tattoos.
Review Source:Had I have Phil Colvin do my first tattoo; he would have always be the only one since I do not need to find anyone else.
I wanted to have my back piece done and asked him for some suggestions to get my idea come together. Super fast and light. He is a friendly, amazing person and artist.
This is the place you want to be for friendly, honest, and uncompromising service! After having a bad experience dealing with another "premier" Atlanta shop, I talked to Lee and was immediately ready to book an appointment. Malia was at the front desk when I finally came in and she took an hour out of her day just to talk to me about what I wanted and gave some great advice about placement and what would work best.
On the day of my appointment, Malia took more time to do several sketches with me to make sure I was happy with what she was going to do. Being that this was my first tattoo, I was a little nervous and controlling about what was going to happen. Malia was extremely gracious and understanding throughout the design process (thanks for that!) and was able to steer me in the right direction without being the least condescending or forceful. Her friendly insight and amazing attention to detail are what made this tattoo perfect for me.
I was ready to deal with the arrogance and conceit of the several shops I contacted because I thought it just came with the territory. I'm so glad I was able to find Memorial Tattoo and get my first tattoo from Malia. Looking forward to booking an appointment for my next and giving Malia a lot more control over the next one!
I just got my FIRST tattoo on Saturday and I'm SOOO happy I did my research and found Memorial Tattoo and Phil !! Since it was my first tattoo and it was in honor of my father who just passed, I wanted it to be top-notch and the best in Atlanta. Well, I definitely found that in Phil Colvin and Memorial Tattoo. I had a consultation with him all the way back in September thinking I could come back for the appointment maybe in a week or two...turns out I couldn't get into his appointment calendar until DECEMBER! I was a bit surprised by that and disappointed but I was also impressed because I realized just how great Phil must be to be so booked. He was very attentive via email and over the phone anytime I wanted to ask a question before my appointment. When the time FINALLY came to get the tattoo he was so nice and calmed my nerves. He didn't act like some hardened pro who had no sensitivity to the newbie. He was fast and professional and kept asking how I was doing and engaging me in small talk throughout to keep me calm. When it was over he actually charged me a little less than expected. He told me his usual rate is $150 per hour but my tattoo took about an hour and a half and he only charged $100 plus the $100 I paid back when I first made my appointment. So all in all I only paid $200 for the actual tattoo . Not bad for the best in Atlanta. I also happily threw in a good tip because I was just so impressed with the quality of the work and the professionalism of the entire shop which was clean and organized. I will definitely be getting my next tattoo at Memorial and hopefully with Phil. I can't speak for the other artists but they all seemed nice enough. While I was waiting for Phil to set up I was watching another one of the artist tattoo a guy on his chest and she was talking and laughing with him and he seemed to be really enjoying his experience and we heard him praise his artist more than once so there you have it. Go see Phil and Memorial tattoo for an awesome experience!!!!
Review Source:I had been planning on a getting a tattoo for several years and finally decided to do it! After ready all the great reviews of this place, I decided to go to Memorial for my first one. All I got was lettering on my foot but Stenvik was patient, quick and put me at ease. I'm really happy with it and am already planning on going back.
Review Source:After wasting time, gas, day-time minutes, energy, and waiting two months to hear back from the guy at Prestige Tattoo off Buford Hwy, and getting the same "I left it at home, but I'll email you," response for literally two months, I figured that there's no way in heck that that was remotely normalcy for anyone to have to wait for a sketch. I moved on, bruised but not broken. Somber music enter, curtain closes, chipper music begins. Enter Memorial Tattoo Stage Right.
Da ta daaa! Lee was my first introduction to the shoppe and she was so inviting, welcoming, and greeted me with terms of endearment. She sounded like a warm mother, and that's just what I needed to not be scared away from getting a needle drilled into my side. I am a virgin, after all.
I head over to Memorial Tattoo, and it's spacious, clean, and I hear the infamous buzzing hum that is indigenous to all ink places. I am engaged by the art, and infected by the need to get tatted before my skin is too wrinkled to be worth it the drama.
I looked through all of the portfolios, as per Lee's suggestions, to get some inspiration for the abstract ideas that I already had in mind. I needed something concrete, but wasn't sure how to pictorially depict my idea... Phil and Malia's work grabbed my attention, and I ultimately booked with Malia bc she was available, spoke with me for a mini consult after she'd meticulously tatted and cleaned her studio, and helped me sort out some things.
I am eagerly awaiting her sketch. Guess what? She set a date and time (EGAD! NOT TWO MONTHS OUT, Only a few days away!) for me to see the sketch, and I just may end up a tat addict. I fell in love with Sarah B.'s work from Malia, and althoguh Phil has the best faces I've ever seen ANYWHERE up and down the East Coast, I didn't want a face, nor did I want to wait til Oct to see him. No love lost, just excited to get the job done. Thanks guys, and looking forward to seeing y'all soon!
I followed Jason Kelly to this tattoo parlor after I kept getting compliments from everyone, including old ladies, on the butterfly tattoo that he did. This is one situation of a tattioist taking a simple concept as a butterfly and making it the most awesome butterfly ever. All I had to do was tell him the size and the colors I wanted and bam! awesome job.
Since then, I've also been tattooed by Malia who was just superb. Apparently she does not know how popular she is on the tattoo blogs, everyone knows she is the flower queen. Surprisingly, there was no ego here. She was nice, funny, patient (which is important in their profession) called me to remind me of my appointment, had such a gentle hand and was so courteous.
The entire shop is nice. Usually when you go to some of these tattoo shops and you're not the everyday tattooed up the wazoo lady, they tend to give you this look like "Charlotte from Sex and the City just walked in." However, this does not happen at Memorial tattoo. Â Most times, the tattooist is waiting at the door for me to arrive and greets me with a smile.
I just think that's A-plus customer service, don't you?
I went in with a friend as a walk-in this morning for our first tattoos. Phil was there and even opened the shop early for us so we could go ahead and get them done. He was very patient with our resizing of the designs and our nervousness (and the large group of people that we brought in), and had a great tattoo-side manner. So far the tattoos look great! I'd recommend Memorial to anyone in Atlanta.
Review Source:So after a long drought of being too cheap and lazy to go get tattooed, I had one of those days where I knew I had to go get something permanently engraved into my, ahem, lower boobie curve region.
I had previously accompanied my gentleman-friend, a few months prior, to Memorial on Moreland and observed as Sten tattooed a magnificently detailed and badass chainsaw on said gentleman's forearm. It looked great, and I was impressed.
So when I woke up one Sunday thinking that I must get tattooed, it was surprising that we didn't immediately think of Memorial. We visited a few other shops, ones where we knew people, etc., but all were either closed or too busy.
Was there no room at the inn for my lower boobie curve region?
But then we remembered...Memorial on Moreland! And drove there hence, where, lucky us, Sten was there and free and happy to fit the both of us in.
In my left lower boobie curve region, I now have precise, exquisite, fine, and lovely linework reading "lux et voluptas." It is so pretty and so perfect and delicate that every time I see it in the mirror I grin.
Sten is amazing. Everyone else there is great, I hear. The shop is cool and relaxed and clean, Prices are reasonable and reflect the quality of the work.
I'm sure I'll be tattooed at other shops and by other people at some point, but for now, my first stop in Atlanta is Memorial. No question.
Can a tattoo shop feel like home? Everyone took great care to be real and cool and treat you like family. The music was like my own soundtrack of punk rock and rock and roll. Everything was super clean and dare I say cozy to a rock and roll lover like me.
Phil is THE MASTER. I recently got my first "big" tattoo (2nd tattoo ever) from Phil and I didn't even consider that anyone else would be the artist. I felt at ease through the whole process and wasn't even a teensy bit nervous once we started talking through it. The tattoo I got is so good that when I wear a tank top my friends still yank the strap over to see the whole thing and just ooh and ahh. I still marvel at how great it looks and am saving furiously for more ink from Memorial!!
Wanting to take the plunge and get a tattoo is a pretty big deal. Well, assuming you don't want a run-of-the-mill tattoo that everyone and their mother has. With ideas and sketches on multiple sheets of paper, I was unsure where to go. Research scared me, so finally I went with someone to Memorial Tattoo to watch them work. I immediately loved the atmosphere of this location. An older home turned haven for skin art, friendly artists providing plenty of conversation, and no sales pitch or forced work. In fact, while there another customer came in for the third time. Apparently he'd chickened out twice before, and while he chickened out again, the artist he was working with never once scolded him or made him feel awful for being unsure. A tattoo is a pretty big deal and a lifetime commitment, so I was glad to see the entire staff being open and honest about the entire ordeal.
I met with Malia, a newcomer to the shop at the time. Her work was beautiful, and she spent a while talking to me about the process, size, position, and even took all my sketches to create the tattoo I wound up with. She's very skilled, not heavy-handed at all, and praised me for spending 4 hours under the needle (I figured why not complete the whole thing in one go?). Other artists would wander in as she worked, chatting with me about my career, life, and travels. You really feel like one of the family here! In the end, I wound up with a beautiful tattoo that I love, and the compliments I've gotten around the world have been glowing. When people stop you in a conservative town to tell you they love your tattoo, you know it was well done, quality work!
Besides making great art, the entire place is clean and before starting, I was shown a new needle being opened and all fresh inks set up on the table. There's nothing sketch about this place aside from all the drawings going on!
If you're looking for a high quality, friendly neighborhood place to get a tattoo, I would highly, highly recommend Memorial Tattoo. Skilled artists and a clean environment are the best recipe for a permanent mark on your skin!
If you want great art, unpretentious artist and honest work then definitely visit Memorial tattoo. Â I've lived in lots of places and seen and had art work done by many artist. Â I promise never to see anyone other than Phil Colvin. Â I am a fan for life.
I think It speaks volumes for a person's portfolio when the answer to my question, "who does your work?" was usually, "Phil Colvin". Â That was my experience after moving to Atlanta. Â I would see brilliant, original, beautiful pieces all over the city and finally made an appointment to go see him. Â He was at the original location in Cabbagetown and I've since followed him to the location on Memorial.
I've never had anything but a stellar experience each visit. Â I have been in enough shops where upon entering you are knocked over by the pretentious, holier-than- thou sentiment of the people who work there. Â That has never been the case at Memorial. Â Everyone that I've met that works there impresses me. Â Phil always greets with a smile and is open and honest about any choices I've made. Â I respect his experience and he respects my time and the fact that I'm a customer in his shop. Â You don't get that at most shops.
I've never seen the placed trashed (as mentioned below) and everyone  there is usually too busy working to "horse around".  Yeah, you might have to wait.  Life is one big effin waiting room.  Get over it.  Brilliance takes time.  If you want factory-like results where people are churned out from assembly line workers, then I suggest you check out another local shop.  The waiting area is full of enough eye-candy to keep you entertained until your artist is ready.
Great  people, great place, great work.  What else are you looking for?
Haven't seen Jason Kelly for 2 years since he did my scorpion tattoo when he was over at Timeless. Went today with Big Daddy Marc to get another tat & loved the place. It's in an old house, plenty of room, airy and full of fun art. Trying to figure out what Jason can do to cover up an old tat that another guy did a horrible job on.
i'm giving them 5*s even tho they don't have a Waffle House across the street like Timeless Tattoo does. When can we get Waffle House in frickin' California? Geez!!
I'm thrilled by the "big ol' tiger" tattoo that Gary Yoxen created for me. Â It's amazing work and he has an awesome personality! Â
I had a friend come in during our session and he took the time to explain the tattoo machine to her - and how it works, and it's history. Â He was patient with me when I needed to break - and was a genuine sweet heart. Â
The place itself is a big comfortable and private place - like an easy chair where you come out with awesome art on your body. Â I even got to meet Lee Y Â - who is sassy and adorable. Â :)
I cannot wait to go back and get the color finished. Â I highly recommend this place and Gary. Â This was a great experience from the beginning when we sat down to discuss my goals, to his original art conception, tweaks he made to capture wind movement and put gorgeous traditional Japanese cherry blossoms in the work, to the time and care he took placing it around my existing tattoos. Â And everyone who sees it is amazed at how fabulous this big ol' tiger looks. Â
I cannot say enough and am very impressed! Â If you're looking for a great experience and awesome body art - go here!
In the process of shopping around for some new artists to work on me, I was directed to Memorial 2 by fellow Yelper Lee Y. Phil was expecting me and even though he was tattooing, he still took the time to talk to me about my ideas. He was very up front about his schedule, pricing, and a lot of details that some artists don't like to give right away. Generally, he was just a really nice guy. Jason was equally helpful with scheduling me and helping me find the artwork I wanted to show Phil. When I forgot my appointment card at the shop, Jason called to remind me of my times. I thought that was going above and beyond. Most would be like "Oh well, hope she remembers!"
I'm scheduled for my first session with Phil in late spring, so expect an update around then. Until then, I'm adding Memorial 2 to my list of top of the line tattoo shops.
I've Watched "Philthy" Phil Colvin go from 10x6 stall at Liberty Tattoo(another great shop) to a slighty larger workspace at his own parlor in cabbagetown to pretty much a large studio to perform his miracles in and he deserves every inch of it and more. Â I was referred to Phil by my artist at the time, Demian at liberty, when i brought an idea up involving celtic deities and an entire rib panel. Â He stated that as much as he wanted to put this piece together for me that Phil's style was exactly what my idea needed to by a masterpiece, and he was right. Â It took two years to the day until I was able to complete it between school, work. and being a broke ass college kid, but was worth the wait and all the pain. Â My piece came out great not just cause Phil is good with the gun, but because of his knowledge of art and ideas that helped guide us from my idea to our work of art. Â I sat down with him for another sess recently to do my forearm, my chef's knife on fire, and he pulled it off again. Â Great artist with a great shop.
Review Source:Phil inked a train on my forearm and it rules. Its so detailed that anyone who knows trains can tell it's a Baldwin. It is my first truly professional top notch tattoo and I usually get compliments on it from strangers multiple times daily when I'm out and about. But what makes me a customer for life is that he and his staff are courteous, friendly, and just genuinely good people. Getting tattooed there is like hanging out with friends you've known for years. Best shop I've found in over ten years of getting tattooed.
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