Forum

.
i didn't have to deal with it in a customer's affair, but i wanted to have it- besides some also very close friends of the cremated person- in my own skin, because the cremated person was one of my closest friends.

so i and all of those who wanted to have it wouldn't give a flying fuck about the health-side- hey man, that was one of my closest buddies for more than half of my life, so fucking what- but the technical side didn't work out in our favour. this is mainly because of the fact, that the ashes is of strange consistency: there are quite different coloured parts from black to nearly white and also very different sizes of the particles. but mainly the stuff is very heavy and hard and i and some other tattooist had two main problems: to get it powdered down to really fine "pigment status" particles and to find a kind of way to get it in a floating status in any kind of tattooable liquid emulsion without demixing nearly on the spot: neither did it work out in a readymade ink- nor in any kind of self made emulsion in lots of different concentrations of glyzerine (is that called so in english?), witch hazel, isopropanol, distilled water... and this to the very day.

if anyone has got a clue about the technical side, i would appreciate that...

When my mentor passed away all his love ones and friends wanted his ashes on they're memorial tattoo it was something little his initial his signature somethink like that.they had me do all the tattoos for them it was i little add but been around a tattoo shop fora long time you see all kinds of add shit .ididnt see any difrence on the ink i did notice the all of the ashes went to the bottom of the bottle the healing was rogh of some of them but i dont know if they took care of it some did look a little ashy the bigger tattoos but nothing mayor the thing i was concern was the what we call ashes is actually bone grinded to like powder but not really fine powder thats all i got men iv only done ones i dont think ill do it again.

Btw that bottle was use only for his friends and family and was store far away from the studio and label so the nobody gets confuse and use it on a costumer

Thanks for the info guys! I'll pass it onto my co worker. I'm not sure if she's going to do it yet but at least she will have a bit more information as to what might happen.

From a health standpoint, I've looked and can't find anything saying that this might be dangerous. I'd personally be very hesitant to mix ashes into ink, but what the ashes are essentially is the remains of bone fragments - mostly calcium - that have been exposed to over 2000 degree heat. However, the fragments would have to be pulverized finer to be able to mix with the ink and lessen the risk of injecting solid particles under the skin. As for mixing it with the ink, it sounds like it doesn't work well, the only thing I could suggest is making a solvent with the calcium and witch hazel and mix that with the ink but I'm not positive that that would make a true solvent.

.
that wouldn't work because of the really heavy weight of the ashes- we took the glyzerine (again: is it called so in english?) for the classic reason: to get the emulsion thicker- like you can do it with too watery inks- to compensate the exorbitant weight of the ashes. but even in nearly pure glyzerine there was no way to get it into a stable floating state without demixing and sinking to the bottom instantly after shaking...

Ok ive done an ash tattoo but also turned down a few.the one I did was a good ash .I guess there are two ways to creamate a body .one is just a quick burn that is the one I turned down a few times it leaves bone fragments in the ash .you cannot tattoo this .not by any good means anyhow.the second is a complete burn where the body is fully buned to ash this type of ash is like cigarrete ash .when you put a cigarette ash in your palm and rub it with your finger it rubs away to nothing .that is good ash .you put a tiny bit in a large ink cap .it will not settle and it is good for tattooing.the other type of ash can be done but it needs to be fully burn to do it.I woukd say get a metal container put the ash in it and place it in a fire for about an hour .the fire shoukd be a real strong one .the health side of it is up and down.fully burnt ashes are sterile because they have burnt all the way .as long as they were boxed or contained right after .nothing can possbly survive 1, 200+degrees in an inferno.nothing biological anyway.I think this would make it sterile. As far as mixing it shoukd be fine cuz only a small amount will go in a large quantity of ink.mix it good and there you go a memorial of a loved one.

Thanks guys, I'll pass the information you've all given me on to her. :)

I've had a few experiences with this. The first time was when my best friend passed away and me and his brother used his ashes in our ink. Some of the ashes were definitely chunky and we had to refine it. I put a dab into the ink caps. And both our tattoos healed fine. In the future when clients would come in and make this request I would ask them to buy a bottle of black ink and I would mix a lil bit of refined ash to it and shake it up. In my opinion you do not need a lot of ash, technically once a bit is entered the whole bottle now contains remnants. To me it's more symbolic do. Once the family leaves with the bottle they can return whenever to get memorial tattoos with the ink.

Just to put a spanner in the works, not all crematoriums cremate each person individualy. So the ashes you get back might contain other peoples. So you essentualy run the risk of having a complete strangers ashes tattoo'd in you. This might not be a problem for someone who souly believes that that is their loved one. But its food for thought.

.

in my special case there`s no doubt about the ash`s origins, because luckily it`s a very small crematorium in the countryside with not much "traffic" and besides that: even the "undertaker" and the shop he`s working at are our friends since more than 20 years.

I have a client that is wanting his fathers ashes used as tattoo ink. like yall I am worried about infections. I have found all kinds of things on getting them done but nothing on the risk. if you find anything on the woes on this type of tattooing please post it or you can message me on facebook user name red Russell. thank you, red

I have my husbands ashes in my tat. A small amount was put into a small well and mixed with black ink. The larger particles sunk to the bottom of the well and just the smallest particles mixed into the ink. After that healed I went back and had it colored. It's beautiful and if I didn't tell you, you would never know there were ashes in it (but I tell everyone!).

My family has owned a tattoo shop for more years than I have been alive... Recently my mother passed and I decided to have her 'cremains' mixed and implemented into a memorial tattoo on my body... After literately YEARS of research by my artist (of over 40 years as well as myself) and not one medical disclaimer stating any substantial health risk (aside from typical rejection/irritation) I went ahead with the tattoo... I must say, I have a horrid habit of sleeping (no joke lol) through my ink work, but this one I did notice 'burned' a bit more than any other, though not an unbearable 'burn'. It has been a week today and the only issue I have had is that it itches a bit more than I am accustomed, but nowhere near unbearable ;) I would personally say though it is illegal in most US states... If it is a well researched and thought out desire, someone truly from the heart, GO FOR IT! I can not find a single reason why not (on a medical platform), and it is for me the ultimate sense of closure and "acceptance"... For lack of a better word. I may have an urn, as well as a jewelry urn I wear around my neck, but having her remains implemented into such a beautiful tribute on my body and 'in my blood' is a surreal sense of "having her with me always" <3

My dad was afraid to get tattooed untill after he got his pace maker..by then he was way to fragile and his skin was too thin to tattoo....I live with regret that I didn't tattoo that sexy blond mermaids he wanted On his back now I have his cremains and I'm sure I know what to do...lol...a memorial tattoo on myself with that blond he allways wanted..and the rest into a bio urn with a marijuana seed...also another last wish..as a stoner I'm takeing his stoner rants seriously when others in my family aren't so sure...want to know how I should proceed?

My dad was afraid to get tattooed untill after he got his pace maker..by then he was way to fragile and his skin was too thin to tattoo....I live with regret that I didn't tattoo that sexy blond mermaids he wanted On his back now I have his cremains and I'm sure I know what to do...lol...a memorial tattoo on myself with that blond he allways wanted..and the rest into a bio urn with a marijuana seed...also another last wish..as a stoner I'm takeing his stoner rants seriously when others in my family aren't so sure...want to know how I should proceed?

My dad was afraid to get tattooed untill after he got his pace maker..by then he was way to fragile and his skin was too thin to tattoo....I live with regret that I didn't tattoo that sexy blond mermaids he wanted On his back now I have his cremains and I'm sure I know what to do...lol...a memorial tattoo on myself with that blond he allways wanted..and the rest into a bio urn with a marijuana seed...also another last wish..as a stoner I'm takeing his stoner rants seriously when others in my family aren't so sure...want to know how I should proceed?

Hey,
I have a huge school project that I need to do. The project is about tattoos. The problem I have though is that I have to have questionnaires filled out. I have sent out roughly 100 but only two people have actually responded and I need to hand in the filled in questionnaires next week Monday. If you could please help me I would be so grateful.
There are two different surveys, the first one is for people who have tattoos, the second is for tattoo artists:
The one for people with tattoos is: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6SJQLBG
The second one for tattoo artists is: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6XJ9BXG
Please can you fill it out for me, it should only take 2 minutes of your time.

I know no one has posted here for a while, but I’m having such a hard time finding anyone who will do a memorial tattoo for me and my mom, incorporating my grandma’s ashes. I understand that it may be hard for some artists, not wanting to handle human ash, but it would be so special for us. She was everything to my mom and very important to me, I am her namesake. We just feel it would give us closure and peace knowing she was always with us. If anyone sees this and knows of a good tattoo artist willing to do this for us in the middle TN area Nashville, Murfreesboro, Franklin, it would be greatly appreciated. Oh would definitely be willing to travel to, Knoxville or Chattanooga, or even Memphis or Atlanta.
Thanks so much for your help..

I promise you this is not a good idea.
Though the meaning is monumentally important and the significance is undeniable - it's simply not safe.

I, for the sake of getting a clear answer, attempted a memorial tattoo with her father's ashes. All I have to say is it wont kill you - but damn does the skin not like that shit at all lol. The healing process was frightening and she was a good friend so I was very active throughout her healing process. After paying close care to it - it looked alight at best. The color was not fully saturated and her skin had a very shiny texture to it - like a scar.

My recommendation is that if you DO find someone willing to do it. Just don't. You're putting burned bone particles INTO your skin. You may as well get the tattoo then rub ashes all over it like butter. You're smothering an open wound with, basically, a filthy object. It's going to infect.

Mind you I only used a mere pinch of ash to a large full scale black and grey memorial.

Wish you the best. Good Luck!