Tattoos and Wine- It's Cool Now, Right?

Read below for a little soap-boxing on tattoos in the business, and some dos/don’ts when getting tattooed- some we learned the hard way.

Fun Fact

Our label is based on a tattoo by Justin Shaw who has been tattooing us for 15 years. We gave his drawing to a tattoo inspired illustrator, Derrick Castle, who designed our label, and the ever-tattoo-inspired posted below.

The wine business is a little farther behind on the acceptance of tattoos, but no shit, it’s full of people trying to hump the dusty old leg of “Money.” We, at Lucky Rock, feel that way of thinking is out of date- nearly all layers of the social strata have a percentage of people with a tattoo, or more.  There are legs everywhere to hump, not just 'Old Money.' Hump? Really?!

Like we did for years, many in the wine business still get "hide-able" tattoos. About 5 years ago, we decided to say 'fuck it' and rolled up our sleeves.  After all, Lucky Rock is us, if they don’t like us, then they won’t like Lucky Rock.

We like to think of ourselves in the same capacity as the modern chef would...'Who really cares if we have a tattoo or a ton of them! We are busy cooking in the kitchen'- probably at a well know restaurant you may frequent. Besides, we are a little rough around the edges, and proud of it- although don’t challenge us to make the best lamb shank you have ever tasted- we can do that (making great wine at a good price, in our case).

 Click here to chime in on the topic of tattoos in the wine business.

A Few Dos & Don'ts of Tattoos

Drinking and Tattoos

We hate to say it, but, hold off on drinking our Pinot Noir or Sauvignon Blanc until after the tattoo. We have made the mistake of getting a tattoo whilst slightly intoxicated. Why this is a bad idea you ask? You may have heard people discuss regrettable choices made when drinking… This, especially, applies to tattoos- We have seen some bad drunk tattoos over the years. Very bad. Also, you bleed a little when you get a tattoo… you bleed more when you drink alcohol. Messy.  Your artist will appreciate you not being a drunk ass, that is also bleeding a little extra for him/her.

 

Health

People don’t often factor in the immune system when getting a tattoo. If the body is pissed off (e.g. inflamed) it doesn’t heal as well. Tattoos need to heal. If you don’t heal properly, your tattoo can reflect that. Here is an article from Inked Magazine on the topic. 

 

Have Fun

Tattoos are a means of expression, have fun with them. Take your time, pick a good artist and don’t feel pressured to do anything you aren’t comfortable with- you very well could feel pressure from your artist to hurry up, or not to make revisions. We like a quote from Johnny Depp, "My body is my journal and my tattoos are my story." We have some tattoos we love, some not so much (younger us). Regardless, they all have a story, even if they didn’t originally have a meaning.

 

Additional Reading on the Subject

-Here is a great article on things to think about when getting a tattoo by the Huffington Post 

-Why do people get tattoos? And what would you tell someone with a negative view of them? Here is a new article that asks the question and people give there answers. 

-Tattoos have been around for many thousands of years. Even if you get one and they go out of style, just hang tight, they will come in to fashion again, you may just have to wait a couple thousand years. See mummy tattoos here.

 

THE DEAL

Like the poster above? Get it here. If you made it this far, you should probably get a discount. Enter Code POSTER at check out to get it for $6+tax (includes shipping). It's 13 x 17.5 in- normally $20 a pop- FYI.