Finger, palms of face Tattoo?
Welcome! My name is Simon Vadelma – I’m a tattoo artist and co-owner of Vadelma Tattoo in Amsterdam.
In today’s episode, I’m going to answer FAQ number 28 from our website:
“Do you make finger, palms or neck tattoos?”
The quick answer as usual in such questions is No. But we have some good reasoning behind it and yes the list doesn’t stop there. Are you curious why we – choose to work this way and what are the rest of placements that we avoid to tattoo? I will talk about it in today’s episode.
PRINTS
You’re listening. You’re watching.
But are you supporting?
Please visit our art print store at VADELMA ART PRINT STORE where you’ll find Natalie’s original artwork – limited edition, museum-quality art prints. In one size only – by design – like in the real paintings.
Full List of the placement we don’t tattoo at Vadelma.
Fingers, hands, palms, wrist ( area where we wear watch or bracelet. ), elbow, armpit, knees, feet, under ankle, ankle ( all around ) , heels, neck, ear, lips, face, head and intimate parts.
Specifics of the skin in those placements in relation to the style of tattooing we chose to create.
The skin on different parts of the body varies a lot—and that matters when it comes to the kind of tattooing we do at Vadelma. If you take a closer look at areas like the wrist, face, hands, fingers, ankles, or elbows, you’ll notice that many of them either have thin, sensitive skin, or are very exposed to sunlight. These spots also face more friction in daily life, which can affect how a tattoo ages over time.. They also require much more care and attention during the healing process, which can lead to a higher likelihood of touch-ups if those conditions are not met.
Through our time in the tattoo industry, we’ve learned that these areas often come with challenges that aren’t always ideal for the fine lines we specialize in. It’s not that tattoos can’t work there, of course they can. However at Vadelma – By choosing to avoid these areas, we actually gain more creative freedom. For instance, since neither Natalie nor I tattoo on feet we don’t spend time designing for those areas—leaving us with more energy to focus on the projects that matters the most for us and people who decided to get a tattoo in our studio.
It’s a conscious decision – something that evolved at Vadelma.
And, of course, we stand by all the work we’ve done in the past and we really love all of the tattoos that were made in our studio – even if we don’t tattoo in some placements anymore. In fact – from the very beginning both me and Natalie – never did tattoos in most of the placements from the list – but recently we added an ankle and wrist there. This choice is a new chapter – and you are more than welcome to join us.
Additional Point – High Visibility
Let’s take another look at the list of placements we don’t tattoo at Vadelma. I am sure that you noticed that most of them are highly visible and hard to cover, like the hands or face? This policy is very specific to our studio. As you know, we’re strict about the rules — like age limits, type of design and so on. And let’s be honest: while tattoos are widely accepted in many workplaces, schools, and universities, having a tattoo on your forehead is still likely to shock people. Sure, it might be fine for certain professions, like artists, baristas, designers or YouTubers, but what if a 17-year-old girl gets a text tattoo above her eyebrow? How can she know if it will or will not – cause any issues in her adult life, once the “youth rebellion” phase is over?
At Vadelma, we don’t want to be part of that.
While I love tattoo art – I still believe that with some tattoo related decisions it is better to wait. And this is another valid reason for us why we refuse to tattoo certain placements.
On and off trends ( Hailey Bieber/Ariana Grande/Post Malone )
Last paragraph for today – Is it a coincidence that some types of tattoos always pick up in popularity just after a super famous current top star makes one? When Heiley Bieber did her finger tattoo with letter “J’’ for Justin – you can only imagine how many requests with exactly the same tattoo idea we get – maybe the letter might change, because not everybody has a partner with the name starting from “J”, but the idea overall was very popular. The same with Ariana Grande’s hand tattoos – Hand tattoos were pretty much a niche before she did them.
On one hand I am grateful for the work they did to spread tattoo art – like David Beckham did.
In my understanding he was one of the first massively popular tattoo ambassadors – who helped to normalize this form of art. But, on the other hand – I’d love to see critical thinking in the process of deciding which tattoo you would like to have. Everyone is different, and has their own story. And tattoos – are probably one of the best ways to express YOurself – not copy others.
I am not here to judge – people make their own choices – but if I or Natalie will only follow what’s trendy – soon, we will forget who we are and what kind of art we want to give people.
The amount of likes under a post is probably not the best criteria when it comes to tattoos.
That’s it for today!
Thank you so much for watching and listening. I hope this episode gives you a better understanding of what drives the engine behind Vadelma.
Have a good day and have fun!
Welcome! My name is Simon Vadelma – I’m a tattoo artist and co-owner of Vadelma Tattoo in Amsterdam.
In today’s episode, I’m going to answer FAQ number 28 from our website:
“Do you make finger, palms or neck tattoos?”
The quick answer as usual in such questions is No. But we have some good reasoning behind it and yes the list doesn’t stop there. Are you curious why we – choose to work this way and what are the rest of placements that we avoid to tattoo? I will talk about it in today’s episode.
PRINTS
You’re listening. You’re watching.
But are you supporting?
Please visit our art print store at VADELMA ART PRINT STORE where you’ll find Natalie’s original artwork – limited edition, museum-quality art prints. In one size only – by design – like in the real paintings.
Full List of the placement we don’t tattoo at Vadelma.
Fingers, hands, palms, wrist ( area where we wear watch or bracelet. ), elbow, armpit, knees, feet, under ankle, ankle ( all around ) , heels, neck, ear, lips, face, head and intimate parts.
Specifics of the skin in those placements in relation to the style of tattooing we chose to create.
The skin on different parts of the body varies a lot—and that matters when it comes to the kind of tattooing we do at Vadelma. If you take a closer look at areas like the wrist, face, hands, fingers, ankles, or elbows, you’ll notice that many of them either have thin, sensitive skin, or are very exposed to sunlight. These spots also face more friction in daily life, which can affect how a tattoo ages over time.. They also require much more care and attention during the healing process, which can lead to a higher likelihood of touch-ups if those conditions are not met.
Through our time in the tattoo industry, we’ve learned that these areas often come with challenges that aren’t always ideal for the fine lines we specialize in. It’s not that tattoos can’t work there, of course they can. However at Vadelma – By choosing to avoid these areas, we actually gain more creative freedom. For instance, since neither Natalie nor I tattoo on feet we don’t spend time designing for those areas—leaving us with more energy to focus on the projects that matters the most for us and people who decided to get a tattoo in our studio.
It’s a conscious decision – something that evolved at Vadelma.
And, of course, we stand by all the work we’ve done in the past and we really love all of the tattoos that were made in our studio – even if we don’t tattoo in some placements anymore. In fact – from the very beginning both me and Natalie – never did tattoos in most of the placements from the list – but recently we added an ankle and wrist there. This choice is a new chapter – and you are more than welcome to join us.
Additional Point – High Visibility
Let’s take another look at the list of placements we don’t tattoo at Vadelma. I am sure that you noticed that most of them are highly visible and hard to cover, like the hands or face? This policy is very specific to our studio. As you know, we’re strict about the rules — like age limits, type of design and so on. And let’s be honest: while tattoos are widely accepted in many workplaces, schools, and universities, having a tattoo on your forehead is still likely to shock people. Sure, it might be fine for certain professions, like artists, baristas, designers or YouTubers, but what if a 17-year-old girl gets a text tattoo above her eyebrow? How can she know if it will or will not – cause any issues in her adult life, once the “youth rebellion” phase is over?
At Vadelma, we don’t want to be part of that.
While I love tattoo art – I still believe that with some tattoo related decisions it is better to wait. And this is another valid reason for us why we refuse to tattoo certain placements.
On and off trends ( Hailey Bieber/Ariana Grande/Post Malone )
Last paragraph for today – Is it a coincidence that some types of tattoos always pick up in popularity just after a super famous current top star makes one? When Heiley Bieber did her finger tattoo with letter “J’’ for Justin – you can only imagine how many requests with exactly the same tattoo idea we get – maybe the letter might change, because not everybody has a partner with the name starting from “J”, but the idea overall was very popular. The same with Ariana Grande’s hand tattoos – Hand tattoos were pretty much a niche before she did them.
On one hand I am grateful for the work they did to spread tattoo art – like David Beckham did.
In my understanding he was one of the first massively popular tattoo ambassadors – who helped to normalize this form of art. But, on the other hand – I’d love to see critical thinking in the process of deciding which tattoo you would like to have. Everyone is different, and has their own story. And tattoos – are probably one of the best ways to express YOurself – not copy others.
I am not here to judge – people make their own choices – but if I or Natalie will only follow what’s trendy – soon, we will forget who we are and what kind of art we want to give people.
The amount of likes under a post is probably not the best criteria when it comes to tattoos.
That’s it for today!
Thank you so much for watching and listening. I hope this episode gives you a better understanding of what drives the engine behind Vadelma.
Have a good day and have fun!
