Honest Tattooer Podcast

86:57

When Tattooers Should Say No

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/09/28

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano do a one-on-one episode about when tattooers need to say no, including turning down projects outside their strengths, designs that are too small, ideas that won’t age well, and clients who change direction or message-bomb before appointments. They discuss balancing honesty with opportunity, sometimes doing simple walk-ins for the experience can lead to bigger work, while also protecting time, enforcing rescheduling boundaries, and avoiding sending dr...

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78:34

Fashion Trends Or The Future Of Tattooing with...

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/09/21

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano are joined by guest tattooer Edoardo Taglioretti, a 12-year artist from Italy who specializes in new school and bio-organic tattoos. They discuss whether current tattoo trends will become classics or future coverups, framing how tattoos “age” physically in skin, culturally, and personally. The episode critiques post-ironic meme/joke tattoos, brand and shock-value pieces, and the role of social media in spreading trends before healed results are seen....

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37:11

Ruining Your Your Mom's Face

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/09/14

Send us Fan Mail This week we talk about the importance of choosing the right artist for the job, what makes a good portrait reference, lining at the end of a large, multi session piece, the cost of a good tattoo in Bali and what is goin on what that back piece? Support the show

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74:54

How AI Is Changing Tattooing with Charles Arizmendy...

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/09/07

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, and Matt Buck talk with guest tattooer Charles Arizmendy and later Skylar Phung about how AI is affecting tattooing, especially as clients bring AI-generated references that look polished but often aren’t tattooable due to skin, body flow, aging, and detail limitations. They compare AI references to Pinterest/Google, discuss when AI is a helpful springboard versus when clients get overly attached to an exact image, and debate what feels acceptabl...

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81:49

Are Tattooers Cringe? with Fabian

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/08/31

Send us Fan Mail On the Honest Tattooer podcast, Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano sit down with Matt Buck and guest Fabian, a New York tattooer of 13 years with a graffiti background who now focuses on mostly freehand blackwork sigils—turning phrases into symbols by removing vowels and repeated consonants. The group reacts to a thread about what’s “cringe” in tattooing and debates whether artists who learned online, don’t build machines, and make lots of content are “less” of a tattooer, weigh...

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78:10

When Do You Feel Like a “Real” Tattooer with Amanda...

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/08/24

Send us Fan Mail On the Honest Tattooer podcast, hosts Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano talk with guest tattooer/shop owner Amanda Malia and her apprentice Jacob Satterly. They discuss blurred style lines, Amanda’s nontraditional early apprenticeships and how long it took to feel like a “real tattooer,” imposter syndrome, and how environment and competition affect growth. The episode covers how social media has changed perceptions of legitimacy, differences between Facebook and Instagram, and Meta p...

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101:29

Will Biotech, Robots & AI Shape Tattooing’s Future...

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/08/17

Send us Fan Mail On the Honest Tattooer podcast, Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, and guests Joe Capobianco, Ermis and Matt Buck discuss who will shape tattooing’s future as outside biotech and tech companies push new products faster than the tattoo community. They react Pain-Free Tattoo microneedle stamp concept. They also cover Black Dot’s venture-backed automated tattooing system, its current limitations, and skepticism about small-scale fine-line results without long-term healed examples. The grou...

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61:10

Looking At Your Tattoos 10 Years Later with Lalo Yunda

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/08/10

Send us Fan Mail This week we take a look at an instagram post that shows Michelle DiDonato Quinones' tattoos fresh vs healed as we learn what works and what doesn't. Support the show

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82:40

What Makes a Tattooer Hireable with Aaron Davis

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/08/03

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, and guest Aaron Davis (Atlanta-based tattooer specializing in Afro-Americana, tattooing 7+ years) discuss what makes a tattooer hireable if they had no reputation, including how shop hiring has changed, the importance of portfolio, attitude, reliability, and the ability to pay rent by bringing in clients. They weigh social media presence versus consistent walk-ins, emphasize professionalism and respecting clients’ time, and name major red flags like dr...

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64:21

Fineline Tattooing with Joe Redding

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/07/27

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano sit down with special guest Joe Redding (@coyoteeyes), a fine line and black-and-gray micro realism tattooer who apprenticed in 2017 and went full time during COVID after bartending and other work. They break down misconceptions about fine line tattoos by reacting to a reel and its polarized comments, then discuss what makes fine line work last: consistent depth control, avoiding blowouts, using “bloodlines/train tracks” and “scrubbing” to create a p...

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58:27

Coming to America with Eoghann McGregor

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/07/20

Send us Fan Mail On the Honest Tattoo Podcast, Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano welcome guest tattooer Eoghann McGregor, a Scottish artist now working in New York, who has been tattooing about seven and a half years and describes his style as “weirdo trad” The group recaps the intimate Third Coast show in Chicago, talks about convention tattooing, walk-ups, and how body positioning can drastically change stencil size and placement. Eoghann shares how he got into tattooing through h...

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88:30

Neo-Pre-Eckelism with Russ Abbott

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/07/13

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano welcome guest Russ Abbott back to the Honest Tattooer podcast and discuss his major fitness changes, how improved health impacts tattooing, and the ergonomic setup he uses to stand while tattooing. Russ explains his magnifying dental-style glasses, reading glasses, and custom prescription polarized lenses with a polarized headlamp to reduce glare. The conversation shifts to the Abbott Color Wheel, why ink pigment transparency and lightfastness mat...

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70:41

Heads Up! with Michael L.

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/07/06

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa, Matt Truiano, Gabe (“G Money”), and guests Michael L. and Matt Buck play Heads Up Tattoo artist edition hosted by Vega to identify tattoo-related “personalities” taped to their foreheads—some real tattooers and some decoys. They debate messy rules, points, and whether questions should be strictly yes/no, while correctly landing names. Afterward they discuss how to refine the game with clearer themes and fewer points, then each shares recent tattoos and broader refle...

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75:08

Shop Managing with Bunnie Lebowski

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/06/29

Send us Fan Mail Jon Mesa and Matt Truiano talk with special guest Bunny about her path through tattoo culture from the early 1990s to New York City. Bunny recalls getting a first hand tattoo at 14 in Milan, then finding a safe community working around a Milan shop as a teen alongside misfits and bikers. She describes moving to Scotland and London, returning to Milan to see tattooing dramatically evolve, and how Instagram and shifting social acceptance helped tattoos become mainstream and tre...

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90:25

What Keeps A Tattooer Going For Hours with David...

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/06/22

Send us Fan Mail The Honest Tattooer podcast welcomes guests David and Dat discussing their backgrounds, preferred styles, and the realities of long back-to-back tattoo sessions, including managing skin trauma and the mental side of sitting. They talk about building deep client relationships through honest conversation, navigating fear of judgment around politics and religion, and the importance of expressing love and respect even with opposing views. David shares plans to serve oversea...

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104:01

West Coast Tats In Jersey with Ses

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/06/15

Send us Fan Mail The hosts interview Ses about how tattooing was harder to enter in the early ’90s without the internet, leading him to start underground as a “scratcher,” build a mail-order tattoo supply/flash hustle, and eventually learn by hanging around Fat Mike’s biker shop, where he began tattooing with a homemade machine and later inherited clients after Fat Mike died. Ses describes the importance of flash to shop identity, collecting and drawing flash, and meeting key artists like Jac...

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67:09

Solving Your Problems with Pony Lawson

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/06/01

Send us Fan Mail On the Honest Tattooer podcast, Jon, Matt, Ermes, and Pony read listener letters about common tattoo shop problems: shops favoring artists with big social followings, two artists dating and bringing relationship tension into the workplace, and a shop owner whose talented friend drives away managers and staff through harsh communication. They discuss balancing shop promotion across artists, encouraging simple, consistent content for introverted tattooers, and separating busine...

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81:39

The Corporate Takeover with Pony Lawson

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/05/25

Send us Fan Mail Support the show

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68:51

Tooling Around with Joshua Bowers

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/05/18

Send us Fan Mail We back guest Joshua Bowers about a year after his last appearance, this time with show-and-tell including the Steel Driver rotary that emulates a coil stroke, the Heavy Hand weighted pencil grip (plus an Apple Pencil prototype), and a battery adapter that turns a battery into a power supply and can shift weight off the machine. They discuss foot switches vs wireless/constant-on setups, cord management, and why many artists return to coil-style performance after starting on p...

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90:35

Painting With Blood with Vincent Castiglia

Honest Tattooer Podcast ·

2026/05/11

Send us Fan Mail In this podcast episode, tattooer and fine artist Vincent Castiglia explains how he began using blood as a medium, describing its unique kinetic energy and personal connection. He details the technical process—collecting blood (initially via diabetic lancets), preventing clotting, storing it refrigerated in airtight vials, diluting only with water, and using decomposition stages to control hue and value. Castiglia discusses public reactions, misconceptions, and the spiritual ...

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