Custom Tattoo Design
Original artwork drawn for your body and nobody else's — from a first small piece to a full bodysuit.
Tattooing
Tattoos built to still look right in twenty years.
Anyone can make a tattoo look good on day one. The whole craft is in what happens between year five and year twenty-five — contrast planned in advance, line weight sized for how skin actually settles, and the discipline to say no to a design that won't survive it.
How it works here
Every custom piece starts with a free consultation. You bring a reference, a story or a rough idea; your artist works up a drawing built for the specific stretch of skin it's going to live on. Revisions before the tattoo are free — we don't put a needle down until the stencil is where you want it.
We match you with the artist whose portfolio actually fits what you're asking for, not whoever happens to be open. If nobody here is the right hand for your idea, we'll say so and point you somewhere that is. That happens a few times a year and nobody has ever regretted hearing it.
What we'll tell you straight
- The honest minimum size your design needs to survive healing
- Which placements will hold up and which will need upkeep
- Whether a cover-up idea is achievable as-is
- How many sessions it will realistically take
- A real number before you commit to anything
Specialties
15 disciplines under one roof.
Black & Grey Tattoos
Smooth greywash, honest blacks, and the kind of contrast that still reads twenty years from now.
Photorealism Tattoos
Skin texture, reflected light and real depth — realism that survives the jump from photo to flesh.
Portrait Tattoos
Likeness first. Portraits of family, of the people you've lost, and of the faces that shaped you.
Memorial & Tribute Tattoos
Handwriting, dates, portraits and symbols — tributes designed slowly and carried permanently.
Traditional American Tattoos
Bold will hold. Heavy outlines, solid color, and a hundred years of proof that it works.
Japanese Tattoos
Koi, dragons, hannya and tigers — composed with the background, flow and structure the style demands.
New School Tattoos
Exaggerated, saturated and loud on purpose — cartoon energy backed by serious technique.
Color Tattoos & Color Bomb
Full saturation, smooth blends and color-bomb backgrounds that make the subject jump.
Fine Line & Micro Tattoos
Delicate single-needle work — done at a size and placement that keeps it legible for the long haul.
Script & Lettering Tattoos
Hand-drawn calligraphy, chicano script and traced handwriting — spaced to stay readable forever.
Cover-Up Tattoos & Reworks
Old ink buried properly — with an honest assessment of what's possible before you commit.
Sleeves & Large-Scale Work
Half sleeves, full sleeves, back pieces and bodysuits — composed as one design from day one.
West Coast & Chicano Style
Fine black and grey, smooth greywash and chicano script — the west coast tradition, done properly.
Touch-Ups & Color Restoration
Bring faded work back — line repair, color refresh and restoration on tattoos of any age.
Tattoo FAQ
What people ask before booking.
What tattoo styles does Inkslingers specialize in?
Black and grey realism, portraiture, photorealism, American traditional, Japanese, new school, fine line, color and color-bomb work, script and lettering, west coast chicano style, cover-ups and large-scale sleeve work. Each style has a dedicated page explaining what it involves and which artists work in it.
How much does a tattoo cost in Michigan?
Small pieces are priced flat starting at the shop minimum; larger work is billed hourly. Cost tracks size, placement, detail and session count — a palm-sized black and grey piece is a very different quote to a full color sleeve. You'll get a real number at your free consultation before committing.
How long does a tattoo take?
Small pieces are usually a single one to three hour sitting. Half sleeves run roughly 15–25 hours across three to five sessions, and full sleeves 35–60 hours over eight to eighteen months. Sessions cap at about six hours because skin stops taking ink well beyond that.
Do you tattoo over scars or stretch marks?
Often, yes. Scar tissue needs to be at least a year old and fully matured, and it takes ink differently — usually needing a lighter hand and sometimes a second pass. Bring it in for a look; we'll tell you honestly what the scar will and won't hold.
Can I bring my own tattoo design?
Absolutely. Bring a finished drawing, a rough sketch, reference photos or just a description. Our artists will adapt it for your specific placement, which usually means adjusting proportion and line weight rather than tracing it as-is.
Book a session
Bring us the idea. We'll do the rest.
Free consultations seven days a week — in person or over the phone. No deposit, no pressure, no obligation to book.