Body Mods

In fourteen years the owner of Gary's Professional Tattooing Studio Inc has done over 25,000 tattoos. Spending a couple hours on one individual or spending as much as 250 hours on another.

For many professions this would require a large amount of training, but Gary is completely self-taught. He spent most of his time in the art room during high school dreaming of becoming a tattoo artist.

Upon graduation Gary joined the workforce doing factory work like many who do not go on to college. His love for tattoos was always on his mind. Eventually Gary bought a kit and began practicing on friends and relatives. They all supported him knowing that when Gary put his mind to something there was nothing he couldn't do.

About 8 years ago he purchased his shop located on Main St. Galena and business has thrived. When asked why people come to Gary's for their tattoos Gary said, "Because I'm the best."

One of Gary's specialties is tattooing over tattoos to change or improve the work already done. He claims there is no tattoo he can't cover or improve. He can change a butterfly into a rose or revive an eagle to its former glory.

Gary has done a tattoo on every part of the body except for one, part of the male anatomy. The one of the strangest requests Gary had for a tattoo came from a girl who wanted little footprints to walk out and away from her butt crack.

The most common tattoo for women are lower back tattoos and the most common for men are the armband tattoos. No matter what the tattoo is Gary likes to personalize each of the tattoos that he does.

If you live in the state of Illinois you must be 21 years old to be able to get a tattoo and you must be 18 years old to get facial or body piercing.

There are a few things everyone should know when they are considering body modification. If someone wants to get a tattoo or a piercing they must find a place where they can get one.

It is a good idea to check the reputation of the shop before going to get a tattoo. It is also important to find out how the shop sterilizes their needles. Many shops own their own autoclave, which is the same system that is used to sterilize equipment in the medical field.

Some readers may be curious as to what it feels like to get a tattoo or a piercing. But it is almost impossible to describe in general terms that apply to everyone because