Matt hodel tattoo Archives

Codye.

I did Codye’s first tattoo less than a year ago. As I remember he was quite the handful. He was rather nervous and really persistent at communicating the importance of the getting his first tattoo perfect. I don’t mind. I was told a while back that the energy like this just means the client is…

Get Weird

A Good Kinda Crazy Team Mullet Louie’s leg is ripe with humor. I guess you could describe him as silly but he looks a serious as a heart attack. Currently he’s shaved bald and looks scary as hell but if he showed you his hidden tattoos it would throw you off. We already did the…

You called The Wolf!? Hell yes.

The Wolf Is Here The Wolf is the second print in my animal illustration series. The first was the The Scary Red Bear which was inspired by my first run in with a black bear. The Wolf is a follow up to my experience with being isolated in the woods with a pack of wolves…

Hunter doesn’t stop.

Heavily Tattooed Hunter has been getting tattooed by me for years. We balanced his arms in a “yin-yang” approach. If we did a skull blue on the left, it was red on the right. We did not mirror his arms, we just paid careful attention to the layout and it turned out great. We started…

I drew the Circle Jerks poster!

I Drew the Circle Jerks Poster!!! I drew the flyer for the upcoming Circle Jerks show in St. Louis. I am beyond stoked!! The Red Flag The Red Flag is THE venue for shows. I mean it is just perfect. It is big enough to get a bunch of concert goers comfortably in the venue…

Cheap Airbrush Booth

DIY Airbrush Booth I am too cheap to spend $150-200 on an airbrush booth. I do not airbrush enough to justify it. I found a Wagner Spray Shelter at Home Depot for $29. I added a box fan for $25 and a standard filter for another $10. That is $65 dollars compared to the $200…

Wes’ Traditional Tattoo Sleeve

Keeping it Light Hearted Wes came with some loose ideas for his sleeves. He liked a few different ideas so we made a list and and went for it. On the list was skulls, Indian heads, mermaids, whiskey, and coffee. With a sleeve like this it is pretty straight forward. Start with the most visible…

Becoming Tattooed

Becoming Heavily Tattooed. Swapping stories about getting your first tattoo is fun. It’s a lot like bagging about fishing tales or near death experiences. Your nerves overestimate the environment and the adjectives don’t quite capture the maximum effect your trying to articulate. The only way someone else can understand is if they have been through…

What is Tattooing?

What is Tattooing? How do we explain the tattoo life? Sometimes it feels like arguing over the genre of your favorite band. It has changed faces so many times in the last few decades so that it even reveals itself differently to people. It has grown beyond a counterculture movement. As the price of admission…