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FeedTattoo You
Hip soccer moms can satisfy all their tattoo needs now that Zebra Tattoo, a mainstay on Berkeley’s überfunky Telegraph Avenue, has opened a second location in downtown Walnut Creek. We checked out both stores to compare the urban versus suburban body-art experiences
Walnut CreekVibe: Can you say spa? Tattoo-getters are segregated from the body pierce-ees. Check out the sitting area, where you can linger over portfolios of tattoo designs. Soundtrack: Lou Reed, using his indoor voice. Neighborhood pros: Validated parking. Neighborhood cons: Proximity to Pottery Barn may kill your ink jones. Average tattoo age: All over the place: a daughter, mother, and grandmother got matching bumblebee tattoos on their ankles. Tattoo stations: Three private rooms, with reclining leather chairs and flat-screen TVs. Popular tattoos: Family crests, kids’ names, butterflies, skull and crossbones (with a polka-dot hair bow). One-stop shopping: Everything from handbags and jewelry to Zippos. |
BerkeleyVibe: The deli-style method of calling numbers for customers and a small, narrow interior make for a hectic atmosphere. Soundtrack: It’s headbanger heaven in here. Neighborhood pros: Wide variety of Mohawks. The Holy Grail for music geeks, Amoeba, is next door. Neighborhood cons: Tourists with maps, Street Sheet vendors, acres of tie-dye. Average tattoo age: It looked like 20 to us—college kids, kids with their parents. Tattoo stations: One room with two tattoo chairs means the murals on the wall, and possibly another customer, are your entertainment. Popular tattoos: Old-school pinup girls, Japanese-themed designs (dragons and koi fish), portraits, punk insignia. One-stop shopping: Same as Walnut Creek—plus stun guns and samurai swords. |
Reader Comments:
What? No stun guns and samurai swords in the Walnut Creek location? I feel so cheated.
All kidding aside, I feel it is a good thing to see body art going more mainstream. If having a tattoo studio in Walnut Creek helps continue to erase the stigma of people with tattoos being of a criminal nature, I am all for it. I hope they succeed.