INKWELL
Black-gloved hand guiding a rotary tattoo machine over fresh rose linework on a forearm, lit by one warm lamp
Custom tattoo studio — Northern Quarter, Manchester

Drawn once. Worn for life.

Four resident artists and a guest chair. Custom pieces drawn from your idea, flash on the first Saturday of every month, cover-ups planned properly — a consultation first, always.
Book a consultationSee the work
Sc. 01 — The studio
Inkwell Tattoo · 9 Dale Street · Manchester
Tue–Sat · 11–7 · 18+ with photo ID

02 — The studio

Every piece is drawn once, for one person, by the hands that will tattoo it. Even the flash is only inked once.

First floor · 9 Dale Street · up the stairs beside the print shop

03 — Four ways in

How a tattoo starts here

Most people arrive with an idea. Some pick a design off the wall. A few bring something they would like gone under something better.

Tattooed hands inking a detailed rose design on paper at a desk under a warm lamp

Custom

Tell us the idea, where it goes and roughly how big. Your artist draws it for you.

£120 an hour

Traditional flash sheets pinned to a dark wall under a bare bulb: snake, woman, swallow, tiger, roses

Flash days

The first Saturday of every month, from noon. Pick a design off the wall.

From £80 · walk-in

Healed solid black panther tattoo prowling down an outer calf towards the ankle, low warm light

Cover-ups

Old names, faded lines. An honest consultation says what can go over it.

Consultation first

Black-gloved hand holding a forearm to check a healed fine-line flower sprig under a lamp

Touch-ups

Our own work gets one free touch-up in the first three months, once healed.

Free · within 3 months

04 — Healed work

Healed, not fresh.

Fresh ink photographs well. Healed ink tells the truth. Twelve pieces from the residents and last season's guests, shot after they settled.

Meet the artists
05 — By the numbers
04
Resident artists
Each draws their own designs.
02
Guest chairs a year
Berlin in spring, Lisbon in autumn.
30
Flash designs
On the wall, the first Saturday of every month.
03
Months
For a free touch-up on our own work, once healed.
06 — Flash day

First Saturday. From noon.

Thirty designs go up on the wall. Small pieces from £80, walk-ins only, no deposit — first come, first inked. Each design is tattooed once.
Traditional flash sheet of two swallows diving among small red flowers on aged paper

Sheet 01 · Swallows

Traditional flash sheet of a dagger plunged through a red rose with leaves and sparkles

Sheet 02 · Dagger and rose

Traditional flash sheet of a roaring black panther head above red flowers

Sheet 03 · Panther

Traditional flash sheet of a red-and-black snake coiled around a mustard moth

Sheet 04 · Snake and moth

Traditional flash sheet of a red-sailed clipper ship on stylised waves with an anchor

Sheet 05 · Ship and anchor

Traditional flash sheet of a roaring orange tiger head above red flowers

Sheet 06 · Tiger

Traditional flash sheet of a skull resting on two red roses with leaves and sparkles

Sheet 07 · Skull and roses

From £80 a pieceWalk-ins only · No depositEach design inked once

See all prices
07 — How it works

Four scenes. One tattoo.

The same four scenes for every custom piece and cover-up. Flash days skip to scene three.

  • Two people at a lamp-lit studio table over a rose sketch and reference prints, faces out of frame

    Scene 0115 min · free

    The consult

    Send the idea through the form. Your artist offers a consultation in the studio or by video. You agree size, placement and price; a £60 deposit holds the date.

  • Tattooed hand inking a swallow over a pencil sketch on tracing paper under a desk lamp

    Scene 02The drawing

    The design

    Your artist draws it and shows you at the start of the session. Small changes are normal; a complete redraw moves the date.

  • Artist in black gloves, seen over the shoulder, tattooing a rose on a forearm under a work lamp

    Scene 03Bring photo ID

    The session

    Bring photo ID and something to eat. We move the stencil until it sits right on you, then start.

  • Healed black-and-grey peony across a woman's shoulder, turned away, in soft window light

    Scene 043 months

    The healing

    Aftercare goes home with you in writing. Once it has healed, one free touch-up within three months.

08 — The credits

Who will tattoo you

Every artist draws their own designs and takes their own consultations. The person you meet is the person holding the machine.
Ray Callow, bearded, in a dark cap, heavily tattooed arms folded, under a warm lamp
Founder · Traditional
Ray Callow
Bold lines, bright colour. Since 2011.
Maddie Croft with long curly auburn hair and a colourful flower tattoo on her upper arm
Resident · Neo-traditional
Maddie Croft
Animals, flowers, saturated colour.
Teo Vass in glasses and a black T-shirt, tattooed forearms folded on a leather bench
Resident · Blackwork, cover-ups
Teo Vass
Heavy black, ornament, rework.
Juno Okafor in profile, dark hair tied up, a fine-line botanical tattoo across her shoulder
Resident · Fine line
Juno Okafor
Single needle, botanicals, script.
Luca Brenner in a black beanie, drawing at a table with tattooed forearms
Guest · Black-and-grey realism
Luca Brenner
From Berlin, every spring.
Sol Marquez in profile with curly dark hair, a moustache and a tattoo on his neck
Guest · Illustrative colour
Sol Marquez
From Lisbon, every autumn.
Book with an artist
I came in with a photo of my nan's handwriting and a vague idea about swallows. Ray drew something I would never have thought of.

Priya Shah, Custom piece, forearm

09 — From the chair

From the chair

10 — Prices

Charged for time in the chair.

Design time is included. You are quoted before you book, and the £60 deposit comes off your final session.

  • By the hour

    £120an hour
    Custom work, cover-ups and touch-ups. Most palm-sized pieces take one to two hours.
    • Minimum £80
    • Quoted before you book

  • Half day

    Most booked
    £330three hours
    One sitting for a larger piece — a forearm, a calf, a thigh panel.
    • Breaks included
    • Deposit off the final session

  • Full day

    £600six hours
    Sleeves, back pieces and big cover-ups, over as many days as they need.
    • Lunch break included
    • Multi-day pieces planned at consultation

  • Flash

    From£80per piece
    First Saturday of the month, from noon. Pick a design off the wall.
    • Walk-ins only
    • No deposit

£60 deposit holds your date · Free touch-up within three months · 18+ with photo ID

Book a consultation
11 — Before you book

The questions everyone asks

Something else on your mind?
Ask the studio
Eighteen, with photo ID — a passport, a driving licence or a PASS card. We check it on the day and do not keep a copy. No exceptions, including with a parent.
12 — Send the idea

Up the stairs beside the print shop.

Tell us the idea, the placement and a rough size, and which artist you would like if you know. Leave personal and medical details out — your artist talks through anything that matters in person.

A narrow brick stairwell rising from an open street door, lit by one bare bulb at the top
First floor, 9 Dale Street, Manchester M1 1JATuesday to Saturday, 11 until 7
Open in maps
Sc. 13 — The chair

Bring the idea. We'll draw the rest.

A free fifteen-minute consultation, in the studio or by video. A £60 deposit holds the date.
Book a consultationPrices and deposits
End of reel 01