Tattoo Expo Advice and Ideas Please

I have a tattoo expo coming up at the end of the month. I have no idea what to expect but I know they're excited to have me. Anybody out there done one of these? I know there are gonna be kids around because they are advertising bounce houses.

Mostly I need design ideas for this event. Do you think the kids will want more tattoo-like body paint than face paint? Any and all direction is appreciated

Haven't done one exactly like this no. But you know me I ALWAYS have ideas!

Have all your regular designs of course, but display more arm designs and also designs adults would like with a sign that says something like.
"Tattoo for Today"

Another thing i would do, is offer a service where people can book a private session (on another day of course) for a professional rendering of a tattoo they might want or are thinking of getting.

We have done this for friends and tattoo shops in the past, where we have painted on their tattoos as kind of a 'preview' so they can see if they like it or not. We have also color filled tats what had no color too.

We offer this in water base paint (off with the next shower) or with alcohol base paint (off in about a week). And of course one costs more

We also specify that these are only previews, so they may not be as detailed or elaborate as a 3-10hr tat lol, but close.

If you think you have the artistic skill to pull it off, then make a sign or a few flyers for that and see if you get any bites!

Can you tell me more about the alcohol based paint? I don't think I have the skill yet but it's definitely developing. These are great ideas for next year but this thing is at the end of the month. Do you have any examples of quick arm designs?

Well the alcohol based paint we use is the 'illustrator pallet'. We have several of them for our FX work mostly. Crazy expensive usually about $100 per pallet. They are hard to work with for me though Aryn has an easier time with them. You can buy refills too, but they are a tedious pain in the butt to refill too. What you do is buy the liquid form and pour a thin layer and wait for it to dry then repeat. Takes hours or days some times to fill even a little bit. Huge investment if you want lots of colors and I can't say they pay for themselves very fast unlike with face paints. Only reason we even have them in the first place is we need them for our Special FX work for film. But its something to look into if you are interested.

As for arm tats for this event you can never go wrong with tribal! lol

If you're next to a kid's activity then good, from what I heard from other painters that have done a tattoo show, it's hard to make profit, most people are looking into real tattoos and not body paint. Neck/collar pieces and ladies one eye designs may do well, but I would tailor to kids if that seems to be your captive audience at the event.

So far that's my understanding. I'll be around bounce houses I guess. I've been thinking about it all morning and from what I know of expos, the audience gets really into the theme. I'm thinking kids might want a tattoo looking paint job more than "face painting". I'm gonna do what Forest Fairy said and be prepared to do both.

Andrea (or anybody) do you know how henna or glitter tats fare at expos?

They fare ok and are much better with teens and adults i find. Add the word 'tattoo' into the mix and all of a sudden it's more socially acceptable then 'face painting'.

But I've found it's always better to not be trying to manage all 3 at the same time lol, or even 2 for that matter. I try to delegate glitter tats to my assistant for high traffic events, because the face painting I can do faster, for less material expense and thus is more profitable.

My assistant/henna artist is going with me. I was thinking we could switch off a little because we both need the practice in all areas. I'm just hoping we get good steady enough business to provide that opportunity.

If you have some one to help you then totally go for it. It will bring in extra cash by offering more then one thing and appeal to a wider audience.

Switch off like every hour or something or when ever you are bored, to keep things interesting.

Good luck!

Haha I'm not seasoned enough to get bored, only tired

Bump because the expo is this weekend. I'm getting super nervous. I have no idea what to expect. I want to sell simple body paintings but am not sure how to price or display them as I don't really have a whole bunch in my portfolio. All suggestions are appreciated! What would you do?

for body painting, how about more of designs you already have that you are good at?

extend an eye or face design down the neck and shoulder or arm, or do it on the shoulder or arm.

do a larger version of an eye or face design on the back of the shoulder, or down the arm.

do a design on the midriff, if any one is wearing a crop top.

i don't know anything about tattoo expos, but i'd say focus on what you are confident you can do, and adapt it to the venue, as you and the others have already mentioned - appropriate wording of your signs, offering tattoo like face/body painting, and glitter tattoos or henna tattoos.

and be prepared for little girls who want pink unicorns, too.  

hmmm this late in the game I would just get a big poster board sign that says

I should have replied to this thread sooner.

Tattoo expos are not worth a face painters time. I packed my stuff up and left 2 hours into the second day. I went and crashed a small town festival instead and made back all the money I would have lost at the expo plus some!

People come to get tats. They are not at all interested in anything but. Shirts didn't sell, paraphernalia didn't sell, and tattoos only sold to people who made appointments for the expo. The ink artists that were there were booked full and spent the weekend booking appointments from people who liked their work.

good to know.

It's the same with anime conventions, something you think would be a total hit just turns out to be a time vampire. People go to these types of events for specific things, with a limited budget. Face Painting isn't really in the budget.