Best Tattoo Parlors in Pensacola, Florida

Being a Navy town from way back, Pensacola had tattoo parlors back before tattoos became another sign of conformity that is confused with rebelliousness. However, now all those now-swabbies who still labor under the impression that decking yourself out in body art is either a sign of rebellion or a means of expressing yourself-let’s face it, isn’t a tattoo by definition a way for the artist to express himself or herself-have even more opportunity. Pensacola has exploded into the tattoo artist capital of the Redneck Riveria.

When it comes to choosing the best tattoo parlors in Pensacola, all discussions begin, even if they don’t end, with three standout tattoo parlors. Kaoz, April’s Attic and the venerable Psychedelic Shack are without question the three most popular places in Pensacola to get inked. Since the Psychedelic Shack has three locations, this article will begin there. The Psychedelic Shack is a multi-dimensional tattoo parlor; they offer not only body art, but also piercings and alternative books. As far as the recent movement toward everybody and his sister getting a tattoo rather than everybody’s relative from the military, the Psychedelic Shack has been around the longest. The store features both male and female artists and offers up a variety of tattooing types. In addition to standard tattoos, they promise pain free tattoos and even do cosmetic tattooing. The place has a 60’s feel to it, as you might have guessed from the name. They also have a tremendous inventory of body jewelry for the more adventurous.

April’s Attic is quickly becoming a big time competitor. Some may find it difficult to choose the best tattoo parlor in Pensacola because the city truly is a haven for many talented artists. April’s Attic has a more gothic atmosphere to it than the Psychedelic Shack, but it’s mostly artifice and shouldn’t scare anyone away. In addition, they also offer military discounts. One of their advertising taglines is that they offer both old school and new school tattoos, so you might consider April’s Attic a sort of bridge between the traditional Navy tattoo parlors of yore and today’s more upscale versions.

Kaoz is probably the place to go in Pensacola if you want the most realistic looking tattoos. The artists there are true masters and the store, though it also promises old school tattoos, is much more of a throwback to the “head shop” that so many people looking for tattoos appreciate. Much like Psychedelic Shack, at Kaoz you will find more than just tattoos. Here you can find all that other pseudo-rebellious, express-yourself-through-consumer-items like lava lamps, dragon-related products, skeletons and infinity mirrors.

Of course, no article on the tattoo parlors of Pensacola would be complete without mentioning Tattoo’s and Tattoo’s II. These two go way back to a time when seeing a tattoo on a woman could still cause shock. In fact, this advertises itself as a founding member of the Florida Professional Tattoo Artists Guild. They have two stores in Pensacola and while they aren’t as flamboyant as the tattoo parlors that have popped up in conjunction with the mainstreaming of tattoos, they have the advantage of having built up a reputation that the others will take decades to overcome.

While these four tattoo parlors are the biggest names in Pensacola, they are hardly alone. Seriously, it seems as if the past five years there are as many tattoo parlors in Pensacola as there are churches. And I mean there are a LOT of churches in Pensacola. For the addresses and phone numbers of all the tattoo parlors mentioned in this article as well as eight others, check out this web site.