What does it mean queer feminist tattoo studio ?

It means fuck macho bullshit forever. We do believe that everyone should be free to be who they want to be. The team and the guests are mainly womxn, non binary or/and queer tattooers. Everyone is welcome at the studio and should feel comfortable with their tattooer and the team around. If it is not the case, just give macha.machenka your feedback in person or via email/instagram message. We are not perfect but we are open to criticism so we can do better. You will get an answer for sure.

We will come up with flashdays and collective projects aimed to raise awareness about problems we find important i.e. domestic violence, violence towards trans people and animal well being.  

You are welcome to make us discover organisations and actions we might not know. You can also suggest us some ideas /events we could organise together. 

We do not want to participate in the mainstream industrialisation of tattoo culture. We love what we do and we do it with all of our heart in a small private space. We don´t usually take more than 1 or 2 appointments per day so we have time to have a human relationship with our customers. 

Last but not least, we also give handpoke and hygiene lessons to beginner tattooers or people who want to tattoo as a hobby. We are breaking the gate keeper mentality of tattoo culture by giving an access to information. We do not believe that tattooing is restricted to a small group of people. Everyone is warmly welcome to our studio and our workshop.  

​

Why do we have a vulva as logo of the studio ?

Muschi in german means pussy so our name is a play of words between muschi and moshi moshi in Japanese. The vulva is for us the symbol of the origins of everyone. Whoever we are, we all go out this way. 

We don´t promote the vulva as the symbol of womanhood. Some women have a vulva, some others don´t. Some people with a vulva are women, some are men, some are neither or both, etc. It is time for feminism to understand that what we want is not equality between 2 genders but the destruction of patriarchy who is hurtful to everyone. We don´t want to have access to the same privileges than cis men, we want another society ! 

​

Do handpoked tattoos stay the same amount of time in the skin ?

Yes it does. It´s the oldest tattoo method. Our ancestors used this method to tattoo themselves since forever, even before we were able to communicate in a distinct language.. You can even see traces of tattoos on mommies. So yes it stays :-)

​

Does handpoke hurt ?

Yes it does but less than the loud bro club tattoo machine. There´s no need to go too deep, 1 or 2mm is enough to put the ink permanently under your skin.

We have all different level of pain resistance and we will respect your pain to the maximum we can. Nonetheless, try to do your best to do not move too much while we´re tattooing you. Pain is something inevitable at one point with tattoos. It depends on the placement and on how long the session will be. We can always make breaks during the tattooing process and you need to tell us when you feel you have reached your limits.

​

What is the difference with tattooing with machine ?

It takes more time to handpoke but no one should be in a hurry when tattooing or getting tattooed.

​

What about UV ink ?

UV inks glow when they enter in contact with blacklight. It is fun BUT :

- the colors are not so intense when no blacklight

- the ink disappears faster than normal colors

- some people have skin reactions when the tattoo is under the sun so it is more for vampires who never expose their skin to the sun. 

 

And normal colors ?

Normal colors are fine and stay in the skin for years BUT :

- you shouldn´t expose your colorful tattoos to the sun without protection. Just take care of your colors and they will be fine (black ink is the same, if you expose it too much without sun block, the black will soon become blue)

- the lighter the color of the ink is, the less it will stay in your skin, especially without darker outline to create a contrast.

 

Do you tattoo all types of skin ?

Yes, for sure, all skin tones are welcome. And if you want colors and are not sure if it will look good with your skin tone, we can do a test for free. I will draw some dots/lines with the colours of your choice, then we will let them heal for one month and see the results.

​

Do you tattoo everyone ?

No we don´t. We don´t touch racist pieces of shit, transphobic assholes, homophobic morrons and misogynist scumbags. If you´re full of hate for marginalised minorities, the muschi doesn t need your energy, neither your money. 

Except these categories, everyone is welcome.

​

Can I contact you even if I want something not in your style ?

Yes you can. We like challenges and if it is really not our thing, we will do our best to send you to the most adequate tattooer for your project. Don´t be shy to ask us for advice even if you don´t want to get tattooed by us.

​

Can I bring a friend when I get tattooed ?

Yes, no problem. Just take someone who will support you, not question all your decisions. It is your body, your choice. Nonetheless, just keep in mind that the muschi is a small studio and that your friend might not be able to come with you to the tattoo room while you get inked because of the lack of space or the decision of your tattooer.

​

Can I bring my pet or my kid to the tattoo appointment ?

No

​

Do you do matching tattoos ?

Yes and we do love it ! Friendship tattoos are fun and sweet. We are more reluctant to do lovers matching tattoos because honestly, your tattoo will in general lasts longer than your relationship. Not being bitchy, just a fact. So think twice before doing it. And if you still want to do it, we will be happy to help you with your project.

​

Last but not least : 

Are your tattoos vegan ?

Yes, they are but let me explain a bit more in details. 

Ink :

Most of modern inks are vegan. I personally use different brands for colours (World famous tattoo ink, Kuro Sumi) and Eclipse for black. They are all vegan.

 

Before the tattoo : 

We use Spirit classic thermal roll which is certified vegan transfer paper

We use Stencil Stuff liquid to apply the stencil on the skin and Aloe Tattoo Stencil Eraser to remove it. Both of them are vegan.

Disposable razors are not as vegan as we might think. They sometimes contain a glycerin* moisturizing strip and are close to always tested on animals. So if you want to avoid the use of non vegan shavers and save plastic, come to your appointment already freshly shaved or with your own shaver.

 

During the tattoo : 

Vaseline is vegan because there´s no animal products in it. Nonetheless, some vegans prefer more natural alternative because Vaseline is made with fossil fuels, which has a negative impact on the environment. Last but not least, if the product in itself is vegan, some of the companies that produce vaseline are not vegan (i.e.Unilever) 

There are vegan and natural alternative to vaseline as skin lubricant : jojoba butter, olive oil, shea butter (too oily for me) and ready to use products like Hustle butter.

 

The green soap has highly conflicting info on the web about if yes or not it is vegan. Green soap producers don´t confirm the sources of the glycerin and so the potential animal fat content. We use vegan green soap.

 

Latex gloves are not vegan as they contain casein (proteins commonly found in mammalian milk). We use nitrile gloves, which are 100% vegan.

 

Aftercare :

We recommend natural vegan aftercare like coconut oil, jojoba oil, shea butter. 

Other vegan alternative tattoo cream aftercare : the brand BALEA has a 100% vegan tattoo cream sold at DM for a cheap price.

 

Cleaning :

 

Something that is not clear about veganism is disinfection : the products used in tattoo studio to clean the materials and the space have to be DGHM listed (German Society for Hygiene and Microbiology). This is the standard reference for disinfection in medical and non medical institutions. There is no info about how vegan it is or not. 

​

*glycerin is an organic compound taking its source in animal fat and vegetable oil. Glycerin is a clear and odorless liquid that is commonly used in soap and is a common ingredient in many pharmaceutical products.

 

 

Some of the sources used :

http://bitesizevegan.org/vegan-lifestyle-2/are-tattoos-vegan-guide-to-a-vegan-tattoo/

https://vegfaqs.com/is-vaseline-vegan/

https://madrabbits.org/2017/03/30/vegan-tattoos/

​

​