Born This Way Body Arts

Reviews 6

RE

Rebekah Tweed

After a lot of research, I decided to come to Born This Way Body Arts for my tragus piercing. After having a terrible experience with my naval at a different tattoo shop, I was very adamant about doing my research this time. BTWBA was the top pick in Knoxville by a huge margin (check Knoxville subreddit) and after checking with the local Health Department and learning that there were no complaints against BTWBA, I decided that this was my place. First of all, BTWBA had a 100% on their health scores. They were very open about the safety measures they take and I felt very safe having my piercing performed there. The space was clean and had a spa-like atmosphere. Some reviews mention a steep price. The actual cost of piercing my tragus was $30 (in Nov. 2014), which I found to be reasonable. After hours of researching, I figured anything between $25-$40 was normal. However, the jewelry cost can add up quickly. The cheapest option is about $30ish. However, they don’t use any sketchy metals that could infect your piercing (I’m allergic to cheap metals with nickel, so this was extremely important to me). So, at the very least, you’re probably spending $60+tip on your piercing. I decided to go with a BVLA white gold piece which was a little over $200. I don’t regret the splurge, and they didn’t pressure me to buy the more expensive piece. After you’re done they’ll probably also try to sell you some cleaning spray. I purchased it and it was only $10. No big. As for having my piercing done, I have absolutely zero complaints. My piercer was Tyler and he was incredibly professional/ excellent/informative. All needles were brand new and he made sure to open them in front of me. I was really nervous and his obvious knowledge about what he was doing really put me at ease. Honestly, it was so easy I regretted not having it done sooner. Overall, I don’t think I wouldn’t go anywhere else in Knoxville. I had my piercing done a little over a month ago and haven’t experienced any problems at all.

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AL

Ally Cat

My friend and I had some questions on ear stretching, we wanted to talk to someone who knew what they were doing, so we went on a hunt for a good tattoo/piercing shop. After the first few were unfriendly, dirty and didnt seem to take us seriously we were very close to giving up. On our last try we decided to stop by this place since it was on the way back. At first it seemed a bit off the radar (location wise) so we thought it might be just the same as the others, however when we walked in we were greeted right away. Bryan helped us with ALL the questions we had about ear stretching, gave us some tips and even helped us out on other questions we had on piercings. He was very friendly, professional and easy to talk to (most importantly we liked how he didnt make us feel like idiots for asking questions) As we looked around we saw that the shop had some amazing and beautiful jewelry all well and neatly organized. Though some of it can be a bit pricey, the items definitely are worth it. The atmosphere was great and felt very clean, nothing about this shop seemed shady or unwelcoming. My friend and I left feeling very informed and satisfied. On the way home we just kept talking about how awesome this shop left us feeling. Weve already recommended this place to several friends and we know we will definitely be coming back!

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KE

Kent and Jessica Ryals

Had a very mixed experience with Born This Way. We were looking for a new shop to have tattoo work and piercings done at after moving to Knoxville, from the Mobile, AL, area. Born This Way looked very promising. The shop itself is extremely nice, clean, and professional. The initial experience was pleasant, we sat down with one of the artists assistants to do a consult for a tattoo, she seemed genuinely into the idea, and when her artist - Rick - had a break during the tattoo he was working on at the time, she pulled him aside to show him the ideas. Rick could not have been ruder. He did not make eye contact, he did not introduce himself, show any interest whatsoever in the work - which I understand there could be lots of reasons for...location, lack of inspiration, etc - but it was his complete disregard for us as human beings that made us lose any interest in returning to Born This Way for any tattoo work. We did however, elect to do work with their piercers. I selected a new navel piercing, and elected to have them change it out, as it was my first time having it changed since getting the piercing done. I felt like Tyler did a very professional job with the entire process, and Bryan was a pleasure to work with while picking out the jewelry.

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AM

Amy Linn

I cant stress this enough: YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. When it comes to permanent tattoos and piercings, saving up and paying a little extra for Born this Way will go a long way. Every artist and piercer is out for your best interest, and will not tattoo or pierce something on you that wont look good in the long run. While some people find this irritating, I find it comforting to know that the experts at Born This Way care more about finding the tattoo/piercing thats right for you than they care about taking your money. Trust them!!! Ive had two piercings by Tyler McClure (awesome, skilled, wonderful calming presence) and a tattoo by Emily Walker (amazingly talented, beautiful style, NO complaints about my ink and still looks beautiful to this day). Ive already had to have a piercing re-done by Tyler (since I went somewhere else to save money - bad idea!!!) and booked a cover-up with Emily (again, you get what you pay for). Ive learned my lesson, so take my advice and head to BTW for whatever you need! High quality jewelry, studio quality unlike any other in the Knoxville area... I could go on and on. If youve heard theyre "too expensive" or "too snooty" I urge you to give them a try anyway so you can see how awesome they really are!!

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JA

Jason Kiser

Very clean, upscale environment with very attentive and courteous staff. Ive had a large tattoo of such poor quality that I was honestly embarrassed to show anyone. Ive sought help on it in the past but no one seemed very interested in taking it on. The artists at Born This Way seem to thrive on the creative and challenging as they were happy to get ideas from the entire staff on what to do and who was best to handle it. Eventually I spoke with Evan Lovett who is a guest artist that had some really great ideas. On the day of the appointment Evan sketched everything out over my existing tattoo and explained what was to come. Four hours later it looked like a completely different tattoo. His precision and attention to detail exceeded my expectations and I couldnt be happier with the results. I just had my second session with one more short one to go. After that, Ill be posting before/afters. Definitely my new place to go for my future ink. Would highly recommend, especially for custom work.

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NI

Nicole Davis

The staff is very rude. I stood there for 20 minutes before anyone acknowledged my presence. I asked them to touch up a tattoo and they didnt seem to know what I meant by touching up a tattoo. I also asked them if they could do a simple ankle bracelet with a chain and two hearts and I was told that the chain could not be done but the hearts by itself could? I showed them a picture of the ankle bracelet tattoo on someone elses ankle (so it can be done) I also spoke with someone at a different tattoo parlor who also said that it could be done. I mentioned that to the staff and their reply was "oh thats going to look real nice in two years." I would not trust staff so rude, immature, inexperienced to put permanent markings on my body. FYI for the owner: someone else was able to complete the tattoo with absolutely no problem. When a tattoo is too small then you simply draw it bigger by hand just like the skilled and professional tattoo artist that I went to did.

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