READER`S CHOICE updated (Page 9)

June 12, 2009
Page 9
Tattoo artist leaves a lasting imprint on region
KEITH WHITCOMB JR.
Staff Writer
BENNINGTON — Banner
readers selected Main Street the
tattoo parlor, Raz-a-Tat Tattoo, as
their top choice for ink.
Owner and head artist Tom
Barrier, of Cambridge, N.Y., said
he set up shop in Bennington on
April 1, 1999 and has been doing
tattoo work since he was 14, after
he got his first tattoo from a man in
Bennington.
Barrier said tattooing was illegal
in Vermont at the time, but the one
he got on his arm was of a reaper
with the words “As I am, you will
be.” He said he learned to do tattoos from the person who tattooed
him. “Bob handed me a tattoo
machine and said ‘tattoo all of your
friends.’”
And tattoo his friends he did, as
well as his family members and
himself.
Eventually,
Barrier
became certified and had a shop in
Rutland for a while before going to
Tampa, Florida to do tattoos.
He said in the busy summer
months he may see an average of
seven clients a day, while in the winter it slows to about three. The
economy stunted his work slightly,
but he said young people are most
likely to get tattoos and don’t consider the bills as much as older people. “I stay busy,” he said. “It pays
the bills.”
An average tattoo will cost
between $100 and $200, he said.
Body piercings are $20 above the
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eaders
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Peter Crabtree
Tom Barrier is the owner of
Razatat Tattoo in Bennington.
waist and $75 for bellow.
Doing piercings require the
same level of certification as tattoo
work. He said getting a certification
requires 1,000 hours of apprenticeship over the course of two years.
He said a person learns everything
from machine maintenance to
blood and airborne pathogen control.
He said the culture of tattoos has
changed in the years he has been in
the business. When he started, tattoos had an outlaw reputation and
the types of designs had sailor
themes. Now, he tattoos all manner
of people from all walks of life,
including doctors and police officers. He said the oldest person he
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has tattooed was an 86-year-old
Indian woman who wanted a dot on
her forehead. Prior to her, a 78year-old woman held the age
record.
Barrier said a tattoo will lose
some of its detail as a person ages
and their skin changes, which is why
he likes his tattoos to be a certain
size.
The designs are also varied. At a
tattoo convention, Barrier said he
won an award for most unusual tattoo for a tattoo he gave to a woman
depicting a honey comb on her
back filled with honey bees. Barrier
keeps close to 50 trophies and
awards near the window overlooking Main Street.
Barrier said his own taste in tattoos leans toward frightening
images of monsters and demons.
He has tattoos on his arms and legs,
but also on his throat and the back
of his head.
Taste in piercings have also
evolved. Barrier said single point
piercings, otherwise known as der-
mal anchoring, are becoming more
popular. Instead of a bar going
through an earlobe, Barrier said the
metal is sunk into the skin and is
semi-permanent.
He said an average tattoo session lasts between half an hour and
an hour and a half. Larger tattoos
take up to three hours and he has
worked 10 hours in one sitting on
some occasions.
Contact Keith Whitcomb at
kwhitcomb@benningtonbanner.co
m.
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