NEWS

Nick Bones is proof that you don’t have to be some fancy schmancy dude with a fine arts degree to be an excellent tattooer. Like many tattoo artists today, Nick is totally self taught. Fascinated with drawing at an early age he was inspired mostly by Disney cartoons. “I would turn off the television and try to draw what I had just seen on the screen” says Nick. His interest in comics still shows in the numerous flash sheets he’s done depicting characters from adult cartoons. These adorn the walls of his booth here at Studio 21 Tattoo.

Mr. Bones grew up in Dayton, Ohio and eventually found an apprenticeship at Vertigo Tattoo in Oxford. He moved to Vegas twelve years ago. Nick got married to Destiny in 2012. They have two pugs together named Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Pugsley. Supporting Southern Nevada Pug Rescue is one of their many shared passionate interests, as well as embracing the vegan lifestyle.

Most of Nick’s time away from the studio is spent running. As of last month Nick completed his first 50 mile marathon. Congratulations to him on that great accomplishment. I am sure there will be many more runs on the horizon. He also enjoys cross-fit training and rock climbing out at Red Rock Recreation Area. For those of you not familiar with Las Vegas, Red Rock is an amazing geological formation about a twenty minute drive west of town. Rock climbers from around the world enjoy some expert level climbing adventures year round.

An avid outdoorsman, Nick recently purchased a Mercedes Sprinter Van he says is “fancier than Nick”. He has plans to outfit this rig as a camper with all the bells and whistles. We are all looking forward to seeing what this baby will look like upon completion! Las Vegas is a perfect hub for anyone who enjoys the great outdoors. Vegas is surrounded by National Parks and Bureau Of Land Management property, also know as BLM Land as far as the eye can see. Over sixty percent of the land in Nevada is managed by the BLM.

Mr. Bones has been working with us here at Studio 21 for about nine years now. He enjoys traditional style tattoos with bold lines and a simple color palette. A versatile tattoo artist, Nick has been working a lot recently in black and gray. It’s super popular right now. He’s an excellent at that too!

It’s always a pleasure spending time with Mr. Bones. His schedule is always busy so you might want to call ahead and set up an appointment. You will not be disappointed.

Get familiar with Nick on Instagram @nickbonestattoos

Click on the link for Nick Bones portfolio: https://studio21tattoo.com/artists/nick-bones/

Mr. Chad James, @chadjame5, is what one might describe as the atypical tattoo guy. With a passion for sports that involve inflated balls and those with stitches, Chad always looks like he’s on his way to the ball park. It’s not just the way he looks, it’s that this guy is the ultimate sports fan!

Chad and his wife, Josielyn, have a son named Brooklyn (as in Dodgers) who is on his way to becoming a college basketball star! Mr. James’ entire summer is dedicated to shuttling Brooklyn around to basketball tournaments all over the west in hopes of getting a scholarship. We wish him the best of luck. Surely all that hard work will pay off.

Like all of the artists here at Studio 21 Tattoo, Chad recognized his interest in art at an early age. In the fourth grade he won a Lake Erie art contest back in Columbus, Ohio. That gave him the confidence to continue drawing and painting.

Much of Chad’s art was influenced by eighties Saturday morning cartoons. He loved watching Johnny Quest, Thunder the Barbarian and Scooby Doo. At some point he became fascinated with drawing his shoes. He illustrated his shoes like a mad man! Must have been great training because this dude can really draw.

Like many artistic eighties youth, Chad became enamored with graffiti art. In high school he specialized in sports related graffiti. He was so inspired he decided to pursue a career in the arts. Chad attended Columbus College of the Arts in the early nineties where he aspired to have a career with Disney or Pixar.

Eighteen years ago Mr. James decided to take up a career in tattooing. He tattooed in Ohio before relocating to Las Vegas. After a few years of working in a shop on the fabulous Las Vegas Strip he was offered the opportunity to join the team here at Studio 21. We’re all glad he did! His irresistible personality and good looks make him a perfect fit! 

A versatile tattooer always stays busy in Las Vegas if he is willing to work hard at it. Chad says “I like to work” which is another reason we believe he’s found the right environment here. His “New School” art style is apparent in the numerous paintings he has on display here in the studio. But wait, there’s more! Chad can proficiently execute traditional style, portraits (black/grey and color) and pretty much anything you bring him. A well rounded, hard working artist is what you will find in Chad James. A no bullshit, get ‘er done kinda guy. That’s our man Chad.

To view more of Chad’s artwork visit https://www.etsy.com/shop/rocket5art/

To check out Chad’s tattoo portfolio https://studio21tattoo.com/artists/chad-james-tattoos/

Charlie Spencer

Co-Owner/Tattoo Artist

Studio 21 Tattoo Gallery, Inc.

Mike Biggs @biggsstudio has been bangin’ out tattoos with our studio for the past nine years. While Mike is an accomplished tattoo artist, illustrator and painter, he has gravitated toward three dimensional art forms in recent years. Mike has been seen sculpting with clay back in the creative room here at the shop for some time now. 

About a year ago, Mike decided to do his sculpting with a program called “ZBrush” on his personal computer at home. He acquired a “state of the art” 3D printer recently and is really having fun producing some amazing pieces without getting his hands dirty. Mike doesn’t care for the dirty work!

A prototype is 3D printed for making a plaster mold. These molds can be complicated and may have as many as six pieces that all fit together. Once the mold is made, he pours in a mixture called “slip” which is basically watered down clay. This slip adheres itself to the inside of the mold until the desired thickness is achieved. The work stay in the mold for a couple hours until it hardens.

After the piece is removed from the mold, Mike will carefully trim the excess and clean up the piece to make it ready for firing. The first firing in the kiln lasts about thirteen hours. This process is known as “bisque firing”. This kiln runs around two thousand degrees Fahrenheit. That sounds pretty hot to me! Yikes!!!

The next step is to spray on a custom colored glaze which goes back in that super hot kiln for another six hours or so. This is called “glaze firing”. This literally melts the glaze on to the piece. This process is also know as vitrification. Gotta throw in a big word now and then!

Mike says it makes him feel like an alchemist doing this style of art work. While he has decided he prefers making Tiki mugs, he has also experimented with flower pots, baby heads and arms (not weird at all), ash trays and to quote Mike, “other dumb shit”. Though he calls it “dumb shit”, he has sold most of the pieces he has made and has successfully paid for all of the equipment required to accomplish these works of art. That is always a bonus!

All of us here at Studio 21 Tattoo enjoy working with Mr. Biggs and look forward to seeing what macabre sculpture his weird and wacky brain comes up with next! Keep up the good work Mr. Biggs. We certainly all enjoy it.

Charlie Spencer

Owner/Artist

Studio 21 Tattoo Gallery, Inc.

Anyone who is exposed to social media these days is aware of the powers of the various review sites that are available to us. Most of us are familiar with Yelp, Google, Trip Advisor, etc. These reviews enable many of us to find great restaurants, hotels, museums, tourist destinations and a host of other services. People will use these sites as an opportunity to let others know about their experiences. It’s fun to share information with others when we find something interesting or special! Particularly when we travel. As a traveler it’s great to have these sources of info to help guide us along the way. So cool to be able to find small businesses in a town we are not familiar with. These sites offer us insight in to goods and services we otherwise would not be privy to.

In the past, most small businesses relied on “word of mouth” if there was not enough in the budget to advertise. Before the smart phone this was a very effective way to spread the news about a family business such as ours. In a world where everything is moving faster than ever, it can be a great benefit to have people talking about us on their various devices. 

As owners of a small family business we feel fortunate to have  so many faithful followers helping us every day by referring new clientele to our studio conveniently located near the Las Vegas Strip. We know with about two hundred tattoo shops in Las Vegas that the competition is extremely tough in our city. Making sure that customers leave our studio happy is priority one! We also strive to make sure their experience is a great one!

It’s not uncommon to have guests from around the world visit our shop. They literally come from everywhere! A tattoo makes a wonderful souvenir that lasts a lifetime. Our highly skilled artists all work extremely hard to keep our visitors coming back for more. Maybe that’s why we are the most reviewed tattoo business in the entire state of Nevada!

Many thanks to all those who have taken the time out of their busy day to write a review. All of us here at Studio 21 Tattoo appreciate this type of participation  from our customers. We feel this is a major part of our continued success as a small family owned business. Keep those reviews coming folks!

Thanks Again,

Charlie Spencer

Owner/Artist

Studio 21 Tattoo Gallery, Inc.