First time for my boyfriend and my second tattoo. Came in and was greeted by Haru. Super nice guy. We filled out papers, finalized how we wanted our tattoos to look & what not. Haru set up and was really quick. He's very friendly and the type of person you can just talk story with. Since it was my bf's first tattoo, he went slow and showed him how the pain would be. Very personable & we will be coming back to him for our next tattoo. Read Less

Over the course of the last 11 years Joe has done over 30 hours of amazing work on my arm and leg. Joe is an exceptional artist that takes true pride in his work. I am honored to show off his work and call him my friend. Thank you Joe for everything. Read Less

Brandon is THE MAN! My big sister occasionally runs into Brandon while walking her dog and learned about this place. I got my first tattoo with him back in late February 2017. After calling to confirm a break in his schedule, we caught him outside and chatted about our mutual love for canines. It took 15 minutes to sketch my idea, adjust it to my liking, and transfer it onto my arm. Brandon started to ink while his apprentice popped in a movie and turned my experience into the ultimate bro hangout sesh. After another 30 minutes, the entire process was done. I intend on coming back for another piece during my next visit. Brandon is incredibly friendly, talented, and so confident in his work. I mentioned he's a dog person, right? Trust this man with your life- or at least your ink. Read Less

I went to Tattoo Artisans 11/10/2015 not sure if I was going to get tattooed! But opened the door went inside and met Brandon! He said if I could back! And I did I wanted a quote done on my back! I've have other tattoos but I must say this time I walked out feeling good! And I'm so happy with the script he did! And I'm going back for some touch up work on a previous tattoo! They have great set up clean comfortable and I would recommend them! Mahalo Brandon for a great tattoo! Read Less

It's been over 10 years since my last tattoo. I've been feeling that itch to get some ink done for a while now. So I gave Brandon a holler. I went in last week for a consultation. I gave him a couple ideas and he provided me a couple of sketches to choose from. I made a follow up appointment for the session today. When I arrived I was on the fence about the location of the tattoo, but Brandon assured me that because it was just line work it would be minor. I chose to put my tattoo on the inside of my bicep. I decided to go old school, so just simple black ink. He prepped my arm with the usual - alcohol wipe then shave. Brandon laid the outline on my arm and began to get to work. When that needle first hit my arm, it was minor. The feeling is comparable to getting pinched. The total session lasted about an hour. My tattoo measures about 6 inches long and 2 inches wide. It was entirely line work, I think if it was shading the pain might have been different! Brandon is a true professional to his craft. He understood my ideas and translated them unto his canvas - my arm. I will definitely be returning to see Brandon! Thanks for the session! Read Less

Used to be a Small little hole in the wall shop next to Safeway. But now they moved just a few blocks down right across the street from Taco Bell on kapahulu, upstairs next to cj's barbershop! Very spacious and clean. There's only two people that work here and has been for the past few years. Joe Mariconda the owner and Brandon Wago... Both are talented with each their own unique styles of work. I personally come to Brandon and has been a loyal client since 2012 when I got my first tattoo... Brandon is very knowledgeable and professional about what he does. I really love that he can take any idea you want and draw it out for you. I can honestly say that Brandon has grown a lot over the years as joes apprentice and it really shows in his work! I have a total of 7 tattoos all done by him! He's fun to talk to while your getting work done he can totally geek out on video games comics and movies... both him and I will forever talk about walking dead while passing Time during my tattoo sessions which are usually a whole day.... I like that they keep a bunch of dvds to watch. As a tattoo artist I respect that he is honest about what he can and can't do gives a reasonable price and $150/hour. Minimum $50 small peices. He is always available to call or text when you have worries about after care and gives you this super awesome secret cream for your tattoo to help it heal! Oh and he's forever my favorite because every idea I have he takes and makes it his own and even more unique which I like! He specializes in Japanese/ anime type stuff is his favorite! And recently he just got in black light ink! Don't know anywhere else that offers black light ink in a variety of colors for a great price! Check out his work on his IG: @mistah_b Oh and this tattoo shop doesn't have a body piercer....  so if you're looking to get Pierce they don't offer that. But it's been years for me to finally right a review for this guy my most recent piece is probably my favorite! So happy I finally got my version of my favorite studio thinking characters on my sleeve. Read Less

Brandon was amazing! I love my shark! Such good work at this shop, it was clean and a fun environment and he was so creative with the design I wanted... I love it! I can't wait to come back to the island and have more work done! Read Less

Brandon is awesome!! Five of us came in last night, totally underestimated how long it would take to get tattooed. Brandon took the time to draw out each of our designs and walked us through body placement locations and design sizes to figure out what would look best for each person and design. He stayed hours after the shop was technically closed to make sure we all got what we wanted. Very professional, very clean shop, really nice guy. All five of us are absolutely thrilled! Thank you Brandon!! Read Less

This was my first tattoo, and I am at present 100% satisfied with the experience from start to finish. Will update if my skin falls off or I get AIDS or Hep C. Very unlikely though as the place was clean and well-kept. My tattoo artist was Brandon Wago. He came highly recommended by a friend. I thought my friend was just being hyperbolic when he said Brandon was "amazing" and "super professional" and "a great guy." Nope. Totally true statements regarding Mr. Wago. I really couldn't have asked for a better professional. Mr. Wago and I discussed my tattoo for a few minutes before he drew an incredibly detailed, true-to-life verisimilitude of a naupaka flower. Sir Joseph Banks himself could not have done any better. As for the actual tattoo process, he made it a 1:1 scale reproduction, which I understand was a very difficult "single needle" job. I didn't notice since the whole thing went so smoothly. Didn't hurt much at all, and he even used breath mints. Such a thoughtful professional. He supplied me with top-quality after-care materials and also quite a bit of information about what to expect and how to care for the artwork. But he supplied it in a very approachable and understandable way. Also have to say that a lot of professionals in an esoteric field such as tattooing tend to be kind of unnerving douche bags. Brandon was absolutely the opposite. Approachable, friendly, and really professional.7/7, would get tattooed here again. Read Less

Brandon is so talented! He drew without any rulers the cyrillic text I wanted on my forearm. I learned that he would take an idea and spin art from it, which is great because I'm more of an idea person and depend on others for detail. I'm going to have him do more tattoos for me. Read Less

Brandon is so talented! He drew without any rulers the cyrillic text I wanted on my forearm. I learned that he would take an idea and spin art from it, which is great because I'm more of an idea person and depend on others for detail. I'm going to have him do more tattoos for me. Read Less

My family and I have been coming here for years. We got tattoos and piercings from Sheri when she used to work here, but have now been getting out tattoos from Brandon!Brandon is awesome at what he does and is a super cool guy. He's very perceptive to your vision, yet still puts in his creative input. He does amazing traditional tattoos, but also did our pieces that weren't his usual style, and they still looked great. The location is prime; close to Safeway/Starbucks/other eateries and its a nice, sanitary shop. Def. recommend Brandon! Read Less

how about this one?.. i known Brandon for a couple years now. he's a baddass artist. the scales and the skulls look clean and sharp for an awkward area under my sleeve, if not for the fact that after he did the outline, i noticed that the bigger one of the skulls nose look like one.. umm.. vagina.. before shading. went home, sorta embarassed, didn't know if it was on purpose or not. i mean, to me it was a classic, kindof shy to say anything u kno. i don't get tattoos very often. about a week or so after, some dude gets shot in the face. not the cop when i was living in seattle, some other random dude. gotta watch out for these perfectionists is haters in each of them. go see Brandon, the art came out propper. haha.. mahalos Read Less

Got a Tattooed by Brandon, a free hand tattoo, excellent artist....best ever tattoo shop.... Strongly recommended.... Very laid back environment friendly staff.... Lots of laughs with the guys in the shop.... Read Less

Went there for the first time yesterday with my mom for some tattoos. I wanted a phrase on my arm and my mom wanted turtles. I had my font picked out and my mom didn't know what design she wanted for her turtles. Brandon showed me some of his script tattoos, and they were a hundred times nicer than the font i had picked, so I got my tattoo in his script. For my mom's turtles, he designed an original and they were really nice!We also wanted to check how clean they were, and they were very very sanitary. Their equipment were all in sterile packaging and he cleaned the seats and everything else very thoroughly. Once he started tattooing us, it was a blast! Brandon was super funny, and the atmosphere was very comforting. It didn't seem like it was our first time meeting him, and that helped as well. He was very light handed, and the pain wasn't bad at all! We had a lot of fun, and will definitely be returning. Read Less

Knowing full well that a tattoo is, well, a tattoo and permanent; I made sure I put not only a lot of thought into what I was getting, but what shop I would go to. I wanted one close to home, but that was well known, clean, reasonably priced and was known for good art work. Brandon did not disappoint at all. Not only was he attentive to my needs and what I wanted as a tattoo, but he also made sure I wasn't uncomfortable. He made the experience so much more memorable by staying personable and and constantly cracking jokes - not while he was tattooing, of course. Considering that I wanted a tattoo behind my ear, he didn't have a lot of canvas to paint on; but he was able to incorporate everything I wanted. I have not a single bad thing to say about my experience. Not only did I get the tribal style to memorialize my time living here on Oahu, but I also had the best experience possible. Read Less

Joe is the man!! My husband and I were there all day getting inked and I honestly can say it couldn't have been a better experience. The shop is clean, professional, and a great atmosphere. Joe is so calm, the tattoo itself barely hurt...the movies he plays and conversation with him distracts you from the needle, the time passes quicker than you can imagine. Highly recommend this shop...we will not get inked anywhere else!!!:-) Read Less

Everything about this shop is perfect. The location sweet. The shop is very clean. The artists are excellent. And the whole vibe if the shop is just a notch above the rest. Just go in and take a look for yourself and talk to the people that work there you won't be disappointed. Read Less

I have gotten 4 tattoos here and every time the artwork and atmosphere were both amazing. The first 3 were done by *Sheri and the fourth by Brandon (I have another appointment set up with Brandon already)There are no bad artists at Tattoo Artisans Honolulu, Joe (the owner) simply would not allow it.I live on the mainland and refuse to go anywhere else for my tattoos! Read Less

Great place to get inked!I got both my tattoos here, both by Brandon. Very comfortable atmosphere, there's no pressure to get something you don't want. The chairs and the equipment are very clean, they wrap the chairs in plastic wrap so you don't sweat and bleed all over them :)I say pay them a visit, take a look at the art and decide for yourself whether or not a tattoo is right for you. Read Less

After doing a lot of researching on places, I decided to just walk into one and see their stuff and go from there. I wanted something fairly simple; a phoenix feather that changes from yellow to red. Joe was able to work on me and I was pretty happy with what he did. It wasn't quite what I envisioned but he made it work and overall I think it looks good! Would definitely recommend him to others. Read Less

Diamond did a very great job on my tattoo and Im very pleased with it.Since it was my bfs and Is anniversary he surprised me by going there and paying for my tattoo beforehand without my knowing.He paid for the price of my tattoo AND tip.When the tattoo was finished I was surprised and pleased to find out that my bf did that. I wasnt sure if he paid tip also so I left Diamond a pretty big tip (as I came to the parlor with a hefty amount of cash, expecting to pay for my tattoo).Come to find out my bf had already left a rather large tip. Diamond never mentioned it before.As pleased as I am with my tattoo, it wouldve been nice to be informed.. I couldve saved some money. Read Less

This is review is for my piercing only, which is the only thing that I have ever had done here.We were all here last weekend, which didn't go so well.  When we tried to do a phone reservation, we were all told to just show up.  When we did, we waiting around for 15 minutes before we were told that another customer was having his back tattooed and if we could wait for four hours?  I put down a down payment and reserved a time slot for today.Chris and I came back today, cash in hand.  Sheri was our piercer.  She was really nice and told me that her mother was a retired elementary school teacher.  She also had me practice exhaling before I actually had my nose pierced.  It came out to $55, not including tip, cash only.  She also gave both of us detailed care instructions and asked us to return in six weeks for a follow-up visit.  I didn't get any stickers, something that I've become accustomed to, after visiting shops like this.There is no parking in this area.  I followed another Yelper's review:  park at Safeway and walk down the sidewalk.  Have a toasted Vietnamese chicken banh mi sandwich next door while waiting for Hawaiian Tattoo to open.  The artist that opened the shop said he was late, trying to find parking in the nearby residential areas.  We were outside waiting for at least five minutes after their opening time. Read Less

I make decisions that are just so farfetched I can't believe myself. So today, me and a friend were having dinner and doing some shopping for my vacation when we had the impulse to get pierced. She had gotten her tattoo at this location before so we called for rates and for availability. Luckily it was slow; we sped to Kapahulu, parked and ran. With excitement and anticipation, like little giddy school kids ready for summer vacation, we were greeted by Diamond, who was our piercer. Diamond took us to the back; and to be honest, it somewhat looked like a horror movie scene. The floors could use tiling, maybe hardwood, walls painted a bright color, and the chair replaced with vinyl or leather. I mean I assume it's not dirty, but I'll assume it's sanitary. By that I mean the chair; everything else was sanitary.He gave us the basic logistics of where the piercing will be marked, how it'll be positioned, and so forth. Being the big baby I am, my first question was, "will it hurt?" He said truthfully, it's like a pinch, but everyone reacts differently. Everything was sterile, which should be, and also gave me options as to what bearings are available.Quick with minimal pain, we were in and out in about 30 minutes. I'm so glad we chose Hawaiian Tattoo to get our piercing; anymore I decide to get I'll choose Diamond! Thanks! Read Less

I'm not so sure about Diamond for piercings (i've never got one from him) but I did have him do my tattoo yesterday and he was awesome!  I mean, the first time I went in and didn't really have my shit together I could see where his attitude came into play, but he honestly didn't want to just give me a piece of shit, half assed, not well thought out tattoo.  So.. I sat with my friend and put a bunch of thought into it, and came up with something sick.  When I brought the idea to Diamond he was stoked about it and his whole attitude changed.  He's just a guy who's proud of his work and doesn't want to have someone walking around with a jacked-up tattoo that he had to do because they wanted it.Anyhow.. I dunno what the talk is about waiting long.  I got there at 6 and he was in the process of setting up.  I was in the chair and having my stencil put on by 6:15 and was outa there by 8.  If you just up n walk into a tattoo shop of course you're gonna have to wait.  They're gonna have to consult w/ you, draw your shit up, make sure it's too your liking, make a stencil.. yada yada yada.  And if you do have to wait, go eat at Genki, smoke a cigarette and chilllll.He did a cover-up for me and it turned out SICK.  I'm loving it.  The detail is bomb and the colors are just how I wanted it.  I'll post a pic when it heals.  He also made sure to give me care instructions (the little yellow paper) and also told me exactly what to buy and what to do/not do for the after care.  He said I'm welcome to come back n see him when it heals if he needs to do any touch ups.For real though, this is the 2nd tattoo I've had done here and everyone there is great.  They all have a great/smart ass attitude, which I fucking love.  So.. I guess for all those people who were turned off by attitude, get with the sarcasm and just roll with it suckassss.As for parking.. street parking is a shot in the dark, but Diamond suggested that I park on the roof of the Safeway parking lot and I would be good to go. Read Less