Went in on a quiet day. No customers so I asked if he can do a walk in. Which he said yes and I showed him what I wanted and where and he suggested that finger tattoos on the side and hand tattoos on the side said there's a high chance it'll not come out the way you want. He showed me images of people getting it in those places and I saw that they healed with missing spots and such and I was like okay I won't get it there then. He RECOMMENDED to get it on top of my hand instead of the side like I originally wanted and him being a "professional artist" I agreed since he said it would be better cause he knows more than I do. I have some tattoos from another place and much bigger pieces with more intricate lines and such and so I know when this one healed it wasn't supposed to look the way it looks now. Anyway so tattooing went down and we finished and it looked crisp after it was finished. I paid 160 total. 100 bucks for three hand tattoos, well the third one he was just refreshing an old tattoo, but it was included in the budget. Tipped him 60 bucks too much. It costed me almost as much as my big tattoo from another place. Ugh so about a three weeks or so went by before I went back to the shop to ask my my tattoo was raised in some spots and why some spots were healing blurred into the other part of the tattoo. And he the owner reassured me that's how tattoos heal and it's on your hand so it takes a little longer and it's not a blowout blah blah blah and so on and asked me if I get keloids cause it could be that and yaddy yaddy ya. I said no. This is the first from here that I got and this happened and I have many from another shop that healed fine. He said Come back after a week or so when it's fully healed. So I took more than a week to go back after the first time to ensure I really gave it enough time to heal. I went back almost two months later because I was so busy with work and the touch up was still free. So I went for my touch up and the guy who tatted me finally admitted it was a blowout and said SEE I KNEW THIS WAS GONNA HAPPEN BUT YOU INSISTED ON THIS HERE THATS WHY I DID IT AND I DONT DO THESE TYPES OF TATTOOS ANYMORE SINCE I DID YOURS. And I don't like confrontation so I just said if this was your hand would you try to touch it up and fix it? He said no he would leave it alone. He then proceeded to say IT LOOKS GOOD TO ME. Well, first of all it's Korean you can't read it so you don't know what the letters are supposed to look like. Second, I did not insist on putting the tattoo there. You recommended to put it there because it was better than the side of the hand. Third, even if I had insisted you do it like you said I did which I DIDNT, you as a professional artist should have said no. I've been to shops where artists have firmly said no you won't be happy with it so we won't do it there and all that. So don't blame me cause you just wanted my money. I showed other shops and they said it was a blow out and the lines are extremely poorly tattooed on and some parts went in too deep. Guys DO NOT GO HERE. I have to get a removal done. LEARN FROM ME DO NOT GO HERE!!! I mean unless you like mediocre work and blurred lines and things then go ahead. Read Less

I have two tattoos done by Gary Bastarache and absolutely love them. Both of my feet and shins are adorn with his handiwork. My left foot presented a bit of a challenge as it was a partial cover up.Several years back, I indulged in an impulse tattoo. It was my third tattoo and, while the concept was well thought through on my behalf, my choice in artist was not. I wanted an icy or frosty border around an existing quote on the top of my foot. I was at a friend's tattoo party and decided  just to go with it and was the last in a long line of let's do this. The result was 10  black and blue blobs haphazardly thrown about my text. I can not properly express how much I hated those "snowflakes".Those of you who have had or presently have regrettable ink know my anguish. There are no words. Really, there aren't. I soon began to plan for my right foot. I just had to have something to balance the disappointment residing to the left. Sure, my footnote was now marred with haste but my right was still a blank canvas begging to be covered.  I was a bit hesitant after the snowflake incident. Sugar Skull was the third studio I visited. Instead of shoving a binder portfolio in my direction and declaring the hourly rate, Gary was friendly and took the time to talk to me about my ideas. He explained to me that the art that I was picturing had to be a bit larger than I had anticipated so that the tattoo could have detail instead of being squashed and indistinguishable.  All of my bad tattoo mojo faded away. He sketched out a draft as we talked and my appointment was booked for later that week.I loved my new tattoo. It became my favorite tattoo. It was colorful. The script was well spaced. The detail didn't bleed or fade. People didn't blandly say, "Heh, nice tattoo" with shifty eyed glances. It was everything the other was not. My right footnote was wonderful. It almost took away the disappointment of the left. Almost.When I decided to see what could be done about the disastrous snowflakes, I knew exactly who to see. Even though it had been a few years, Gary remembered me by art before name. "Shakespeare on the foot!" Yup, that's me. Again, he took the time to understand exactly what I wanted. I explained that it was the final scene of my favorite book. An image of an apocalypse caused by the unfettered pursuit of knowledge and scientific creation without thought to consequence, where the sky burns and the earth freezes. It may seem like a huge task and it was but Gary was great. He designed an amazing cracked glacial ice border for the snowflake coverup. It really makes the text pop. The apocalyptic scene Gary created for me takes up most of my lower shin and ankle and is done in a watercolor style that uses bright colors with negative space. I truly adore it. In fact, sometimes when I see them side by side, I can't help but think that maybe I should talk to Gary about adding a little something something to the right. You know just even the size out a bit to match the left...If it isn't clear by now, I would definitely (and have) recommend Sugar Skull to anyone looking to get some vibrant, high quality art inked on their body. But, hey, if you're looking for a permanent reminder of a bad decision, I can refer you to a studio that would meet your low standards. But, if that's the case, I would still tell you to go see Gary. At least you will have a well drawn bad decision. Read Less

My husband and I wanted to get simple matching tattoos and the place we usually go is a bit of a drive, so we decided to go closer. We gave sugar skull a shot. We were hoping for a walk in. The first time we waited until half an hour after they were supposed to open and finally gave up and left when no one showed. The second time they didn't even consider a walk in - just made an appointment. We spoke to Gary who said if we wanted him to do the tattoos (not the apprentice/new girl) he wasn't available for about a month. So we booked in a month. Well when we got there he was getting ready to do someone else and we got the new girl anyway. I don't have a problem with that but we had to wait a month because we specifically booked with him. Then it took 4 hours + for us to get our tattoos. Mind you they were simple and only black. Our original tattoo guy said he could've done it in an hour/ hour and a half max. My husband also had scarring from his which shows through the black fill. It also cost an insane amount of money because - they charge by the hour. Which is fine except the new girl kept leaving to deal with customers and because she was new and still learning to find a groove - it took longer than it should have. Then when we finished it was past closing and the owner had left. Well she couldn't use the credit machine. Let me remind you it was very expensive and we were asked to go to an ATM to get cash since only the owner could run credit and he was gone. We won't be going back here and I would recommend going somewhere else for anyone looking for a new tattoo place. Read Less

Adam and Gary are both really good artists. Adam is on the come up, hes done tons of art shows an was featured in a converse artist seties sneaker. Although the place is small an can look decieving really good service an super reasonable and easy to work with. I have about 6 or 7 tattoos from sugar skull. From both of them. Read Less

this place is all around great i got my first tattoo done by greg who is not only the man, but i told him my idea of what i wanted at the time of scheduling my appointment. came in a week later and not only did he say hi, but had my design all done exactly how i saw it in my head. the tattoo came out PERFECTLY and i think was very well priced. I will absolutely be back Read Less

Gary did a good job and was friendly. However, he needs some lessons in salesmenship, he did not seem overly interested in any future work I might want done ( in this economy, any business person needs to do all he/she can do to get and retain customers ) . Also, while the music was not loud, it was head banger suited for the 14 to 21 crowd ( don't I wish I was that age again  !! ).Also again, bringing in a cleaning crew once a month would suite the premises well. Read Less

I went in here yesterday for a tattoo of my son's name.  The guys here were very friendly and their advice was welcoming.  They helped me pick out the font, size, and specific location of the tattoo.  The shop is small, clean, and inviting.  All of the employees I met were very personable.  They gave clear instructions on aftercare of the tattoo and I also had a great conversation with Gary, the owner, who personally did my tattoo.  Walk-ins are welcome - mine was small and there was an open chair so I was getting my tattoo within 15 minutes of arriving (after paperwork and finalizing the tattoo style).  I highly recommend this place! Read Less