Ironhand Request a piece
Artists Studio Process Rates & minimums Aftercare FAQ Request a piece

(01) — Request a piece

You bring one.
A reference, a body part.

There is no calendar to click and no instant booking. You send an enquiry, we read it as a floor, and within four working days you get a named resident, a session count and a price — or a plain no with somewhere better to go.

About one enquiry in five gets the no. We have turned work away for eleven years and intend to keep doing it, so please send the real budget ceiling rather than the one you think will get you a reply.

Go to the form Read the process first
Reply within4 days
Current book8 weeks
Deposit€120
Turned down1 in 5

(02) — The enquiry

Tell us what
and where

Six fields and three references. Leave the resident blank unless you have a reason — the floor routes a piece better than a name does.

What we need from you

  • The body part, named specifically — "outside of the left forearm", not "arm"
  • Rough size in centimetres, measured against yourself with a tape
  • Three references, and ideally not three tattoos — drawings, prints, photographs, objects
  • Your actual budget ceiling in euros, including the days you have not thought about yet

What will not speed it up

  • Naming a resident whose book is closed — Ash's is, until June
  • Asking for a date before the consult; nothing is held without a deposit
  • Screenshots of another artist's finished tattoo as the reference
  • Following up inside four working days, which does not move you up the list
Required — we need something to call you
Enter a working email address
Name the body part specifically. Wrap and curvature decide half the drawing. Required — tell us where it goes
Measure against yourself with a tape. Everyone guesses low. Required — a rough measurement is fine
A guess is fine. This routes the enquiry, it does not commit you.
Blank is the better answer four times in five.
The real number. A ceiling that is too low is a faster no, not a worse one. Required — pick the honest ceiling
The book is eight weeks. Fixed dates inside that rarely work.
Links, or plain descriptions. Drawings, prints, photographs and objects are more useful than other people's tattoos — and we will not copy another artist's piece. Give us at least the first one
Existing tattoos, scars and past reactions on that skin all change the answer, so mention them here rather than on the day. Required — a few sentences is plenty
Demo form — nothing is transmitted anywhere
Enquiry received

That's with the floor

All six residents read the enquiries together on a Tuesday. You will hear back within four working days with a named artist, a session count and a price — or with a no and the name of a studio that does the thing you are asking for.

Nothing is held and no deposit is due yet. The next step after our reply is a free thirty-minute consult, and you can still walk away from it.

Reference IH-26-0000 Reply by four working days Demo only — no data left this page

(03) — Before you ask

Straight answers

Is the deposit refundable?
No. €120 pays for the two to three weeks of drawing that happens before you sit, so it is spent whether or not you turn up. It comes off your final session. You can move the date once with seven days' notice; less than that, or a no-show, and it is gone and you start again.
Do you take walk-ins?
Never. Every piece here is drawn for one person and one body part, which takes weeks. If you want something today, there are good street shops five minutes away on Skalitzer Straße and we will happily point you at one.
Why can't I see photographs of your work?
Because publishing it turns a piece drawn for one person into flash for the next person to point at. Each resident keeps a physical book in the studio and will walk you through it at the consult, with the client's permission. That is the only version of a portfolio we are comfortable with.
How long until I hear back?
Four working days, including the enquiries we turn down. The floor reads enquiries together on a Tuesday, so something sent on Tuesday afternoon waits a week. Following up sooner does not move you up the list — it just adds a second email to the same pile.
Will you cover up or fix someone else's work?
Wren does, and it is most of her book. Send clear photos in daylight with no filter, plus what it is and roughly when it was done. Cover-ups start at €960 and usually run two to four sessions. Some things cannot be covered and we will tell you that rather than sell you a black square.
Can I book a specific artist?
You can ask, and if their book is open and the piece fits their hand you will get them. Four times in five, leaving it blank gets you a better match — the floor knows whose current book has room and whose specialism the drawing actually wants. Ash's book is closed until June and naming them will not open it.
Can I use numbing cream?
Yes, with one condition: tell your artist at the consult, not on the day. Numbing changes how skin takes ink, so we plan around it. Apply it yourself before you arrive following the product's instructions; we do not supply or apply it.
What's the minimum age?
Eighteen, with photo ID on the day, no exceptions and no parental consent route. German law is the floor here and our own policy sits on it. If you are seventeen, bookmark us and come back.
Are touch-ups free?
Inside ninety days, yes, provided you followed the aftercare card. Fine line and white ink are excluded — they settle unpredictably in every skin and we will say so before you book. Past ninety days a touch-up is half a day.
How do I pay, and when?
Deposit by SEPA transfer when you book. The balance in cash or by transfer at the end of each session — we do not take cards. Multi-day work is paid per day, not up front.
What if I don't like the drawing?
One round of changes is included and most pieces need it. If the second version is still wrong, you walk. The deposit is spent because the drawing time was real, but you are under no obligation to sit for something you do not want on you for forty years.
Does this form actually send anything?
No. This is a template demonstration — the form validates in the browser and shows a success state, but nothing is transmitted and no data is stored. Wire it to your own backend or form service before going live.

(04) — Finding the door

Behind the
courtyard

There is no sign on Oranienstraße. Through the archway at number 41, across the courtyard, the metal door on the left — a former sheet-metal workshop, which is why the ceilings are what they are.

  • AddressOranienstraße 41, 10999 Berlin — Hinterhof, second door on the left.
  • HoursTuesday to Saturday, 11:00–20:00. Closed Sunday and Monday. Consults by appointment only.
  • U-BahnGörlitzer Bahnhof (U1) is four minutes on foot; Kottbusser Tor (U1/U8) is seven.
  • Phone+49 30 5551 2480 during opening hours. We do not take enquiries by phone — they go in the form so the floor reads them together.
  • Emailbook@ironhand.example for anything the form does not cover.
  • AccessThe courtyard is cobbled and there are two steps at the studio door. Tell us at the enquiry and we will meet you and sort it.

You bring one.
A reference, a body part.

We answer every enquiry within four working days, including the ones we turn down. If we are not the right studio we will name one that is.

Back to the form +49 30 5551 2480

Book currently 8 weeks · Deposit €120 · Oranienstraße 41, 10999 Berlin