AITA for getting mad my artist hid their initials in my tattoo?

A Reddit user shares a frustrating experience with a tattoo artist who secretly embedded their initials into a sentimental tattoo. The design was meant to replicate an exact tribute to the user’s late grandfather, making the discovery of “AJ” or “AT” initials a major upset.

After contacting the artist and demanding a partial refund, the user escalated the issue to the shop owner, eventually getting a full refund. The artist, however, started a smear campaign against them, causing tension among friends and family, with the user’s sister even calling them the bad guy.

‘ AITA for getting mad my artist hid their initials in my tattoo?’

I went to a tattoo shop in my area, with a photo of the tattoo I wanted. It was one my dad had gotten to honor my passed grandfather who’s father also had it. But the point is – it was important to me that the tattoo looked EXACTLY as it did in the photo.

I get to the shop, I explain everything, I pay, get the tattoo, and we’re done, I think it looks awesome, everything is great! Until a few weeks later when I show my great grandmother the tattoo. She’s static, grabs my arm to look at and compliment it, then asks, “Who’s AJ?”

I ask her what she means, and she points out on the tattoo where the initials A and J or maybe T were hidden into the tattoo. I’m instantly pissed, as my artists name is Alice Trever. She tries to assure me it’s no big deal if I hadn’t noticed it til now, but I still reached out to the artist sort of irritated.

They told me the style of art I got is called traditional and it’s “pretty trad” for all artists who do that style to do it. I demanded a partial refund and they refused, so I complained to the owner who made the artist give me a full refund.

Now the artist is running a full smear campaign, talking about moving shops, and all kinds of crap. My sister says I’m an a**hole for pushing the issue, but I feel like, at the end of the day, I told you exactly what I wanted and you didn’t do that. AITA?

Here’s what the community had to contribute:

Ok_Possibility5715 −  NTA and I would even consider suing. They kind of branded you with their initials…. And they should get fired …

Pickitline −  NTA. This person straight up BRANDED you! Not only that, this isn’t even the artist’s design, it’s a copied design!

ThrowawayforMILBS −  NTA. tattoo artists don’t get to sign their work because their canvas is a human being. This is KNOWN. This is conventionally understood.

RubY-F0x −  NTA. I remember there was an Ink Master episode where someone had a piece with a clock face and the artist put their time of birth on it as some kind of “signature”. The judges ripped him up for it. Same basic principle.

Tattoo artists shouldn’t be signing a tat in anyway without first discussing it with the client. Your artist definitely shouldn’t have done this since it was a particularly meaningful design for you.

oh-potato −  NTA I’ve been tattooing for almost 20 years and this is something you never do! Wtf!!

[Reddit User] −  Not only did the Artist permanently brand you without your permission. But it wasn’t even original artwork. This artist has to be so full of herself, she must be bursting at the seems.. NTA

[Reddit User] −  NTA. I’m a tattooed guy and this thing is incredibly gross, she ruined a meaningful piece of art and she branded your own body without giving you a heads up… And now she’s trying to play victim over it?

Are these details discussed in this “smear campaign” of hers? If I were you (and with the store owner’s blessing), I’d intervene and explain to everyone exactly what she did, because that s**t will get her trashed pretty bad in the tattoo community

ETA: You know what, scratch “with the store owner’s blessing”, she’s dragging their name in the mud anyway, and you gotta protect her future clients from this b**lshit

TinyRascalSaurus −  NTA. The artist put something on your body they didn’t have permission to. You didn’t consent to their initials, and it’s really weird to mark another person with your name without them knowing. I hope word gets around because what this artist did was definitely not okay.

HelenGonne −  So much NTA. My mother’s last position before she retired was as a same-day surgery scrub nurse at a teaching hospital. She told me warning stories about how there’s always a percentage of surgical residents who are…

well like this one guy she gave as an example: He would carve his initials into the skulls of brain surgery patients any time he got the chance.

When it comes to your body, anyone doing anything to it not medically warranted or specifically requested by you as part of a service, should not be in a profession where they put hands on people. Your tattoo artist should not be a tattoo artist.

telepathicathena −  NTA and I would blow that artist up on social media so her customers know what she’s doing. You should seriously consider suing the artist and/or the shop for removal of that portion of the tattoo, and the cost of getting another artist to fix it. That is unbelievably unethical of that tattoo artist.

Do you think the user overreacted to the hidden initials, or was their response justified given the sentimental value of the tattoo? Should tattoo artists disclose when they include personal marks in a design? Share your thoughts below!