The first time I visited Koz at BMI for a piercing with a friend, I was extremely nervous and had a few drinks in me. He had actually turned me away, but explained why he had to do so. We sat talking for a good 10 minutes and he was actually able to explain the whole process and calm my nerves down. Due to his professionalism, kindness, and easy-going attitude, decided I was going to come back in a day or two. I ended up coming back two weeks due to work and he did remember me and he was very professional and I was able to get my piercing and he was 100% right on healing. A few weeks after my piercing, I had a concern and I stopped in. He was great at explaining everything again, and I had to force him to take a tip as for my thank you. The tattoo artists were also very nice and welcoming when I walked in each time. I highly recommend this place and will be coming back. read more

Piercer was incredibly rude to me. Acted annoyed from the moment I walked in. Went in for a ring change and instead of simply saying that the gauge size of my rings are not what they have in the shop, he went on to explain this in a very confusing and technical way that I didn't understand because I'm not a professional or someone in the tattoo/ piercing world. Got annoyed and rolled his eyes every time I asked a clarifying question. Then went on to attack the quality of my piercings and the fact that they weren't real gold which is pretty unprofessional and just also weirdo behavior. Overall very unpleasant and unhelpful conversation and this dude had the attitude that makes people avoid certain shops. Would give 0 stars if I could read more

Totally unprofessional. How is a passport, a federal issued ID, not a valid form of ID? I am very clearly in my 30's yet the piercer was weirdly saying that my passport isn't a valid form of ID, but since when? The piercer is clearly not well informed. read more

Highly recommend this studio for all piercing needs weather it be jewelry replacements or a new piercing! Cleanest place I've ever been and Koz is really good at making the environment a safe space. My jewelry gets complimented regularly for its uniqueness Although I can't frequent as much anymore, I will forever send customers his way! #goodkarma read more

BMI Tattoo - Every piece of jewelry was pierced at BMI - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

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Walked in stressed out about an important appt I have and unable to remove my own septum ring. Right off the bat Koz treated me with kindness and respect not knowing what I was going through. Throughout the whole process he explained what he was doing and like I said was all around very kind. Can't wait to come back! read more

Koz pierced my nose and vertical labret. Julez did a tattoo on my left arm and I'm so in love with their work!!! I've read a lot about their prices are high but I feel quality is better than having a bad experience somewhere else and then having to pay for a coverup or it to be fixed. I always choose the best jewelry because my I only get one body so why cheap out on what I put both on and in inside myself. If you don't want complications go with what they recommend or save your money and come back. They do excellent work and take the time to answer your questions and educate you on your choice and give recommendations. I always tip because I always feel comfortable in their shop. They even offer snacks and soft drinks while you wait. . read more

BMI Tattoo - Switched out my triple Swarovski crystals stud and had a titanium hoop put in for a change. I also got a vertical labret today. - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

Christina absolutely killed it on my Pokémon tattoo. She was so friendly and down to earth and the entire vibe of the shop was so good. So so worth the 45 min drive from Joliet. I make sure to refer my friends to her as well, due to her being such an amazing artist read more

My friend and I came here thinking it would be a good place to get piercings considering it was woman owned and seemed inclusive but we were wrong. When we walked in we were greeted by Koz and we immediately felt unwelcome. The second we got there he started asking a bunch of questions about the piercings we had and called us uneducated. He made some very inappropriate comments about how if we touched one of our piercings he would touch his **** in front of us. We felt attacked and immediately left. Would NOT recommend wasting your time here read more

BMI is the place to go for all you piercings and tattoos! I wouldn't trust anyone else to do my 3 month old baby girls ear piercing but Koz. And as for Julie, she will be the only one doing my tattoos. They're both very professional and genuinely nice people. The shop is impeccably clean! Do yourself a favor and make BMI your next stop for a tattoo! read more

I got a great tragus piercing by Koz two days ago. Apart from the needle going in, this thing doesn't hurt at all. I expected some swelling and tenderness by now, but there is zero discomfort. My conch, and double helix were done by another shop in the area, and the healing was rough from day one. I'm not sure if it's just the areas of my ears that heal differently, or Koz is just that good. We'll go with the latter read more

BMI Tattoo - Tragus piercing - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

Koz is amazing! I am a first time mother and my husband and I went to BMI to get our daughter's ears pierced. As a first time mom I tend to have unreasonably high expectations and Koz managed to exceed them all! He guided us through the process and answered my many questions with patience and managed to soothe our anxiety. With our 6 month old daughter he made sure she was comfortable and asked what her favorite show was so she can play it on his laptop and he made every effort to make sure we were comfortable. Again, no easy feat with two new and anxious parents and a 6 month old. The shop itself is pristine: immaculately clean! Koz checked our temperature and wore his mask and gloves the entire time. I cannot recommend this shop enough! If he's this patient with babies I'm sure adults have an amazing experience as well. read more

I researched a lot of shops for a piercer but the reviews on Koz kept coming back A1. Plus it was confirmed when I had been trying to get an appt for a month and dude was booked. He is a professional thru and thru,he explains aftercare and actually listens to you. The shop is clean and they are all masked and gloved up. I would recommend him to others. Love my piercing. read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

I was rudely greeted at the door after standing outside for about 5 mins in the heat. I came to buy a nose ring, when the host rudely told me I can't and closed the door in my face while continuing to help a family that looked like him. I felt discriminated against, and will never bring my business here. read more

I'm back to update my review based on my recent piercing experience on 5.4.18. Not counting the 9+ ear piercings I've had over the course of my 37 years (all gun piercings--we're going a loooooong way back here), I've been professionally pierced five times by four separate piercers over the past 20 years. My first experience at age 17 was something out of a B-level horror film; my second experience was better, but not mindblowing. My third and fourth experiences (with Johnny at NR, although I don't think he's there any longer--unsure on that, though) were pretty excellent...and then I took, like, an 11 year piercing break. Here's a huge pro of getting pierced at 37 vs 17: you actually give a sh*t about who does your piercing, the shop, the cleanliness, the aftercare instructions, etc. At 17, I was more of the "f*ck yeah, I'll get illegally (underage, yo) pierced in someone's not-all-that-clean shop by a dude who is probably now on a website somewhere!" At 37...I'm almost embarrassed to tell you how much time I spent researching piercers in this area. I had only said hello in passing to Koz while getting tattooed (twice) by the incredible Julie, but after getting my septum pierced by him just a few days ago, I can't sing his praises enough. First and foremost, let's talk about the fact that I have questions. I have questions about everything always. I have questions about my questions. I started asking them via IG and continued from there. Koz was wonderful. He answered everything thoroughly and never once made me feel like a PITA for asking anything. He was actually piercing someone else when I walked in, and once he was done, he cleaned, prepped, and then talked me down off the ledge about ten times over. Koz walked through the process step by step (both beforehand and as he was doing the piercing itself), he changed his gloves a bunch (& wore a mask, of course), went over aftercare thoroughly, and even reminded me to breathe (which was appreciated--I was just a little bit nervous ;). In short, he was amazing and the whole experience was incredible. Have you ever been pierced by someone who seems, well, a little unsure in his/her skills? Well, I have and it's more than slightly unsettling. You can tell Koz is a straight up, dedicated professional; he's been doing this for a long time and it shows. I *immediately* felt at ease with him. Despite numerous tattoos and piercings, I'm actually a pretty serious needlephobe. But I would get my septum pierced ten times over--the whole thing was that good and I love my new piercing. :) So...if you're looking for a piercer, Koz is who you want to see. The piercing + jewelry cost $65 which is so much more than reasonable for the quality of the piercing itself and the jewelry as well. He could ask, like, ten times that amount and it would still be completely worth it. If I ever decide on another piercing, I will never go anywhere else. And when any of my kids decide to get their ears pierced, Koz will be the only one to do it, period. (PS - If you're here on Yelp, reading reviews while contemplating a septum piercing and wondering about the pain factor...if I pulled through, you will, too. :) I'm a bit of a baby and it was such a fast experience. I won't say it's painless--I mean...it's a needle through a body part!--but I will say I almost psyched myself out for no good reason; it hurt *infinitely* less than I had anticipated. My only regret is not doing it sooner. :) EARLIER REVIEW: Not sure how Julie is only mentioned in, like, two reviews thus far, because this woman f*cking SLAYS. So. Here's the story. Floating through my Insta's explore feed, I came across a painting. Reading the caption...it was this absolutely amazing deal: the original painting PLUS said piece as a tattoo for 200 bones. Being ever the opportunist, I immediately hit up my spouse because, well, Christmas and all that. So Christmas morning, I unwrapped this gorgeous painting and yesterday, I saw Julie for the tattoo. I'm kind of obsessed with this new piece and I'm now also kind of obsessed with getting more work done by Julie. Not only is Julie an amazing artist--and personable and professional as well--but she's light-handed (ever been tattooed by someone who wasn't? B.r.u.t.a.l), a perfectionist (her line work = heart eyes for days), and she's fast. But make no mistake about it--she's quick without sacrificing quality. So good, you guys. So good. I think the pictures speak for themselves. :) (Side: the tattoo is sliiiiightly different from the painting because of the location of said piece--it's on my chest, so it's a high-sun area...hence the lack of white and yellow). I loooooove it. read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

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I just got a nose piercing from Koz and there was initial pain but afterwards I felt nothing at all. I picked a 24 karat gold nose ring with Swarovski crystals that was about $125 including the piercing. I definitely recommend this place over Native Rituals tattoo down the street. I also received a tattoo from Julie better know as Julez. She hand drew my tattoo on my arm based on my idea (I didn't bring a photo as I wanted a one of a kind tattoo) and it turned out amazing!! She's also fast-- so fast I didn't even realize she was done!!! She charges $125 per hour-- I paid $250 and gave her a $20 tip. read more

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I went with Amy, who is a new and upcoming tattoo artist at BMI. If I hadn't know she was barely beginning, I would have thought that she was doing this for a while now. Amy is both professional and customer oriented. She did an excellent job going over how to take care of the tattoo but she was also very flexible with the scheduling. She has some great mentors Julie and Koz who want to see her succeed. Definitely check out some of her flash sheets! read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

Koz is awesome for any piercing. Explained everything in depth. No pain at all which I was afraid of. Almost two months out from my flat piercing and healing well. I'll be back to get another one soon. read more

Rude customer service. Had an out of state ID and didn't accept. It verified my age. Went to other shops who did accept. Rude and racist.

I will never go anywhere else! Koz did an amazing job on my tongue piercing. Made me feel very comfortable and made the process as painless as possible. 11/10 recommend don't bother going anywhere else read more

Got my nose pierced yesterday by Koz and it was a very good experience. The cleanliness of the shop and the friendly artist made for a great experience. Koz was great he talked me through the process as I was nervous. I would definitely recommend this shop. read more

Today i went in to get my nose pierced and my cartilage pierced. Definitely the best studio I've ever been to! Customer service was amazing, everyone took their time to make sure I was satisfied and answered all my questions. Koz, the piercer, is clearly very experienced and did an amazing job! I felt very comfortable in the chair and he went through everything I needed to know. The process was painless and very smooth. I will definitely be coming back here for future piercings!! read more

This is my usual go to place. All I wanted to do was make an appointment for a tattoo and the girl on the phone was so rude and gave me attitude and kept denying me! Wouldn't even let me make an appointment. After going back and forth with her I just said screw it and went to Body by Design in Crestwood. BMI lost a $400 sale ‍ read more

I called earlier in the day on a Sunday inquiring about availability for a piercing after a shop downtown wasted my time and BMI told me to come right in. Got there and the place was very welcoming; also very clean. Koz was great. Very nice and welcoming. Spent a little time filling out paperwork, while he got setup (normal). Walked through everything step by step and made sure I was satisfied! 100% recommend. read more

Excellent service I went to go get a nose piercing and i was talked through the whole thing pricing is also good

Koz was fantastic! Went in to get my nose ring changed and he was beyond professional. He was informative and so gentle. Didn't have to wait at all! Great experience!! read more

Julie is a true trooper I've found my tattoo artist for the rest of my tattoos, I've been to a lot of different people for tattoos and she's by far the best. I'll highly recommend her to everyone I know. Thanks once more for putting this beautiful work on me. read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

So, I was just in yesterday. My best friend and I decided to get matching tattoos on a whim. After having completely horrible costomer service from a shop down the road that I have had previous work done at, we were so happy we stumbled upon Basement Ink. Like I said, I was super pissed when I got to B.I. and Coz politely greeted us with a smile (even as I bitched and complained about what had just happened). The shop had a pretty good vibe. It looked as if it was a popular place for ufc/fighters to go. It was clean and the people walking in and out seemed to have good work done. Since we were walk-ins, the artist that had openings wasn't there yet, but would be getting there shortly. And he did. His name is Ivan. He is professional and friendly. We had a pic in mind that we liked off of the internet, but didn't want that exact image and wanted him to put his spin on it. And that's exactly what he did. Ivan did a great job in both of us. He took his time, paid attention to detail. Both of us would have work done by him again. read more

I can't give the place a completely horrible rating because I had two good experiences there and only one that was awful. The shop is welcoming and clean and the owner is really sweet but some of the artists are really unprofessional. The first time I went I got a unique script tattoo from Ivan Thomas and I still love it. I made another appointment with Ivan and when I showed up on the scheduled day to get the tattoo he was nowhere to be found. Fortunately, they had a great guest artist Aaron who covered for him. Who doesn't show up for their own appointment? A third time I went to get tattooed by Ivan who scheduled the day and time with me weeks beforehand. I was early and he was not there. Around an hour later he showed up hungover and didn't even apologize for blowing me off. Honestly, if he would've just said sorry I may have rescheduled but he made no effort to apologize and I didn't think it was the best idea to get tattooed by someone so careless. It's a bummer I had to switch shops because I thought I found a great tattooer but Ivan from The Basement Ink is not responsible or sincere. If the artists were more mature and not running through the shop like children while I was stuck waiting for the artist who forgot about his client, I'm sure they would be more successful. I would not recommend them to anyone. Wasted Youth Tattoo in Romeoville gets my business now and I couldn't be happier. read more

Seriously recommend. Tattoos by Julie and piercings by Koz. Never disappointed!!! super professional and clean environment, and always keep you well informed of aftercare. definitely the most talented artists and piercer in the area!!! read more

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A great first tattoo experience. Cody, the person tattooing me and my friend was really nice and communicated with us very clearly! Our tattoos came out amazing and I'm so happy!! read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

The studio is very clean and rad as hell! Koz, the piercer, is very professional and kind. Piercing healed perfectly and without any issue.

BMI is the place to go for all you piercings and tattoos! I wouldn't trust anyone else to do my 3 month old baby girls ear piercing but Koz. And as for Julie, she will be the only one doing my tattoos. They're both very professional and genuinely nice people. The shop is impeccably clean! Cody is a great tattoo artist as well, except for that goofy hat he wears (inside joke)! Do yourself a favor and make BMI your next stop for a tattoo or piercing!! read more

BMI Tattoo - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

This whole crew is great, but Tom Biggs is seriously amazing. The work he came out with even after discussing and pre-session stuff couldn't begin to show how amazing my tattoo came out. If you are in the area THIS is the guy to go to. read more

BMI Tattoo - Done by Tom Biggs - Tattoo Near Me - Oak Forest, Illinois

I walked in here to ask a few questions about getting a simple tattoo I want. This will be my first tattoo and I had been excited about it. One of the artist at the shop answered a few questions for me but instantly insisted I can call later on an make an appointment with someone else. He was very lack luster with answering my questions about size and style. Meaning I got the hint he didn't have any interest in the sale. I instantly fell back and thought to myself I would go somewhere else. To add injury to insult my boyfriend who is of lighter complexion asked about a tattoo idea and instantly the same artist perked ip and told him right away he was available to tattoo him without hesitation. I stood there in shock. I instantly felt sad and not wanted in the shop. I understand lighter skin tones are easier to tattoo but to do that so blatantly in front of me was inconsiderate as I could have been a potential customer. It's sad that customer service goes out of the window so easily. I felt discriminated against. All I wanted was the same interest as anyone else. He made it clear he wasn't and didn't want to work with me to easily jump at the opportunity to tattoo my boyfriend. I will not be getting any work done here ever. read more

I've have yet to get a tat done here but I've gotten my nose, cartilage, tongue & nips pierced by Koz. He's a cool dude. He made me feel very comfortable while he was piercing me & explained the whole process to me. Any future piercings I get will most def be done by Koz. The place is very clean too. I will most likely get my tats done here too. Thanks Koz, you've got a loyal customer here! & I almost forgot, he ain't gonna take no shit from shitty customers either! read more

Cheap jewelry. Bought a barbel, broke as soon as I removed it from the bag. Took it back 2 days later for an exchange and was denied. Piercer was unfriendly and had a lot of excuses. Do not buy your jewelry here. read more

This place I recommend to anyone who's looking for a clean and professional place for tattoos and piercings. Koz the piercer is excellent. Koz so far has pierced me on 3 occasions and I didn't feel a thing. If you're thinking about getting a piercing for the first time this is the place you need to go to. I promise you won't be sorry and I'm really looking forward to having my cover-up tattoo done by Julie. Oh by the way Koz pierced my daughter too and now she's hooked. read more

I got my nipples done by Koz and he was great, made me feel very comfortable and less nervous. He explained the whole process all the way through and when my piercing started bleeding days after he was very accommodating to squeeze me in to make sure it was okay and clean everything up. I brought some friends with me to get them pierced and he asked me separately if I was comfortable having one in the room with me before he let them come in. I highly recommend him and will go to him for any future piercings read more

This place is awesome! We came in last minute and they took my friend and I right away. Eamon and Jason were super nice and friendly and made us feel right at home. We both changed our mind on the tattoos many times and they were understanding and didn't make us feel rushed. I'd definitely come back and tell my friends about this place!!! read more

We went to The Basement Ink on Sunday 10/31/2010, my sons 18th birthday. He had been wanting to get a tattoo for several years, but as his father, I made him wait until he was of legal age. Our experience there proved to be great. Jackie, the artist who did the work on my son was very friendly. She took some of the drawings my son had brought, and from them designed a tattoo that he really liked. The actual process of doing the tattoo went great, and the detail she added was fantastic. We had very little wait time, so my wife decided to get a tattoo as well. She chose a fairy that we found on the internet. Rick, the owner of the establishment did some detail changes to it, and once again, Jackie did a fantastic job of applying it. Overall our experience with The Basement Ink was great. The people who worked there were really nice. We will definately be going back there in the future! read more