I had been wanting a memorial tattoo for a beloved Malamute that passed away for awhile. I lived in Portland at the time, and it was so hard to get into the really good artists, that I gave up. Then, we moved to Salem. I decided after two years to try to get the tattoo again. I decided to look in the Salem area, but didn't think I would find someone as good as the best PDX artists. Then, my partner came across Dark Star's portfolio and we were really impressed. It was hard to pick between Ryan, Tim and Eric, as they all seemed excellent. But, Tim seemed to be strongest in realism and black and white, and that's what I wanted, so I went with him. I'm so happy that I went with Dark Star and Tim. Incredible work. It could not have turned out any better. His ability to create accurate dimension in a realism piece is a rare gift. He also has a light touch, so the pain wasn't as bad as I expected. The shop and Tim are also very obsessive about keeping everything clean and sanitary. Also, it seems the artists all like each other, so the atmosphere is fun and comfortable. And the prices are also more than reasonable. My only hesitation in writing this is that I am going to want more work from Tim and I don't want him to get so booked that it takes months to see him. :-) read more

Ryan of Darkstar tattoo is the man. I received my first tattoo by Ryan and it was clean and painless. He explains everything nice and clear as to what he is doing and even offers after care advice. read more

Dark Star Tattoo - The ink that I received. - Tattoo Near Me - Salem, Oregon

This place is great, I definitely recommend Ryan- he perfectly handled both tattoos I got from him (pics) and he never rushed a consultation. For both tattoos I brought my own ideas in and he sketched things around, made them my own, made some great suggestions and handled everything with care- and he was willing to do white ink on me, score! plus he was hot, high five! read more

Dark Star Tattoo - white ink tat by ryan (the anchor placement was his idea, love it) - Tattoo Near Me - Salem, Oregon

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I went in for a memorial tattoo with Ryan who is an amazing artist, but he is very heavy handed and made mistakes like going back over areas he had begun at hours later. Less than 24 hrs after getting the tattoo i was in the er because my arm had swelled so much and it felt like someone was holding a branding iron to my skin. After i was able to get that under control and it healed i was left with a crap looking tattoo and severe scarring. I put a review up on Facebook just recently on their site and the owner I'm assuming of Dark Star came back basically saying it was all my fault and trying to Badger me out of my review I stopped replying because my review is my experience with that artist, he didn't like my review but it's the truth and we all know the truth hurts. I've seen three other artists and every single one has said the same thing that he overworked my skin and it kind of makes me mad that the management doesn't just realize that instead of adding insult to injury by attacking somebody who has a valid review. they should just look at it as okay well maybe we should do better. I'm left scarred for my the rest of my life now and I have to wait another 8 months just to see if I can even get it fixed because my scarring is so bad that no artist wants to touch it. read more

Dark Star Tattoo - This is the scarring and how awful it looks now. - Tattoo Near Me - Salem, Oregon

I got my first (ok, so far only) tattoo here from Randy and I can't wait to go back. Randy came highly recommended and I loved him as soon as I met him. A real goof ball, the kind of guy you'd love to bar hop from dive to dive with, drinking whiskey and singing neal diamond karaoke. When it came to getting down to work he was all business. He worked with me to find out exactly what I wanted. His motto seems to be "I can do it better" and he can. The piece he did on my side looks like it was photocopied onto my skin. I've gotten a lot of compliments on my tattoo and I'm over the moon with it. I hope to get round two soon. read more

A little over a year ago my friend and I came here to get wrist tattoos done. It was my friends first tattoo and my sixth. My friend's artist was Ryan and he did a great job on her wrist. I had Nate do my tattoo and I will never do that again. Both of the tattoos that we had done were each just one word. My friends was in Greek and it looks great. The lines are crisp and defined. My tattoo is in Hebrew and looks like a beginning artist did it. It almost looks blurry and the lines aren't even filled in all the way. That is after I went back for a touch-up. When I went in Nate acted like he was in a race to get it done and sent me on my way. Now I need to find an artist to fix his mistakes and make it look good. The shop is a clean place and the artists open everything and poor the ink in front of you. I have no complaints against the shop itself, just with Nate. read more

I got a tattoo here 4 years ago. The artist made my idea come to life at a reasonable price, and came in on a holiday to do so. 4 years later their artwork still looks beautiful! read more

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I've been having Ryan work on a full sleeve for me & I love it so much. He's definatly an artist that takes a lot of pride in his work & wants his work to be representive of him as well as his client. I went in with a whole drawing I had been working on & my arm does, but at the same time doesn't look anything like what I drew. I have really feminin art, where as Ryan has a dark industrial style. He took my drawing & he didn't compromise his style, while still giving me what I wanted. It is truly a collaboration of his taste & mine & I really appreciate that, because I love it. He is so talented & he works really hard. Not only is he a great tattoo artist, but he also is a great conversationalist. I will continue to work with Ryan for a long time, he is very professional & I love what he has done for me! read more

I have gone to see Erik many times and I have always been impressed. Although I feel that sometimes the tattoo takes a while, I believe it is more because of I'm a baby about pain and he strives to make excellent tattoos. Regardless, when he is done and I see what he has created, I am always humbled and ecstatic to walk away with such beautiful artwork. read more

I'm not the stereotypical person that you would imagine would get a tattoo, and I thought I never would. But l found something that meant so much to me, that I decided to commit to it. I didn't know where to go but I knew Dark Star opened at noon, so I figured I'd call and get some info. Then, I'm on an errand at 10:30 in the morning and saw their sign said "open", so I stopped. I am thrilled with the experience! Ryan greeted me and he is so charming and attractive, and he listened attentively to what I wanted. He was too booked up to give me the tattoo himself but arranged for Eric to do it. I love it; Eric did such a great job. The whole shop is very clean and friendly and all the staff seem very relaxed and comfortable. Eric was so gentle with me that it was even less painful than going to the dentist. I thought they seemed very professional, while still being very fun and funny. read more

do not go to this place!!!!!! i set an appointment took time out of my day showed up and waited for the artist to come tell me he wasnt gonna tattoo anymore today......very bad place read more