I visited Disappearing Ink back in March for a consultation. The vibe was... Ok, I'ma be honest and…read moretell ya how I really feel... I wouldn't be surprised if the two people I'd met with were... (I feel my inner Libran diplomat wanting to sugar coat and simply say...) not comfortable around Black people. Have y'all read Carolyn F's review? I got the same vibe as that sister. So, the girl didn't feel comfortable in a room alone with me during the consultation, so a male co-worker joined and watched me like a hawk. I'd had an earlier consultation at Removary and they'd mentioned the difficulty removing colored ink from melanated skin (if it comes out at all). I asked about that while at DI. They concurred. They brought out a book with examples of their work. All colors of ink can be removed from pale skin. With melanated skin, the laser may not be able to distinguish between the ink and the melanin and remove all the color leaving you with pale patches. That said, I asked if they could show. Me. Results. On. People. Who. Look. Like. MEEEEEEEEEE. Like, lemme see the results on Black folks, mang! All I'm seeing in this book are non-melanated folks who've had their tats completely removed. This is a waste of time...unless they think I might refer any non-melanated folks I know who want to have a tat removed to them (I'm not). At one point, male co-worker says to me, "but YOU're not going to get those results...", dripping with condescension. To which I replied, "and that's why I'm waiting to see someone in that book who looks like ME." As gal showed me their price chart, I asked if I could take pix. Their price charts are laminated. One of the photos that I'd taken had glare from the light above. When I mentioned it, male co-worker looks up as if to say, "glare from what?" The glare is visible in my pics.
They ask for credit card info before you can make your consultation appointment so they can charge you if you cancel within 24 hours (Removary didn't do that, but...) Several places do that. I get it. While I was there, they asked to see my I.D. That was naggin' at me, so I later asked what that was about, I got two different answers. One, "it's for insurance purposes. We need to make sure the person who did their paperwork is the same as the one being treated!" (Yes, you must fill out paperwork for a consultation) I replied that I was only there for a consultation and at no point, did I ask to be treated during. Ugh. Then I got answer #2, "it's just standard protocol to ask during the consultation because some do choose to be treated during!" Again, at no point did I ask to be treated. Anywho, when the consultation was over, the guy was all friendly. He was happy to see my black a$$ leave, lol. I was happy to leave and matched his enthusiasm.
So, here on the marvelous Yelp, you have two Black folks, Carolyn F and myself, lettin' fam know that you're gonna get some juicy negative vibes if you go to Disappearing Ink. So, don't. I highly and high-key don't recommend. The vibe at Removary was much more welcoming, inviting, amiable, down to earth (don't let the fancy Park Ave address fool or deter you)... Removary was just all-around cooler.