My mom and I went to get facial piercings, and the piercer's name was Justin, and he was great to…read moretalk with! The piercing process was very easy, as we just did walk-in. The wait was very short, and overall the building has a really cool vibe.

I got my first tattoo, Jet was my artist. Awesome experience. He walked me patiently thru the…read moreprocess, step by step, gave me several expert options regarding the tattoo I wanted. Not painful at all. Excellent experience and thrilled with the result. Highly recommend!

Chris was absolutely amazing!!!!! Such a great guy. So personable, calming, reassuring,…read moreprofessional, and super clean. HIGHLY recommend them!!!!

I got my first tattoo here! I was visiting my friend in NC and we wanted to get tattoos together so…read morewe booked an appointment and our artist was Mike. Overall the appointment process was pretty simple. You can message on instagram/facebook and they were very responsive. When we arrived we just signed our waiver and provided our photo ID's. The actual place is very clean which I appreciated. Mike was such a friendly guy. It's funny because I came all the way down to NC to get a tattoo and I'm from NJ/NYC. Mike is from NYC and moved down to NC recently, I thought that was a funny coincidence. He always let us know what he was going to do before he did it and was very informative. He let us know the aftercare process and what to expect. That being said, we are almost a month out and my tattoo has healed beautifully! If I'm ever back in NC and looking to get a tattoo, I will book it with Mike.

Got my girls pierced about a month ago and they have been healing great! They are super even and…read moreI'm very happy. The studio itself is clean and sterilized, I felt super safe there. The girl who did them was very calm and said out loud each step she was doing but not overly talkative. She also asked me if I was ok throughout, would 100% come back!!

Brooke is my favorite piercer! Love her work, very relaxing vibes and she does perfect work!read more

Had the best time getting my tattoo here! Ariana (who specializes in black and white realism) was…read moreawesome to work with and is such a great vibe. If you're looking for some black and white realism, Ariana is the one for you!

Yesterday was my first visit to this shop. I was blown away by the vibe and artists. Hannah Magee…read moreis the bomb. She did such an awesome job. The camaraderie there was great. Even the artist that are not tattooing you make you feel comfortable. The shop is clean and the staff phenomenal. I have def found my shop and artist.

First time getting pierced here I usually go to Mad Ethal's but they were closed today and I really…read morewanted to get my nose pierced. I found hillsborough on yelp and gave it a go. My piercer was Christian and he did amazing I am so in love with my piercing. He explained the whole process when I was getting pierced. I am also known to faint or feel nauseous when I get piercing and he handled it amazingly getting my water and letting me lay down after getting pierced. The place was very clean and had wonderful piercers. Paid around 122, without tip, for my nose plus an extra piece of jewelry for one of my ear piercings. They also gave me free aftercare saline solution and explained that process in depth. It was amazing and totally recommend Christian for your next piercing!

Rikki did my piercings. Since it's walk in only, I was excited she was there, as I've read so many…read moregood things about her! She made me feel very comfortable and explained everything that I needed to know about the healing process and upkeep. Everything was very clean! They have a good selection of jewelry. You do have to purchase from them when getting a piercing, but they have good quality so it was good for me! I felt everything was reasonably priced. I would definitely recommend getting a piercing here to all the girlies!

Come for a tattoo, stay for good time! Tracy has the voice of an angel. It's like a combination of…read moreFergie and Jesus. I couldn't even look at her it was so good. Char is the best! Took a few reference ideas and brought to life more than I could've hoped for. Needless to say I thoroughly enjoyed working with her. A tattoo looks so good, you're going to wanna talk to it. If you're just looking for a tattoo, sure you could go elsewhere, but if you're looking to go to the f*ckin Catalina wine mixer, this is the place. (No you don't get any wine, but you will have a good time!)

just got my 8th girls trip tattoo. this place was amazing very friendly and our tattoo aroChris was…read morewonderful. this was his first day on the job in this shop but he did an awesome job!!! We are so glad we stopped in to check it out!! highly recommend this shop!! thanks again Shades of Gray and Chris

Charissa is a fantastic tattoo artist with an amazing personality. The studio is clean and…read moreconversation is great. Shes tattooed me and my husband and even pierced my daughters ears.

From the owner: A woman owned and operated private tattoo studio where all are welcome. I strive to provide the…read morebest tattoo experience for each client with professional, unique, and quality tattooing service in a clean, welcoming environment. I love to bring your ideas to life through custom taylored pieces. However, you can also look through the various custom flash available. From the first traces to a finished design, we’ll do anything from a simple name to full body sleeve work. I pride myself in providing a clean and comfortable environment while also maintaining a wide variety of styles. ​ Please call to schedule your consultation and next tattoo appointment. Walk-ins are welcome, but PLEASE call ahead to confirm availability. Also, art commission, jewelry, and aftercare are available.

Blair did an amazing job, not only on the work itself but with the design. I was all over the place…read morewith my ideas. I knew I wanted a book tattoo that had elements from several of my favorite books but also didn't want it to look like patchwork. She did an amazing job designing this piece and I absolutely love it! The shop is super cute and clean as well!

Nate at Femme Fatale is my go-to guy from here on out for my artwork. I was hella nervous getting…read moremy homage to Atlanta at a tattoo shop in NC. Sent Nate a broad idea of what I wanted for my tattoo. The concept he came up with was better than what I expected. His coloring work is stellar, especially when considering I have a darker complexion. It was also a cover-up and no one can see the tattoo that was covered up, even after I mention it was a coverup. It's not the cheapest place in town, but I believe you get what you pay for. I'd have paid more!

I recently had an awesome tattoo done by Marco at Oak City. I was with a group (we got 4 tattoos…read morein total). They were very strict about COVID regulations- everything was very sterile, mask requirements and occupancy regulations. Marco was great working with me and my ideas to come up with a design that worked perfectly. He was very nice, personable and the line work and shading were amazing and exactly what I didn't even know I wanted. Will definitely go to him for any further work.

Mark did amazing on my Icarus tattoo! Very calm atmosphere and the work was done in a very timely…read moremanner. Easy to talk to and to make the appointment. If I'm ever back in town I'd definitely be back again

Wonderful artist! I gave Chris my vision of a momma turtle swimming among the flowers with her…read moretwo babies, and he more than delivered. The flowers represent mine and my children's birth flowers. He did an absolutely beautiful job! Highly recommend if you are looking for an artist to bring your vision to life! :)

From the owner: Welp, this is what it look likeread more