A woman has sparked discussion online after she called out her tattoo artist for his inappropriate behavior once he learned she was recently single.
In a video that has gotten over 164,400 views, TikTok creator @paweenieee recounts what she says happened while getting a half sleeve done at a Southern California tattoo shop.
She explains that she had gone to the same artist before and trusted his work.
“This artist does really good work. I really liked his line work,” she says, as she shows her tattoos. “He did this arm as well.”
At the time, she says, there were no red flags. “I had no sort of weird feelings with the man,” she says. “Like, tattooing me.”
She Says His Behavior Changed After Learning She Was Single
The inappropriate behavior, according to @paweenieee, started at a recent appointment.
“As he’s tattooing my arm, he’s like, ‘Hey, I heard you and so and so aren’t together anymore,’” she says. “And I was like, yeah… kind of out of my control… but, you know, it happens.”
Then he dropped a shocking comment. “So, um, when is it my turn?” he asked her.
She says she tried to keep things calm in the moment. “No. That’s funny. That’s crazy,” she recalls saying. “I’m trying to de-escalate because he has a needle in my arm.”
The Comments Continued During Multiple Sessions
According to her, the comments kept going. During a later session, he brought up having “a couch in the back room.”
“Just letting you know,” she recalls him saying.
She says she deflected again. “So I’m like, that’s cool. You ever take naps on there?” she says.
After the appointment, she says the comments moved to DMs.
“He then messages me in vanish mode… talking about how we can do something on the side,” she says. “Like, we could use that couch next session.”
She says she responded directly.
“I don’t feel comfortable with this. You’re my tattoo artist. That’s it,” she says. “I’m not one to wreck a marriage… especially because you just had a baby that’s one month old.”
He Brought It Up Again While Finishing the Tattoo
She says she returned for another session to finish the piece, thinking things were settled.
“To me, that means… you understand that I do not want anything more than you just being my tattoo artist and me being your customer,” she says.
But during the appointment, she says he brought it up again.
“So I got this really weird message from your Instagram,” she recalls him saying. “I think your Instagram got hacked.”
She says he referenced her message rejecting him. “It said something about… you didn’t want to hook up with me,” she recalls.
She kept her response short. “Yeah… no, I’m good off of that,” she says.
At the end of the session, he proposed an inappropriate arrangement.
“When I go to pay him, he told me that I didn’t have to pay for me to consider his offer about the back couch,” she says.
She says she declined and cut contact. “Not gonna happen. I blocked him,” she says. “I got a free tattoo, but his poor wife and family,” she adds.
Viewers Find His Behavior Disturbing
Many viewers were quick to react, especially after hearing that the tattoo artist had a newborn at home.
“As soon as I heard ‘one month old baby’ my jaw dropped cause cmon bro especially being married is crazyyyy,” one person wrote.
Others focused on how she handled the situation.
“I kept saying ‘ew’…. Good job girl,” another said.
Some also expressed concern for the artist’s family.
“The poor wife,” a third wrote.
Another commenter added, “We need to normalize airing these dudes out. They deserve to be exposed for being disgusting. Stop protecting him.”
Sexual Harassment In The Tattoo Community
Tattooing creates close, vulnerable scenarios, especially during long sessions or when tattooing near sensitive areas. Plenty of tattoo fans have reported artists crossing a serious line.
For example, in 2018, the industry faced a wave of #MeToo allegations after clients made dozens of accusations of sexual misconduct against Detroit-based tattoo artist Alex Boyko.
A user on r/TwoXChromosomes described an experience where a session became extremely uncomfortable with unnecessary touching. They say they found it hard to react in the moment because the artist was actively tattooing them.
Discussions on r/tattooadvice also suggest these concerns have come up repeatedly, with clients choosing artists more carefully as a result.
@paweenieee Throw new tattoo artists in the comments pls ? #fypシ #tattoo #tattooartist #creepy ♬ original sound – paweenieee
The Mary Sue has reached out to @paweenieee via TikTok messages for comment.
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