The #1 tattoo shop in Kansas City. Hands down. Has won tons of awards and all the artists are all…read moreincredibly skilled! As I just said, you cannot go wrong with any of the artists here; however, the two that I go to are Bob Bitner, a master, and Wes Durham, the current apprentice. Both guys have done amazing work and I will continue to recommend both of them as well as the shop as a whole! I will briefly summarize how the process works for those of you that are unaware. Catalyst really only works on appointment only. Unless you want work done by one of their two apprentices you will likely have to put your name on a year long wait list to get an appointment with one of the master artists and likely will also need to give them a down payment-this is so people don't back out all the time. The next step is usually to go have a consultation with your artist that you choose. During this consultation, you and your artist will discuss the type of artwork that you like and want on your body for the rest of your life (lol) and then either he or she will work on some drafts to show you to see if you like them. Most recently, Catalyst was located out in the cuts of Independence, MO off 291 Hwy; however, they recently moved down into the Crossroads! I had my forearm sleeve recently completed by Wes D. at the old Independence shop. I do have an appointment in January of 2019 with Bob B. to finish the rest of my sleeve! This shop prides itself of professionalism, cleanliness, and unique work & artistry. It is not cheap but you get what you pay for when you purchase a tattoo. In my opinion, this will be with you for the rest of your life so you might as well have it done by the best tattoo artists possible!!

I've been going to see Mikey Ruck for the last 4 years for my work!!! He's amazing because I'm a…read moregiant sissy, even though I don't act like when it comes to my tattoos, he's very light handed and his work is precise and wonderful. I only come here and will only go where Mikey goes. He's done all the color work in my photos - the lady dragonfly monster is my work in progress piece that he started in grayscale.

I waited a long time to get my tattoo of Stitch (from Lilo and Stitch). I wanted to make sure I…read morefound someone who was going to do it right. Kimo hit the nail on the head. I LOVE my tattoo. His space was clean and we'll organised. This was also the least painful tattoo I've gotten. He has a gentle touch. I can't wait to finish out a sleeve. Didn't even realize I would want a sleeve until I got Kimo's art on me.

Not only is this tattoo parlor superior to most... But it is owned by one of the most talented…read moreartists I know. This tattoo parlor is immaculate! Its clean and extremely professional. He has a very light hand and is a master at shading and black and greys. I have several pieces of art by Kimo and recommend him to anyone and everyone I come across! If you're looking for true art this is the place to go!! I am NOT the only person who knows this. He's a little difficult to get into sometimes but I assure you, he's worth the wait!

I got a triple helix, and a tragus and when I tell you, I barely felt the piercings at all the…read moresecond helix and helix stung a little like any other piercing, but the first helix and my tragus I literally did not feel at all. I loved the personalities of the workers there I had two nice ladies help me. I believe one was maricella? mariella? i'm not 100% certain and I don't think I caught the other ladies name but their vibes and their personality amazing I was a bit anxious but the whole time it was literally laughs and fun stories jokes and much more and I believe there was a gentleman who came to see the piercings i was getting, named Josh and he was so funny. I'm not even gonna lie I might just get a forehead piercing now because of him vibes were immaculate, and I would totally feel comfortable going there again and getting more piercings and maybe even a tattoo

Just got an amazing tattoo from Clint Burks. Went in with a vague idea of something I wanted to…read morecover up an older tattoo. He designed an amazing tattoo and then spent 8 hours tattooing it. I'm ecstatic and love the new tattoo! I had an appointment but they also take walking for tattoos and piercings. I would 100% recommend them. This is the 2nd coverup Clint has done for me. He's a gifted artist.

The front desk lady was incredibly sweet, attentive, and welcoming, and the shop itself is…read morebeautiful. Unfortunately, our experience with the artist Thad was extremely disappointing and unprofessional. My husband has never gotten a tattoo before, and from the beginning there were issues with communication and professionalism. The tattoo stencil was made extremely large, which was never discussed with us beforehand. There was no conversation about sizing beyond the placement being around 3 inches across, the size of text was never discussed. I felt like the size was simply chosen for us without our input. When the stencil was placed, it also looked off-center to me. I spent a minute looking at it carefully, and instead of being understanding, Thad repeatedly insisted it was straight and told me that "if I have to stare that hard then I'm finding reasons to be mad at it," which felt dismissive and gaslighting. I then politely asked if the stencil could be repositioned, which is a completely reasonable request for something permanent. He responded very rudely and condescendingly with, "I'd rather not." I explained that we were paying a lot of money for this and that it was going to be on my husband permanently, and only then did he reluctantly agree. After repositioning it, it still looked slightly crooked to me. At that point, instead of trying to work with us professionally, he immediately said that if we didn't like it he would just refund the deposit. I then asked my husband if he liked it and was sure because I was trying to make sure he was happy with something permanent on his body. Instead of handling the situation professionally, Thad rudely and forcefully pushed giving our money back and ending the appointment altogether, which made the interaction feel hostile and uncomfortable. I've been tattooed by many artists in multiple states and have never once had an artist refuse to reposition a stencil or act inconvenienced by a client wanting placement adjusted. Even if he personally believed it was straight, the professional thing to do would have been to cooperate respectfully and help make the client comfortable. Again, the shop itself is gorgeous and the front desk woman was wonderful, but our experience with this artist was unnecessarily hostile, dismissive, and uncomfortable.

I had the best experience with "Big Mike". I absolutely love my tattoo. He explained to me what…read morecould happen to my skin since I am older and my skin is thinner. I felt very comfortable after chatting with him and decided to have it done. Everything was so clean and organized. Didn't take much time at all and I LOVE IT! I am so glad that I went to Aftershock and would highly recommend them. Excellent experience. Thanks BIG MIKE!

Very clean and professional. Amazing artists that are easy to work with. My husband and I got our…read morefirst tattoos here and the owner and staff were talented, friendly, and provided the best experience.

Totally professional, great aurora in the place. Everyone is super friendly and top notch. I had…read morea session with Zach and it was beyond my expectations ! The dude is an unbelievable artist. This was my first visit and would recommend anyone that I know to go there.

Thomas has done my 3/4 sleeve and it is amazing! Thomas is super chill, very responsive to…read moresuggestions and ideas and his touch is top notch. I have had nothing but fantastic work done by him and I will continue to do so. 10/10 recommendation! Jerry

Thomas is awesome. I recommend him to everyone I know. He puts up with my shit and does amazing…read morework. I'll never go to anyone else.

Came here for their Friday 13th Flash Tattoos. Great place,…read more everyone was really fun. Lots of space. I will be back for more tattoos.

Some friends and I decided to get tattoos here during the Friday the 13th. We got there early to…read moreget in line knowing that there would be a long line, when we left at 1pm the line was around the block. The brought in food trucks, were giving out cookies and brownies beforehand, and did an amazing job at getting everyone in with a good flow. Staff said they had brought in other artist from different shops to help as well. They probably had around 20, the staff did an amazing job at organizing the line, getting paperwork filled out and having everything ready to go when the artists were ready for the next person. Line work was great and I look forward to working with this shop in the future!!

I am from Michigan and was visiting Kanas City for my girlfriend's birthday. My girlfriend who is…read morefrom Missouri has gotten almost all of her tattoos at Ol' skool tattoo. Mike is a great guy and does really really good and solid work. I had not intended to get a tattoo while we were here visiting. A guy named "chopstix" at Ol' Skool offered said he could squeeze me in while my girlfriend was getting tattooed by Mike. I checked out Chopstix'a portfolio and looked like has done great work so I figured might as well get a tattoo as well! I give Chopstix and picture of a fairly simple design and he said he could free hand it. His sketch on my arm in marker looked good and I was excited to see how it was gonna turn out! As he starts tattooing I was playing on my phone and just let him do his thing. A little bit into the tattoo it felt like he was going outside of the area he had sketched. I didn't think much of it and he kept tattooing. I suddenly felt that he was going pretty deep into my skin and looked over and Chopstix had nodded out while tattooing me....i looked down at my tattoo and was absolutely horrified at what I saw on my arm. I had to stop him and did not let him continue to tattoo me. He offered to keep going and to "not let me leave until I was satisfied". The damage was done and I told him I would not be paying him. If you go to Ol' Skool tattoo and you see Chopstix....run.

I very much enjoyed my artist. He had calm, chill vibes. Mike also listened to me tell him all my…read moremany tattoo ideas, and he 100% gave me what I wanted and so much more. He was literally very comforting as well as funny and made me feel at home and welcomed. I love all the work he has done for me and highly recommend him. I will be coming back for many more.