Icon Tattoo

I haven’t even gotten a chance to go in yet and I’m deeply unimpressed with my interactions at Icon. I called the shop in early July, wanting to schedule a simple, two-​inch forearm tat in approx three months’ time with a specific artist. I was told I should just walk in. I explained that I work with my hands and forearms, and need to take a few days off work for healing, so it was necessary to schedule in advance. The person I was talking to clearly wasn’t listening, and I was again told to just walk on in whenever. Um, no– I can’t. Didn’t I just say I can’t?
Confused, I directly contacted the artist, told her I completely understood if she was too busy, but could she fit me in for an hour-​long session in three months? I was told yes, she’d love to. From that moment on, nearly every email I sent her took TEN DAYS to get back a response. It has been two months of back-​and-​forth emails, and I still don’t have an appointment. If she just didn’t have time to see me, I would have appreciated that information at the beginning of the exchange so I didn’t waste all this time waiting for her responses. I’ve been nothing but polite and courteous, and I love her art. I’ve called the shop again, just in case, but hours later I’m still waiting on a call back. I think I’ll be moving on, with sadness, to a different studio.

I got my first tattoo there today and it was the perfect experience. I had stopped in a couple of days prior and the guy there (didn’t catch his name) was very helpful and friendly and explained the whole process and was very patient with my questions. Then today, he was also there and very friendly and Gin did my tattoo and was really great — I had a fabulous experience for my first one. I don’t know how anyone could write that they staff are unfriendly and or unhelpful because that was completely not what happened. Thank you guys for a wonderful experience!

Great tattoo studio– everyone who works there is super nice and the studio is really clean and pretty. Both my dad and I had Gin as our artist and she was amazing, super sweet and did two beautiful pieces. I’ll definitely be back.

Abby is PHENOMENAL! I had a sad tattoo (I was drunk, my ex had a gun… It was bad) and really wanted a cover-​up… But literally had no idea as to WHAT I wanted. Abby and I conspired with the shop girl and came up with a Thestral, from Harry Potter. I am en route to the final session for what has become a BEAUTIFUL piece. I am constantly receiving compliments and asked who my tattoo artist is, and I find myself purchasing clothing that will better showcase the art. She has done such a wonderful job and I absolutely recommend her and her work, as well as the Icon Portland shop. Its clean, they’re all friendly and knowledgeable, and the artwork you leave with is well worth their charge. Don’t skimp on your tattoo budget, and make sure to check out Abby’s portfolio! You just might find your forever artist!

Icon Tattoo is easily my favorite tattoo shop in Portland. This dreamy spot is owned and operated by some amazingly talented women. So nice to encounter a shop that’s not overly macho or «hard», but instead staffed by friendly and welcoming artists. The space itself is beautiful too, with lofty ceilings, lots of natural light, and some monstrous houseplants inhabiting the windowsills.
My artist of choice is Alena Chun. She’s totally rad, down to earth, and super talented. She always does an amazing job of interpreting my tattoo ideas. She does great botanical and animal work, and awesome American traditional style work too! I highly recommend Icon Tattoo and Alena in particular!

My tattoo artist is Gin Hicks. She is an amazing lady and very talented. Her sweet personality and humor are fun to be around for the duration of your tattoo. She is honest and very knowledgeable about the world of the tattoo industry. Her work speaks for itself. She is diverse in what she can do, while still maintaining a signature style. All of my tattoos from her have healed very well. I have a half sleeve, the top of my hand, and a big piece on my chest all done by Gin.
Icon Tattoo is a beautiful space to spend an afternoon. It’s light and open and full of green plants and friendly staff. All of the sketches of future tattoos on the walls from the other artists is amazing as well. The place feels clean and professional and comfortable.
I’m a fan of this place for good and Gin will be covering many more places on my body with her gorgeous tattoo work.

I spent 5 weeks attempting to make an appointment at Icon; I live in out of state and had planned an upcoming trip to visit Portland for just a few days. I called Icon every other day and left a number of voicemails that went unreturned. I did eventually receive a response, and that lead to a back and forth between the receptionist and I. She was sweet, and genuinely made an effort to help me. However, even after all of my information and tattoo details were passed on to the studio, no one followed up with me. If anyone had responded, even if to flat out say that there would not be availability for an appointment, I would have researched other studios and attempted to get an appointment there sooner.
This is no complaint against the studio itself or the work they do– but the neglect to attend to a hopeful future-​client who actively pursued an appointment more than a month in advance lead to frustration and discouragement. I felt like a very low priority.

I just got my first tattoo by Gin Hicks she was totally awesome both helping me stay calm and giving me a kick ass tattoo! I would recommend this for anyone looking for a easy going, supportive, and professional place to get a tattoo! Definitely going back for my next!

Had my first tattoo done at Icon by Melanie about 5 years ago. Have gotten many others since then but my tattoo done by Melanie is by far my favorite.
Her ability to create such delicate tattoos is amazing. Also, the ink colors are so good. Especially the black, that I’ve found to often fade blue-​ish in other tattoos which always annoys me. The black that she tattooed me with fades more grayish which I think is awesome.
My only complaint is that she seemed very condescending towards me. I was younger, and it was my first tattoo, but I don’t think those facts excuse that kind of behavior. Any question I asked, I was made to feel as though I was wasting her time. Melanie was pretty unprofessional with making appointment times as well.
I love the tattoo and have often wanted to go back, but the way I was treated makes me a little scared to return.

I absolutely love Icon tattoo. I had a tattoo done by Heidi and it’s by far my favorite tattoo of mine and I can’t wait to add on and complete my sleeve with her.

Loved this place. We called one Sunday Afternoon to see if they had any availability because I was looking to touch up and add on to my current tattoo, an open rose bud with some very faded yellow coloring. Their assistant said the artist wanted to look at my current tattoo first before making any decisions.
Ellie Adams checked it out. I told her my ideas and she said she could help. She came up with an awesome drawing. We did the tattooing in two sessions. The first session added a gray stem, leaves and the outline of another smaller rose bud. The second session added the fantastic blue coloring. I was super happy with Ellie’s artwork. The attention to detail on even the tiny leaves and the shading in the coloring was phenomenal.
The tattoo is on my rib cage which hurt very badly, but Ellie was patient which me and checked in regularly to make sure I was okay. Love the customer service and finished artwork.
Will definitely be back to Icon Tattoo and Ellie Adams for any future tattoo work! Thank you!

I’ve been here 3x now and each time was a good experience. Except for the pain that is. The shop is clean, artists are friendly, and they all do great work.

I recently got a tattoo at icon (first at icon) second my Gin Hicks, I absolutely looooooove my new piece. I followed Gin from her last shop for this very reason, she is simply the best. I’m a wimp when it comes to tattoos but she is good at her job at the art pieces she does. I guarantee she will not let you and your ideas down. IF you get the chance get tattooed by this amazing woman!!! You won’t regret it.
My last tattoo was lettering and she made something that could have been so simple just amazing. I couldn’t be happier with.
Most recent was a sparrow holding a key that is tied to a ribbon and blows my mind every day looking at it and how beautiful it is.
Thank you Gin Hicks. Can’t wait to see you next!

This place is great. It is a beautiful shop with wonderful artists. I am so so happy with my tattoo done by the owner, Melanie.

I have had only the best experiences here. I have been tattooed by both Melanie and Lisa and they are incredible.
The artists that work at this shop are tops.
The communication and adaptivity in willingness to find designs that are closest to my vision have been fluid and relaxed. They are understanding and patient.
They have genuine skills in tattooing.
I highly recommend Icon and all my friends that I have referred to them have been pleased as well.

Icon Tattoo seems to be a home for numerous artists of a very impressive caliber. Everyone I’ve interacted with has been extremely friendly, knowledgable, and welcoming. This place has humble, talented artists who clearly love their job, their clients, and each other.
I was recently lucky enough to meet, and work with Clio Sady. I cannot begin to express my gratitude and elation for the beautiful piece of art she has adorned me with.
From email correspondence, to actually being tattooed, Clio upheld a professional yet extremely personable vibe. She was extremely friendly, precise, and accommodating — not to mention amazingly TALENTED!
I approached her with a loose idea: a theme, colors, and a few key elements. She listened, offered ideas, and genuinely seemed excited to execute my idea, and tattoo me. She was booked about 2 months out, but when my appointment to approve her drawing finally arrived, I was BLOWN AWAY. She is definitely worth however long you have to wait!
Clio created something better than I could have ever imagined. She added elements to my tattoo that were so intimately personal, without having any knowledge of their meaning. It was AWESOME.
All of my thought and research definitely led me to the right person!
As I write this, she has not yet completed my tattoo, I have only had a 3 hour session, on what will eventually be a half sleeve on my upper arm. I may be somewhat new to the world of custom tattooing, but I never thought I could have something this impressive.
I cannot speak highly enough of Clio!

About 8 years ago I had my first tattoo done by Melanie when she was working out of a shop on the SE waterfront– I moved away, and when I came back to Portland for a vacation last month I wanted to stop by the shop now that Melanie is the owner and see what the new palce was like.
However, my experience with the customer service left much to be desired. My boyfriend and I went to the shop to ask about having a piece done on each of us during the trip (that was the whole point– something spontaneous). We were greeted by a rude and condescending female employee who treated us with skepticism and impatience the entire time.
Neither my boyfriend nor I are newbies to being tattooed– we knew quite well and were prepared for the shop to tell us that they just didn’t have time to fit us in. I would have happily taken a «No. But thanks for stopping in and thinking of our shop first!» over the snarky treatment we received– sounds similar to what Joanna Y. experienced. There is no reason to treat your potential customers like incompetent annoyances. I left the shop feeling embarrassed for telling my boyfriend how excited I was to take him there.
The quality of your work may be excellent– but treating customers with contempt and unnecessary bad attitude won’t leave a nice taste in anyone’s mouth.
We ended up at New Rose tattoo and had an awesome experience!

I was looking for an artist keen on color and classic designs, and that’s how I stumbled upon Icon Tattoo. After scouring websites and Unilocal alike I decide Icon was the place for me. I was even pleased to see they had a merc perk out, which got me $ 25 off my ink. I looked through each artist’s portfolio until I narrowed down my search. I sent an email to the artist, describing what I was looking for. Less than 24 hours later I had a cheerful reply. A few days later we had exchanged images and I had laid out what I was looking for. Every detail she regarded with respect and the price we agreed upon fit my budget perfectly. I set an appointment for a week later, and waited in anticipation as the days slowly passed.
When I walked into the shop I found myself in a big open space, light and cheerful, not at all what you would expect from a tattoo shop. The artist I had selected was Kirsten, and I have to say she made the experience a thousand times better by being funny and friendly and fully understanding what I wanted instead of questioning it.
From a small print out of a vintage card stock and a few small instructions, she came up with the most breathtakingly perfect design of two roses and some vines for my wrist and some script to go beneath an existing tattoo on my back. After agreeing upon placement she got right to work. I was beyond impressed with how quickly she finished everything. By the time I was finally ready to ask for a 5 minute break she had completed both tattoos. I honestly have never felt more confidence in an artist as I do in Kirsten. It was a wonderful experience and I look forward to having her do more work for me in the future.

Based on all of the glowing 5-​star reviews, it annoys me even more that I had such a horrible experience at this shop.
A year ago I received a «Merc Perks» gift certificate for $ 80 at this shop (purchase price was $ 40). Life happened and I didn’t get a chance to schedule an appointment. Tattoo’s are permanent so I’m not just going to go in and pick something out of a book or let a «tattoo artist» do whatever they want. My body; I choose what goes on it.
That said, I walked into the shop one day and was ignored by several women sitting around talking (not tattooing). When someone did approach me, I merely asked if they would extend the expiration date on my gift certificate a few months. She simply said «No.» and then an awkward fake cheery «Thanks for stopping in!» And that was it.
I would have probably spent $ 500 in addition to the gift certificate amount on my tattoo. She didn’t even entertain the idea of working something out. The gift certificate was to expire in the next few days. Didn’t ask me when it expired so that I might be scheduled in the next few days.
This is an obvious lack of customer service. There is a pretty basic business concept: It is harder and far more costly to get back customers you have lost than it is to keep them happy in the first place and returning.
Now I’m never going back to this place and I am telling everyone that is looking for a place to get tattoed to NOT go here.
They didn’t have to honor the gift certificate, but at least make some attempt to work something out. Just pretend to go ask a manager if its okay and I’d feel like my business may have been worth their time. Or at least have some semblance of empathy when you deny me. No «I’m sorry, we can’t.» Just a flat out no, get out of here, you are not worth my time.
Had an attempt to work with me been made, I may have had a wonderful experience like all of these other reviewers and would likely be a repeat customer. Don’t want my money? FIne. Obviously whatever woman I spoke to has absolutely no knowledge of some pretty basic business techniques.

I just got my first tattoo yesterday at Icon. My girlfriend had gone there and she told me that I would love the vibe that the shop had. I was skeptical at first, but when I walked in (on my birthday, no less) I knew that this was the place I wanted to get my tattoo. I asked Melanie (the owner and head tattooist) who she thought would be a good fit for the kind of tattoo I wanted since the books overwhelmed me, as I everyone there had beautiful artwork. Melanie introduced me to Niki Woltja and after talking to Niki and discussing what I wanted I knew that Melanie was a fantastic matchmaker! I went in with an abstract paper crane idea having this image in my head, and after a few days of her working on the cranes I went in and was blown away. What she showed me was a million times better than anything I could have imagined or pictured in my mind. Getting the tattoo itself wasn’t a scary process. The atmosphere is very relaxed and Niki made sure to keep me as comfy as possible, letting me stretch when my arm got cramped (it was a little over 2 hours) and a bit numb from the vibrations of the tattoo gun.
The tattoo I got will forever be a personal reminder… and I have Niki to thank for bringing that reminder to life in a permanent way.
For all the other tattoos I have in mind Icon is the place I will go. I highly recommend it. And if it doesn’t suit your fancy, the little boutique in the front will at least provide you with some lovely eye candy, so you really have nothing to lose by checking out the shop.