Black & Grey

Black & grey Chicano realism

Name: Anointed Ink
Address: 5920 W 111th St, Chicago Ridge, IL, 60415, US
Telephone: (708) 770-2754
Price range: $$

The style this shop is known for, tattooed in Chicago Ridge for clients from across the southwest suburbs.

Black and grey is not a color tattoo with the color left out. It is built entirely from contrast: how dark the darks go, how smooth the gray wash stays, and how much bare skin is left doing nothing at all. Get that balance wrong and the piece can turn into a gray smudge in five years. Get it right and it stands a far better chance of still reading across a room in twenty.

Chicano tattooing layers its own vocabulary on top of that. Fine line script. Laugh now, cry later masks. Catrinas and rosaries. Clocks, roses, and portraits of family. The lettering in particular is unforgiving, because a letter has no tolerance and a wobble is permanent.

Nestor has been tattooing for 25+ years, and this is the work people drive out to Chicago Ridge for.

Call (708) 770-2754

What this covers

Portraits worked from your own photographs
Fine line and Old English script
Catrinas, masks and Day of the Dead imagery
Religious pieces and memorial portraits
Clocks, roses and traditional Chicano imagery
Half and full sleeves built in stages

Serving Chicago Ridge, Oak Lawn, Worth, Alsip, Palos Heights, Bridgeview, Burbank and Evergreen Park.

Black & grey Chicano realism in the gallery

45 pieces, all tattooed by Nestor Juarez.

Black and grey Aztec sun stone medallion with a hummingbird carved in relief on skin — Aztec sun stone and hummingbird, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm tattoo of a woman with half skull face, roses and colored butterflies — Catrina half skull with roses and butterflies, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm piece with laugh now cry later theater masks and flowing script lettering. — Laugh now cry later masks in black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Norse forearm sleeve in black and grey with a longship, a raven, a hammer and a snarling wolf. — Norse forearm sleeve in black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Upper back tattoo of two skeletons embracing inside a tarot card labeled Lovers, with a red rose and sunflower — Skeleton lovers tarot card back piece, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey tiger with bright blue eyes and blossoms wrapping the thigh — Blue-eyed tiger and blossoms on the thigh, by Nestor Juarez

Thigh tattoo of a woman's face emerging from a lioness head with a cub below, daisies and leaves framing it — Woman and lioness split portrait, by Nestor Juarez

Two hand tattoos side by side, a skull in a feathered Aztec headdress and a jackal headed Anubis with red ankh symbols — Aztec skull and Anubis hand tattoos, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey upper arm tattoo of a parent holding a newborn above a Roman numeral date banner and pocket watch — Newborn, pocket watch and date banner, by Nestor Juarez

Berserk greatsword with the red brand, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey upper arm tattoo of a buck with large antlers, a doe and a fawn in woods. — Buck, doe and fawn in a black and grey forest, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm sleeve with a cherub archer, storm clouds, a sailing ship and forked lightning — Cherub and storm sleeve in black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey realism portrait of a classical statue woman with a leafy crown on a forearm — Classical statue portrait in black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey ornamental mandala on the hand beside a crowned, roaring gorilla on the forearm. — Ornamental hand piece and crowned gorilla, by Nestor Juarez

Before and after cover-up showing stencil over an old tattoo and a finished crowned skull — Crowned skull cover-up, before and after, by Nestor Juarez

Two views of an upper arm tattoo showing an armored knight above a kneeling winged knight beside a grave cross — Armored knight and kneeling warrior, by Nestor Juarez

Forearm sleeve with armored knight, red cloak, orange flames and bold YOU DIED lettering. — Dark Souls forearm sleeve, flames and knight, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey dove with wings spread on a forearm, soft smoke shading behind it and script lettering below — Black and grey dove in flight, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey thigh piece with a bearded Greek statue head, a Pegasus and a classical face — Greek statue and Pegasus thigh piece, by Nestor Juarez

Heart shaped pocket watch surrounded by roses, a butterfly, a robin and a script name banner on a forearm — Heart clock, roses and script name, by Nestor Juarez

Three angles of an arm sleeve with a helmeted warrior, crossed sword, ringed red planet, snarling wolf and a skull — Warrior, red planet and wolf arm sleeve, by Nestor Juarez

Softly shaded hummingbird in flight beside hibiscus and plumeria flowers still in outline only — Hummingbird with flowers in progress, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey Jesus portrait with crown of thorns above a kneeling figure praying in light rays — Jesus with crown of thorns, half sleeve, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey Jesus face framed by palm leaves above a dove with spread wings and lit candles — Jesus, dove and candles half sleeve, by Nestor Juarez

Upper arm tattoo of a dove in flight over clouds with a name banner in red lettering — Memorial dove with red name banner, by Nestor Juarez

Memorial upper arm piece showing children playing soccer with a red rose, monarch butterflies and a cleat. — Memorial soccer scene with rose and monarchs, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm piece with a pocket watch, cherry blossoms, a rose and script name. — Pocket watch and rose with script name, by Nestor Juarez

Fresh black and grey tiger face covering the back of the hand, with green eyes, seen through plastic wrap. — Tiger hand tattoo, fresh from the session, by Nestor Juarez

Forearm memorial with a stairway to heaven gates, sunrays, Roman numerals and a green awareness ribbon. — Memorial stairway with green ribbon and date, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm tattoo of the Virgin Mary praying with a rosary above a crown of thorns — Virgin Mary with rosary and crown of thorns, by Nestor Juarez

Forearm sleeve blending a woman's green eye with a tiger face, sunflowers and a small ladybug — Tiger and eye forearm sleeve, fresh work, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey archangel with spread wings and a raised sword running down a forearm — Archangel with raised sword, by Nestor Juarez

Three panel cover-up showing an old red forearm tattoo, a purple stencil, then a finished winged warrior woman in a crested helmet — Cover-up: old ink to Aztec warrior, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey upper arm tattoo of a bearded saint holding a candle with a dove below — Bearded saint with candle and dove, by Nestor Juarez

Large black and grey butterfly flanked by roses and a coiled snake spanning a stomach — Butterfly, roses and snake stomach piece, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey cherub with feathered wings aiming a rifle, tattooed on an upper arm — Cherub with a rifle, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey cherub tattoo with red accents resting on clouds across a thigh — Cherub on clouds, thigh piece, by Nestor Juarez

Four panel collage showing a color lioness with cubs and lilies, a skeleton lovers card, winged figures and a lion sleeve — Four recent pieces, color and black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey upper arm tattoo of a bearded Greek god with lightning bolts, storm clouds and a sailing ship — Storm god half sleeve, upper arm, by Nestor Juarez

Three angles of a hannya mask, pagoda and woman's face tattoo shot through fresh plastic wrap — Hannya mask and pagoda, three angles, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey sleeve in progress with a hand holding an hourglass and gothic Est. lettering — Hourglass and gothic lettering sleeve, by Nestor Juarez

Chicano smile now cry later clown masks paired with old English and script lettering in black and grey. — Smile Now Cry Later in Chicano black and grey, by Nestor Juarez

Snarling wolf with amber eyes above four pups in a pine forest under a full moon — Wolf and pups half sleeve, by Nestor Juarez

Black and grey forearm tattoo of a woman's face beneath a hand and olive branch leaves — Chicano woman and olive branch, forearm, by Nestor Juarez

Questions

How long does a black and grey sleeve take?

You will be given a session count before anything is booked. A full sleeve is planned as one composition and then built in stages, so you always know what is coming next.

Is black and grey cheaper than color?

Not by the hour. The rate is the same. Color often runs more sittings for the same area because the blends have to be packed properly, so a color version of the same design usually costs more overall.

Do you freehand the lettering?

Rarely. Most lettering goes on from a stencil. Script that has to wrap an arm or ride a collarbone gets drawn on with a marker and checked in the mirror first, because a wobble in lettering is permanent.

Will gray wash fade faster than solid black?

Gray wash is diluted black pigment, so lighter areas read softer as the piece settles. That is why the design leaves real negative space rather than filling every inch.

Visit the shop

We are on 111th Street in Chicago Ridge, minutes from Oak Lawn, Worth, Alsip and Burbank.

Anointed Ink
5920 W 111th St
Chicago Ridge, IL 60415
(708) 770-2754
anointed.ink29@gmail.com

Get directions

Serving
Chicago Ridge, Oak Lawn, Worth, Alsip, Palos Heights, Bridgeview, Burbank, Evergreen Park, Hometown, Palos Hills, Hickory Hills, Chicago's Southwest Side.

Hours

Opening hours
Monday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Tuesday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Wednesday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Thursday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Friday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Saturday	12:00pm to 7:00pm
Sunday	Closed

Plus code M6RM+72 Chicago Ridge, Illinois

Black & grey Chicano realism

What this covers

Black & grey Chicano realism in the gallery

Questions

Other work

Cover-up tattoos

Portrait tattoos

Religious tattoos

Memorial tattoos

Aztec and cultural tattoos

Color realism tattoos

Tattoo sleeves

Visit the shop

Hours