Black & Grey Realism · Liverpool
Tattoos built to
hold their detail
for life.
I am Sean Lysaght. Since 2016 I have run my own studio in Liverpool, tattooing custom black and grey realism: portraits, statuary, landscapes, sleeves, and full backs. One artist, one piece at a time.
Look closely.
That is the whole point.
Every piece here is mine, healed on a real client. Black and grey only, because taking colour out forces the contrast to do the work.
Stencil
to skin.
Nothing goes in freehand and nothing is guessed. Scroll and watch a back piece come off the stencil and into finished black and grey.
Five steps, no guesswork.
- 01
You send me the idea
Reference images, the spot on your body, rough size, and what you want it to feel like. A photo of the area helps more than anything.
- 02
I tell you honestly if it works
Some ideas need to be bigger, moved, or simplified to still read in ten years. I would rather say that up front than tattoo something that ages badly.
- 03
Deposit holds the date
A deposit locks your slot and comes off your final session. I only take on what I can give proper hours to.
- 04
I draw it for you
Custom artwork built for your body, not adapted from someone else's tattoo. You see it before any needle comes out.
- 05
We tattoo it
Long sessions, proper breaks, and a stencil that gets moved until the flow is right. Big pieces are mapped across bookings from the start.
A cheap tattoo is
only cheap once.
Cover ups and laser cost more than getting it right the first time. This is the difference between a walk in and a piece built for you.
| A typical walk in | Booking with me | |
|---|---|---|
| Design | Picked off a wall or copied from a screenshot | Drawn from scratch for your body and your reference |
| Placement | Wherever it fits | Mapped to how the muscle and limb actually move |
| Time | Squeezed into a short slot | Booked in full days so the shading is built in one pass |
| Contrast | Looks sharp for a year, then goes flat | Packed to hold its depth as it settles and ages |
| Who tattoos you | Whoever is free | Me, from the first line to the last |
| Afterwards | A leaflet, if that | Aftercare I actually check in on, and touch ups when they are needed |
Work out the size of the job.
Realism is priced in hours, not in inches. Set the four things that drive the time and you will see roughly where your piece lands before you ever message me.
Half of how it
heals is on you.
A tattoo is a wound for the first two weeks and settling for the next two months. I give every client a day by day plan, and I would rather you message me a photo than guess.
- A day by day healing timeline you can actually follow
- What is normal, and what means message me
- Touch ups on my work when they are needed
The questions I get most.
Send me your enquiry through the booking form on this site or straight to my WhatsApp. I want your reference images, the spot on your body, a rough size, and when you are hoping to get it done. I reply to every enquiry myself.
Yes. A deposit holds your date and comes off your final session. It covers the drawing time that goes in before you ever sit down, which is why it is not refundable if you cancel late or do not turn up.
Black and grey realism is what I specialise in and it is what I am best at. Taking colour out forces the contrast to carry the piece, which is why this style holds up so well as it ages.
No. I will happily use it as reference for the mood, the subject, or the composition, but the artwork I put on you gets drawn from scratch for your body. Someone else already has that tattoo.
I work in long sessions, usually up to around six hours with proper breaks, because black and grey shading is best built in one continuous pass. Shorter sittings can be arranged if you know you cannot sit that long.
It is uncomfortable, and some spots much more than others. Ribs, stomach, knees, elbows, hands, and feet are the hard ones. Eat properly beforehand, stay off the drink the night before, and bring something to watch. Nobody sits perfectly still and that is fine.
Bring me the idea
you keep coming back to.
Tell me what you want, where it goes, and roughly when. I will come back to you personally with whether it works, how long it takes, and what it costs.