Dog Ashes Tattoo in Crawley
Key Takeaways
- Three ways up from Crawley: around 198 miles by road via the M23, M25 and M6, a train through London to Crewe in under three hours, or a Gatwick flight to Manchester or Liverpool.
- Your dog’s ashes are prepared where you can see them and never taken out of the room.
- Roughly a teaspoon goes into the tattoo, so the rest stays in the container you brought.
- Raw cremation ashes are uneven, unsterile and full of contaminants, all of which is dealt with before anything touches your skin.
A dog ashes tattoo keeps your dog with you permanently, by setting a small amount of their ashes into the tattoo itself. For people in Crawley who have lost a dog, that is something no photograph or urn on a shelf can match. It is not a reminder of your dog, it is a part of your dog, carried in your skin for life. Because it is permanent and can only be done once, the decision that really counts is who you trust to do it.
Getting to the Studio From Crawley
Crawley sits a good way south of the studio, but it is better connected than most. By road it is around 198 miles to Sandbach in Cheshire, roughly three and a half hours up the M23, M25 and M6. If you would rather not drive that far, the train is genuinely easy: Crawley up to London, then a fast train from Euston to Crewe, the nearest main station, in well under three hours all in. With Gatwick on your doorstep there are even flights to Manchester and Liverpool.
Bubblegum Ink ® is a private, appointment only studio, and people come this distance for one simple reason. A dog ashes tattoo can only be done once, so the question is never who is closest, it is who will get it right. That is what brings people from the South East to a studio that has spent over 20 + years on this one kind of work.
Your Dog’s Ashes Stay in Sight the Whole Time
Here is the reassurance people want most, said plainly: your dog’s ashes never leave your sight. Nothing is taken into a back room and nothing happens out of view. You watch a small amount being prepared and you watch it go into the tattoo. That is the entire point of a dog ashes tattoo, that your dog is present, and it holds from the moment you sit down.
If handling the ashes yourself feels like too much, you do not have to. Bring the container as it is and the careful part is done for you, gently and with respect, while you watch or look away as you need.
Why a General Studio Is Not the Same
The difference between a specialist and an ordinary tattooist is all in what happens to the ashes before they reach your skin. Raw cremation ashes are not clean, not sterile and not a uniform size, and a studio that mixes them in as they are is gambling with how your tattoo heals. A specialist handles all of that first.
At Bubblegum Ink your dog’s ashes are matched to the right particle size, cleaned, sterilised to clinical standards and cleared of heavy metals and other contaminants before they meet the needle. The full reasoning is on the are ashes tattoos safe page, and the ink is explained on the adding ashes into tattoo ink page.
A Name That Reaches Beyond the South East
The studio’s reputation travels a great deal further than Sussex. Its work has been featured by the BBC and by national and international press, and the memorial tattoo for Treo, one of the most decorated military dogs of his generation, became one of the most widely shared pieces of its kind anywhere. That story is on the tattooing ashes into clients page. Paul, the main tattoo artist, is a multiple award winning artist, and most clients still arrive the same way they always have, through someone who was looked after here and said so.
Designing Your Dog Ashes Tattoo
There is no fixed way to do this. It might be a portrait, a paw print, a name, or a small private mark that means something only to you. Whatever shape your dog ashes tattoo takes, it is given the same care as any memorial piece. If you are gathering ideas, the paw print ashes tattoo and memorial tattoo design ideas pages are a good place to start, and the main dog ashes tattoo page shows the range of work.
What Crawley Clients Tend to Ask
You do not need to do anything to the ashes before you set off. Bring the whole container and a small amount is taken at the studio, leaving you the rest. Only a little is needed, and the how much ashes for a tattoo page sets out exactly how much.
If this is your first tattoo, you are in good company, as many people coming for a memorial piece have never been tattooed before. The day is unhurried, and the do ashes tattoos hurt and ashes tattoo aftercare pages explain what to expect. If you would rather just talk about your dog first, that is always welcome, and the coping with grief page is there for that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you make a tattoo with my dog’s ashes if I’m in Crawley?
Yes. Bubblegum Ink has specialised in ashes tattoos for around 20 + years, including dog and pet memorials made with cremation ashes. People come from Crawley and across the South East to have their dog carried with them permanently, with the ashes kept in view and prepared on the day.
How do I get to the studio from Crawley?
The studio is in Sandbach, Cheshire, around 198 miles from Crawley and roughly three and a half hours up the M23, M25 and M6. There is also an easy train route via London to Crewe in under three hours, and flights from Gatwick to Manchester or Liverpool. Most people make a day of it.
Do I have to handle my dog’s ashes myself?
No. If that feels like too much, simply bring the whole container and the careful part is taken care of for you at the studio, gently and respectfully. You can watch or look away, and your dog’s ashes stay in view throughout.
How much of my dog’s ashes do you need?
Very little, a teaspoons worth. Bring the whole container and only a small portion is used, so you keep the rest. There is nothing to prepare or measure out in advance.
I have never had a tattoo before. Is that a problem?
Not at all. Many dog ashes tattoo clients have never been tattooed before. The appointment is relaxed, with plenty of time to talk through the design and what to expect before anything starts.
Is flying from Gatwick a daft idea or a sensible one?
Sensible, if the drive puts you off. Manchester and Liverpool are both short hops from Gatwick and both sit within easy reach of Sandbach. A few clients from the South East do exactly this and find it takes the sting out of the distance.
Do the ashes go in the hold, or with me?
They stay with you either way, since the ashes only ever travel in your own hands. If you are flying, check the airline’s policy on carrying cremated remains before you book, as most ask for the crematorium certificate.
Sorting the design out before I set off
Worth doing at this distance. Send photographs of your dog and a rough idea of what you have in mind, and it can all be worked through by phone and email so the day itself is only the tattoo.
Will it hurt?
No more than any tattoo that size in that spot. The prepared ashes sit inside the ink and change nothing about how the work feels. More on the do ashes tattoos hurt page.
My dog has been gone for years
No obstacle at all. Ashes stored in an ordinary container do not deteriorate in a way that affects the preparation, and a good number of people come for a dog they lost long ago.
Two dogs, one tattoo
Yes. Each dog’s ashes are prepared separately and set into different parts of the design, so both are genuinely there. Two matching pieces work equally well if you would rather keep them apart.
Can you do the same for a cat?
Yes, and for rabbits, horses and most other animals besides. The process runs identically whatever the species. See the cat ashes tattoo page for that side of the work.
Aftercare on the way home
The piece is dressed before you leave and the aftercare written out for you, which matters when the journey back is several hours long. The ashes tattoo aftercare page has the fuller version.
Get in Touch From Crawley
A first enquiry costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Whether you want to ask about the journey, the day itself, or simply whether this is the right thing for you, you are welcome to get in touch.
Call 01270 385001, email info@bubblegumink.com, or use the contact page. Bubblegum Ink ® is a private, appointment only studio in Sandbach, Cheshire, with around 20 + years behind it. For anyone in Crawley who wants their dog ashes tattoo done by the person who worked out how to do it properly, the journey is a small price for getting it right the first time.
About the author: Paul Cutler works out of Bubblegum Ink ®, the private, appointment only studio he founded in Sandbach, Cheshire. He has tattooed for something close to 30 years, with roughly the last 20 given over to cremation ashes memorials, and the preparation process the studio uses is one he developed himself. His tattoos have been shown on the BBC and covered by press in the UK and overseas, and he has picked up industry awards more than once along the way. Read more about Paul.