Dog Ashes Tattoo in Portsmouth
Key Takeaways
- Portsmouth to Sandbach is around 212 miles and close to four hours by road, and the page makes no attempt to pretend otherwise.
- By rail it is usually into London and across for the fast service to Crewe, which is only a few miles from the studio, and takes about the same four hours.
- Your dog’s ashes stay in front of you the whole time, with nothing carried into a back room or done out of view.
- If handling the ashes yourself feels like too much, bring the container as it is and that part is done for you.
- Cremation ashes are coarse, unsterile and uneven, so they are sized, cleaned, sterilised and decontaminated before they meet your skin.
A dog ashes tattoo sets a small amount of your dog’s cremation ashes into the tattoo itself, so that what you carry is a part of your dog rather than a picture of them. Bubblegum Ink ®, in Sandbach, Cheshire, has done exactly this for people across Portsmouth and the whole of the UK for 20 plus years.
For anyone in Portsmouth who has lost a dog, that permanence is the appeal. A photo on the shelf or a collar in a drawer keeps the memory; a dog ashes tattoo keeps your dog with you, every day, for the rest of your life.
Being Straight About the Journey From Portsmouth
Portsmouth sits right down on the Hampshire coast, so there is no pretending the studio is close. By road it is around 212 miles to Sandbach, near enough four hours up through the middle of the country. By train it usually means heading into London and across to catch the fast service up to Crewe, around four hours all in, with Crewe only a few miles from the studio. It is a proper journey from the south coast, and we would rather be honest about that than dress it up.
People from the Portsmouth area make the trip all the same, for one simple reason. A dog ashes tattoo cannot be redone, so the question is never who is nearest, only who will get it right. That is what brings people the length of the country to a studio built around this single kind of work for 20 + years. Most set the whole day aside for it.
Your Dog’s Ashes Never Leave Your Sight
The reassurance people most want is also the easiest to give. Your dog’s ashes stay in front of you the whole time. Nothing is taken into a back room and nothing is done out of view. You watch a small amount being made ready and you watch it go into the tattoo. The whole point of a dog ashes tattoo is presence, and that begins 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 delicate 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
What separates a specialist from an ordinary tattooist is everything that happens to the ashes before they reach your skin. Cremation ashes are not clean, not sterile and not an even size, and a studio that mixes them in untouched is gambling with how your tattoo heals. A specialist removes that gamble first.
At Bubblegum Ink your dog’s ashes are matched to the right particle size, cleaned, sterilised to clinical standards and cleared of contaminants before they meet your skin. The reasoning is on the are ashes tattoos safe page, and the way the ink is made is explained on the adding ashes into tattoo ink page.
A Name That Carries the Length of the Country
You will be travelling a long way, but the studio’s name has travelled further still. 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.
Designing Your Dog Ashes Tattoo
No two are really alike. It might be a paw print, a name worked into something larger, or a small private mark only you will recognise. Whatever you have in mind for your dog ashes tattoo, it is treated with the same care as any memorial piece. If you are still settling on an idea, 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 full range.
Frequently Asked Questions
Portsmouth is a long way. Is it really worth the trip?
People from across the south coast decide it is, because a dog ashes tattoo can only be done once. They would rather travel to a specialist than take a chance with a general tattooist closer to home. The studio is around 212 miles away, roughly four hours by road, and most people make a day of it.
Should I drive or take the train?
Either works. By road it is around 212 miles and about four hours. By train it usually means going via London before the fast service to Crewe, also around four hours, which leaves you free to sit back for the journey. The studio is only a few miles from Crewe.
How are my dog’s ashes prepared?
They are matched to the right particle size, cleaned, sterilised to clinical standards and cleared of contaminants, then prepared into the ink used on the day. You watch it happen, since the ashes stay in view from start to finish.
How much of my dog’s ashes is needed?
Only a small amount. Bring the whole container and a little is taken at the studio, leaving you the rest. There is nothing to measure or separate beforehand, and if handling them is too hard, that is done for you. A Teaspoons worth is what we use.
Will it heal and look like any other tattoo?
Yes. Once the ashes are properly prepared and mixed into the ink, the finished tattoo looks and heals just like any other. What makes it different is what it holds, not how it looks.
Should I stay over rather than drive back the same night?
A fair few people from the south coast do, particularly for a larger piece. Four hours at the wheel after a difficult day is a lot to take on, and Sandbach has places to stay within a few minutes of the studio. Appointment times can be arranged around a long journey either way.
Can the design be worked out before I set off?
Yes, and from Hampshire nearly everyone would rather it was. Photographs of your dog can be emailed over and the design talked through by phone well beforehand, so the journey is made only once and the day is the tattoo alone.
Is my dog’s breed a problem for a portrait?
No. Coat texture, colouring and markings all translate into a tattoo, and the trickier ones simply need more thought at the design stage. A few clear photographs in decent light are worth more than any description.
Two dogs, one tattoo
Possible, and asked for often. Each dog’s ashes are prepared on their own and set into a different part of the piece, so neither is folded into the other. Two matching tattoos work just as well if you would rather keep them apart.
My dog died a long time ago
That changes nothing. Ashes kept in an ordinary container do not deteriorate in a way that affects the preparation, and a good number of people travel for a dog they lost many years ago.
Would it hurt more than an ordinary tattoo?
No. Once prepared, the ashes sit in the ink like any pigment, so the feel of it depends on placement and size rather than on what the ink holds. There is more on the do ashes tattoos hurt page.
Getting it home in one piece
It is dressed before you leave and the aftercare written down for you, which counts for a lot when the day ends with four hours of travelling. The ashes tattoo aftercare page covers the following weeks.
Get in Touch From Portsmouth
A first enquiry asks nothing of you and commits you to nothing. Whether you want to talk through the journey, the day itself, or simply whether this feels like the right thing, you are welcome to reach out.
Call 01270 385001, email info@bubblegumink.com, or use the contact page or the contact form at the foot of this page. Bubblegum Ink ® is a private, appointment only studio in Sandbach, Cheshire, with around 30 years behind it. For anyone in Portsmouth who wants their dog ashes tattoo done by the person who worked out how to do it properly, the distance is a small price for getting it right the first time.
Paul Cutler founded Bubblegum Ink ® in Sandbach, Cheshire. He has tattooed for around 30 years and spent more than 20 of them on cremation ashes work. Read more about Paul.