Here’s to an amazing year and bring on 2018!

Sunset studio would like to thank all our clients, staff and supporters for making 2017 our biggest year yet!

A great year for Sunset Tattoo

The year got off to a great start with the launch of our sister site, Tattoo Station, which has been a tremendous success. Our aim with Tattoo Station is to bring the very best tattoo supplies to New Zealand but at a reasonable price, and we’ve destroyed even our highest expectations.

In February we headed to Tauranga for the New Zealand International Tattoo Expo which was a great success (if a little wet!). over 150 tattoo artists from around the world came to the Queen Elizabeth Youth Centre and everyone had a wonderful weekend.

November saw us once again heading to Australasia’s biggest tattoo festival, the NZ Tattoo & Art Festival 2017, now in it’s 7th year. With over 250 artists from all over the world attending, it was a weekend we’ll never forget!

Guest artists

Sunset also had plenty of guest artists pop in this year, with Capilli Tupou from Ten Tigers joining us, and then later in the year making that move permanent.

In April we were fortunate enough to have our Spanish friend Miguel come visit, otherwise known as M13Tattoo. April was the perfect time to show off his script skills as we also had the second annual Great Auckland Flash Party, with plenty of walk-in’s coming in off the street for a surprise tattoo.

November was a big month for guest artists, with Ryan Usher joined us from Sydney, Makoto Horimatsu from Japan, and the very talented Nicklas Wong from Denmark.

Tattoo supplies

In March we became official distributers of the world famous Eternal Ink. Made from organic pigments, deionized water and hamamelis water, this bright coloured ink has been a well-known brand of the highest quality for nearly 40 years.

Later in the year we added the best tattoo machines in New Zealand, Senders Widows, to our list of high-quality tattoo equipment, along with Nikko Hurtado’s Anchored stencil solution.

Along with our range of Botan tattoo needles, we’ve really changed the game here in New Zealand when it comes to tattoo supplies.

So thanks again to everyone who helped make our 2017 incredible. Roll on 2018 and even more success!

The Sunset family make the papers!

Check out this lovely wee piece in Stuff about Sunset’s founding mother Misery, AKA Tanja Jade Thompson.

Misery

Misery is one of New Zealand’s most beloved and respected pop artists, doing her country proud by exhibiting all over the world in places such as Berlin, Taiwan, Paris, Melbourne and Los Angeles.

Her Chinese Tahitian grandmother fostered Misery’s artistic talent inspiring her intense passion for Pacific and Asian art during their time together and on trips to Tahiti, which is still evident in her work today.

As a teen, Tanja went to Metropolitan College which enhanced her penchant for art.  It was there her unique and distinct characters evolved, heavily influenced by obscure Japanese cartoons, cults and Gods, and all things magical.

Misery’s creative reach is extensive, ranging from highly crafted paintings and wall art to animation, fashion and toys and more recently children’s decor brand Misery Guts. She also sculpts, having completed two commissioned bronzes in Auckland’s Art District of Karangahape Road in 2016.

The Sunset family

The article in Stuff shows around Tom and Misery’s home, introducing the kids too; Charlie, Ramona, and Billie.

“This is kind of the house my husband grew up in,” Misery says in the article. “His mum bought the villa next door, and he moved in there with his mum and two sisters when he was a little kid.

“Tom’s mum got together with Johnny, who owns the house we live in now. Johnny had two sons, and they kind of joined the families together. At one stage, this house was joined to the house next door with a tunnel.

“As everybody grew up and moved out of home, Johnny, who was an architect, built a beautiful home out the back. So we kind of live in a commune.

“When Tom and I got together, we moved in here and had flatmates. That was about five or six years ago. All the flatmates have moved out, and children have moved in.

“Our house is probably the most rundown, lived-in house on the street. It's quite obvious we're artists - there's always stuff everywhere. It's a classic old villa that's been transformed a little bit to make it more of a flat.”

You can click here to read the full article on Stuff.co.nz.

The Sunset Tattoo Artists

From humble beginnings just a few years ago, Sunset has grown into one of Auckland’s most thriving and respected tattoo studios.

Tom McMillan opened Sunset with his wife, well known NZ artist, Misery only 3 short years ago, and now Sunset has taken on more artists on a permanent basis, along with special guests popping in from time to time.

Tom McMillan

Tom Tom opened Sunset Tattoo in 2014 working around the world as well as in some of New Zealand's best tattoo studios. He has been tattooing for over 10 years and focuses on specializing in his own unique take on western traditional and Japanese tattoo styles. Tom switches easily between large-scale full body tattoos to palm size one-shot tattoos, and is always on the look out for new, original design challenges.

Tristan Marler

Tristan is of Te Rarawa descent, from the Hokianga in the far North. He is trained in Whakairo Rakau (traditional wood carving). He has been blending his knowledge of carving and Maori art over to the art of Tattooing. Tristan specializes in Ta Moko, Blackwork, pattern work, geometric and dot-work tattoo styles.

Thomas Clark

Thomas has been a full time Ta Moko artist for the past 12 years. Thomas is a well-respected Māori artist whose formal training and applied practice allows him to cross several artistic disciplines – Tā Moko (Traditional Markings on Skin), Kirituhi (Applied Skin Design), Rauangi (Abstract Painting), Whakairo Uku (Clay Sculpture).

Mash Primrose

Mash specialises in bold western traditional tattooing with his own unique take.  His tattoos are perfect for anyone looking to get a traditional tattoo with a modern stylish twist. 

Capilli Tupou

Capilli Tupou is an artist specialising in old school traditional style tattooing. As a New Zealander of Maori (Te Rarawa) and American Samoan heritage, Capilli brings his own unique Polynesian slant to the style. 

Magali Corpas

Magali Corpas is the newest member to the Sunset tattoo family. She specialises in contemporary blackwork and delicately lined tattoos. See more of Magali's work here: @magalicorpastattooer 

Latest news from Sunset Tattoo

As an ever-expanding business, we’re constantly changing, so here’s what’s going on at Sunset Tattoo Studio this month!

Welcome Capilli!

Sunset Tattoo is really excited to welcome Capilli Tupou permanently to the family. Capilli has been working alongside us all year, and we are honoured to have him! He will be disbanding his Ten tigers to concentrate on work, family and his hectic international travel schedule.

Capilli Tupou is an artist specialising in old school traditional style tattooing. As a New Zealander of Maori (Te Rarawa) and American Samoan heritage, Capilli brings his own unique Polynesian slant to the style. 

Contact us or Capilli to book your session in with him now.

We are also stoked to welcome Milky to the Sunset Tattoo crew! Milky is your go to man for top class traditional tattoos and has tons of classic flash designs ready to go! 

If you are looking for world-class, American-traditional, electric tattoos, look no further. Milky's no-nonsense, bright and bold style has it's roots firmly in American-traditional tattooing history.

Guest artists popping in

We’re also delighted to have two very special guest tattooists joining us at the end of the month, all the way from Sydney.

Ben Hastings and Chris Martin from Hunter & Fox Tattoo will be hanging out at studio November 29th and 30th, so contact us for bookings!

New Zealand Tattoo Festival

The last weekend of November sees Australasia’s biggest tattoo festival kick off in New Plymouth, and of course Sunset will be there!

Now in its seventh year, the festival sees over 250 artists and models attending, making it the biggest event in the New Zealand calendar.

Tattoo appointments can be made by pre-booking with one of our artists today! Simply email info@sunsettattoo.co.nz or call us to find out more.

Welcome to the Sunset Tattoo blog!

Welcome to the first ever post on the Sunset Tattoo blog. This blog will report all the latest news and events concerning our studio, our artists and the New Zealand tattoo scene. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email or call us, come in for a consultation, or visit our FAQs page to find out more.

Sunset Tattoo started in 2014 by the husband and wife team of Tom McMillan and well-known Kiwi artist Misery. Together they have years of experience, all over the world, working in some of the most prestigious tattoo studios both home and abroad.

From simple beginnings, Sunset has now become one of New Zealand’s finest tattoo studios, and all in an incredibly short period of time. We started as somewhere we could create artwork, in many different media, without stress or pressure, and in less than a year we’re now attracting some of the best tattoo artists in Auckland.

We specialise in traditional tattoo, Te Moko and Maori designs, and of course, anything you bring to us yourself. The end result with Sunset is quality. Quality of tattooing, quality of customer satisfaction and quality of health and hygiene. Our studio is a warm, private environment that adheres to the strictest health codes and standards.

We take our art very seriously, and as such, we like to keep it tight. Our small, intimate studio means you get our full attention, no matter what you’re here for. If you just want a consultation about getting your first tattoo, then no problem. We can sit down with you, talk about what you have in mind, expand your idea and explain the process from start to finish.

If you’re here to add to your collection, then you’ll know who we are and what we do.

And we do it so well.