Classic Tattoo

Alongside Haberle was longtime coworker Rebecca Smith, who was completing a St. Anthony tattoo on Texas State University student Carlos Hernandez.

Hernandez was visiting Smith for a third session to complete the tattoo honoring his grandfather, also named Anthony. The image begins at Hernandez's shoulder, and wraps around his upper arm.

Haberle and Smith share a style—what Smith described as "illustrative and painterly"—as well as a similar philosophy on choosing the right tattoo.

"Looking good is primary," Haberle said. "That whole meaning thing really gets in the way."

Two more artists and their clients joined the women and the room filled with the sounds of overlapping conversations and the buzzing of electrically powered needles injecting ink into skin.

Haberle likened tattooing to fashion, with both being subject to celebrity influence and trends.

"People love to get stars. The shape of Texas is very popular. What else is popular, you guys?" Haberle asked the room.

The responses came quickly—koi fish, dragons, flowers, lettering, hearts, crosses.

"I'm doing a variation on the state of Texas right now," artist Dick Burdine said of his work on Derrick Lee. "Things that are classic like that, and that you can do in a million different ways. Skulls, we still do a lot of skulls."

May 15 marks Haberle's seven-year anniversary of owning the shop, which has five tattoo artists and two piercers on staff full-time.

She said the shop's atmosphere is what helps set it apart from others.

"I have the best artists working here, and I think that's because it's a nice place to work," she said. "I think our shop is different because it's kind of like home, and we're sort of like family."

Classic Tattoo, 237 N. LBJ Drive, San Marcosm, 392-0938, www.classictattootx.com