Venus Modern Body Arts

I had no doubt about Ronda's talent and experience looking at her portfolio. \r \r i called in, emailed a photo of what i want, then came to arrange it (saved me a lot of time).\r \r she made sure we were OK before we start, taking her time as if I'm the only customer there.\r never charging me with any additional setting up/brake time. \r \r i really love the work that she did, and it's not my first tattoo (have had over 16 hours of work before).\r the actual work is fast and precise. \r \r will come back for next tattoo. Pros: personal service, craftwomanship. Cons: hard to find, looks like a hotel lobby from the outside. more

Im one of the pierced people, I'm covered and I love it. Venus has done about 40 percent of my work and that would be higher if I was closer to them. Over the years Id say I have gotten pierced by them about 15 times, many by Maria, some by Marilyn, and most recently Corinne has been my go to gal. I love that they have female piercers, and not just because they are ridiculously cute, which they are, I just feel that the female piercer has a more gentle hand. Corinne has done my last few piercings, she is an expert in her field, trained by Maria Tash herself and Fakir Musaffar, she is gentile, funny and reassuring. Marilyn was amazing and I think shes at high priestess in oregon now, if you get a chance go see her. If your looking for Maria go by the shop on a Sunday. I have also been tattooed by Ronda at Venus, as one can imagine Im also heavily tattooed but one of my favorite pieces is by Ronda, she is an absolute doll and without question a crazy artist and every one of her eccentricities is worth it. I hope to continue my life of body mods with the amazing ladies of Venus. Pros: great group of ladies and the guy is pretty awesome as well more

Being a regular customer of Ronda's I've experienced alot of time with her. Ronda is a perfectionist and tries real hard to give the customers what they want aswell as originality and sick art work. Ive gotten all my tattoo's done by her and have brought family and friends to her and they were all completely satisfied and look forward to working with her again in the future. Yeah, Ronda takes her time with her tattoo's and to be honest, that's what i enjoy most about her. I would rather someone perfect the art before tattooing it onto my body rather then someone just rush ink onto my arm just to try to make time for their next customer. Her prices are very fair compaired to other good artist I know of. There aren't as many good tattoo artist in the city as you would think and its sad because alot of people are getting real bad tattoo's and dont even know it. Not with Ronda though, you will be completely satisfied with the end result. \r \r Peace and Love Pros: Location, Great Environment, Very Friendly Cons: The Beeping From The Door (LOL) more

2 weeks ago I began the design of my tattoo with Ronda. She was fantastic, the tattoo and positioning of it was quite complicated. Ronda was patient and attentive in making certain that the design and placement of the tattoo is perfect. She actually worked fof 2 1/2 hours just on the design and symetry so that She could execute my new tattoo perfectly. At that point She worked for hours putting the tattoo on me. The detail is amazing! The quailty of work is equally great! I'm really excited to have Ronda finish this tattoo on Saturday> As a footnote the tattoo I'm referring to is quite large and like I said the detail is fantastic. I totally recommend if you are looking for unique detail, design and execution of an amazing tattoo, Look up Ronda! Pros: location, quality and service Cons: wish they were open later on sunday more

I guess my not-so-shining review of Rhonda gave enough details that Rhonda knew who I was. Well, I thought it was over, and lo and behold, I started getting calls and txts from Rhonda. FYI, you have to leave personal info (phone number, address, etc.) when you pay the deposit and sign the contract. She started calling me and txting me at all hours of the night. She'd leave messages like ""well, who the hell do you think you are"" and ""I know where you live so you'd better watch your back"". It wasn't until I threatened to call the police that she stopped. Ironic that she gets in touch with you when she needs to so I guess she does have a phone after all. I've since had to change my number and luckily I was moving at the time any way. Users beware, and please leave me alone! more

I am surprised that the shop is actually defending Rhonda instead of just getting rid of her. She is just renting the space there, but with the way she treats her clients, not only is she ruining her own reputation, the shop is also losing business. Word spreads fast and it won't be long before people stop going to Venus, even for piercings, because Rhonda is associated with the Venus name. Make a long story short, my experience is pretty much the same as the others, Rhonda was hours late for my appointment. Even the guy who was at the front of the shop started cursing her cuz we were both sick and tired of waiting for her. Even other people at the shop who were browsing the jewelry were asking why I was sitting there, I'm sure he's fed up with having to explain to every tattoo client why she's late. When Rhonda finally rolled in, I spent another hour waiting for her to do the stencil for a very simple design, but hey, at least I moved my wait to the downstairs couch, yippee. When the tattoo was finally done, it was fine but definitely not worth the 8 hours I spent at the shop. WAKE UP Venus, Rhonda is not ""an eccentric artist, with habits to match"" and these are NOT ""small issues"" when it seems to happen with everyone. Rhonda is a mediocre tattooist (I won't even call her an artist) who's a flake and doesn't give a dime about her clients. The only reason we had to stay for the tattoo is because she already locked our sorry selves in with the cash deposit. Venus, if you want your shop to be associated with that kind of reputation, best of luck. I'd thought you guys would have a better business sense... Pros: I'm now a much more punctual person because waiting for someone really stinks Cons: Just the tattoo lady more

I'm positively sure that ""FaerieBoi"" who wrote ""Ronda's Tattoos"" is either Ronda herself or an acquaintance of hers. My experience with Ronda is exactly the same as the one Plakas and Latenighter had and I cannot fathom the idea that Ronda can be the person FaerieBoi described.\r In fact, I created an account here because I was quite upset with my tattoo experience with Ronda and would not like other people undergo what I went through.\r \r By the way, setting up the equipment in front of the client is a **standardized** procedure, nothing special.\r \r There are millions of good tattoo artists in New York, I recommend that you research for one with a solid list of positive recommendations. Hey, your tattoo is for life. more

Went to Venus Modern recently and purchased a beautiful piece called a clicker. Its like a tiny engagement ring for your belly button. It was pricey, but worth it for the diamond and gold quality. They had a large selection of less expensive pieces as well but I had to have this one. I have been there before and they seem to always have a female piercer on staff, Corinne is who helped me and she was a pleasure. They also do custom pieces, Id like to go back soon and get a matching piece for my ear. Pros: Very patient and lovely desigs more

I used to go to Ian's for all my piercing needs but they closed and I heard Rob was now at Venus. Turns out he's only at the 4th street store on Saturdays, I went in on a Wednesday but was NOT disappointed. Karen was ridiculously adorable and very nice, AND great piercer too. She helped fit some larger gauge plugs back in for me and re-pierced my septum. She was extremely clean and gentile and I will gladly go back to Venus for any piercings. Id like to see some more male oriented jewelery in the store - but I think they are happy to order stuff for dudes to , the ladies have a BIG selection to choose from.Glad to see Rob ended up at such a great place! Pros: cute and talented staff Cons: wish they had more options for guys, but no real complaints. more

I was reading a lot about dermal anchors lately on bmezine and then saw that Venus had a booth set up with them on display at a Halloween party I attended a while ago. I spoke with Maria Tash, Meg, and Corinne in great detail about the procedure and different options for top pieces , but didn't get the guts up till last week to actually go through with it. I called and spoke with Corinne at the Venus on 4th street and arranged to come in later that day. She is a little intimidating looking as noted below, but in a sweet punky upbeat way and she was very patient with all my questions and I felt quite comfortable in her hands. I've been pierced numerous times, this procedure itself is like nothing I had ever felt before but not more painful , just a bit of pressure and warmth really. She cleaned and marked the area on my chest that we both agreed on, she then massaged the skin for a while, then used a biopsy tool to make the hole and then the foot of the anchor to lift the skin , then popped it in! I actually heard the pop , it was so darn cool ! The piece is gorge and healing wonderfully, Corinne is so sweet and professional Its very hard to resist the desire to become completely bedazzled by Venus! Pros: educated and caring staff, sterile and lovely environment, and checkups encouraged Cons: non at all more

I went to Venus This past Saturday to get a frenum and a guiche piercing. We walked through the door and were very pleasantly greeted by HQ. We had been corresponding a bit by e-mail in the few weeks prior and HQ treated us like family. All of our questions were answered thoroughly despite the fact that we walked in quite near closing time. We were never rushed. When we were comfortable with the procedure and had selected jewelry we were shown to a very private room, trousers were dropped and the procedure began. We were made to feel very comfortable and the process was easy. HQ was meticulous in her measurements and preparations prior to the actual piercings. It was a really nice experience and if I ever go for more piercings, I will go back to Venus. Pros: Very friendly and unrushed service...HQ is the bomb more

One of the Mothers at my daughters school recommended that I take my 8 yr old to Corrin at Venus for her first ear piercings. I had been there years ago but never knew they would be so great with kids. Corrin greeted us with a big smile, she looked pretty intimidating but was surprisingly sweet and my daughter warmed up to her as soon as she started talking to us . The store had some very pretty studs to select from and My daughter felt at ease with Corrin immediately, She was very friendly and caring, explained everything to my daughter in a way that made sense to her and calmed her completely. The piercing itself was done beautifully and quite gently, my daughter wasn't scared remotely. Unfortunately I had failed to mention that my daughter has a slight history of fainting , but Corrin noticed her color change and actually caught her before she fell back, she elevated her feet and gave her some water and some sugar right away and stayed with us till she felt normal again. Even with the fainting scare it was a lovely experience and my daughter was smiling and still asks if we can visit Corrin when we are in the east village. I will be back there soon for a belly button ring, I definitely suggest Venus , especially for children. Pros: freindly environment, acurate and clean services, excellent for children Cons: parking more

I am surprised to hear that any one would have such a spoiled \r Experience with Rhonda. Rhonda by nature is an Artist and then some. \r I recently came in to have some work done. I have become increasingly self conscious concerning some scars on my body that I wanted to have covered. \r If it were not for Rhonda's professionalism and great artistic eye these scars would still be visible today. \r I understand the way an artist works can be unorthodox at times, There fore I do not try and interfere with there creative process. My concern is the end result \r What has impacted my experience with Rhonda is her ability to work with me as well as the scars them selves. Since I am designer and have a very scrutinizing eye for detail myself Rhonda took time from her schedule to help create a wonderful piece of art work for my arm. \r Now I am more confident raising my selves because of all the time Rhonda took to make this tattoo an original piece of work. And for that I am grateful. \r As for money and time, I would pay any amount she wanted. She is worth every penny. There have been times when we would have spent more time together than any other tattoo artist would even consider and she did not once try to nickel and dime me. There fore I can say she is NOT ALL ABOUT THE MONEY. \r Although Rhonda may appear to not go by the regular standards that some others were to expect does not make her any less of an artist. All of her equipment is sterilized, professional and she sets up all of her equipment in front of you before your tattoo session begins so you can see exactly were your needles are coming from. This to me made me feel really safe and secure. \r Pros: Patiences, Experienced, Artistic Ability is astounding more

I agree with Latenighter. I went to have a tattoo with Ronda and she arrived really late for the appointment and she didn't have the design ready. After an hour of waiting for her to work on my design, I asked her how long did she think it would take her, she was really nasty with me. But I had already paid my deposit and I did not want to lose it. She finally did the tattoo, which was pretty good, but she worked really slow. She promised to do a retouch if it was necessary. It turns out that there was one small spot that needed a retouch and she refused to do it unless I did another tattoo with her! I was really upset about that. When I got another tattoo with a different artist, he did the retouch for free.\r \r Don't go to Ronda. She is not a true artist. She is just in for the money and does not care about her work, since they are not art. more

I've had four piercings done at this place over the past two years -labret, septum, tragus, smiley. I trusted one of the girls that worked there and after she moved away I thought I could still rely on the people that worked there. I had a seamless hoop in my septum that I needed to have removed with pliers (ok, i bought it elsewhere, but since I was buying new jewelry there I didn't think it was a big deal to have the girl attending me take it out). No one was in the shop when I went in, and the girl helped me pick out new jewelry. I felt pressured to buy something expensive, but I told her I wanted something cheaper, since I already had a gold hoop -why do I want another one?! She told me the ring I selected would need to be stretched but that she could do it. The store quickly filled up with more customers and I found myself having to wait for all of them, since I was only spending 40$. I sat and waited and when I finally went in to the piercing room she seemed really rushed and stressed. I thought she was going to rip my septum the way she tugged to get my ring open! She kept commenting ""you are pierced so high"" in an annoyed way, suggesting that I was pierced poorly. I was livid when she said again, ""you are pierced so high! Where did you get this done?"" I smiled big and said, ""here"". I have loved my septum ring since I got it done. I actually knew it was pierced high because the former girl had placed it there so the ring wouldnt hang so low! The force she used to stretch my ring up was insane. She left me with a huge taper stuck in my nose, and had me wait outside so she could help another client in the room. Since then, I realized that the stretch caused a blowout. I will no longer be going to Venus for my piercing needs. While I used to swear by it, my last experience has convinced me that the place is unorganized and unprofessional. Pros: Lovely Jewelry Cons: Terrible Service more

For my appointment, I waited 4 hrs for Ronda, even tho I confirmed via her VM & email. She came in at 6PM muttering alternatively about a dead cell phone battery & wrong time in her book. FINALLY did a satisfactory tat for me starting at 7PM. 2 months later, I noticed a small spot where the ink didn't take & since Ronda guarantees her work...that's when the nightmare began. She never returned any of my emails/phone calls over next TWO & half months. I finally called the shop to reach her, she claimed she was looking for a new apartment. She absolutely refused to set up an appointment to take a look at the tat & do a touchup if necessary, even tho I explained to her it takes me an hr to get to the shop. I told her I didn't want to wait 4hrs again as last time, she turned it around on me & said that I must've not called ahead of time & that it was my fault for having gone to the shop without having spoken to her in person. I'm sorry? Some of us have a job & don't have the time to be at a her beck and call. Besides, how was I supposed to speak to her in person when she was the irresponsible one who didn't charge her phone? Isn't it HER job to call her clients if something like that happens? For the next 2 weeks, Ronda alternatively had the flu (3 times at my count) and was looking for an aptmt--still never set up a time. When I resorted to calling the shop again(only way to reach her), she finally had an opening & said she was writing down the time. I called night b4 to confirm, she didn't pick up & never returned my VM & TXT, called the next day 2hrs b4 supposed aptmt time, still didn't pick up. I don't want to waste any more time with Ronda and I can't deal with any more of her lies and run-arounds. Went to New York Adorned and had tattoo touched up same day I walked in. Ronda may be the only tattoo artist right now at Venus, but she's not the only artist in NYC. Plenty of talented artists here, go somewhere else & save yourself some time and the aggravation. Pros: None, you can get the same quality tattoos in plenty of other places in the city Cons: Just read my description more

Really nice jewelry... however, service is terrible.... one employee there went back and forth between customers (this happened on more than one occasion)... if you have ever been to a place like tiffany/cartier, that NEVER EVER happens. Also, some of the emplyees pressure you to buy jewlery. I like the products but not the service Pros: nice store, great jewlery selection Cons: bad service more

I had some specific ideas about how I wanted my next tattoo to appear, and Ronda was exceedingly helpful in taking the time to work with me, show me some ideas, and gave helpful advice on how my designs would look. Her insight was valuable, useful, and seemed in sharp contrast to friends' experiences with the tattoo mills on 6th Avenue near West 4th Street. Her services are in demand, and you should expect to be asked to make an appointment.\r \r I really liked the end result (which took about two hours) and was glad that I had decided to work with her. The facility was clean, and she was great about making me as comfortable as possible. Pros: Friendly, helpful, and CLEAN Cons: It took some time to get my appointment more

Ive had plenty of great experiences here at Venus Modern body Arts. All of my piercings were done here and they were all done carefully, professionally, and enthusiastically. The staff was there to help me get through the process, and they were very helpful and patient. Not only are the piercings reliable, but they also have a great selection of jewelry. Its an overall great experience, and you need that calm atmoshpere when about to be in pain!! more

I've had many piercings done in the past, but none so professionally executed and quick to heal as those that were done at Venus. First I went in to get my ear pierced. Liz, the apprentice, did the piercing, and it was SO easy and painless. I was so impressed with Liz's professional demeanor that I went back and had her do my Monroe. Again, it went very smoothly, and the healing process was much faster than I expected because of the thorough after-care instructions they gave me. Everyone at Venus is very friendly. Marilyn and Liz have both graciously done jewelry transfers for me since my piercings. The cleanliness of the shop is borderline OCD. The jewelry selection is awesome...I also picked up some very nice gemstone earrings. Honestly, the prices are higher than most places, but only because the stuff is REALLY high quality. If you want something nice to put in your holes so that they won't get infected, you might consider shelling out a little extra money for the real thing. Seriously, Venus is the best. Pros: Professional piercers, clean environment, amazing jewelry selection, general awesomeness Cons: It's addictive! more