The Studio At Painful Pleasures

Painful Pleasures looks like they have some great artist unfortunately I was never able to find out. I scheduled an appointment a month out and an hour before my appointment time they called and canceled. We rescheduled for the next day (a Friday) and the. I was called an hour later and they cancelled that. They rescheduled for Saturday at noon. I pulled up on time and the artist walked me in and told me that there were no tattoo supplies available. No ink, no needles, no paper towels. Nothing. The. Absolute worst tattoo experience I have ever had and could ever imagine. I would never recommend this place.

What a wonderful experience. Every so often a place of business will raise the bar for the industry. After being tattooed the past 8 years in a variety of high-​end shops in DC and Northern VA, I was blown away by the place.
This has to be the most state of the art and clean studios I have ever seen. It is located off a main highway, in a nice quiet industrial park with a nice forrest view. There is ample free parking.
The inside of Painful Pleasures looks brand new and is very, very well kept.
Hell, even the bathroom has automatic sink and soap dispenser, the floor is immaculate. Every little detail is taken care of.
The individual rooms they use for tattooing have private TVs and radio options. The tattoo chair is ergonomic and very comfortable. My artist had the cleanliness and professionalism that could make most ERs look silly. There is also a feature to turn the clear glass walls opaque for tattoos in places that not everybody gets to see.
All of the supplies are top notch and they don’t skimp. My artist even cleaned the chair in front of me with bleach based cleaner before getting started (despite the fact it was already clean). He also opened all needles in front of me and changed gloves repeatedly to avoid any cross contamination.
I was hesitant to post because I am selfishly hoping to allow this studio to be the best kept secret in the DMV area, but when a business and an artist put this much effort into customer experience and work, recognition is mandatory.

I went here after purchasing a Groupon for laser tattoo removal.
The doc who does the laser is friendly and personable (I was very nervous about the pain). The laser hurts but also works. I’m about halle berry colored and it has been working on me.
As far as tattoos go, the shop looks totally legit and I would definately consider coming here for my next piece.
They also retail a few similar/​niche products.
The establishment is clean, professional and updated. Staff at the desk are friendly, helpful and organized.

Had work done by Dee Sanchez.
Top shelf artist! I provided him with reference material and let him do his magic from there.
I spent the better part of a year looking for someone to bring my idea to fruition. After many hours searching artists on the east coast I lucked out and found Dee.
Very easy to get an appt. The artist doesn’t want to become one of those that have a 2 year waiting list. He doesn’t like to schedule more than a month or so out.
Not sure how long that’s going to last though. Dee has been flying all over the country going to conventions and guest spotting at shops so his quality of work is becoming readily apparent to those in the know.
Had my first session (booked him for the whole day) on my Hawaiian themed half-​sleeve in October. Scheduled my next session in November.
If you’re looking for a 5 star studio look no further than The Studio at Painful Pleasures.

I received THE WORST customer service Ive ever dealt with in my life at this place. Unbelievable. They completely ripped me off and in return only attacked my personality as a weak way to avoid the real problem in emails. Avoid this place with all costs they dont care about customers only money!

If you are looking for a CLEAN place to get pierced, this is it. I went recently to get my septum pierced. They addressed my concerns about the piercing, and then I went upstairs to get it done. The place is immaculately clean. If you took a white glove to the entire place I doubt you’d find a speck of dirt or dust. The person who did my piercing sterilized all the materials, and I can’t even count how many times he washed his hands or changed his gloves between marking the piercing, doing the piercing, putting in the jewelry, and cleaning the area after. It was an excellent experience and I will definitely go there for my next piercings!

So I am writing this review as someone who did not directly receive any service from Painful Pleasures, but I did take my niece to get her nose pierced, so I am basing it off that. My niece wanted her nose pierced and we looked into a place that offered this service near my home. Painful Pleasures came up with a Groupon deal, but alas, they were sold out. Undetered by this, we went anyway. First off, this place is like in a warehouse area, so it is a bit off the beaten path, but they do online sales too, so its understandable. The front waiting area is really cool, with an old classic car for decoration and a free pinball machine (my kids loved that)! There also plenty of jewerly and art to look at, so it was nice.
We were greeted promptly and the lady behind the counter was nice. It did take some time to find the piecing guy and we were the only customers there at that point, but we were not in a rush so it was cool. My daughter had to use the restroom while we waited, but the lady wouldnt tell me where the restroom was, so I finally convinced her to escort us upstairs so she could go. That was a bit annoying, but whatev.
Finally the piercer came and we all went back upstairs. He was really professional and explained everything. The booths and layout were very clean and he sterilized everything really well. The piercing went really quick and my niece was satisfied.
Come here for the inexpensive piercings (about 40 bucks for nose), good atmosphere, and profesional people!

Groupon deal for tattoo removal. I purchased the four sessions. Had my first session on July 3^rd.
Scheduling was easy. The scheduler was sweet and thorough. I was asked to fill out the intake form online prior to arriving for the first session. The form asks about medical history and such, as is the protocol with any laser treatment. Dr. Briggs is available 2 – 3 times per week, so make your appointment at least a week in advance.
Parking is on a private lot, but reserved parking for The Studio isn’t plentiful, so leave time for finding parking in one of the unmarked spaces.
The Studio has two levels and the décor is quite spectacular ranging from vintage car in the lobby to hanging woman atop the stairwell. I nearly had a heart attack with the hanging woman, but I still enjoyed it. Lots of nicknacks to check out. A few were a bit sadistic but definitely worthy of a photo to share on FB.
The staff at the front desk was cheerful and helpful. She answered the questions I had after reading the «risks» with the tattoo removal. I was reassured and prepared for the treatment.
Dr. Briggs saw me right away on the 2^nd floor. He evaluated the tattoo, gave me a bit of the run down of what to expect with RevLite laser, and told me that I will need more than 4 sessions since the tattoo was professionally done, although it’s small. I should have purchased the 8 sessions. Before we started, he handed me a pair of goggles and then cleaned the tattoo area. He did a test shot to gauge my pain tolerance. It wasn’t all too painful. Like a quick prick of a needle-​head. When I said to go for it, I took a deep breath, and within a breath and what felt like a hundred needle pricks, it was all over. As he ran the laser over the tattoo, it appeared lighter. Then within seconds, a slight redness developed around the tattoo. It felt itchy, but Dr. Briggs warned against touching or scratching. He placed a gauze over the treated tattoo. It will stay itchy for the next week, but it’ll subside.
Dr. Briggs recommended a 6 – 8 weeks break in between sessions for full effect. I went downstairs and scheduled my 2^nd session for 8 weeks later. I was told that I should be seeing some results within 4 weeks. It has been 3 ½ weeks and the tattoo is starting to «break». A few areas have already faded a bit. The skin is dry and has started to peel minimally but with no pain. The treatment is definitely working and it’s not as painful as I had imagined.

I purchased a groupon for this, so I didn’t do any research on the actual location. I was pleasantly surpised by:
1.) The attentiveness of the staff
2.) The cleanliness of the procedure room
3.) The studio is beautiful and modern
4.) The Doctor was very informative, quick, and professional.
I was really pleased with my first treatment. Immediately after I left, I was emailed after-​care instructions that were clear and concise.
I would refer my friends to The Studio.