Tattooing Yoakum

  • Trey Harris and Josh Fluitt tattoo guests at Yoakum Ink Friday, June 10.
    Trey Harris and Josh Fluitt tattoo guests at Yoakum Ink Friday, June 10.
  • Trey Harris focuses as he begins tattooing a customers forearm June 10.
    Trey Harris focuses as he begins tattooing a customers forearm June 10.
  • Josh Fluitt tattoos a guest at Yoakum Ink Friday, June 10.
    Josh Fluitt tattoos a guest at Yoakum Ink Friday, June 10.
  • Yaokum Ink has served the local community since opening in 2017.
    Yaokum Ink has served the local community since opening in 2017.

    It’s safe to assume that a sizeable portion of the tattoos decorating the Yoakum community come from the lone parlor in town, Yoakum Ink.

     

    It may be no surprise that the man with ‘Yoakum Ink’ tattooed in large lettering across his head has been at the helm of the operation. One customer at a time, Trey Harris and a team of artists have turned locals’ ideas into body art from their shop on Lavaca Street since 2017.

     

    “Anybody you see at HEB with a tattoo, you’ve seen a tattoo from here,” said Harris. “I’ve been tattooing in the area for 11 years. Josh (Fluitt) has been tattooing in the area for 15 or 16 years. We’re all pretty local. So, you might see a tattoo (by) one of us from ten years ago.”

     

    For Harris and the crew, the art of tattooing is more than a hobby or simple interest. 

     

    “It’s my lifestyle. I wake up to tattoos – talking to people about tattoos. It’s not a job; it’s the way we live,” said Harris.

     

    Harris moved to Yoakum to be closer to his family after being discharged from the Navy and working various jobs in the oil and gas industry. 

     

    Since developing a passion for the art form around 2008, Harris estimated he worked at 40 to 50 tattoo shops in the Houston-Austin-San Antonio region.

     

    He reported receiving a lot of positive feedback from the community and said there was little stigma around tattooing from locals.

     

    “I walk through HEB, and little old ladies in their 70s and 80s are like, ‘Oh, that's so pretty, let me see that…,’” said Harris of his tattoos. “For the most part, people are pretty accepting of it. We try to keep it pretty classy over here and respectable so as not to scare the townsfolk.”

     

    When asked if he plans to continue working in Yoakum for the foreseeable future, Harris lowered his head to reveal the tattoo displaying the shop’s name.

     

    “I ain’t going nowhere. I got (Yoakum) tattooed on my head real big. We’re going to ride the wheels off this one...” said Harris. “We all love this place. We all plan on spending the rest of our lives here.”

     

    Harris said he and the team emphasize community involvement by supporting local organizations and host a toy drive each winter for the holiday season.

     

    The shop is open Wednesday through Sunday from 1 p.m. until 9 p.m. with artists specializing in various styles.

     

    “Thank you for supporting us over the years, and we’re totally looking forward to meeting the new people we haven’t met before. I hope we’re doing it 15 to 20 years from now,” said Harris.