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Coffee, Design

Tattoos in Hong Kong: NOC Wanchai and Graham St

10 OCT 2019

There are some awesome tattoos in Hong Kong and here at NOC we celebrate them. Our baristas have some of the finest coffee-related artwork we have ever seen, so much so that we are sometimes referred to as ‘that coffee shop with inked baristas’. In our last instalment of the series, we had a chat with our baristas from Graham and Wanchai West stores, on how certain inspirations through their lives have now been eternally inked onto their skin.

Him (Head Barista, Graham Store)

The newest ink I’ve added onto my body is a wisp of smoke that runs through my left arm. We are each given around 10 decades to live and make it worthwhile. But when you live through the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it’s easy to forget that and before you know it, you die and cease to exist like a wisp of smoke. I want the tattoo to act as a reminder to make the most out of life.

Jacob (Barista, Graham Store)

The first tattoo I ever got is this one on my upper arm – I had it done when I was in Australia on a working holiday. The hot air balloon symbolises the courage I took to move to a new country and the sense of liberation I was able to enjoy there. I added a sunset beside the basket, because it’s the most beautiful moment in a day, in my opinion.

Jesse (Barista, Graham Store)

I am a big fan of subtle, minimalist tattoos. To remind myself to hold onto what really matters in life, I got a tiny script tattoo on my outer wrist that says ‘hold on’.

Creamy (Head Barista, Wanchai West)

I have around 10 tattoos on both of my arms. This tattoo on my left upper arm is my favourite, because the unicorn is my spirit animal, and I love meat and a pint of good beer.

This is only 1/3 of the baristas that have tattoos at NOC stores. To check out some more or for inspiration to perhaps get your very own coffee tattoo, check out our posts on Inked Baristas and Coffee Tattoos.

These are some of the well-respected Tattoo studios and references in Hong Kong:

Jimmy Ho – The OG HK Tattoo artis
Freedom Tattoo
Soul Canvas Ink
The Company Tattoo