Style Guide
American Traditional
What It Is:
American Traditional tattoos are bold, simple, and timeless. They feature thick black outlines, solid shading, and classic imagery like roses, daggers, skulls, hearts, and eagles. While they’re often done in color using red, green, yellow, and blue, the style can also be executed beautifully in black and grey. The focus is on strong composition, readability, and longevity for designs that look powerful for decades.
Who Does It:
All of our Seven Swords Asheville artists specialize in American Traditional, as well as most artists in Philadelphia:
- Myke Chambers (Philadelphia & Asheville) – A world-renowned name in tattooing, Myke has spent decades perfecting his bold, storytelling approach to American Traditional. His work is symbolic, heartfelt, and instantly recognizable.
- Jonny Agoes (Asheville) – Jonny brings an energetic, creative approach to traditional tattooing. His work is bold and clean with a strong sense of design, and his friendly, easygoing energy makes every session a great experience.
- Zach “Z” Lloyd (Asheville) – Known for his powerful blackwork and bold traditional designs, Z’s tattoos are packed with contrast and strength. He’s equally skilled in color or black & grey traditional work.
- Jeff Lindh (Asheville) – Jeff combines folk and American traditional influences, creating clean, readable tattoos with character and warmth. His work has a natural, organic feel that stands out while staying true to traditional fundamentals.
- Bernhard Bredell (Asheville) – Bernhard brings strong lines and deep black shading to traditional designs, producing tattoos that are both bold and refined. His approach is confident and classic.
- Sebastian Rivera (Philadelphia) – Though best known for his lettering and fine line work, Sabastian also creates clean and precise traditional tattoos rooted in classic tattoo culture.
- James Padelt (Philadelphia) – In addition to realism, James executes traditional tattoos with precision and care. His tattoos show a great understanding of contrast, balance, and the fundamentals of tattoo composition.
Asian Traditional
What It Is:
This style draws from a wide range of Asian artistic traditions. It often features mythological creatures, deities, masks, flowers, waves, and symbolic elements representing protection, strength, or transformation. These tattoos are bold and balanced, designed to flow naturally with the body’s shape, also in color or black & grey.
Who Does It:
- Myke Chambers (Philadelphia & Asheville) – Myke brings deep respect for traditional iconography and storytelling to his Asian-inspired work. His designs are powerful, spiritual, and visually timeless.
- Drea (Philadelphia) – Drea is new to the Asian Traditional genre and is excited to explore and develop her skills in this timeless style. Her curiosity and enthusiasm bring fresh energy to her evolving work.
- Zach “Z” Lloyd (Asheville) – Z creates bold, high-contrast Asian-inspired pieces that incorporate religious, mythological, and folk elements. His work blends strength and symbolism seamlessly.
- Jonny Agoes (Asheville) – Jonny’s versatility shines in his Asian Traditional work. His designs show a strong grasp of flow and bold linework, giving classic motifs a modern and vibrant edge.
Lettering / Script
What It Is:
Lettering tattoos focus on custom typography — from elegant cursive to bold block letters and everything in between. This style relies on clean lines, precise spacing, and composition that matches the tone of the words.
Who Does It:
- Sabastian Rivera (Philadelphia) – Known throughout Philadelphia for his crisp, detailed lettering, Sabastian’s work has perfect balance and flow. His lettering is confident, stylish, and expertly executed.
- Jonny Agoes (Asheville) – Jonny has a strong background in hand-drawn script. His lettering work combines bold readability with creative flair, giving each piece personality and movement.
New School
What It Is:
New School tattoos are vibrant, exaggerated, and cartoon-inspired. They feature bold outlines, intense colors, and imaginative characters. The style mixes graffiti, pop culture, and fantasy influences, often with dynamic perspective and motion.
Who Does It:
- Joseph Jeffers (Philadelphia) – Joseph’s tattoos are colorful, fun, and expertly composed. His New School work blends American and Japanese influences, giving each piece a bold, illustrative look that’s full of personality and energy.
Realism & Surrealism
What It Is:
Realism tattoos capture lifelike imagery — portraits, animals, or objects rendered with striking detail. Surrealism takes that foundation and mixes in dreamlike or abstract elements. The result is dramatic, emotional, and visually rich.
Who Does It:
- Mark Braham (Philadelphia) – Mark’s tattoos are highly detailed, from portraits to surreal imagery. His ability to create depth and realism gives every tattoo a three-dimensional feel.
- James Padelt (Philadelphia) – Specializing in black & grey realism, James’s work features strong contrast, smooth gradients, and exceptional detail. His surreal compositions are powerful and imaginative.
Black & Grey
What It Is:
Black & Grey tattoos use only black ink diluted to create a full range of tones. This style is versatile and can be used for portraits, realism, traditional, or fine line designs. The result is elegant, timeless, and striking.
Who Does It:
Everyone at Seven Swords is well versed in black & grey work. Here are a few who specialize:
- James Padelt (Philadelphia) – Known for expert shading and contrast, James’s work in black & grey is expressive and beautifully rendered.
- Mark Braham (Philadelphia) – Mark’s realistic approach gives his black & grey tattoos depth and life.
Blackwork
What It Is:
Blackwork tattoos use solid black ink to create bold, high-contrast designs with strong visual impact. This broad style includes everything from tribal and primitive patterns to ornamental, floral, and folk-inspired motifs. It can also incorporate blastover and mixed-style designs, where black shapes, textures, or imagery are layered over existing tattoos to create new depth and movement. Blackwork emphasizes flow, composition, and the balance between skin and ink, producing tattoos that are striking, timeless, and powerful.
Who Does It:
Zach “Z” Lloyd (Asheville) – Z’s blackwork carries deep contrast and intention. His designs blend influences from traditional, tribal, and folk art, creating tattoos that feel both bold and personal, with strong symbolism and presence.
Fine Line
What It Is:
Fine Line tattoos are usually made with a single needle or small grouping of needles, leaving a delicate and subtle tattoo. Typically in black and grey, they are defined by their light and airy look, thin lines, and light shading. Subject matter can vary from small script or numbers to floral designs, to more realistic pieces on a small scale and more. Because the lines are fine, the artist needs to have a high attention to detail and lots of experience with this style.
Who Does It:
Olivia Maddox (Philadelphia) – Olivia's fine line tattoos are delicate and light, while still demanding attention. Their designs vary from inanimate objects, micro realistic pieces, and floral work to portraits, metallics, and more. Their shading technique sets their work apart, making it extremely identifiable.
Sebastian Rivera (Philadelphia) – Much like in his lettering pieces, Sebastian's attention to detail shines in his fine line work. His pieces are often inspired by chicano style works with varying imagery. His fine line roses are developing a reputation!
