Cloud Nine Southside

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I was in Birmingham for a weekend and decided to get my nose pierced. I went there because it was the closest to the place we were staying. I loved it. The guy at the front desk wasn't the nicest, but Aaron, the man who pierced my nose was ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. He was patient with me, he explained everything perfectly and was so kind and extremely clean(changed his gloves 3 or 4 times, everything was sterile) and organized. When it was time to go, he explained everything and offered to change it out whenever it healed. I live 2 and a half hours away and would go back to get all of my future ear piercings from him. Me and my friends couldn't stop talking about how awesome he was when we left.

First of all, let me suggest Classic13 Tattoo shop. They used to work at Cloud9 until even THEY got tired of their pretentious attitudes! They are VERY PROFESSIONAL AND FRIENDLY at CLASSIC13.

Anyways, they are overpriced (they charged my roommate $90 for a small word on her chest). They are cocky, lazy, and disrespectful. I went in there to buy some tea for back pain, my husband and his friend were also present. When I decided to look at the pipes, my husband and his friend decided to go sit in the car. When I decided to purchase the pipe, the guy at the counter laughed and said, "where did those freaking little kids go? I'm not selling this to you without their ID!" Not only was I shocked that he referred to my husband as a little kid, but I was surprised this guy at the counter had the audacity to speak! He only looked 16, himself! They need to be put out of business, sorry...Classic13 tattoos! Look it up!!

I recently passed by the store with ideas and pictures, ready to speak with an artist about my potential tattoo. Upon entering Cloud Nine, the staff seemed upset that their personal conversation would have to wait. Nevertheless, I made my way to the back, where the tattoo section of the shop is. There, I waited, but never spoke to an artist before leaving. I did see a gentleman, who appeared to be a tattooist, but he didn't acknowledge my presence. Instead he went into the back, and did not emerge again. However, the first gentleman I saw, when I walked in the front door, asked me if I had pictures of what I had in mind. I told him that I did, but that I wanted to show them to the artist, so that we could discuss ideas. (I wanted a custom piece like most people... they were going to quote me simply by looking at reference material.) The artist refused to meet with me, which is okay, because I dropped in without notice. However, what really ticked me off was that Cloud Nine refused to set up a general meeting so that I could come in the next day to speak with an artist. Instead, I was told that I would need to put down a deposit if I wanted to schedule a short meeting to discuss my potential tattoo. ---- The customer service at Wicked Ways Tattoo, right next door is 1000X better! -----Anyways, business must be booming at C9 b/c they are not eager to acknowledge nor entertain potential new clients.

Customer service is horrible. I recently purchased some smoking accessories (dab bowl and glass nail) and the employee seemed to be in a hurry to get away from helping me even though there were no other customers in the store. The best part is the pieces she sold me did not fit together after I was assured they would. When I contacted the store the same day they informed me of their no return policy on smoking accessories which would be completely understandable if their employee did not assure me it would work after i asked profusely. This makes it very hard for me to support local businesses.

My wife & I went to C9 while shopping around for new tattoos. I like talking to the artist about my art ideas to get his/her feedback before finalizing - I don't rush skin art. Sometimes the artist will suggest really helpful things about the design I have in mind that let me change & refine it to work better than it would have otherwise. You never want to look at your tattoos & think "this could have been better". It's best to take more time researching your ideas & talking to people on the front end so you can be confident about your design & the work you want done.



We went to several places to get ideas & prices for our new pieces, bc diff artists have diff styles & pricing structures. I had never been to Cloud Nine before, & I will may never ever go back unless I have work that needs Marcos' specific style.



To start with when we got there the guy at the counter was very rude & unhelpful. He said he was not an artist, but acted like he knew everything there was to know about tattoos. He was arrogant, unfriendly & had a horrible attitude for someone who's job is to talk to potential customers.. Honestly not even sure why they have him working the tattoo counter.



He told us we could not get the designs we had in mind & proceeded to tell us why. I interrupted him to ask to speak to an actual artist & he told me he would have to speak to the artist for me....I then waited for him to go back to the mysterious back area. I don't know if the artist was just busy, taking a break or just did not want to talk to customers. Who knows. When the front counter guy came back he told me yes they could do the designs & then quoted me a price that was 3x (3 times!!) the price of 2 other local shops.



Tattoo work is something that requires a lot of skill. Artists have a right to charge whatever they want for the work they do. I also have the right not to pay too much for anything I buy. The free market works, competition & competitive pricing is a good thing. These prices were crazy high.



The designs we had in mind were not overly complicated things. I had a custom cross idea (with images already composited) & my wife wanted a simple logo & a custom name anklet - All of them fairly simple things. These guys just didn't want the work, so they were being obnoxious & jacking up the price. I asked if there were another artist we could talk to & was told yes, but he was at lunch. So I waited for him to come back. This guy, Marco was in fact super nice, friendly & accommodating, but his prices still ended being double every other shop in town. So we left.



We ended up getting the work done by Aaron @ Aerochild 2 blocks down from Cloud Nine. Aaron is the nicest guy on the planet, his prices are great & he does good work. Most importantly to me, Aaron will always talk to you about your ideas & give you feedback, letting you know why something won't work & offering alternate versions. He will show you stencils (like a washable tattoo) of the work on your own skin so you can decide on final design & placement.



I'm not saying to avoid C9. Marcos is a nice guy & a VERY talented artist. But I would shop around before committing to get work done there. Or at least be prepared to pay their rates.

They were so friendly and very kind about everything.

This was my first tattoo, and let me say that it was the worst experience of my life. I went in to get a tattoo that was a simple tracing the guy that did was unfriendly, he didn't care, he was in a bad mood. He did the tattoo, he didn't let me look at it when he was done, he just taped it up. When I took the bandage off I saw that it was traced very poorly, and I was upset. After it heeled I went back and asked if he could retrace it....He yelled at me in the store so loud!!! and was extremely rude...... He retraced the tattoo, it still looks like crap, but what can you do. and after he was done his excuse for being upset was that "he had family problems" well he is putting permanent ink on people, you can't just say your in a bad mood. I say do your research before you get a tattoo. Unfortunately I didn't and after I got it people told me that Cloud 9 has a pretty bad reputation, and as for the rest of the staff they are NOT friendly.

This was my first tattoo ever and it has very special meaning to me and my husband. I was told about another tattoo shop and immediately went there first. I followed all the instructions and made a down payment for my tattoo; just as they instructed. I never received a call from this particular shop and I had to call them several times. Needless to say I was discouraged about the process.





I looked in the phone book and found Cloud 9. I the young man who answered the phone was very informative and helpful. Based on my conversation with the young man that answered the phone, I decided to give up my deposit at the other shop and give Cloud 9 a try. My husband and I came in and everyone there was helpful and made me feel comfortable about the process. On that same night we met with the artist who did my tattoo and I instantly felt comfortable with him. He told us to look in the book of the work that he had done. It was late in the evening and my artist was leaving for the night; yet he stayed around and talked with us about what type of tattoo I wanted. I gave him a stretch of what I had in mind. On that same night I received an email from the artist with a rough drawing. My husband and I instantly loved his ideas.



We scheduled an appointment for the next day. I was able to email our ideas to my artist and he took our suggestions and made it better than I could have ever imagined! We came into the shop and JOHN immediately got to work. I'm not the typical type person to get a tattoo but it was an anniversary present for my husband of 22 years. JOHN'S work and professionalism made my entire experience wonderful. I will tell everyone I know about Cloud 9 and recommend JOHN to them. Thanks to Fred (young man who answered the phone, the young lady (dark hair; I can't remember her name, and certainly JOHN!



We will definitely be back and any work that we receive we will request JOHN!!!!



Thanks so much for the wonderful 22nd year anniversary present to my husband.

My first tattoo and completely happy!!! Super sweet staff!!!!

k.h. took a crash course in this. not qualified to have a shop or touch any kind of needle

everything about the shop is terrible. k.h. just lucked up and stole a shop. cloud nine is a far cry from bohemian rhapsody.

If you're going for tattoos or peircings, you'll probably be fine. Thier artists are skilled and welcoming. If you're going for the head shop, don't waste your time. Employees in this section of the store are apathetic, lazy, or just downright rude. Stock is mediocre or missing, pipes and glasswork are overpriced. Don't ask questions or expect to be allowed to compare multiple pieces, unless you don't mind having pissed off employees staring you down for interupting thier sitting time. They're also misinformed or under informed about legal alternative products.



On a recent visit I was literally in front of the store when the clock ticked to midnight and had a manager lock the door in my face. Another employee came to the exit door, tried to ask the mgr if I could make the quick purchase and he ignored us both. A full on d*ck move even the other guy realized was uncalled for. I spoke to the mgr on the phone a few mins later where he argued with me for considerably longer than the purchase would have taken. His response was "what am I supposed to stay open another 2 minutes cause you didn't get here before 12? If you can't get here before 12 it's not my fu*king problem". When I pointed out the purchase would have probably earned the store more than his hourly pay in those two minutes he hung up the phone. Classy guy, Clearly no concern for the neighborhood customers. Overall a sh*t experience with sh*tty people... Not that they care.



In the earlier review where someone waited nearly 2 hours for a no-show artist, the excuse was that the artist was at the hospital for a family emergency and unable to recieve calls. I'm sorry but if I had an emergency that was going to keep me from doing my job, especially one that would waste the time of others who'd be waiting on me, I'd have made sure my workplace atleast knew where I was and that I wouldn't be in so they could explain to my appointments throughout the day. I've been in plenty of hospitals and none of them require cellphones to be off throughout the entire facility. He called by payphone? The hospital refused to provide him with access to a phone line to inform his employer of his situation? Not likely. This is a weak excuse, even if the emergency was real.



I don't plan on returning. Really makes me miss the vibe of Bohemian Rapsody.

Hello, I went to Cloud 9 Southside to have my eyebrows permanently applied in a similar fashion as tattooing, called cosmetic tattooing. Karri did my tattoos, and she did a spectacular job!! That was about 6.5 months ago, and they look so good!! Never again will I have to draw on my eyebrows, only to smear them off on a hot day or swimming. All of the employees who were working that day were very helpful and kind and made me feel completely comfortable. It was clean, organized, the pricing was surprisingly reasonable, and everyone was very accomodating and professional. I was so impressed with the shop, I bought a number of items after my tattoo and recieved nothing but top notch customer service. The tattoo shop is completely sterile and safe, I should know because I worked in a top tattoo studio in Illinois for 2 years and went through all of the training and set up and tear down procedures and these guys surpass health department standards by far. The store area is very neat and accessible. It is one of the most well-stocked smoke shops I have ever been to and I totally enjoyed shopping there! The quality is high, the prices are low, and the service is excellent. I will be returning in a couple of weeks to visit once again. TWO THUMBS WAY UP CLOUD 9 SOUTHSIDE!!!

p.s.- on the reviewer who was complaining about the $50.00 minimum, I have to tell you- you get what you pay for with tattoos. I have yet to see a tattoo that cost under $50.00 look good and professional. Most cheap tattoos happen in kitchens by non-professionals or by apprentices attempting to learn the art. In which case, there is no guarantee that you are being tattooed by a sterile, safe, and practiced artist. $50.00 is an extremely reasonable minimum when you think about what all goes into a tattoo. Unless you just dont think, and if you never think, you will probably take awful care of your new tattoo and it will look crappy anyway. So go ahead and seek out the $30.00 artist who is anxious to learn on your skin. But if you want REAL ART permanently in your skin, check out Cloud 9 Southside.

I had called on a friday morning shortly after opening and was very politely greeted on the phone and told the artist was expected in the shop before 11 am as he had an appointment scheduled for 11 am, I was looking to get work done that day. I arrived at the shop approximately 12:30 and his 11 am appointment was sitting and waiting for the artist to show up. The gentleman behind the counter was extremely helpful, we talked about my ink, different options, etc...he printed some examples out and we looked at the position. Everything I would expect to have happen at a great shop, full service collaboration! The problem was the artist. He left his apointment waiting for over an hour and noone in the shop could get a hold of him. when he finally called he rescheduled his appointment. It was very unfortunate as the appointment mentioned she had hired a babysitter to be there. I understand that unforeseen things happen that cause all of us to miss work from time to time. what bothered me was that he didnt let the shop know what was going on and left his appointment in limbo. that strikes me as someone who may not be passionate about doing tattoos anymore and unprofessional. however, again, the gentleman behind the counter was great! and I hope that he becomes a tattoo artist as I would be first in line. I have read that others have had great experiences here so I would still check this place out...but b/c of my experience I went elsewhere and I had a great experience! I am already planning my next 3 tattoos with that artist. so unfortunately, cloud nine missed out on gaining some repeat business.

I WAS VERY PLEASED WITH cloud Nine ,,I had my nose pierced and i cant even tell it was done it did not hurt a bit.and im not one for needles in fact it down right mortified.

but they were nice and polite i could have not felt more at ease and Aaron the guy who did lt he was amazing ,,i would highly recommended him and Cloud 9

i would have to agree with the person that could not get any help.i went there and asked some questions,,the counterhelp didnt know crap about tattoos and then the artist was not much better...saw a tattoo that had been done while i was waiting on some kind of help..I RAN OUT OF THERE

I highly recommend this studio for both tattoos and piercings. I've had both done there and I am very satisfied. My tattoo artist (John) was so easy to talk to and patient as we worked on a special design. I never felt pressured at all even when I just came in to ask questions. My tattoo has held all it's ink and the color is bright. I love it! My piercer was really nice and professional too (Aron I think). He explained everything really well and gave me a cool industrial piercing. I got one somewhere else before but it wasn't done right. The new one is healing without problems unlike the piercing I got at that other place. This place is so clean and careful. Overall I would say that this is the studio to go to if you want tattoos or piercings. The people working in the studio are so helpful and easy-going. That's how it should be in my opinion.

The guys there are so professional! The place is usually pretty crowded because it's such a big name in Birmingham. But you can call ahead and reserve a spot, of course. And they're open really late so they can service everyone!

I've gotten two piercings there so far. The piercing specialist was so sweet to me. He took me and my boyfriend to the back where it was quiet and private. He explained every step of the process, including all the way to make the piercing not hurt! He sterilized everything, sat me down, got the marks just where I wanted them, and delivered the most gorgeous silver piercings I've ever seen!

No reddness, no blood, and no scars! It healed perfectly because he gave me all the supplies I needed for aftercare!

Not only that, but the piercings healed a month faster than the SAME piercing I got at a different shop!

I don't know how, but they did!



I'd definitely recommend this place to all of my friends! Heck, even to my enemies! Everyone deserve a quick, painless piercing or two! lol!

went there on a sunday cause they are pretty much the only tattoo shop that stays open late on a sunday. walked in and no one even acknowledged that i was there. stood by the counter and finally the guy standing behind the counter said can i help you. i asked if he knew the pricing of tattoos because i overheard him saying he didnt tattoo and he wasnt interested in learning. he didnt listen and thought i asked if he knew the tattoo artist and he gave me a " are you stupid look " and said yeah he is here isnt he. so i asked the price for a small name.. not even 2 inches long and he said it would be 150 or more. didnt even bother to ask about a bigger tattoo that my boyfriend was planning to get. i know for sure i can go to a better shop and get it for less than 50. which cloud nine has signs hanging up saying a 50 dollar minimum. i guess they dont want you to waste any of their time with the small tattoo that you want. ill take my money elsewhere.