Meet Nate Sajdak | Tattoo Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nate Sajdak and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nate, what role has risk played in your life or career?
Taking a risk is the only way to progress. I built a career for eight and a half years as a granite artisan, making monuments and headstones, and I had to choose whether to be stable with a paycheck or dive into a true passion. There was no other way I’d want my life to unfold but there was some risk involved of course. Very lucky to have my wife support us in the beginning. Also risks are unknown and exciting. I have no clue what fun and interesting idea someone’s gonna bring me. I love that part of my life.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I had a lot of help as I had mentioned to get where I’m at. People gave me breaks and I recognize this. Still it’s not easy and I’m glad it’s not. I wouldn’t care about tattooing as much if it were easy. Sacrificing time and energy to draw, research, grow, connect to clients, and to see results is rewarding. I believe motivation towards self actualization is key in my life. I love trying new things. This is probably why I have way too many “hobbies”. But the self actualization makes me want to keep trying different styles and different approaches and this is why I haven’t landed on a style yet. I enjoy it all really. Black and grey realism is where I think I thrive most due to my past in portrait work but full color realism and American traditional are just as fun to do and I put just as much effort into those pieces too. I like to work with people to get them the best tattoo whatever style it may be.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
So if in the area you have to check out Mabel Gray. Chef Rigato will make sure you leave on a high note. If you leave there and want an after dinner cocktail there’s always Kiesling in Detroit. They have a relaxed atmosphere that’s very comfortable. If you’re a dog person there’s Barkside Detroit. After some food and dog watching you can always hit the DIA. Any morning there’s a great coffee spot called Meridian down near our shop that should be checked out. If it’s a nice day out you should check out the Matthaei Botanical Garden which has a great bonsai exhibit. If that’s not up your alley there’s always Kensington park which you can swim or fish and be in nature and then head to a restaurant right around the corner called Bakers where they have a car show every Sunday full or classics.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have some great people in my life that have taken their time and energy to help me get where I’m at. These are in order of how the story played out on our timeline. Garret my best bud was the person who put a machine in my hand first. He’s not a tattoo artist but if it wasn’t for him I may never have gotten to try this amazing path. Then I ended up posting some tattoos I did and got a message from my tattoo artist, Caryl Cunningham, who was working on my arm. All excited I read them and got a better understanding for how bad my tattoos at the time were haha but she saw something I didn’t at the time and I’m very grateful she offered me a chance at an apprenticeship and later on a spot to tattoo. Then down the road my wife had decided to support me so I could go all into tattoo. These are the very pivotal moments I can think of but to any friends and clients that let me tattoo them, and shop owners that helped me get a spot, you all helped me grow this far so thank you 🙏

Website: https://www.northmaintattoos.com/natesajdak

Instagram: https://Instagram.com/natesajdaktattoos