Stingray Blog

February Tattoo Contest

2011-02-01T12:08:00.000-08:00

Since our January Facebook tattoo contest went so well, we're going to hold a another one!

This time were are going to have you submit your best black and grey tattoo that you got at our shop, only send them to: adam@stingraybodyart.com Subject line: Stingray Tattoo Contest. Let us know who the artist was and when it was done.

Again, we are not only judging the tattoo itself but the quality and creativity of the photo too! We will choose the first round of finalists on Friday the 11th of February and then the second round of finalists on Friday the 25th of February. The winner will be announced the following Monday, the 28th and they receive a $75 gift card to Stingray towards a tattoo or piercing!

At the end of the year we will evaluate the 12 monthly winners and select a grand prize winner! The grand prize will be a $200 gift card for tattoos or piercings at Stingray in addition to the $75 originally won! In order to post your tattoos to our wall, all you have to do is "Like" our page! If you already do, make sure to tell all your friends and upload your photos today! Good luck!!!

*Disclaimer: Any photo submitted may be used for promotional purposes by Stingray Body Art.

Monthly Facebook Tattoo Contest

2011-01-05T14:34:00.000-08:00

Here's the deal folks... We're going to hold a little tattoo contest through Facebook this month!

Go on to the Stingray Facebook Page and upload a tattoo that you got at our shop on to the wall of the page. Let us know who the artist was and when it was done. We are not only judging the tattoo itself but the quality and creativity of the photo too!

We will choose the first round of finalists on Friday the 14th of January and then the second round of finalists on Friday the 28th of January.

The winner will be announced the following Monday the 31st and they recieve a $75 gift card to Stingray towards a tattoo or piercing!

At the end of the year we will evaluate the 12 monthly winners and select a grand prize winner! The grand prize will be a $200 gift card for tattoos or piercings at Stingray in addition to the $75 originally won!

In order to post your tattoos to our wall, all you have to do is "Like" our page! If you already do, make sure to tell all your friends and upload your photos today! Good luck!!!

*Disclaimer: Any photo submitted may be used for promotional purposes by Stingray Body Art.

CoupMe: Stingray Body Art & Azama Grill!

2010-12-19T22:23:00.000-08:00

Today only special!

50%- Stingray Bodyart $30 for $60

50% off - Diversify Your Palate: $5 for $10 Worth of Food and Drink at Azama Grill!

50% off - Showcase Yourself This Holiday Season with Body Art: $30 for $60 Worth of Services at Stingray Bodyart!

2010-12-19T22:06:00.000-08:00

50% off - Showcase Yourself This Holiday Season with Body Art: $30 for $60 Worth of Services at Stingray Bodyart!

Deal Details

The Company

Stingray Bodyart
384 Cambridge Street
Allston, MA 02134

Map/Directions »
Visit Website »

The Short Story

$30 for $60 worth of services
Professional tattoos, including custom-made images, available
Or choose from expertly performed piercings
Located on Cambridge Street in Allston

The Terms

This CoupMe expires on: 12/22/11; thereafter, redeemable for purchase price.
Limits: Piercing and tattoo only. Not combined with other offers, 1 CoupMe per customer. No cash value.
Questions: Call 1.866.249.8387
Legal: CoupMe purchase subject to Terms and Conditions

Description

During the holidays, the same imagery comes to mind: snow-capped houses, wreathes, decorated trees, tons of presents and obviously, tattoos! What would Christmas or New Year's Eve without a brand-new, shining tattoo to show off to your loved ones? And what would the holiday season be without savings? So, today, take advantage of our deal with Stingray Bodyart, where you'll get $60 worth of services for just $30!

Located on Cambridge Street in Allston, Stingray Bodyart is Boston's first full-service body shop, featuring some of the region's finest custom tattoo artists and pierciers in the biggest, cleanest shop anywhere. Open 7 days a week from 10am to 10pm, there's a reason Stingray has taken home many awards from local publications, such as a "Best of Boston" designation from The Improper Bostonian twice! If you're in the market for an illuminating tattoo, check out Stingray's page here; you can even work with their staff closely to design your own custom tattoo as well.

So give yourself a present this holiday season and take advantage of our deal with Stingray Bodyart. With $60 worth of body shop services, you'll look and feel great and you'll want to show your new art off immediately!

Reviews

"Josh at Stingray did a great job on my tattoo. Having looked at quite a few portfolios to find someone who could draw lifelike animals, I was really pleased to watch him sketch at my first meeting with him. He was able to turn my vague ideas into a line drawing, and then suggest ways to improve/change it to fit the site I picked (top of my foot). The final drawing was exactly what I wanted. When I showed up to actually get the tattoo, I was a little nervous, and Josh did a great job of talking me through the whole process. In the end, it didn't hurt much at all, so I felt a bit silly, but he was really nice about everything. Excellent aftercare advice, too. Definitely recommended." ~ Emily H., Yelp

"Still absolutely 5 stars! I can in to repierce my nose this weekend and it was, as always, a great experience. The guy at the desk was super-friendly and we talked for a bit since there were a few people ahead of me. Abbie was awesome about the piercing, they were out of the clear stud gem like I wanted, but she helped me pick out a cute pink gem instead. The whole thing was basically painless and really quick. She went over all the aftercare and was really friendly. I love that they give student discounts! I was in and out really fast and I'm really happy with the work. I will definitely be back!" ~ Amanda M., Yelp

VOTE FOR STINGRAY!

2010-10-22T10:41:00.000-07:00

VOTE FOR STINGRAY on the Weekly Dig's website for the DIG THIS (BEST OF) award TATTOO SHOP!!!!

(Go to www.digboston.com and click on the logo on the top right hand corner and go to the "Best places to shop" category and scroll down to "tattoo shop")

Voting ends on November 5th, so get on the site and vote for us!

Press Release: Quiet Desperation to air on MyTV New England

2010-09-10T09:00:00.000-07:00

*** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ***
METROPOLITAN PICTURES NEW TV SHOW “QUIET DESPERATION”
September 7, 2010 – Metropolitan Pictures, LLC is very proud to announce the airing of its new TV show, “QUIET DESPERATION” – the ONLY locally-produced television series filmed in Boston; on Friday evenings at 11pm into 2.8M homes on the MyTV New England network, beginning Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24th 2010.

QUIET DESPERATION, written and directed by Allston comedian/musician Rob Potylo, blends together a hilarious and cutting-edge mixture of near-Reality TV and improvised comedy (think of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” meets “Jersey Shore”) as it follows a cast of Allston-area musicians, artists and comics living, working and trying to “make it” in the entertainment business in Boston.

Many of the stars of the show are already well on their way, including Rob Potylo himself, who was the 2nd place winner of the 2010 Andy Kaufman Awards plus Joe Wong, 2-time David Letterman guest and headlining host of the “Radio & Television Correspondents Dinner” with President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden; Tom Dustin, the only American ever to win the Canadian “Yuck Yuck Comedy Laugh Off” and Friday night host at Mottley’s Comedy Club; and a supporting cast of nearly 200 local musicians, actors and comics with numerous appearances on “Last Comic Standing” on NBC and “Live At Gotham” on Comedy Central among many other accolades.
QUIET DESPERATION will enjoy a 9-month run of 18 half-hour episodes, aired every Friday evening at 11pm with a new episode being premiered two times per month (and a repeat of the current episode on the off weeks.) This expanded schedule enables Rob Potylo and Metropolitan Pictures to incorporate current events and developments in the artists’ lives into the scripts, similar to the running-production approach of “South Park,” “Family Guy” and others; as well as to integrate feedback received from viewers and fans through the extensive Web presence of the show on its www.quietd.com website, Facebook, Youtube and Twitter social networks.

The “running production” approach also enables QUIET DESPERATION to be the ONLY show that offers local and regional sponsor/advertisers the ability to seamlessly embed products and promotions directly into the show itself. Metropolitan Pictures president and co-founder Scott Matalon says, “Embedded advertising is four times more likely to reach a consumer than traditional commercials” and adds that “Rob and Quiet Desperation are so smart and cutting-edge, we’re going to reach a lot of teens and young adults with this show and they’re going to just love it.”

MyTV New England General Manager Doug Finck agrees and adds, “To me Quiet Desperation represents the new model of locally-produced television; aggressive, highly creative and offering new ways of advertising into the mix. It’s a powerful combination when creative talent is properly supported by appropriate levels of production, broadcast accessibility and internet-based social networking. MyTV New England is very excited about bringing Quiet Desperation to New England. ”

Rob Potylo, who is the creative eye of the tornado that is QUIET DESPERATION says, “We’re trying to make a “Saturday Night Live” for Boston-area comics, and we think people from all over the country are going to want to watch it. The talent here is incredible, and I’m on Cloud 9 working with all of these people I love.” When asked about working with sponsors and advertisers, Rob adds, “People won’t TIVO past the embedded parts or the commercials that we make, they’re really fun parts of the show and we’re having a great time making them. We’re very excited about receiving the kind of positive support our sponsors are showing us.”

Metropolitan Pictures (16 Farrington Ave., Allston, MA) is a local filmed entertainment production studio in Allston, MA and is currently in production of season two of its 7-episode reality-sports “Boston Boxing” series which is broadcast on New England Sports Network (NESN), is currently releasing the feature-length crime-drama movie “Cricket Snapper,” and in 2005 released the feature-length cult-comedy movie “Pony Trouble,” which is available at Blockbuster and Netflix.com. Both releases are distributed domestically and Internationally by leading underground film distributor Brain Damage Films of Tempe, AZ. www.metropolitanzone.com

MyTV New England (11 A Street, Derry, NH) is the My Network TV affiliate for the Boston-Manchester market. It reaches 2.4M households in the New England region including MA, NH, ME, VT and Cape Cod. MyTV New England is available on all cable systems (Comcast, RCN, Charter, MetroCast, etc.), both satellite systems (DirecTV and Dish Network), Verizon FiOS and over-the-air terrestrial broadcast.

For more information or to become a sponsor, please contact:
Scott Matalon, Metropolitan Pictures
scott@metropolitanzone.com or 617-901-3418
Doug Finck, MyTV New England
dfinck@ourmaine.com or 207-774-0051 x155

Stingray 5th Anniversary Party!

2010-08-03T11:32:00.000-07:00

Stingray Body Art is Celebrating it's 5th anniversary on August 19th at Harper's Ferry with a BLOW OUT Punk Rock n' Roll Fashion Party!!

Headlining the event is Boston's owns celtic punk rockers, The Welch Boys, along with Stingray bands, Old Crow & the 45's, Matalon, and 100th Monkey Effect!!!

There will be food, custom art and limited edition t-shirts from our own Stingray tattoo artists, fashion, prizes and more!!!

8pm doors/18+/$10

Come down to Harper's Ferry and bring your friends on Aug. 19th to celebrate 5 awesome years with us!!! click HERE to see the Facebook event!

CRASH!!!

2010-07-07T11:18:00.000-07:00

Yup, that's right! A taxi cab crashed through our front door early Monday morning! Do not worry, no one was hurt and the damage was minimal. We're fully open for business, so come on down and make an appointment

Nate Dizzle Tattooing

2010-06-29T17:25:00.000-07:00

Here's a little video that one of our loyal customers edited and sent in to us of Nate Dizzle rippin out a tattoo!

Vote 4 Mike Helz Snowboard Video

2010-06-29T12:35:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!!! Help out Tattoo Artist MIke Helz and go online and vote for Flow Snowboard video: Rubbish Heap Super Park Showdown!!! Vote as many times as you can!

http://fresh.snowboardermag.com/ticker/superpark-showdown-rubbish-films-vs-ykwii-media/

2010-06-25T10:32:00.000-07:00

The Taste of Allston features food from an international array of Allston Village eateries, a silent auction, and live music.

It is happening this year on Sunday, June 27th from 12pm - 3pm at Harvard Stadium rain or shine.

It is a fun family oriented event with delicious foods from restaurants and merchants all across Allston!

All of the proceeds benefit Allston Village Main Streets which is part of the country's first city-wide, multi-district Main Street revitalization program, a non-profit, public-private partnership between the city of Boston, the National Main Street Center and neighborhood stakeholders. The program relies on volunteer community involvement with staff support.

We hope to see you for the Taste of Allston, June 27th at Harvard Stadium!

Boston vs. The World

2010-06-17T10:42:00.000-07:00

Remember, Boston vs. the World premieres this Saturday, June 19th at 9pm following Red Sox Post Game on NESN! Make sure to tune in to catch all the excitement as Boston Boxing assembles the team that will take on New York on September 11th!

Stingray now on Twitter!

2010-06-10T15:02:00.000-07:00

Follow Stingray Body Art on Twitter! Get up to date information on events, tattoos, piercings, and more!! http://twitter.com/StingrayBodyArt

Battle for the Rally FINALS June 11th!!!!!

2010-06-10T14:58:00.000-07:00

This Friday at the Middle East Rock Club Downstairs, Stingray Body Art and 420Mass.com present the Battle for the Rally Finals! Bands include, Doctors of Flight, The Force, The Woodland Creatures, and Planetoid, with appearances by Age Against the Machine and Quiet Desperation's Rob Potylo! Doors open at 8pm, 18+ This Friday. June 11th Downstairs at the MIddle East! BATTLE FOR THE RALLY FINALS!!!

Green Light for “Boston vs. The World” TV Show

2010-04-28T18:17:00.000-07:00

*** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ***

April 28, 2010 – Metropolitan Pictures, in partnership with Stingray Body Art, Boston Boxing & Fitness and 21 Nickels Grille & Tap, are pleased to announce a “Green Light” for their new original boxing TV series “Boston vs. The World” to be aired on the New England Sports Network (NESN.)

Following the success of the 7-episode reality-TV show “Boston Boxing: Team Training,” which began airing in December 2009, this new series will first build a “New England All-Stars Team” from among the best amateur boxers in the region, who will then compete, in later events and episodes, against teams and boxers from all over the US and the world.

Each episode will be one hour long, and will feature interviews with the competitors, close-up coverage of the fights and corner-action, interviews with VIP guests, and will feature commentary and more by renowned local boxing trainer and competition promoter Ed LaVache, owner of the Boston Boxing & Fitness Club in Allston, MA.

Episode 1 will be filmed on May 1, 2010 at the Club Royale (formerly The Roxy) 279 Tremont St., Boston, and will feature the selection competition for the New England All-Stars team. Episode 2 will be filmed on September 11, 2010 at the Club Royale, and will feature the New England All-Stars competing against select teams and boxers from New York State. Additional events and episodes will be announced as the series progresses and traveling schedules are secured.

The goal of the show is to bring regional and national attention to the highly-competitive and often-overlooked amateur boxing talent in New England - and across the world - and to also provide one of the most exciting annual amateur boxing event series in the country.

Each episode will begin airing one month after filming on the New England Sports Network (NESN) in prime –time slots (to be announced) with multiple prime-time and weekend repeats. NESN is “the goto network for sports” in the New England region and reaches nearly 4 million viewers within Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire Connecticut, Rhode Island and Cape Cod, and nearly another 2 million via satellite.

For more information please contact:
Scott Matalon
President, Metropolitan Pictures
617-901-3418
scott@stingraybodyart.com

Scott Matalon of Stingray comments on war over restaurant closing hours

2010-04-28T17:53:00.001-07:00

McDonald's says it will close Allston restaurant if city doesn't grant later closing time

Scott Matalon, owner of Stingray Body Art and vice president of Allston Village Main Streets, said inconsistent hours are "causing great problems" for local business groups trying to attract news businesses to the area. "We would like to see some consistency in closing hours," partly because of fairness, partly because people are simply safe inside a well lit restaurant or cafe than walking down a dark street. He didn't buy the argument that if every place shut at the same time, the result would be chaos in the streets of Allston, because Allston's the sort of place where that would have happened long ago no matter what, and it hasn't.

Stingray Body Art at Rock Your Ink

2010-04-21T19:28:00.000-07:00

Stingray Body Art at Rock Your Ink
Music: Matalon

7th Annual Rock The Village Music & Style Show

2010-04-11T20:27:00.000-07:00

7th Annual Rock The Village Music & Style Show promo video

‘My Allston Brighton’ youth video program

2010-04-07T02:10:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjGAYQeYkWw

A video at Stingray from the Allston-Brighton Arts Bridge’s ‘My Allston Brighton’ youth video program wrapped up at the end of last month with a screening at Honan-Allston Library.

Gina's Creations at Stingray Body Art

2010-03-31T23:44:00.000-07:00

Gina's Creations at Stingray Body Art

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ginascreations

Tattoos by Jamie Clinton

2010-03-24T04:50:00.000-07:00

Tattoo Artist: Jamie Clinton

7th Annual Rock the Village Music and Style Show!

2010-03-22T18:46:00.000-07:00

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

The 7th Annual Rock the Village Music & Style Show!
Harpers Ferry, Allston, MA. with an All-Allston Fashion Show.
plus Planetoid, The Organ Beats, Build A Machine, and Matalon
8pm, 18+, $10

Hosted by Adam from Stingray and Dave Tree!

Wealthy Knowledge for sale at Stingray Body Art

2010-03-13T12:30:00.000-08:00

wealthyknowledge.com

Wealthy Knowledge Supporting Boston's Freedom Rally

Stingray Body Art's Scott Matalon in news story on marijuana legalization hearing

2010-03-11T09:14:00.001-08:00

Thu, 11 Mar 2009
2010 Daily Collegian
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1401
Author: Rachel Tumin

Marijuana legalization bill with origins in the Pioneer Valley has hearing on Beacon Hill

On March 2, the Massachusetts state legislature’s Joint Committee on the Judiciary heard testimony on Senate bill no. 1801, “An Act to Regulate and Tax the Cannabis Industry.” This was the second time in less than six months the legislature heard testimony on the subject, with the Joint Committee on Revenue having held a hearing on an identical House bill in early October 2009. The bill was written and brought forth by Richard M. Evans, of Northampton, Mass.

When asked about the likelihood of the bill passing into law, Evans said he feels his legislation is a long-shot.

“[It] doesn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell,” he said, since “no legislator would touch it with a ten foot pole.”

He explained that his primary goal in petitioning this bill was to facilitate discourse on the prospect of legalizing.

He said he wants to “stimulate discussion on how to [decriminalize and regulate marijuana], not whether-or-not it should happen.”

He went on to note that the current bill only represents a “prototype,” just a suggested outline for how the process could happen.

Steven Epstein, treasurer of MassCann – the Massachusetts chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) – helped explain the goals of the legislation itself.

Regulation and taxation of the cannabis industry would have several effects. Licensing and regulations would enact safeguards for all those involved from production through consumption. Evans calculates that taxing the cannabis industry could garner at least half a billion dollars in revenue annually in the state of Massachusetts alone.

Epstein added that passing such legislation would also allow for the reallocation of funds currently used for investigating, prosecuting and incarcerating individuals for marijuana offenses.

Decriminalization would end what supporters consider an “unconstitutional restriction,” that, as Epstein said, “creates crime where there is no moral culpability.”

During the March 2 hearing, the Joint Committee on the Judiciary heard testimony from a diverse group of advocates. Bill Downing of Reading, Mass., a self-described small-business owner and elected town meeting member, argued that marijuana prohibition is an obvious failure, given its continued presence and use in our culture. Downing also said that in criminalizing what he sees as a matter of “privacy and personal liberty,” the government “weakens the moral impact of the term ‘illegal.’”

Following Downing, the committee heard testimony from Jack Cole, the Executive Director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). Cole retired as a detective lieutenant from the New Jersey State Police after 26 years of service, including 14 years of undercover narcotics work. In his testimony, Cole cited that of the 39 million nonviolent arrests in the War on Drugs since the Reagan administration, nearly half have been for marijuana-related charges. He believes this “misappropriation of resources” is a leading factor in police departments’ inability to “solve significant crimes” such as rape and murder.

The legislature also heard testimony from a grandmother seeking custody of her own grandson. She described herself as a college-educated computer technician with no criminal record, who has raised four children, the oldest of whom recently graduated from college with honors and is now a teacher in Boston Public Schools. Although she no longer uses marijuana, she says she has been denied guardianship of the child based on earlier admitted recreational use.

Student leaders from Suffolk University and Emerson College also gave testimony, with one student asking the committee, “When before have the people come to you practically begging to be taxed?”

Testimony was also offered by Scott Matalon, owner of Sting Ray Body Art in Boston and a community leader in the city. Matalon cited the 2002 National Survey on Drug Use and Health and the U.S. Department of Health Reports in arguing that growing marijuana in the U.S. alone in a $24 billion larger industry than corn – which, according to Business Week, is the largest crop in the United States, valued at $48.6 billion in 2009.

In addition to noted cannabis activist Epstein, the legislators heard testimony from the bill’s author, Evans. Evans began by contending that marijuana use is “inextricably embedded in our culture. It is ubiquitous,” he said. He continued to point out that in the past eight years, all 45 pro-cannabis reform policy questions presented to Massachusetts voters “have passed by substantial margins.” Even without a solid chance of becoming law, Evans reiterated the importance of opening a dialogue on how the state of Massachusetts could move to decriminalize, tax, and regulate the cannabis industry.

Video of testimony from the March 2 hearing can be found on the MassCann website, and more information on cannabis taxation and regulation can be found on Evans’ website http://www.cantaxreg.com.

Rachel Tumin can be reached at rtumin@student.umass.edu.

Free Event, Ice Skating with Stingray on Sunday!

2010-03-09T06:51:00.000-08:00

Stingray giving out free temporary tattoos supporting Allston Village Day" at Harvard Ice Skating Rink, Western Ave, Sunday, March 14th, 2-4pm, FREE!!

See you there.