Starkweather Tattoo is a tattoo collective based out of Madison, Wisconsin. Their website, StarkweatherTattoo.com, serves as their business page, displaying links to their social media, the indvidual artists' profile and booking pages, contact information, and relevant business policies and tattoo care information.
The home page does not validate. The following errors were found:
The page for their Consent Form (which contains input types text, checkbox, radio, email, tel, and file) does not validate. The following errors were found:
I rate the site's design 6.5/10. I appreciate the use of a black and white color scheme on their home page and internal pages, with notable areas of color on their Artists and Aftercare pages that attract attention to important elements on the page and add some vibrancy to the site. Their logo is well-drawn and expertly conveys the feel the collective is going for in their design. I also like the use of a static background image on the home page with a transparant business logo and body section. Animated headers on their Artists and Policies pages also add visual appeal to the site.
However, despite the overall visual appeal, there are some issues with consistency between various pages on the site. The headers for the Artists and Policies pages are aligned to the left of the page, with an animated background image of clouds behind them; meanwhile, their Aftercare page displays a left-aligned Header in front of an image of a tattooed individual. The fonts also vary between the different internal pages which adds to the lack of consistency in design. Their Consent Form page also displays a differently styled header and fonts for their form section, but this may be due to the Consent Form page serving a different purpose than the other informational pages. Their Policies page also appears to have trouble displaying information, as it initially appeared pushed off to the left on my screen with much of it being cut off and unable to read, and eventually stopped displaying altogether. The logo on their home page is also extremely large and does not fit entirely in the screen at a 1366x768 resolution. There are a few floating elements further down the page that do not align with other elements and push the footer section down a significant length, creating an awkward empty space between the end of the main section of content and the beginning of the footer section. However, when displayed on mobile, the home page display looks much better, with the logo fitting entirely in the screen and the layout of the various page areas looking neater and more aligned. The Policies page also displays correctly when viewed on mobile.
I rate the site's usability 8/10. The site makes good use of link pseudoclasses to display different colors when navigation links are hovered over and the current page the visitor is on. The navigation area also displays logos which link to their Google Maps location, Facebook and Instagram pages, and Yelp Reviews, which all open in new windows. Furthermore, the Contact link is an internal link that brings viewers to the page's footer, which displays their contact information as well as an embedded Google Maps location. Despite the inconsistencies in design across internal pages' headings, the navigation bar remains consistent across all 5 main pages of the website. Additionally, their home page includes an automated chat feature to assist viewers who may not be able to find the information they're seeking from the main site navigation. The biggest drawback in their usability is still the off-center Policies page that doesn't always display. For a page displaying such important imformation, more effort should be taken to ensure that this page is always visible.
Despite the various design issues, this site does meet its purpose. It provides all the relevant and necessary information for a visitor wanting to seek information about tattoos and/or to book a session with a tatoo artist. It also displays plenty of information about each artist and how best to contact them. Each artist page also displays an interactive gallery of their work so any visitor viewing their profile will get a good feel for the style they specialize in. Their home page displays enough information about the business that a visitor can find out how to locate the collective, read reviews, and contact any artist they would like, while also not overwhelming the visitor with too much information at once.