Stray Tatts in Attleboro Sharing a Lifetime of Art

Eric Berghman has been in the tattoo business for more than 37 years, but he said his passion for the art began before he was making money doing it.

"I first started drawing when I was a little kid," he said. "From as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a tattoo artist."

Berghman owns and operates Stray Tatts Studios in Attleboro. He said he has been around tattoos for most of his life.

"My grandfather was covered in tattoos," he said. "We were very close."

Berghman said he always enjoyed drawing cars, especially modified stock cars like the ones his cousins used to drive.

"I grew up around them," he said. "My cousin is a three time NASCAR modified champion. A lot of cars, and Mad magazine."

Berghman said he always drew what he saw growing up, and it developed from there.

"I tried to get them as close as I could, and what I was around the most were cars," he said.

Berghman said he originally got in touch with a tattoo artist in Pawtucket, and started working under Norm Cody. From there, he worked with Mel McIlhaney, Spider Webb, Sailor West and Budd Mott. He said he still works with his good friend and mentor Ronnie Daigle from Providence.

Five years ago, Berghman said he opened the tattoo parlor. He said it's been a rewarding experience, both artistically and businesswise.

"You know, most of my customers have become my friends," he said. "It's a serious level of trust. I've got 750 friends or so on Facebook, and most of them are tattoo customers that turned into honorary nieces and nephews."

Berghman said the permanent nature of the tattoo business requires a great level of trust, which develops into personal relationships with his customers.

"Sometimes, they come in to talk about life problems with me," he said. "They just come in and share their joys and share their sorrows with me."

Berghman said he has tattooed himself more than 50 times. He said he has no idea how many tattoos he has made over the years.

"Thirty-seven years? Whew, that's a hard question," he said. "I don't know, how many notes does a musician play?"

Berghman said he also used to play music across the country. He said he's played with the likes of Commander Cody and Brian Setzer. He said his band was called the Trailer Park Cowboys.

"I actually met my wife Jodie on the road," he said.

He keeps a couple of guitars nearby to strum if things get slow.

Berghman said he donates to the Friends of the Attleboro Animal Shelter, and he and his wife adopted two cats from the shelter.

Stray Tatts is located on 5 Park St. and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m.