stick and poke

noun

variants or stick-and-poke

: a nonelectronic method of tattooing that is performed by using a needle dipped in ink to place the ink one dot at a time into the outer layer of the skin

… began selling kits online, filled with sterile materials and directions for how to do stick-and-poke safely.

—Jessica Contrera

also : a tattoo created using this method

Whether you are looking to get a stick and poke of your favorite quote, or want something a bit bigger, wrists are the perfect places for tattoos.

—Brittany Natale

… every sort of person in the art school seems to have some mottled stick-and-poke slapped onto a calf or a wrist.

—Amalia Ono

—often used before another noun

stick and poke tattoos

… dressed in a T-shirt and shorts that reveal countless monochromatic tattoos, many of them stick-and-poke illustrations by artist friends.

—Rebecca Bengal

Examples of stick and poke in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

His large arms covered in an array of amateur stick and poke tattoos confound: Is there an unreferenced stint at RISD or CalArts in Niki’s past? —Caleb Hammond, IndieWire, 1 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

2008, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for stick and poke

• artichoke
• nanticoke
• womenfolk
• awoke
• baroque
• bespoke
• colloque
• convoke
• evoke
• invoke
• keystroke
• kinfolk