Apprentice love: Emily Roberts aka tv dinner tattoo

Emily Roberts (she/her) apprentices at Cock A Snook in Heaton, Newcastle Upon Tyne. You might know her as tv dinner tattoo (@tvdinnertattoo), here we about her “ignorant” designs, her journey into the tattoo world and her hopes for the future…

You grew a large social following through your art and flash designs before you were tattooing. Can you tell us about this? 

I started my account in 2022 – the goal was to find an apprenticeship and get into tattooing as a career. To get my name and designs out there, I was determined to draw and post every day to help me find my audience. The support from my followers gave me great motivation to keep searching for a placement and improving my drawing until I eventually find my place at Cock A Snook. 

How did you become a tattoo apprentice? When did you start? 

My account was still new when my now mentor sent me a lovely message about my profile and gave me some words of encouragement to keep pushing and building my portfolio. At the time, they already had an apprentice so there no space for me, but one year later I got a message asking if I’d like to come into the studio to see it and have a talk about a possible apprenticeship opportunity. It all went amazingly and I officially started my apprenticeship in June of 2023.

What inspires your designs? 

I look to my personal interests for inspiration – I find enjoyment in drawing things I’m passionate about. For example, I look back to things I remember from my childhood or I’ll be inspired by a favourite film, song or video game. I also like to look to the ordinary and turn everyday objects into silly designs.

How would you describe your style? 

Ignorant blackwork with some illustrative thrown in there.

What’s the studio like where you’re working? 

The studio is an absolutely amazing space to work and hang out in. All of the artists I work alongside are so supportive and helpful and it’s somewhere I can openly be myself without fear of being judged. Cock A Snook always stood out to me as a studio, even before I found my place there, as it strives to be a safe and inclusive space that is welcoming to everyone.

We’re huge fans of tattoo artist Kezz and the work she does under Tattoo Smarter, is she mentoring you?

Yes, Kezz works as my mentor and has taught me an insane amount about all areas of being a tattoo artist as there is so much to learn both on skin and off. She is also just an incredibly thoughtful, kind and caring person who wants to improve tattooing for the better for artists and clients alike. 

What’s been your favourite thing you’ve learnt so far? 

I think trying out and learning how to use different types of tattoo machines was so fun and informative but I also love the satisfaction of being able to pull a crispy bold line. I’m constantly learning so my answer is always changing…

What’s a day in the life as an apprentice like for you?

During a typical day, I get to the shop and do some of the shared studio cleaning jobs and then start getting set up and ready for whatever I’m tattooing. Any spare time I have inbetween is spent drawing and catching up on admin as well as all the behind the scenes stuff that goes into the job.

When I have time I also like to record “Day in the Life” videos for my social profiles to show off specifically what I get up to as an apprentice. Now that I’m getting progressively faster at tattooing, I sometimes tattoo three clients in a day which is great practice! I also tend to ask a lot of different questions during a day so I can learn new things to help me progress in my journey.

Do you help set up for other artists?

Before I ever went near a tattoo machine, I used to set up my mentor Kezz’s station as much as possible. Repeating the steps I was shown repeatedly was so useful in teaching me the ways to assemble and disassemble a station correctly. There have also been times where artists have been running a bit behind so I’m more than happy to set up for them and help out wherever I can!

What drew you to the tattoo world?  

I’ve been fascinated by tattoos since I was a child and I always knew I wanted to get tattooed myself. Even as a kid, I talked about wanting to become a tattoo artist but didn’t think I’d ever get there. Outside of that, I also just think carrying a permanent piece of art with you through life on your skin is the coolest practice.

What’s your first memory of tattoos or tattooing? 

My grandad had a very old-school traditional swallow tattoo on his upper arm, which I remember being obsessed with when I was small – probably because he was the only person in my whole family with a tattoo. A few years ago, I got a swallow tattoo on my arm to match in his memory. 

Can you tell us about your own tattoo collection? 

I started getting tattooed just after my 18th birthday and now I have 21 tattoos in total by many talented artists from up and down the country. I’d say my favourite tattoos are probably my matching glittery knee webs by @keelyglitters. They’re just stunning and have helped me feel so much more confident about myself and the area they’re tattooed on.

What does the future look like for you? 

My main goal is to continue learning and growing as an artist. In the short time I’ve been an apprentice, I’ve seen great growth in my art and in myself as a person, which I hope continues as I make my way. In the long term, I’d love to be able to guest spot at other studios as well as take part in tattoo conventions and other events. I’m just super excited to see what’s next and where this journey takes me.

Make sure to follow Emily (@tvdinnertattoo) on her tattoo journey and get booked in.

We’re always sharing our favourite tattoo apprentices on the blog, read more interviews here.

Apprentice love: Alice

We’ve loved Alice’s artwork for a looooooong time – we actually first spoke to the artist in 2020 (read our interview here). So when we saw she’d started tattooing, we knew we had to chat to Alice (@aliceneedstattoos) to find out all about her tattoo apprenticeship…

Where are you apprenticing? When did it start and how did you get it? 

I’m finishing my apprenticeship at Girls Girls Girls Tattoo Club in Wakefield, UK. I had originally started an apprenticeship at a studio elsewhere which ended up with me leaving to protect my mental health – I was on the verge of a breakdown from the way I was being treated.

I was lucky enough that Beth from Girls wanted to take me under her wing and give me a safe and inclusive studio to learn and work in.  

What drew you to the tattoo world?

I’ve always been interested in tattoos, I was fascinated by them as a teenager and like the idea of people having art on their body. 

Did you want tattoos as a child? 

Yes, I don’t really remember when it started but I always wanted them – even though no one else in my family was tattooed. I booked my first tattoo for my eighteenth birthday a year in advance because I was so excited.

Can you tell us about your own tattoo collection

I started getting tattooed when I was 18, I’ve grown my collection pretty rapidly but I’m very lucky to have been tattooed by a bunch of amazing artists. I think that’s the perk of living in Leeds!

The majority of my collection is by Lucy O’Connell (@lucylucyhorsehead), we are working on full back leg pieces of badass Greek mythological women at the minute. 

You’re a freelance illustrator as well, can you tell us about this? 

Yes! I’ve been a freelance illustrator for around 5 years now, I started it when I finished uni because I wanted to make work I enjoyed after doing a fine art degree.

I was lucky enough to get some exciting jobs early on which kickstarted my career, it’s ended up tying really nicely into my tattooing. 

What do you love about your apprenticeship? Have there been any challenges? 

I love the studio I’m at now, the babes that I work with have made me feel welcome straight away and it’s always good fun. Beth is a great mentor!

I’ve always been wanted to get into tattooing and it took me a long time to get my foot in the door. Being able to do it now is genuinely such an amazing feeling, I will always be grateful. 

As I mentioned I had a bad experience with the first studio I started at, unfortunately tattooing still has a real problem with men having power trips and I wouldn’t allow myself to be intimidated. 

Have you got an emerging style? 

At the minute it is neotrad, lots of bold colour which takes inspiration from my illustrative work. I love Japanese though and would like to develop this.  

What do you like to tattoo and draw? 

Anything colourful and bold! I love a bit of kitsch but on the other hand I love anything inspired by classical fine art, so it’s a real mix. 

What does the future look like for you?

Hopefully just developing my style. I want to work as hard as possible to be the best I can be and keep developing myself. Who knows where I will end up!

Make sure to follow Alice (@aliceneedstattoos) on her tattoo journey and get booked in.

We’re always sharing our favourite tattoo apprentices in our Apprentice love series, read more interviews here.

Apprentice love: Beth Kweeday

We instantly fell in love with the fun and bright tattoos Beth Kweeday creates at Bold As Brass Tattoo Company, Liverpool. We caught up with the tattoo apprentice to find out more about her style and life as an apprentice…

How long have you been apprenticing and how did you get your apprenticeship? I’ve been apprenticing since September 2020! I can’t give too much away, but I pretty much dedicated my entire last year of university to building a portfolio for apprenticeship hunting. So I had a good stack of work I could put towards it (I don’t think my uni tutors were very happy about it, but oh well). 

What drew you to the tattoo world? My mum, mostly. She has been getting tattooed for years and I would go with her to studios as much as I could. I was fascinated by it from a young age and couldn’t believe that people could make a living by putting cool art on people’s bodies, it blew my mind and I knew I didn’t want to do anything else! 

Can you tell us about your own tattoos and your first tattoo? I have quite a lot of tattoos, I got my first one at 17 and didn’t start getting any colour until I was 23, so I’m like 85% blackwork! My first tattoo was a little moth on the side of my ribs, done by Carole (@khan.juhoor) who I still love dearly, and I still love my tattoo!

I remember coming home after that trip and being the first one out of my friends to get tattooed and thinking I was the hottest shit EVER.

I also have a life size tattoo of a vegan sausage roll from Greggs, done by my mentor Rachel Baldwin, which is probably my favourite tattoo! 

Do you have a favourite tattoo experience? I have enjoyed all my tattoo experiences! I’m really lucky to be friends with a lot of the artists who’ve tattooed me, and they’ve all been amazing every time. Ones where I get to choose the music are always good though! 

How would you describe your style? I think I would describe my style as girlie traditional? I do a lot of fine line and blackwork stuff, but my biggest love is with bold lines and bright colours. Which is crazy because when I first got my apprenticeship, I had NO interest in colour whatsoever.

I was convinced I was going to be doing a lot of solid black, almost ignorant kind of tattooing. But, I guess apprenticing under Nick and Rachel Baldwin opened me up to a whole new style of tattooing and now I couldn’t be happier with where my work is going! 

What inspires you and what do you like to tattoo? I’m inspired by a lot of things, the people I work alongside, my friends and family, traditional tattooing, flowers and anything botanical, absolutely loads.

I love tattooing lots of things, I love doing fine line work, blackwork, colour, everything! But my favourite would just be anything where I can tattoo a bold line. Top tier satisfaction feeling, honestly. 

You do handpoke and machine tattooing, do you have a favourite? I love hand poking and machine for different reasons. I find handpoke tattooing very therapeutic and I totally appreciate the fact that it’s a preference to those looking to get tattooed.

But, because of the style of work I draw, machine tattooing is definitely better for it! So I would have to say machine is my favourite. 

What’s been the best part of your apprenticeship so far and what have you found the hardest? I couldn’t pinpoint an exact moment in my apprenticeship that’s been my absolute favourite, there’s been a few wow moments though. Tattooing my first grapefruit, finally getting the hang of setting up a coil machine and tattooing my boyfriend who was the first real person I got to tattoo!

Also helping out at Brighton and Leeds tattoo conventions, I had never been to Brighton before so that was super exciting! The Leeds convention was actually held right outside my university accommodation, and it was a crazy moment looking at my old bedroom window and thinking that five years ago I had no idea I would be where I am today. That was a weird feeling! 

I haven’t found anything particularly hard apart from actually learning how to tattoo! It’s super challenging and I am always learning new things, the best part about it is that you’re always learning, no matter how long you’ve been doing it. But it’s the best job in the world. 

Be sure to follow Beth to see more of her awesome bold tattoos.

Apprentice love: Alina Benson

When we first saw Alina Benson‘s tattoos on Instagram we couldn’t believe she was an apprentice! We caught up with Alina to chat all things tattooing…

How long have you been apprenticing and how did you get your apprenticeship? I started my apprenticeship at the end of 2019, but I’ve only been tattooing full-time since June at Tätowieratelier Sieben Raben, a private studio in Schwerte, Germany. I owe the apprenticeship to my friend Benne Clarus, who is training me.

What drew you to the tattoo world? My mother and grandmother have always been very creative, drawing and tinkering. I knew very early that I would like to tattoo one day. Even before I got tattooed myself. I got into the scene through my friend Benne Clarus, who has been in the tattoo business for more than 10 years. Since June 2020 I am now self-employed and for me there is nothing better.

Can you tell us about your own tattoos, and your first tattoo? I mainly have tattoos in the neo-traditional style from Benne Clarus, Mike Ldz, Konstantin Schmidt and also from myself. I had to start practising somewhere so now I have three tattoos on my legs. My favourite tattoo is my left hand of Mike, a moon. On the other hand I have a sun. I got my first tattoo when I was 18 years old and it is a Rammstein quote. It is not the most beautiful one I have to admit, but the only one with a meaning.

Sun and a moon tattooed by Mike Ldz

Can you tell us about the process behind your tattoos, what inspires you, how would you describe your style? I describe my style as neo-traditional. But I especially like to tattoo animals or things from nature. I like to use muted colours or pastel colours. Of course, sometimes I also do a more gaudy tattoo, but I prefer natural tones.

What do you like to draw/tattoo and what would you like to do more of? I always like to tattoo animals, especially I want to do more dinosaurs, they have always fascinated me!

What’s been the best part of your apprenticeship so far and what have you found the hardest? The best part of my apprenticeship is to see how I’m developing myself and to feel that my tattoos please people. I love that I can live from doing what I enjoy.

Apprentice love: Laula Page

We love finding new apprentices to share and support. We fell in love with the work of Laula Page a tattoo apprentice at Treiz’Ink in Paris, and knew we had to find out more…

I have been an apprentice for nine months at in the 13th arrondissement in Paris. It’s a spacious studio with seven tattoo artists and one other apprentice like me. The studio has a particularity, as every artist has their own unique style. This inspires me to be more creative and to learn a variety of technical experiences. I met my apprentice master through a friend of mine, she showed them some of my drawings on Instagram and that’s how it all began.

I think I have always been attracted to the world of tattooing. On my father’s side, I grew up in a Harley Davidson world, surrounded by tattooed arms. It has always fascinated and influenced me.

As soon as I  became of age my brother offered me my first tattoo: roses on my back. The rest of my collection includes my my left leg that I practice on. On my left arm I have a traditional mermaid, a traditional face of a girl, a key and a four leaf clover. On my right arm I just have numbers for now (credit card code!). On my right leg I have David Bowie.

I don’t have a particular favourite tattoo. For me every tattoos is a good experience and brings me beautiful people to meet.

I would say that my style comes from the traditional Americans tattoos in a poetic, melancholic and retro universe. A lot of things help and inspires me and my creations. Rock music, poetry, the retro universe, cinema, emotions, women and their power, their charisma, attitude, sensuality, the list goes on. I really like to draw women. I just started to tattoo with colours. And I’d really like to tattoo more women with colours.

The best part of my apprenticeship is that every day when I get to tell myself that I do what I love. I have a lot of gratitude for being an apprentice. It can get hard but at the end of the day, I’m glad I chose this path (may the force be with you).