Stories we wear on our skin
Things & Ink cover shoot for issue 7, starring Wendy Pham from Conspiracy Inc. Berlin.
Film by Papercut Pictures.
Order the issue from our website, thingsandink.com.
Photographer: Haris Nukem
Stylist: Olivia Snape
Clothes and jewellery: Ksuko
Makeup and hair: Keely Reichardt using MAC Cosmetics
Assisted by: Rosalie Woodward and Liz Cummings
Thanks to The LP Café, Watford
Front cover design: Hustler Squad
Issue #7 The Identity Issue cover star revealed. Tattoo artist Wendy Pham, Conspiracy Inc. Berlin, Germany.
Photographer: Haris Nukem
Stylist: Olivia Snape
Clothes and jewellery: Ksuko
Makeup and hair: Keely Reichardt using MAC Cosmetics
Assisted by: Rosalie Woodward and Liz Cummings
Thanks to The LP Café, Watford
Front cover design: Hustler Squad
Tattoo artist Wendy Pham is the face of The Identity Issue of Things&Ink. When Wendy first joined Twitter, she wanted to remain genderless in her online presence – she didn’t want to be recognised as an artist, just because she has ‘a vagina and boobs.’ (she tells us more about this in her open and honest interview in issue #7). So we created an androgynous cover shoot around this concept – strong, striking and unsexualised.
The issue is available to order from our website, thingsandink.com. And will also be available to purchase from our stand at Liverpool Tattoo Convention. And at the launch party of our exhibition on Thurs 22 May, join us on Facebook.
We’re divided at the Things & Ink HQ: is this video mesmerising or scary to watch as a tattooed person?
Video by tattoo artist Guet…
Over Christmas, you might remember that we launched a VERY exciting competition to win wedding photography, from Heather Shuker at Brighton-Photo.com, for the ULTIMATE tattoo love story. The competition was stiff, we had some awesome couples enter, so it was so hard picking our finalists – even with the help of our tattooed judges – Alex and Zoe Binnie, Rock N Roll Bride, Marry Me Ink and our very own Beauty Editor Marina de Salis.
But we are FINALLY, after much deliberation, announcing our gorgeous finalists. Here they are:
Vicky Morgan and Lee Withey, 31 & 27, from Nottingham. They met working together in the same tattoo studio
Marina “These two look adorable together, and the plans for their celebration sound magical!”
Kat Williams R&R Bride “ Thailand, and Disney Princesses – yes! I can’t wait to see how a really alternative couple do this! “
Roxanne Donovan & Greg Furber, 28 & 31, from London. They met on film set and talked of a dragon tattoo.
Kat Williams R&R Bride “because they clearly know how to party.”
Marry Me Ink “I love how they’re both film guys and met on the Fantastic Mr Fox set!”
Tanya Mayor and Chris Baker, 26, from Stoke on Trent and Barnsley. They met on Instagram and now work together in their studio
Kat Williams R&R Bride “because meeting on Instagram is flippin’ awesome”
Alex and Zoe Binnie “cute couple, look like a proper tattoo couple, bless”
We are currently arranging to do a love shoot with each of our finalists, which we will share with all of you! We will also find out some more about each of these couples before picking a winner.
On Thursday 1 May, makeup artist Keely and I made a trip to Selfridges after my dad had informed me that there was a pop-up “tattoo shop” after seeing a tweet:
We were a little disappointed when we discovered that the tattoo shop wasn’t a tattoo shop at all… there was Henna, and there was transfers, but no actual tattoos… (just tattoo imagery on the walls). Annoying considering that their website states that a tattoo and piercing shop exists on their ground floor – selfridges.com – this, in fact, was a pop-shop over a year ago.
The Tattoo Shop (the one with the henna) has popped up as part of The Beauty Project at Selfridges. The aim of The Beauty Project is to promote that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes – its aim to shatter some of the misconceptions that exist about what beauty is. Everyone is beautiful, young, old, fat, thin, and, of course, tattooed. Their un-retouched advertising campaign captures eight unknown stars chosen to represent all definitions of beauty.
Great idea in theory, but I can’t help but feel a little disappointed that on its opening night, the “tattooed” people at the event weren’t really tattooed at all – they had fake tattoos on.
But should I really complain? Is it a good thing that a huge company like Selfridges is trying to promote diversity – even if I think they could have done in a slightly better way?
What do you think of the #beautyproject? Do you think it is diverse enough?
The non-tattooed “tattooed” servers at the event:
