Features Archives - Page 100 of 154

August 14, 2015

Black Market Tattoos: Charity Day

On Saturday 8th August 2015, Nush Turner and Fiona Lewitt tattoo artists at Black Market Tattoos in Leicester organised a charity tattoo flash day to raise money for LOROS Hospice, a charity local to Leicester who provide free care for terminally ill patients.

Nush explained to Things&Ink the reason behind the flash day:

I set it up because its been one year since we did our last charity event and we’ve been wanting to do one for ages. The reason I chose LOROS was because of my granddad. He’s currently battling prostate cancer. He decided a few months ago to shave his head in aid of LOROS when he started his chemo. Since then everyone has rallied up and he’s raised just over £1000 on his justgiving page. I wanted to show my support by hopefully doubling that figure! He’s quite into tattoos himself having loads of old school military ones, and I tattooed him on the charity day last year, too.

The studio opened from 10am until late and hosted an array of fundraising events with a selection of flash tattoos, a raffle with prizes including tattooing time, tons of art work for sale, jewellery and, of course, some tasty cakes.

The flash on sale was available for walk-ins but many designs had been booked by email prior to the day to avoid disappoint. Many designs still remain available, both Nush and Fiona are still tattooing the flash, as one-off pieces, to continue to raise money, and raffle tickets are still for sale.

In the end Nush did 11 tattoos on Saturday and Fi did nine. The overall total is still being calculated but so far they have reached £1555.

Photos taken by Ellie Mackness

August 13, 2015August 30, 2015

Alopecia, body confidence and tattoos, by Drew Beckett

Embrace the change, don’t deny it.

We chat to 31-year-old civil servant Drew Beckett (@drewjbeckett) who lives in London about alopecia, body confidence and tattoos…

Can you tell us a little about your background, and what first attracted you to getting tattooed? I grew up in Hertfordshire in a very middle-class environment and enjoyed an extremely happy childhood. I went to an all-boys private school and had very little exposure to anything alternative beyond what I might see in films such as Bound and Run Lola Run. Once I was old enough to establish a bit of independence, I began to commute to London a lot and fell madly, hopelessly in love with a city of infinite variety. I saw tattooed punks in Camden and realised that there was another world to explore, and more than one way to look and live your life. I also hit puberty about the time Angelina Jolie was emerging as an alternative figure in Hollywood, which certainly didn’t hurt my perception of tattoos! As soon as I was 18 I went with my best friend to a tattoo parlour in the basement of a Camden nail salon. As luck would have it, tattoo artists Thomas Hooper and Nica LeHead worked there. Forcing Thomas Hooper to tattoo a rubbish tribal dragon on my stomach remains a source of perverse pride. But even though the dragon is terribly dated, it began a fascination with tattooing and the culture of tattooing that I doubt will ever leave me. I have very fond memories of that basement!

When did you get alopecia? Can you tell us a little more about what alopecia is and how you got it? Alopecia is an auto-immune condition initiated when the body attacks itself. There are three types – areata, totalis and universalis. Universalis represents total hair loss, and that’s the type I have. There are many theories as to what triggers alopecia – from genetics to lifestyle – but there’s been very little research and no cure. The general consensus is that my alopecia was triggered by stress, though I choose not to dwell on the cause too much. I began noticing the symptoms in 2011. At first it manifested itself as a hole in my beard about the size of a 50p coin, before clumps of hair fell out until my head looked as if someone had shaved a map of the world onto it. I saw a specialist, but by this point my hair was falling out at such a rate that there was nothing they could suggest, and any suggestion probably wouldn’t have worked anyway. I remember crying in the back of my parent’s car for around one minute once I realised doctors couldn’t help me. That was the first and last time I’ve cried about it. Soon after my eyebrows fell out, then my eyelashes, then everything else. Be grateful for having nostril hair – I now have no idea when my nose is running!

Drew’s alopecia was brought on by stress and began as a small patch in his beard.

What artists have tattooed you and how did you pick them? I consider myself extremely lucky with regards to the artists I’ve been tattooed by. 14 years later, and the shoulder caps Thomas Hooper did for me still look amazing. Being tattooed by Nica LeHead changed my life in ways I didn’t understand until I was considerably older, but gave me access to places like Into You and Divine Canvas. I have a sleeve by Duncan X and the genius Delphine Noiztoy from the Lacemaker’s Sweatshop has begun an epic front-piece that I can’t wait to continue. I collect hearts as well, to which Alex Binnie and Matty D’Arienz o have contributed. My hands were tattooed by L’ain Freefall, and I have some awesome work from Paupiette, who designed the sexiest bald pin-up for me. I’ve also got a sleeve of Frith Street designs, and a cool Godspeed You! Black Emperor tattoo from Dwam. A lot of thought went into my Duncan X sleeve, but beyond that everything else has come about fairly organically. Alopecia was strangely liberating; by removing a certain level of control over the way I look, I was forced to find ways to re-define my image and have been able to be a more experimental and carefree as a result. My time at Into You was integral to that process as they are such a nurturing family of artists. Since then, Delphine has been instrumental in helping me rebuild my confidence and reshape the way I feel I’m perceived. So tattoos have formed two functions; the aesthetic and the therapeutic.

What is your favourite tattoo? There is no way to answer that question as I don’t really think of my tattoos as distinct pieces, more as components of an ongoing whole. I’ve always been proud of Duncan’s script of a Frank O’Hara poem on my arm, as well as the fact I have an example of his actual handwriting permanently inked onto me. Sometime I have to pinch myself when I think about how lucky I’ve been.

What tattoos are you working on at the moment? The main project is my front-piece, and I don’t think poor Delphine quite realises how much I’ve got planned. She is the only person I trust to tattoo my head and neck, which I think will be an extremely exciting project.

What next? What tattoos do you have planned? Beyond my work with Delphine, I haven’t got any concrete plans. I have a ‘party’ leg of random designs which I’d like to add too, particularly as everything on it so far has been done by artists I’m close to. I have saved my left leg for Paupiette, and one day I look forward to starting that – which will hopefully be a design that’s planned in advance!

Does alopecia make tattoos hurt more or less? Or does it make no difference The only difference alopecia makes is that you don’t need to shave the area getting tattooed, but after that the pain is just the same for everyone!

Do you think that getting tattooed is an important part of body acceptance? For me, yes. I was able to take control of how I presented myself to the world. If I was given the opportunity to have my hair back, I wouldn’t take it. But this is a personal and subjective decision. I certainly don’t think body acceptance is predicated on body modification. Tattoos aren’t for everyone, and I think there are other ways for someone with alopecia to mitigate their loss without the need to black in their nipples. Thanks to the democratisation of the internet, there is a lot of inspiration online for anyone wanting to own a condition they didn’t choose. Once you get your agency back – by whatever means – alopecia becomes much easier to handle. My outlet was tattoos, but I have seen some sufferers find all sorts of creative outlets to embrace the baldness, and that’s incredibly inspiring.

What do you enjoy about the aesthetic of your tattooed body? First and foremost, I enjoy wearing my friend’s work and their love on my skin forms a permanent armour that I carry with me every day. Aesthetically there is something incredibly empowering about having a giant skull on my chest, and I enjoy the heightened feeling of otherness the combination of my tattoos and baldness give me. I hope to continue to explore that union and harmony, and eventually perfect a look somewhere between androgynous alien and Mad Max War Boy. There is nothing better than wearing a well-fitting suit with tattooed hands though!

Any advice to others who have alopecia? Alopecia is a deeply traumatic experience which no-one can fully empathise with until they’ve experienced it. As a result, it’s rare that people will accept how emotionally difficult the loss of control over your body is. So firstly, I would reassure anyone that it’s OK to grieve for what you’ve lost. Secondly, I would suggest (though this is a matter of choice) not fighting it. When my hair began falling out, Duncan tattooed ‘Adapt and Overcome’ on my neck. Embrace the change and style it out. Alopecia gave me a modelling contract, left me better dressed and – most importantly – forced me to become a kinder person. The process of change is wrenching, but once it’s over you have the opportunity to be reborn, to reshape your identity both spiritually and physically. Alopecia can grind you down, but it can’t kill you. You’ll still be hot without hair, you’ll still be charismatic and you’ll still be an amazing human. Embrace the change, don’t deny it.

August 11, 2015August 30, 2015

Charity Tattoo: Still Standing

Our Italian contributor Ilaria went to the charity event ‘Still Standing’ at Adrenalink tattoo shop in Marghera, to raise money for the victims of a tornado in Venice. Here is her diary of the day and the tattoos that were created…

On 8th July, a tornado hit the Venice outskirts along the Riviera del Brenta, known for the magnificent Venetian Villas. Many people have volunteered to help those who have been affected by this terrible misfortune. When a tornado hits a place it doesn’t consider religions, borders or the colour of skin. It just follows its own route and destroys. Many homes and lives have been ruined. Millions of euros worth of damage has been caused and hundreds of families have been left without a place to call home. The fear was – and still is – huge, because such an event has never occurred in Italy before.

To support those victims of this natural disaster Adrenalink tattoo shop decided to organise a charity event!

Crez and Stefy, tattoo artists and owners of the shop, who are known in the tattooing industry for creating high quality tattoos, influenced by Japanese history and culture. On Sunday 26 July 2015, they came together with tattoo artists Rio and Diego to help those who are unfortunately now in difficulty, with a 100% charitable event called ‘Still Standing’.

Tattoos by Rio

The walk-in day started from 4pm, with tattoo flash prepared especially for the occasion, there were prints available to buy as well as DJ sets and entertainment.

Everyone loved the array of flash and each tattoo started at €50 and then people would bid on each design, the highest bidder would then have the flash tattooed. I thought this was a great way to raise money, as everyone could help give to charity and the starting bid was really affordable. Every one who got tattooed during that day was also thinking about helping someone else. And that’s simply great.

Tattoos by Stefy

Tattoos by Crez

Once again tattoos are a force that brings people together, beating down old barriers. What better way to show your solidarity to others than with a charity tattoo? All of these tattoos have a story and piece of life to tell, they are now connected with the tornado and the disaster that ensued.

August 10, 2015August 10, 2015

Dad gets cochlear implant tattoo to support daughter

Alistair Campbell, a father from New Zealand, has got a cochlear implant tattoo to support his hearing impaired daughter. His six-year-old daughter has two of the implants to help her hear, as she is profoundly deaf in one ear and has a condition which limits the amount of sound transmitted to her brain. Now her dad has one to match.

He had the tattoo to show his daughter that “he could go through a little bit of pain for her too.”

When Charlotte saw her dad’s version of a cochlear implant she giggled, touched it and told him it was “cool”. Charlotte’s mum, Anita Campbell, wasn’t so sure her daughter had quite grasped the significance of the tattoo yet.

Images and family quoted from NZ Herald

August 10, 2015August 30, 2015

Fashion Pearls of Wisdom: The Cost of Permanence

Our guest blogger is Natalie McCreesh aka Pearl, a fashion lecturer, freelance writer and creator of Fashion Pearls of Wisdom. This is the third of many posts to appear on th-ink.co.uk, in which Natalie will be telling us about her life in tattoos. Catch up on the first and second posts in the series.

Aren’t you worried how dated your wedding photos will look when you’re older? How can you justify spending all that money on your wedding when there are starving children in the world? Don’t you think it’s a bit selfish getting married when some people who are still single might get upset about it? You’re wearing a red wedding dress, wow you must be a slut!? No men will ever find you attractive once you’ve gotten married. How on earth will you get a job after you are married, employers will just think you’re unreliable and unprofessional – needing all that time off to have babies!?

Be honest, you would never, ever say any of those things to a bride. Getting married is often an expensive affair that will change you and impact the rest of your life by a means of permanence. I use the wedding analogy as I and many other tattooed women face this strange barrage of questions on a regular basis. Yet there is no shame, no recognition that doing so is rude and insulting.

Backpiece by Tacho Franch

Aren’t you worried what you will look like in your wedding photos with all those tattoos when you are older? How can you justify spending all that money on tattoos when there are starving children in the world. Don’t you think it’s a bit selfish getting tattooed when so many people are offended by them? You have tattoos, wow you must be a slut! No men will ever find you attractive once you’ve gotten heavily tattooed. How on earth will you get a job once you have visible tattoos, employers will just think you’re unreliable and unprofessional – scaring off all the customers!

It’s a given that people will be curious towards those of us who are tattooed, those who choose to go past the holiday dolphin on the ankle and cover a large part of our skin with ink. Most questions come from an innocent mouth, intrigued rather than insulting yet producing that result all the same. I’ve had a woman chase me down the street and try to lift up the back of my shorts to see a Sailor Jerry style wolf on the back of my thigh. When I turned around to give her a mouth-full I saw she was with her two young children so I bit my tongue and answered her question as to where I had gotten it done – how she could tell it was a good tattoo from the minuscule part of it that was on show I’ve no idea.

Wolf by Kelly Smith

By far my worst experience was a group of guys at a crowded bar talking loudly about my back piece as I stood in front them. I’d left the girls to guard our seats and battled to the bar for a round, suddenly I felt very alone. The bar was jam packed so I couldn’t escape and resigned myself to listening to them mutter, when one managed to saddle up beside me ‘that’s a big tattoo’ he yelled, ‘how far down does it go’ and he proceed to try and pull down the back of my dress. I couldn’t tell you what I said but luckily it was loud enough for the bar security to drag him out. ‘Bloody hell he didn’t mean any harm’ I heard his mates protest on the way out. Harm meant or not, it was caused, I’m now wary of going out at night with my back piece on display without my boyfriend. Anyone trying to pull down the dress of a non-tattooed girl would have been accused of sexual harassment. Us tattooed girls are tough, we spend hours upon hours having needles sunk into our skin, but experiences like that would upset anyone.

On a lighter note there are of course the ridiculous questions which can only be met with an entertaining answer. How much did your tattoos cost, how can you afford it? Oh I get paid extremely well from my high profile job – OMG yes tattooed people can have careers too. We also save up our hard earns just like people save up for a car, a holiday, a designer handbag. Why the choice to decorate your body with tattoos is still such an enigma for some I cannot answer, but I sure do enjoy a good witty comeback story!