I prefer a black and white tattoo with color tattoo inserts. And of course dark, horror themes. I've loved this whole style since I was a child. I loved to watch horror movies and all the fantastic things attracted me very much. Also I look a little like a vampire with pale skin, black hair and light eyes. So nature itself told me to love mysticism. I adore to make animals and sometimes portraits of person who i really like.

Where did you get the idea of becoming a tattoo artist?

Thanks to my friends. When I was studying at the university, my friends told me that it would be nice for me to do a tattoo. To be honest, I didn't really like the idea. And in general, I never dreamed of being a tattoo artist. I was preparing myself for something completely different. But my plans and my destiny have diverged.

When exactly did you start making tattoos?

The very first ones were made in the kitchen. One day, my tattoo artist friend helped me out for my very first time. Then my friends gave me the equipment and I did the tattoo myself. It was terrible and very scary. Now begginers are buying cool equipment and starting to learn. When I started it wasn't like that at all. Even a rotary tattoo machine didn't really exist.

Is tattooing a job or a lifestyle for you?

At one point in time, it was my lifestyle. I also adored piercings, I had a lot of them. When I started working as a tattoo artist, I started getting tattoos on myself. I was   always like a cheeky girl. I listened to heavy music, painted my hair in different       colors before it became mainstream, hung out at concerts and of course hung out with friends. After 10 years, of course, I have changed and have long been moving away from this image. This is called growing up.

What do you do when you don’t make tattoos?

I am drawing a lot. This has already become my second job, I went to this for a long time and mentally prepared myself. Well, in addition to creativity, I probably can't say that I do something special. I am a very closed person and I like to spend time     alone. You will never find me anywhere in a club or at a partys. But iu can find me easy in a museum or in a park in the headphones I generally like to walk this is a main hobby.

Have you ever wondered who you would be if you didn't make tattoos?

Of course, this is what I am doing now, I am an artist) since childhood, I knew that my work would be associated with creativity with drawing. I couldn't imagine anything else for myself. In general, before becoming a tattoo artist, I tried myself in different professions. I was also a designer of interiors, and worked in advertising, and even made up newspapers the worst job of my life was a portrait painter and worked in the gaming industry. But I also have another love of my life, which is learning languages. I even planned to learn the languages at the university. At the moment, I am learning languages and drawing pictures the dreams come true.

You have your own tattoo and piercing parlour. Is it hard to run your own business?

Yes, there was such an experience in my life. Like any business, it is very difficult. In my case, all my time was spent on the studio and various organizational issues. From an artist, you turn into a director. I didn't like it at all, because I have to create and draw. And I definitely don't plan to open a new one anymore.

Any advice for those who would like to start their own business?

Honestly, now I think  is not the good time to open studio at all.There are a lot of tattoo studio in any cities . And it is not like high quality studios. Every well-established or not-so-good tattoo artist believes that they should open their own studio. In my opinion, it is better for such guys  just to unite a person of 5-10 artistis and make one cool studio in their city. Invest money, find nice location, etc. In this case easier to get a really high qualitu studio, to make really top. Also it would be easier for customers to choose a studio

Do you like guest  spots? What's cool about them?

At some point in your tattoo career, it's very cool. There is an opportunity to see a lot of new places. Meet new people and also earn money. But there is anoter side. Constant trips take a lot of time, they are very expensive and very exhausting. Personally i am not fan of guest spots.

And tattoo conventions?

Tattoo conventions are very different. Weak conventions with bad organization are     looking a very ridiculous. Well, strong European ones-this is of course a portion of     the next experience and new acquaintances. It's so cool when artists come from almost all over the world to one place. When I just started tattooing, conventions helped me a lot in my development.. I just came up and watched how the artistis I liked worked. I didn't ask them anything and just watched and analyzed the work. And so I put the knowledge I gained into practice, and it worked.

What are the biggest drawbacks to this "profession"?

My personal opinion is that the tattoo industry still remains to be an underground theme. I would like our industry to enter a more serious business, so that it becomes part of  a large art business. In the meantime, unfortunately, not everyone takes us     seriously. Yes, tattoos are very popular, it is difficult to meet a person without a           tattoo in our time. However, in many countries, this profession does not exist at           the state level. It is not recognized. Tattoo industry has to take a new level.From           other aspects, this is of course health. Eyes, back, hands, and including the psyche.     You have to communicate with a huge number of people and they are all different and sometimes not very pleasant characters. It's exhausting. After a certain period of work, you really have to repair yourself, go to the doctors, go to massages, etc. In fact, physically tattooing is very difficult. After a busy day at work you feel like you've been unloading sandbags all day.

Do you remember your first time sticking a needle into someone's skin?

The very first time I remember and I even have a small video (no one will ever see it). I remember  i was puting a white ink on a tattoo of my friend, he was a tattoo artist. I wasn't that scared at the time, I was just trying to sort of draw on my skin. I think     at that time I did not realize what was happening at all. And I was not serious  about the tattoo at all. It was more for the fan.

Do you remember your first tattoo machine?

Yes i remeber. It was a cheap Chinese tattoo machine. My friends gave it to me. At the time, I had no idea what a good machine or what a bad. Actually there were not so many of them on sale.

A coil or a rotary machine? What do you choose and why?

Of course, rotary tattoo machine. The perfect machine for realistic tattoos is rotary. Because of the light weight, ergonomics, and speed of work are ideal. The coil tattoo machines are perfect for those who do old school.

What equipment do you use to make tattoos?

I use Inkjecta. The tattoo machine from Ausralia. I use only cartridges as it is easier and faster. And also in my work I do not use vaseline and soap. For many ppl, this is very strange. With vaseline, the skin bleeds more and soap irritates the skin.           Periodically, I wash off the tattoo just with a healing cream during tattooing. In       the rest, I use the same as other tattoo artists. Actually nothing special.

Do you prefer any particular style of tattooing?

Ideally, I prefer a black and white tattoo with color tattoo inserts. And of course dark, horror themes. I've loved this whole style since I was a child. I loved to watch horror movies and all the fantastic things attracted me very much. Also I look a little like a vampire with pale skin, black hair and light eyes. So nature itself told me to love mysticism. I adore to make animals and sometimes portraits of person who i really like.

Do you come up with your own designs and where do you draw inspiration from?

I only work on my own projects. Either I make them myself or the client just tells me the idea and I prepare an individual design for him. Inspiration can come from anywhere. From watching a good movie to just having good weather outside.

Do you undertake to make covers or tattooing on scars? It is not a simple thing...

Yes, it's a very difficult job, but I love cover-ups. I like the process of transformation itself. It was shit and it became candy. The only negative in all this is that not every tattoo can be covered. Also with scars. And people do not understand this. They do not want to make session of laser  for a cover-up. Too dark tattoos should be lightened bef cover. But people want cool cover up here and right now                             but sorry guys in some cases it does not work like that.

How long does one need to wait for a tattooing session with you? How can one make an appointment with you? Do you booking sites, such as Tattoodo or InkSearch?

Nothing complicated,  just text to me in ig. I recently moved in Warsaw, so the queue is not so long yet. Also u can find me on Tattodo.

Your own picture or a graphics programme/a graphics tablet? What do you choose and why?

Of course, for tattoo designs, graphic editors and photos are used. There is no point in drawing a tiger  from zero and spend 20 hours for picture. But some of people are thinkig that we are working like that. I prefer to work with wacom and photoshop. The perfect combination for a quick professional result. But sometimes I make quick sketches of a composition on paper. I still can't decide what I like more-drawing on paper o ditital drawing.

Which is a greater skill? Making a cool design or transferring it on the skin?

Both, without a good design, there will not be a good tattoo. And there will not be a good tattoo without a high-quality tattooing skill. It like the type of fashion designer who draws well but sews bad. Yes, on design, the dress is cool, but it is only sewn quite ифв and does not sit on the figure and so in many ways.

What do you think about "tweaking" photos of tattoos you've made? It is currently a quite “fashionable” phenomenon among tattooists... and clients fall for this procedure.

This is a sore point for me. I think this is pure deception. When in a photo or video you see such a black pigment without a single light-shadow - this is bad, in real life the pigment will never be like this. But the problem is no longer with the artists  themselves, but with the people who like it.  If they were not conducted and they would not like to be deceived-it would not be so popular. It comes to the point that people do not perceive the real cool tattoo in the photo as it looks in real life and say that oh something is wrong with it. Like "oh this tattoo is not contrast, i will show u real tattoo" And then he shows the tattoo with bunch of filters. Do not belive it guys.

Do you remember the first tattoo you made?

It was  so-so. Tt was three small skulls on the  forearm of a friend of mine. I was stressed, I was very afraid, we did it for about 7 hours, probably. I had terrible equipment and by the end of the job my unit was smoking it was both funny and sad and scary. A lot of emotions in one second. Somewhere even I have a photo of this very work, someday I will show it to the world.

What is the tattoo you’re most proud of?

Let's start with the fact that I have almost no girls at the session. 99 percent of these   are men. I can't say that I like one particular work very much or that it has influenced something. In general, I am proud that i coped with this difficult male profession. That I was able to develop my own style, I have a lot of skills. I am pleased that ppl from all over the world copy my work. Recently I started to collect the copies of my work.

And thestrangest tattoo you have ever made?

A nail on the whole  back. Just a huge nail. It was a guy and his last name was Gvozdev as far as I remember. From russian it means nail. This is the most strange tattoo that I did. In general, I try to do more classic designs. I am to serious for funny tattoo  and wierd tattoos.

What motifs are there that you are fed up with or you have stopped using?

As a rule, the most annoying motives are the most popular. People are very afraid to do something new. Not everyone is ready to do what no one else has done before. they are afraid of condemnation and public opinion.

What is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you while you were tattooing?

When I did my first tattoo, my power supply started to smoke. It was some cheap Chinese power supply that my friends gave me. In the same time it was fun but  also i was afraid to burn the flat... not my flat. Actuall  what does really stress me it id  when i see that my client is suffering because of pain. I do not want to hurt someone but i have to.

Is there any particular client’s behaviour that annoys you?

This was  in Russia. I don't see that in Europe. The people here are very calm and accommodating. Polite and adequate. In Russia, every day I had to deal with endless rudeness in social networks. When a person just wanted to know the price of a tattoo, if it does not suit him, he can easily start insulting or it is easy just to say "fuck you". Sometimes my condition reached a nervous breakdown from such behavior of people. I really do not get that ppl are acting so rude.

Who are  “tattoo Joe Schmoes”?

Each product has its own buyer. Today someone can be a bad tattoo artist-and tomorrow become the best. And it's no secret that all the good and cool masters started out as the"bad" ones the masters. The only difference is that someone is working on themselves and someone is not. And someone just can't do it. This is everyone's choice, I have no right to tell people what to do in life. If he wants to, then let him do bad tattoos, and if someone likes it-okay, I don't mind. Everyone is like that and not everyone is willing to pay very large sums for quality. Many people simply do not understand what is good and what is really bad. The industry just has layers of different levels of artists and that's fine. That's the way it works in any business. As a rule, bad tattoos are cheap. High-quality-expensive. Everyone chooses what they need.

Is there an artist that had or still has influence on your style?

I'm mostly influenced by music and old master paintings. I takea lot from them. I love classical music and I love going to live shows. This is incredible! And among the artists I love the Russian Peredvtzhniki and the Polish artist Beksinsky. True I have never seen his work in live but this year I plan to visit his exhibition. I try to take a little bit everywhere, I never tried to copy someone, to be a follower-in any case. I have my own individual style which is still in the process of its development.

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