with a beautiful stem of peonies!

Just because you only have to cover a tiny space doesn’t mean that you have to have a tiny tattoo!

Susan has a tattoo done by someone who lives out of state that she really likes but she wanted to add more to it.

I did NOT do the light blue or heavy black areas of this tattoo!

We are focusing on changing the overall shape of the tattoo on her arm to make it a bit more organic. I am really really excited about the abstract aspect of this piece!

Because this is all in variations of grey it will heal very light and integrate well with the existing tattoo. We still have a bit more work to do and I’m so excited to finish! I want to do so much more work in this style!

I also started the color on Kate’s beautiful Columbia Gorge half sleeve. I love this piece so much!

The gorge is also one of my favorite places in the world. Isn’t it amazing how close we live to such a magical place! And there is so much to explore!

Recently, Alex and I took our adventures on the road for a few days in the Washington side of the gorge. There were elk and cranes, baby lambs hanging out with dogs, ice caves, wildflowers, breathtaking views, an observatory that seemed straight out of twin peaks, general stores with a cat named general and so much magical fun.

Friends. It’s time to have an amazing summer!!!

xo!

Stay tuned for cute bunny color!

Heather and I put these lovely lady leopard spots onto her hip almost two years ago

We recently made the addition of having the leopard spots turning into soft grey bird silhouettes as well as adding two sweet birds flying up her back.

People ask me to work on cute creatures often. Fur and feathers and fluffy sweetness! I love it so much!  But when Jennifer asked me to work on a feminine scorpion I was so excited by the challenge! Although it really isn’t as much fun researching scorpions as it is baby bunnies, (the internet generates some strange things when you are searching for scorpions) I had so much fun designing this piece and I can’t wait to finish it up!

Sometimes it’s fun to share the funny bunny love with your friends. Surprise! Trust me, they will love it!

i have no idea who covered your car in cuteness

it must have been a very funny bunny

xo!!!

Today we started Laura Jane’s beautiful poppies. She is so cool and today we also found out that she is my neighbor! Portland is such a small world! I am really excited to put the color in this one.

pretty lady poppies

Claire and I recently started a tattoo for her grandmother. Another one that I really can’t wait to finish! The tiny pins in the sweet pincushion her grandmother made! So much cute. Also, Claire is really really funny.

sewing rosary grandmother love with gilded frame

Kate and I are starting the color on this piece so soon! I don’t want to spoil the surprise because it is going to be sooo pretty when it is done! It’s lovely things from one of my most favorite places in the world, the Columbia River Gorge! Yup. It’s gorgeous.

ferns flowers and mushroom friends

This is a lot of unfinished business. So I’ll show you something that I recently finished up! Laura’s arm is so lovely! Like her! I will have healed and detailed photos of her newly flowered arm on my portfolio in the next few days.

flowers everywhere

It is so exciting to finish up a piece, except for the part where no longer get to see my client on a regular basis and I miss them!

And now I leave you with something very different that I recently made that I am pretty proud of. When someone you are super sweet on does something super awesome might I suggest making them…

bacon is pretty too

BACON ROSES!!!!

xo!

Speaking of sweet things…

Sometimes I get to do sweet little tattoos, and get to meet sweet people in the process! It’s little tattoo blog day! Yay!

Michelle has a new maple seed friend! I had so much fun working with Michelle! And not just because she laughed at all of my jokes.

maple seed sweetness

While Abby has the cutest little sprout friend!

sprout! yay!

And Shanay’s sweet little tattoo. She had me design the lettering based on the handwriting of her father, her mother and her brother. Her parents came with her to get the tattoo done and they are such a loving family. While most all of the tattoos I work on are a unique and special experience it really meant a lot to me to be a part of this process.

love

That’s all for today’s tiny tattoo blog update!

I must now also remind you that Blazer season is coming to an end. Grab your friends, get some nachos, and enjoy!

Go Blazers!

Oh my dear blog friends! I’ve missed you so! This winter has been quite the adventure and I am so exited to tell you about it!

Do you remember the holiday season? I was in sunny southern California for the holidays! It was so warm and beautiful!!! I’m only telling you this to to brag. And if you live in Portland, like me, it’s nice to know that the sun is out there somewhere.

Fun with my super cute mom!

Beautiful palm tree friends

I made a cactus friend!

Botanical gardens are magical.

The beach at Cabrillo State Park

I have also been really excited about the tattoos that I have been working on lately! Check this out!

Special design for her grandmother with soft grey flourishes

Forget-me-nots with soft grey based on a tuile design

Edelweiss!

We designed this tree with folk art influences. So cute!

Such a sweet tattoo!!!

Botanical half sleeve in progress!!!

And if that isn’t enough I also just returned from Breitenbush hot springs. I spent the night soaking in mineral baths outside while snow fell on me. It was such a magical trip. I went with my two very best friends who made me laugh until I was crying. That’s a lot of laughing. People, life is short, and sometimes hard. It’s so important to have magical times with the people you love and be really really good to yourself. Go have fun!! Right now!!!

Best friends! Snow! Fun! Love!

xo!!

This year I get to spend the holidays in sunny SoCal with my favorite person of all, my lovely mom (who is also very cute and funny), my stepfather and my grandmother Madge who is flying in from the east coast! Years ago, when I was living in Pennsylvania, the family all gathered for the holidays at my Aunt Peg and Uncle Bob’s house. We ate so many pizzelles and Peg made me my first snickerdoodles! Those blew my mind. (my love for cookies has always been very very strong) One of my favorite memories of that trip was when we all woke up in the morning to discover that in the middle of the night my Grandmother Madge had taken her sister and snuck off to Atlantic City. A woman after my own heart. I’m really excited to spend some quality time with Madge this Christmas.

And now! Tattoos.

Bianca was a very inspiring lady and I had so much fun working on her Manchester Rose!

Manchester Rose

We tied a few different elements into this tattoo to remember special places and times. It is such a sweet and fun tattoo, just like Bianca.

Speaking of lovely ladies, I had the honor of working on a new piece for the most lovely lady Heather.

Lovely lady birds

Last year Heather and I worked on leopard spots on her hip that fade into grey. (which you can see a hint of in the bottom left corner) She asked me if I would expand on the grey spots to turn into two swallows. I had fun with the design challenges of working of off her leopard tattoo, creating a flattering negative space with the existing tattoo on her upper shoulder as well as curving the design on her body in a way that would compliment the loveliness that is. We did a lot of the design in grey which softens as it heals. I can’t wait to show you what that will look like. I am so excited to finish this piece!

And in the categories of both lovely ladies and things I am excited to finish…

Deer Lady

Annie brought me a print of the lady with her deer and asked me to create a gilded frame for her. I love pretty ladies and deer as well as gilded things so this is pretty dreamy! I can’t wait to show you what she will look like when she is all done!

Can you believe that the holiday season is here? Hot Chocolate and snowflakes and the smell of pine and christmastume and cookies! and shopping and holly and glitter and men dressed in red and green adidas suits and stockings and cozy things and spending time with people I love. Christmastume (the annual christmas costume party) is This Weekend! I’m still not sure what my costume will be for this year. Last year I was Fe-Lisa Navidad. I know. Genius. I’ll let you know how it goes. In the meantime, Brandy and I took her boys to a Christmas tree farm! They had baby cows, chickens, bunnies!!!! and ponies! (although cute, the ponies were jerks. i never thought i would say that but it’s true) We went on a hayride, got holly to deck halls with and had a jolly time. As usual, my nephew Jack and I had a blast.

We wish you a Merry Christmas!

Lots of love!!!

I have been working on sooooo much cool stuff lately! I am so excited to tell you about it that I may skip my bloggy anecdote. But don’t worry! Today we have a musical theme and it’s highly possible that a pun or two awaits you.

Let’s start by keeping it old school. The lovely Liz is an awesome client of mine who comes to me with cool ideas that are usually in the categories of both traditional tattoo style and super cute. We also do a lot of collaboration on her designs. She brought me the font that we used for the dates and I totally love it. Hi Liz!

don't forget to give my love to rose

What could possibly go better with a flower than butterflies?!!!

butterflies are free to fly fly away high away

This piece is still in progress. I can’t wait to finish the color. Don’t they look so lovely on her?

Ok, since I’m jumping around…

It’s the life cycle of a tree frog! People. It’s really not everyday that someone asks me to tattoo the lifecycle of a tree frog. Actually, it’s never happened. Tadpoles are so cute! So are tadpoles with back legs! Also almost fully developed frogs with tails! Treefrogs are really cute too! Oh! The eggs! With the little eyes! This is a lot of cuteness people. (I do have a favorite in here but this is just a progress shot. I will wait until we are finished to tell you who the lucky favorite frog is. Is the suspense killing you?)

jump up jump up and get down

Although I am obviously thrilled with the content of this tattoo let’s get serious for just a minute. One of the most important elements (and one of my favorites) of designing tattoos is how the tattoo fits the body. I like to wrap things around and over the body and create negative spaces that emulate the body’s natural curves to both flatter the body they live on as well as help the design just look like it was meant to be there all along. In this particular tattoo I really love the negative space between the top of her design and the curve of her shoulder as well as how the right branch pulls the eye from the lovely curve of her neck through the design and onto to the lovely curve of her back. It’s one of the things that makes it so pretty!

Hey! Guess what! It’s winter! Time to get cozy in front of the fire with a really good book and a sweater. And maybe a dog or a cat. Also a hot cider would be delicious. Warm cookies are nice too. And friends.

Or! You could go to the mountain and play in the snow! We are so lucky that we don’t have to deal with driving in the snow or shoveling sidewalks but we get to go to the snow whenever we want. Have you been to Mt Hood yet this season? It is covered in so much snow! It’s so pretty! And there are so many fun snow activities!

so nice and warm...look out the window at that storm

This is what it looks like near Mt Hood right now! There are icicles on the logs! It’s sooooo pretty! Go there now!

I do apologize to any of you who now have House of Pain “Jump Around” stuck in your head. I know it’s not going anywhere. Everybody jump!

Lots of love!

This may be my favorite holiday. Food and friends and thinking about all of the things in life that make it so good. Like food and friends. A really sweet family. A really cute dog and two really cute cats. My dream job in my dream studio with my dreamy coworkers. My really nice house and the amazing people that I get to live with. Having so much love in my life. I can’t wait to celebrate it all by eating a lot of stuffing with some of my favorite people. And some pie. I will probably have some mashed potatoes as well. And of course I will eat bacon because in my family it’s not Thanksgiving without the bacon.

I hope you have an awesome Thanksgiving.

Guess what I have been doing lately? It’s true! I’ve been tattooing!

This was a fun and unusual tattoo. My client comes from a highly freckled family. She gave me a map of the arm freckles that her mother and sister have and I created an armband of each. A subtle tattoo and such a sweet idea.

Freckles

This project was also really fun. It was her first tattoo! My client asked for a simple branch on her forearm in a folk art style. I really love folk art designs and can’t wait until I get to do another one!

Folk Arm

I also recently did the shading for Brett’s falcon. We are still in progress and I can’t wait to finish! Stay tuned for the color!

Peregrine Falcon

I must tell you. Winter time is the best time to get a tattoo. You don’t have to worry about hiding your tattoo from that pesky sun and you don’t have to worry about not being able to go to the river because it’s really really too cold to go swimming people. Until recently I hadn’t  been tattooed since the threat of  summer weather. I am lucky to have the lovely Betty Marie working on my leg and it looks soooo cool. Guys, despite my cheerful disposition in this photo, tattoos hurt. It’s true.

Me tat-too!!! (get it?!)

xoxo!!!

The other day I had the honor of doing memorial tattoos for two amazing ladies. My clients are sisters and really wanted gingko tattoos that matched but not exactly. They turned out so beautiful!

If you have never had a tattoo on your ribs you should know it really hurts really bad. These women are very brave. It was also amazing how supportive they were of each other. We had a long day getting all of this work done but I really enjoyed spending the day with such cool ladies. One of the coolest parts of my job is that I have the best clients. I’m so lucky.

I really like working on memorial tattoos that are more representative than literal. I have a few myself and they are very special to me. It lets me walk through the world with beautiful things on me and when I look at these pretty things I think of people I love.

I also recently did a memorial tattoo that is relative to the season.

Her falling Aspen leaves came out so lovely and look so much like the world outside, right now!

This fall has been amazing so far. The weather is so sunny and beautiful! Take a long lunch! Call in sick! Go outside!!! It’s really really important. Especially in these parts. I recently was lucky enough to be on a boat with people I love. If you ever get the chance to do this, I highly recommend it.

Love you!!!

I really don’t think that I could possibly love inanimate things more than tacos and puns. I’m currently on the hunt for the most amazing Mexican restaurant in Portland and I’m taking suggestions. You know the spot. Salty chips and salsa served to you as soon as you sit down in the dark super squishy booth. Giant margaritas and enchiladas with a little too much cheese. Maybe even (pretty please!) a Mariachi band. I do love a Mariachi band. This love goes back to my 16th birthday brunch with my family. It was a really beautiful restaurant over looking the bay in sunny Costa Mesa, California. My grandfather had the Mariachi band sing “Mona Lisa” to me for my birthday.  Have you ever heard “Mona Lisa” sung with a heavy spanish accent? It’s actually really lovely. My grandmother whispered into my ear that the words to the song were really about me! Which was a little strange. This entire scene was a little strange emphasized by my 16 year old-ness but it is also one of my favorite memories.

When I’m not hunting down the perfect taco I do a lot of tattooing!

Laura asked me to design a Nouveau inspired botanical half sleeve for her using mostly native Oregon flowers. Yes!

So many pretty flowers!

Foxglove, nasturtiums, wild iris, dahlia, rose, daffodil, hollyhock, california poppy, and tiger lily! Yay!

Speaking of botanicals we started color on Larry’s 3/4 sleeve!

Peony!

This is just a sneak peak at some really exciting work to come. I just couldn’t wait to share a little bit of it!

I also gave the lovely Emma her first tattoo!

A sweet sketch drawing of a typewriter in black and grey. On her foot! A very cool first tattoo.

Friends. Fall is here. I highly recommend really fun fall activities! Fall is so fun! Last week I went to the pumpkin patch with my nephews who are my two favorite guys. We have a lot of fun.

My buddy Jack!

Until next time!

xo!