Fashion and beauty Archives - Page 4 of 33

October 2, 2019

London Tattoo Convention: Street Style

We adore tattoo conventions: everyone united by their passion under one roof, that buzz of tattoo needles and endless inked skin. We love stopping people to have a chat to find out more about their style and what they love about tattoos. Here’s who we chatted to at the London Tattoo Convention…

“This is my first ever tattoo and my first time at a tattoo convention. I went to Borneo for my 60th birthday, and this is to commemorate that trip. My friend had a tattoo done by the artist, and I loved it and I knew my first tattoo had to be done by the same artist, their work is just so different. I love my orangutan, it is even better than I imagined! And it didn’t take long, six hours in just two sessions. The artist is LA based artist, so I got it finished here today.” Tracey Judge

Tattoo by @ivanatattooart

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Bio chemist, from United States
“My back piece took one year to complete, in around 11 sessions, and I sat for about ten hours each time. I am filling a space on my arm today, at London Tattoo Convention. Last week I was in Germany for another convention with Russ (the artist) to show off his work. I’m a scientist, I’m trying to progress my career right now and would rather not have my name online. I do not want to be weaponised for my tattoos, in my field of work, not until I am high up enough to hire or fire the people who would use my tattoo against me – I won’t reveal my tattoos until I am in the postion of power. My job involves designing vaccines, and running grad schemes, it’s really full-on, like my life has been lately. Getting tattooed, the whole process of it and enduring pain, is my way of coping with stress. It helps me to navigate through my trauma, like a rite of passage through the years of marriage and school, and recovery. I am owning that!”

Tattoo by @russabbott

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“I am a friend of Rose Hardy, and am helping her at the convention this weekend. When I’m not helping Rose, I am a master stylist and educator at ARROJO in New York. I love my hand tattoos, the details that Rose put into them too.”
@tinachacha

Neck and hand tattoos by Rose Hardy

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@adelebrydges and @noyau_noyau
Adele creates gorgeous erotic objects in her London studio, and this year is her first time exhibiting at the convention. Her heart tattoo was done by CJ at East Side Ink in New York.

“As a leather worker, I take take photos of hands all the time, I work with my hands. My Instagram is filled with hands, hands holding my pieces and and tools. I want to cover myself in hand tattoos – I just want to be touched and touch everything.” @noyau_noyau
Hand tattoos by @jenzietattoo

It has been another wonderful year at the London Tattoo Convention, see you at the next one.

September 4, 2019September 4, 2019

Inked Girls: The sexualisation of women with tattoos

The female body is sexually penetrative in its very nature. The skin forms a protective layer, but this can only protect so much. The argument that our skin should not be blemished is a prominent one. Tattooing a woman’s skin is a way of reclaiming it, in its purest form it is naked and sexually accessible, and tattooing is a way of gaining control. It is power. However, some might suggest that the act of tattooing is, in fact, tarnishing it.

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Perceptions of tattooed women have always suggested sexual promiscuity and over-confidence, and over time this has become a negative way of viewing these traits. We still view female confidence with an irrational disdain. By those who aren’t within the tattoo community, tattoos are often associated with masculine men, sailors and bikers. It’s certainly how my parents view them. They’re for tough guys. Feminine tattooing breaks these boundaries and The Tattooed Lady performing in freak shows personifies the shock, or horror, of tattooed women in society.

Albert Parry, author of the 1933 book Tattoos; Secrets of a Strange Art, describes a rape case in late-1920s Boston in which the prosecutor, on realising that the woman he was defending had a tattoo, dropped the case. The judge and jury released the two men who raped her on the grounds that they had been misled by the butterfly on her leg. The defendant herself was put on trial, and her tattoo was seen as evidence of her guilt.

This seems to be a theme throughout the history of tattoos on women. Judgement and sexualisation are part of the process. Whether this is due to society’s ideological restraints on women, or whether the act of getting tattooed is depicted as a practice meant for “those at sea and criminals” alone, is uncertain. What is clear, however, is that in the world of two minorities – those with tattoos and women – face criticism at the hand of others.

It is rarely considered that women don’t get tattooed in order to challenge traditional feminism, but instead to enforce it. Common themes in female based tattoo art are butterflies, flowers and gentle animals; symbols of rebirth, and fertility. Instead of defying their sexuality, women can enforce it.

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Tattooing is a fantastic way for women to reclaim control over their bodies, but even the freedom they gain from their tattoos can be culturally written over. For instance, who hasn’t been told that they were, “such a beautiful girl” prior to having their tattoos and who hasn’t faced the implication they are ruining their body? These comments, although sometimes well-meant, once again take away the attempt at personal freedom and expression by the female involved. According to the Sociology MA thesis of A. Ellerbrok, “While 65% of the male tattooees indicated that their family members have reacted positively to their tattoo(s), only 36% of female tattooees indicated the same.”

Women have pioneered the use of tattoos to reclaim their bodies from traumatic experiences, including disease and abuse. Recently, women recovering from breast cancer have sought tattoos, both to create a new aesthetic for mastectomy scars and to express the devastating effects of the disease. Tattoo artist Sasha Merritt, based at Dragonfly Custom Ink in San Francisco, recognises the importance of tattooing in the healing process for women who have mastectomy scars and advertises a special rate for survivors.

The concept of the wild female is underpinned by the implicit understanding that to tattoo one’s female body with apparent ‘male’ body art, in regards to imagery, size, or location, is to take part in an irreversible act of destruction in relation to femininity. The attitude that a woman is “desecrating her beautiful body by marking it with something that’s not feminine” is stated by a participant in an interview conducted with A. Ellerbrok for her thesis. Another said, “Honestly, if I see a woman with a lot of tattoos I think oh my god what was she thinking, she barely looks like a girl anymore”. The latter participant was a woman.

The sexualisation of female tattoos has always been embedded in these stereotypical concepts, and has once again become a hotbed for debate. With the rise of Suicide Girls, and the origin of feminine tattoos being with circus performers, it’s clear that tattoos on women are heavily sexualised: the small costumes and flaunting of their bodies has secured this. After all, the tattooed lady wouldn’t be so shocking if you couldn’t see her tattoos.

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It’s interesting to note, however, that not all women baring tattoos are flaunting them intentionally. For instance, within the fetish community women with tattoos are common, but that is a separate part of their personality not a requirement of their job, perhaps just a reflection on the subculture itself.

An overview of the literature on female tattooing and sexuality suggests that the tattooed female is both interpreted and performed in the context of a highly sexualised media and advertisement-saturated society. According to radical feminist Joan Jacobs Brumberg in An Intimate History of American Girls (1997) we live in “a culture of unrelenting objectification where women’s bodies are used to sell everything” – even children’s toys such as the tattooed Barbie doll. This reflects the extent to which the sexualised female tattoo has become a normalised consumer image within mainstream society. Despite this image, tattoos are still associated with negative sexualisation, for example, the slang term for a lower back tattoo is the Tramp Stamp.

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The clearest example of the sexualisation of women bearing tattoos is the popularity of Suicide Girls, the online forum dedicated to those who live an alternative lifestyle. The website is now a worldwide phenomena; there are a huge number of paid models and an even larger number of paying subscribers, they sell merchandise and are a massive, successful company in their own right. What started off as a way of connecting is now a business, and they have grown from 200 models in 2004 to a huge 2,000 models in 2012 [update: there are now more than 3,000]. Everyone wants to be a Suicide Girl. They highlight the alternative lifestyle, and the beauty of a feminine and often tattooed scene. Sadly, the site chooses to highlight their differences with erotic photo sets, perpetuating the image of the tattooed lady being the easy-to-screw lady. What began with the intention of celebrating the uniquely beautiful has turned into a standardised erotic website with pictures of tattooed women. They tried so hard to be different that they set a new bar for conformity.

Words by Kelli Savill, first published in The Face Issue of Things & Ink which was published in 2013. Mannequin tattooed by El Bernardes, Dominique Holmes and Inma. Photos by Kristy Noble.

August 11, 2019

Interview with blogger Pale Ginger Pear

We’ve been following Cara, AKA Pale Ginger Pear, on Instagram for a while. She talks openly and honestly about illness (she has lipedema and lymphedema), being fat and tattooed. We caught up with her to find out more – spoiler alert, she loves Disney tattoos as much as we do.

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Tell us about your tattoo collection. When was your first? My first tattoo was a tiny roll of film on my left shoulder, it was done by Tyree Patrick of Big Nerd Tattoos – he is the only person I have been tattooed by. I had it done in the fall of 2002 shortly after finishing schooling for photography. Pretty quickly after that I added a camera to the right shoulder.

In 2006, I added some CD artwork. Then I took a few years off from getting inked. Before adding my gluten-free baking logo to my right wrist in 2013 (I am a celiac). July 15, 2014, my mom’s birthday (five years after she passed), I got a Wicked Witch and Flying Monkey from her favourite movie on my left arm in her memory. I remember thinking the Oz tattoo was big! In typical Ty fashion, he started talking to me about my next tattoo while tattooing me. The idea of an Ursula and Cruella half sleeve formed – which eventually evolved into my Disney Villain sleeve. As we were wrapping up the Disney Villain sleeve, he asked “what next?” I mentioned that the only other thing I liked enough for years was The Muppets. Next thing I know I was scheduled to start the thigh piece the following month.

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What do you like about getting – and being – tattooed? I love getting tattooed. I enjoy the pain as crazy as that sounds. I jokingly call it “ink therapy”. Ty has been a sounding board during many sessions about all the crazy DMs and offers I receive (one guy even asked to buy my pubes). Ty has also been great at helping me ramble about possible ways to grow Pale Ginger Pear.

I love how being tattooed makes me feel. I know my tattoos are pretty amazing so it’s an easy way for me to brush off people staring at me. In my head I justify it to myself that they are looking at my ink not my fat arm.

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Do you have any more tattoo plans? The Muppet thigh piece isn’t complete yet. There’s a spot above Swedish Chef beside Bunsen that I feel there is room for another Muppet. There will be some touch-ups and background added too, for sure. Other than finishing that, I don’t really have any plans for more ink. I like the contrast of one arm inked and the other pale and freckled. As much as that drives Ty crazy to be “unbalanced” and not take advantage of all that great “real estate”. We have talked about doing a pear with a tattoo on it but I can’t picture where it would be placed.

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You are very open on social media about your illnesses and your size, do you think instagram transparency is important? How do you hope to inspire others? I think transparency is important to a degree. I keep my kid and my dating life (for the most part) off of my IG. I don’t feel they factor into what I’m trying to show about lipedema/lymphedema. It’s nice to have somethings about my life as mine that can’t be judged and picked apart. I already judge myself enough for being a single mom, I don’t need strangers adding to my self doubt. I also don’t post my weight as I don’t feel the actual number is going to change anything for the person reading it. People carry weight differently so my number might look different on other people, but it doesn’t change my conditions.

I hope to inspire people, especially women with lipedema and lymphedema, to embrace their body as it is. There is no reason to not wear the little black dress while wearing your compression stockings or showing off your large upper arms, thanks to lipedema.

Can you tell me what having lymphedema and lipedema means, and how it affects you day to day? Lymphedema is where the lymph fluid flows down but, in my case, doesn’t flow back up from my lower legs properly. The lymph flow pools in my lower legs causing swelling. I wear compression stockings daily to keep the swelling to a minimum. If I don’t, my legs feel super tight, almost like they can explode. Lipedema is when fat cells absorb lymph fluid, damaging the cells causing it to not react to diet or exercise like typical fat cells. Lipedema is a dull constant ache. It also is very sensitive to the touch and bruises easily. It hurts if I try to sit in a tight seat where the arms can’t be adjusted.

When were you diagnosed? I was diagnosed in 2008 with lower leg lymphedema. It wasn’t until about 2016 that I was told I had lipedema as well. Then it wasn’t ’til 2018 that I found out lipedema was the cause of my bigger upper arms. I had originally been told that it was just hips/thighs/buttocks. Lipedema is more frustrating to me because there isn’t much relief for it, short of liposuction to remove the damaged fat cells. But most US insurances don’t cover the cost of the liposuction as they view it as cosmetic.

Does it affect you getting tattooed? Lymphedema areas can’t be tattooed, which is why my Muppet piece will be just on my thigh. Cuts or injections are to be avoided as lymph fluid will leak out of the opening and can be difficult to heal. Before I started my thigh 6D8DD8B4-E490-466B-9EFC-5CED267A500D piece, I reached out to some specialists in lipedema asking about tattoos. They had no real information or studies on it. Basically, the replies back were: “Not really sure, but if you go through with it, update us afterwards.” It wasn’t until mid-summer last year that I realised I had already tattooed on lipedema damaged area with Ursula. It made a lot more sense looking back at how Ursula was harder to heal and seemed to be “too wet.” My thigh has been really tender during the actual tattooing. My skin puffs and pinks up in the lipedema areas pretty quickly and makes it more difficult for Ty to see the saturation of the ink. It also seeps lymph fluid, which can be annoying.

4C5C3166-DE34-4E48-82BC-9F11F8FF1D62 Healing the thigh has been interesting. There is a very fine line of just enough ointment to keep it from being dry and cracking and too much that keeps it too wet that doesn’t allow it to scab over. The lymph fluid can cause some deep scabs which are really painful and sore. Ursula and The Muppets have been harder to heal than any of my other tattoos but not bad enough that it keeps me from completing my vision.

There are a lot of fat shamers online, how do you respond to haters? I tend to ignore the hate. I believe that they are just hurting, so they want people to hurt with them. There’s been a time or two that I’ve responded if I felt I could explain something in more detail to them.

What made you start blogging and instagramming as Pale Ginger Pear? I started my IG (and website) as the result of a bet with someone very dear to me. “Schmidt” had felt that I would get a lot of followers due to dressing well for my size/shape and having a story to tell. I thought he was crazy. We playfully bantered back and forth about it. February 11 2018 I decided to start PGP Instagram to prove him wrong and for the longest time I thought I was. I remember hitting 50k and his reply was: “So no followers…”

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I often hear women say they don’t want to get tattooed on the parts of their body that they hate, but to me, tattoos are about owning your body and feeling happier in your skin in a way you can control, do you feel that too? I NEVER used to show my arms. I hated how different my upper arms were in comparison to my forearms. But now I get so bummed when it starts to get cold again and I have to cover up my arm. I used to hide my legs and rarely wore dresses. Now I find myself picking out skirts or dresses, so when people talk to me about my tattoos, I can show them the Muppet thigh piece. My ink has helped me embrace my size and condition, things that I can’t really change. I feel more me with the brightly coloured ink than I ever did before.

We feel that too. Follow Pale Ginger Pear on Insta and check out her blog.

August 7, 2019September 4, 2019

Dreaming in gold

Alice Le Beau-Morley is a dreamy jewellery maker from London. I discovered Alice’s beautifully pastel Instagram feed sparkling with unique gold pieces one evening when I was scouring the social media platform for handmade earrings to upgrade my current piercings with. I was immediately drawn to Alice’s delicate, handmade earrings, rings and septum rings, that all looked so lovingly crafted and designed.

Words: Rosalie Hurr

How did you start hand making jewellery? I trained as a piercer when I was 22, as I love piercings (I have around 30!) I hadn’t really considered piercing as a career as its notoriously hard to get into so I just didn’t think it would be possible for me. But luckily I was offered an apprenticeship by an old friend and I jumped at the chance. I’ve always loved piercings, jewellery and styling peoples ears so it was ideal, plus working in a laid-back environment like that really suited me.

I ended up working in studios around London for four years, before I enrolled onto an evening class at the Working Men’s College in Camden to learn the basics of jewellery making, this was back in 2014. I took the classes purely for fun, and there was a lot of trial and error, but it was always something I’d wanted to try. From the first class, it all just clicked, and I knew that it was what I wanted to do.

The classes really inspired me, and I built a small jewellery bench from an old kitchen cupboard door and some mismatched legs from Ikea. It was very wobbly and I only had a few jewellery making tools. I taught myself a lot too, with YouTube videos and books. Alongside the classes I was posting some of the bits and bobs I was making on my piercing Instagram and people would comment asking where they could buy one of the things I had made. That’s when I decided to set up an Etsy shop, although I had no idea if it would work out! I was very lucky to have my boyfriend (now husband) who supported me for six months to see if I could get my shop off the ground.

What inspires the pieces you create? I love going to folk museums and looking at handmade crafts. Although to me, crafts are something much more tangible and made for wearing or being used, not for hanging in a gallery where you’re not allowed to touch them! I have such a strong connection to crafts that have been made by hand, as the makers tend to use skills that have been passed down from generation to generation. I just love the idea and sentiment behind this. I also love traditional jewellery that is made using rudimentary techniques, something that you can really tell is handmade, is so beautiful to me.

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I’m heavily inspired by folk art, weaving and particularly Polish and Hungarian embroidery. I enjoy knitting and embroidery, and I think piercing and jewellery making are similar, I love anything small and fiddly. I can happily make tiny studs for ears and lips for a solid nine hours and then knit for the rest of the evening. Originally I didn’t consider making piercing jewellery at all as I just didn’t think I would be able to do it by hand, but I spent a long time working on the idea and coming up with the labrets you see in my shop today – and I am really proud of them. People would enquire all the time and ask if I could make them studs for their tragus or helix piercings and I would always say no. I couldn’t figure out a way to make them secure enough that I would be confident in putting them in my shop. I tried so many different ways of making them and eventually I got there. They are so comfortable, super secure and have become one of my bestsellers. That’s why I love them, because I spent so much time working on making them perfect for my customers and it feels really good to have achieved that.

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With my own pieces, I feel so happy that somebody wants something that I have made with my hands, it means so much. I also try to support other makers too, that person imagined this thing and put care into creating it, it’s special to them so it’s special to me too. I also adore the wabi sabi quality to handmade objects, you can really see the touch of the person who created it. I feel like I value my handmade things more, like they have a little touch of magic to them. I hope people feel the same about my work.

How would you describe your style, do the pieces you create reflect a part of you? I tend to make things that I would want to wear, I love cute motifs like stars, moons, seashells and flowers. About five years ago I made the decision to only wear colours I really adore. Now I wear a very limited colour palette and everything I own is a cute colour, mainly pink and lilac. My branding and packaging is cute and colourful too, and really it’s an extension of me.

What advice would you give to other young women who want to start their own business or follow a creative pathway? I didn’t go to university and I think there are so many more options out there today. If there is something you are already interested in fashion, jewellery or drawing, just immerse yourself in it and do it every day. Don’t underestimate the power of the internet, get yourself out there on Instagram, show people the passion you have for what you do. Be prepared to work harder for yourself than you ever have in any other job. Nothing compares to being my own boss and making jewellery. I have absolute satisfaction from mastering a skill and constantly building on it all while supporting my family at the same time.

Visit aliceruby.com (warning: you will want everything.)

July 28, 2019

Search & Rescue Denim Co. – Tattoo Aprons made by Bad Ass Women

Search & Rescue Denim Co. based in Canada, create extraordinary custom aprons. Running since 2012, the Search & Rescue Denim opened their flagship store, where all the aprons are made in 2015. We chat to Sarah Bromfield, about the brand’s beginnings and how you can create your own custom apron…

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Bad Birdy in her custom apron

How did the company come about? Our founder Will was working in retail but had some sewing experience and a passion for design. When his friend Mitch Kirilo, a tattoo artist and owner of Vancouver’s Gastown Tattoo, asked if he could make a tattoo apron for him he took on the project. Once Mitch received Will’s apron it started popping up all over Instagram and more people started to contact Will and ask him to make them one too. At that point Will roped in his wife Jill to help out and started building the brand from the kitchen table where the aprons were being made.

What was the inspiration and vision? Will didn’t realise there would be a market for aprons and started by just taking the requests from friends and admirers of the original apron, but then once it started to take off he began his mission to design and produce the best quality aprons out there.

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Can you tell us about the team We are a small team made up of our production manager Joy plus her two sewers Keith and Lee-Ann. They are aided by Itsuki and Bonnie who prep all of the pockets and apron bodies once they have been cut by Sarah. Once the aprons are done being sewn they are finished off by Kirsten with metal grommets and rivets to reinforce the pockets and attach the straps.

Where do you source the materials for the aprons? Our fabrics are sourced from a local wholesaler here in Vancouver and our leather is all from North America and purchased from Lonsdale Leather, a local leather shop run by our friend Riley.

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Can you tell us about the process behind each piece? We have a very collaborative process here; new designs either come from requests by clients or ideas thrown around by the team. We all have our own aprons that we wear either in the shop, at home or during whatever creative side hustle we have going on – this helps us really get to know what works well and what activities each style is best suited to.

Has there been an apron order or design that has really stood out to you? There have been many! Because we offer full customization we get some really creative requests that are great fun to fulfill. We’ve had clear plastic lap pockets so a tattoo artist could read his phone while in his pocket, a recent holographic print that sent half the production team dizzy while cutting and sewing plus a beautiful split leg apron for a farrier with leather panels to protect from horse’s hooves. But probably my personal favorite is the collaboration apron that we designed with bartender extroadinaire Bad Birdy. It’s a buttery soft leather body (lined with duck canvas) but the pockets are all in this gorgeous matte crocodile print leather. The contrast of the different materials really makes this apron sing plus it has some great little extras such as the key-ring clip and towel loop which make it really practical.

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What sorts of people order from you? We get all sorts – from grandmothers who want a feminine apron for baking to heavily tatted up 20 somethings who want them to fix up their motorbike! Our store is located in a popular tourist destination (Granville Island in Vancouver) so we get a lot of international visitors who typically purchase an apron for cooking, cleaning or whatever their hobby is. But then we have a lot of local creatives who come into the store to design their custom aprons – ceramicists, jewellers, painters, carpenters, etc.

Are there any trends or industries that buy from you more than others that you’ve noticed? The business started off by making aprons for tattoo artists and they are still one of our biggest customers. We have many different styles of tattoo aprons from our minimalist right up to full length split legs. We also sell to a lot of barbers and stylists as we offer vinyl reversible aprons that protect them from colour or water and have places for all of their tools. After these two bartenders and restaurants are our biggest clients.

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How can someone order their own apron? Anyone local is welcome to pop into our shop as we’re open seven days a week and love to meet the people who are going to be wearing our aprons. We were an online shop before we opened our store so we have a very comprehensive website with all of our most popular styles and last year we launched our long awaited online apron builder which is the first of kind. Customers can build a 3D rendering of their apron by choosing the fabrics, thread colour, pockets, placement and more! This is really exciting for us and has had a great reception from our customers who have used it to get creative!