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I have been doing art of one kind or another all my life, I have always loved it! At the age of 5, I was inspired by a guy who was boarding with my family. I thought this man was amazing! He made toys out of all kinds of junk he had floating around and he used to draw the ideas that my brother and I came up with.

I remember this one drawing he did. It was a submarine driven by a skeleton, this is truly a creative concept for a 5-year-old to come up with and this man drew it! I was heartbroken when he left, this man who could draw my day dreams. From that time on, art was something I really wanted to sink my teeth into!

As with many other artists, I didn’t do so well in school. I did manage to stay until I was 17 but it was obvious that I was only there to fill in time, so I left and got a job at a small supermarket. That sucked!! I wasn’t drawing much at that time in my life, opting to smoke weed and drink as much as I could without throwing up on my shoes, which of course I failed on many occasions!

At the age of 21, I needed a change so I moved from Wellington to Christchurch and left everything I knew behind. I spent the next 10 years doing jewelry, woodwork, metalwork, bits of Arts and Craft, and generally bumming around.

Some friends and I hatched a plan to grow weed and long story short, I spent 9 months “in the Queens service”(jail). While I was there, I did a lot of drawing and it was suggested by my fellow incarcerated that I do a little tattooing while I had some free time, so I pulled apart a walkman (a personal audio cassette play for those under 30) and built a “boob gun”(this was a rotary tattoo machine built from items you have on hand in jail).

At the time I had a 3-year-old son and didn’t want to be in jail any longer than I had to, so I was on my bestest behavior. I did a couple of tattoos but I kept my head down, did my time, and got out.

The next few years I milled around, made jewelry, and tried to find my feet but nothing was sticking. I tried a few different 9 to 5 jobs but I kept coming back to the thought of tattooing. So I went to a tattoo studio and got an apprenticeship at Left Hand Path, the studio where I started this epic journey.

Unfortunately, I needed a regular income, I had a family, a newborn girl, so it was back to 9 to 5 again, but I still kept coming back to wanting to tattoo. I studied a lot about hygiene and protocol then set up a “studio” at home. A friend gave me my start and paid for my machines and away we went.

In time, I set up a small studio, so small that if you wanted to swing a cat you would have to walk out of the room to do it. After 8 months, the building was to be pulled down so with the help of friends and family, DV8 tattoos moved into town and grew into a respectable Studio.

Unfortunately, the building was sold then redeveloped and we lost all of our foot traffic. Then the final straw, the council started upgrading the street and there went the business! I had had enough! I shut the shop and went back to Left Hand Path.

I worked with the crew at LHP for nearly a year, I was having a blast! I was learning so much and I had no intention of leaving but Mother Nature had other plans….. On February 22, 2011, a 6.2 Earthquake rocked everyone, dropped buildings, and changed the face of Christchurch forever. LHP shook apart, it was the strangest thing to watch. The building, something that you considered solid and unmovable, fell to pieces.

Again I was at a crossroads. All I knew for sure was that I had to Tattoo. This was my life. This had become so much more than a job. None of my colleagues knew what they were going to do. An opportunity came up to lease a cottage at 41 York Street, I jumped at the chance and Studio 41 rose out of the quake rubble.

As it turned out, this was short-lived. Our house was written off, we had to move and we decided to move to Rangiora. For a few years, I operated from a garage studio, then a small shop in the back of the Lily Brook shops until an opportunity landed in my lap and I was able to move the studio onto the main street of Rangiora.

I spent 6 months building the studio with the help of others and “ a la peanut butter sandwiches”! The magic of Studio 41 was realized!

I have a passion for abstract tattoos, dark and creepy work, black and grey, color painterly, watercolor and quite a bit more. I love things out of the box, different and or odd, I find inspiration almost everywhere I look.

I closed my pet shop and spent all my money getting tattoos at Studio 41. After a lot of nagging Bruce let me have a go at tattooing and a friend gifted me with a tattoo lesson. I bloody loved it!! I never thought about it as a career , until Bruce offered me an apprenticeship. 1.5 years on I have learnt so much and love my job. I specialise in glitter, cartoons, pop culture and dick tattoos.

I have volunteered for Bull Breed Rescue for 10 years, helping them with fundraising. I was concerned that I would not be able to help them but every week I have charity days and 100% of the money made from these tattoos goes to Bull Breed Rescue and Cats Rescue . I have raised over $9000 so far.