Today we’d like to introduce you to Ms. London
Hi Ms. , we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Originally hailing from Blackpool, England, I traveled to the U.S. with my family when I was eight and almost immediately began the process of assimilating into American life. My family owned multiple businesses throughout my childhood, and through my participation in those enterprises, I learned the value of skill and hard work. A lover of animals and always drawing, my childhood and teen years were filled with creating the most realistic art of all the animals I loved.
While working on a school project for Freshman English class, our teacher asked us to choose a career and interview someone, so a friend and I entered Rob G’s Tiger Tattoos in Kissimmee, Florida, and interviewed the owner as part of my assignment. After viewing my artwork, he offered me an apprenticeship on the spot. Shy and intimidated at the time, I turned it down, but it lit a small spark in me. A few years later my cousin and her friend came over for vacation and they wanted tattoos, so I told them I knew a place and drove them over, we just so happen to have met with the same tattoo artist/owner and was offered another apprenticeship while they were tattooed. Still unsure of myself, I turned it down yet again. Though young, my work stood out enough that I was offered the apprenticeship a third time a year later while attending a tattoo convention in south Florida. I finally accepted and began my tattoo apprenticeship at Tiger Tattoos in 2006.
Over the years, I learned a plethora of skills in the tattooing industry. I picked up speed, strived to create the best tattoos for my clients, creating multiple tattoos per day in various styles, and attending many tattoo conventions to win quite a few awards. . My love of animals continued to shine as I began producing some of the best animal portraits in the state. With the dedication to my craft and saving for many years, I opened my own tattoo studio, Living Canvas Art Company, in October 2009. After 15 years of successfully running my studio, surviving through Covid shut downs and a separation/divorce from my partner, I had to make the decision to close my studio in 2023 and focus on being the best working single mother to my son, who brings so much love, laughter and life to me, and step back from the responsibilities of being an owner, to allow myself to be an artist again.
My work continues to evolve, and my current specialties include animal portraits, coverups, black & grey and color realism. I have hopes to branch out into neotraditional styles and incorporate it with my top-notch realism. My work continues to be highly sought after, with clients coming from all over the U.S. and other countries and booking dates spaced months in advance. My competitive spirit takes me to several conventions per year in the hopes of adding to my impressive award collection. I am also a judge for the Spooky Empire Tattoo Fest which is held twice a year.
Most of all, I seek to leave a lasting impression on every client I have the opportunity to work with, creating a one-of-a-kind masterpiece that will last forever.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has definitely not been a smooth road.. from immigration issues in my early 20s, to the loss of my first boss Rob G in January 2009, the loss of my father in my late 20s, to my separation and divorce this year and having to figure life out as a single working mother, all while trying to heal my traumas and mental health… my life has literally been a the rockiest of roads. My outlook on life now though is to just be the best mother and create beautiful work. If my life had been smooth, I never would have built the mental muscles to survive it all.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
My speciality in tattooing is realism and cover ups, in all styles of color and black & grey. I love to pay extra attention to animal portraits for those beloved pets and creatures we love and cherish. I know the love and loss of our animals we share our lives with, so I try to bring just that little slice of closure for those I tattoo.
Some of my proudest moments are when I recreate that portrait for someone and they post it for their friends, family, or coworkers to see, and they know exactly who it is, this especially for the zookeepers I tattoo. There is a special bond between a wild animal and their keeper…
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My credit goes out to my freshman English teacher, creating the essay that fueled my whole career.. Rob G, who saw something in me at such a young age and never gave up, to see the potential in me to become a tattoo artist. I shall forever be his “secret weapon”.
My biggest supporter now is my best friend Kat. She is my sister-from-another-mister… we have been friends for over a decade, meeting as a client coming in for her first tattoo in my studio in 2013. We just clicked, and she is Aunty Kat to my son.
When we were able to open back up in 2020 after the Covid closures, she came on as my shop manager and helped streamline my booking process for clients. Even after the closure of my studio in 2023, she continues to assist and book all my appointments, allowing me to focus on tattooing and my son.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mslondontattoos.com
- Instagram: @ms.londontattoos
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ms.londontattoos
