We recently connected with Megan Rose and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I knew at a young age how important it was for me to follow my passions and find a career that could fulfill me. I was always a creative kid; interested in skateboard and surfboard art, graffiti art, and filling up notebooks with sketches. I didn’t know how this love for art would transition into a career, but I knew that I wanted to find a career in creating. I was never really exposed to tattoos or tattoo culture, but I remember the first moment I saw someone covered head to toe in tattoos. I was too young to understand what these images were or how this person got them, but I remember thinking it was the coolest thing in the world. It wasn’t until a few years later when the show Miami Ink came out, and I was exposed to tattoo art and culture. I remember watching Chris Garver and Tim Hendricks, then moving onto watching Dan Smith and Corey Miller on LA Ink. I would save my lunch money of $2 a day to buy a tattoo magazine at the local CVS every week, and I’d spend countless hours studying the art inside. I decided at around 13 years that this was my purpose in life, and I spent the next few years soaking in all the knowledge I could fine about art and tattooing, and putting the two together. At 19 years, I purchased my very first tattoo machine and attempted to tattoo a rose on some fake skin. The machine was some plastic thing off eBay that could hardly push a 7rl, and I had no clue how to use the machine but I knew it was something I had to try. The tattoo looked like absolute shit, but it sparked something in me that I have never felt before. It was magical, and I was instantly hooked.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a 10 year traditional tattoo artist working in Orange County, Ca. I enjoy tattooing classic traditional designs with a bright, bold, and modern twist. I first knew I wanted to specialize in traditional tattooing when learning about the history of it all during my apprenticeship. I studied the history of the founding fathers of tattooing, but I quickly realized there were hardly any female tattooers in the long list of male tattooers. Breaking into this industry didn’t just mean following my passions, it meant pushing for more women to be accepted in these male dominating industries. I’m very proud to work in a shop that primarily consists of women tattooers. I hope to keep traditions alive within my approach on traditional tattooing, and to set an example to any aspiring female tattooers hoping to enter the industry.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part about tattooing is getting through the process from start to finish. It’s exciting to work through the ideas in my head to translate into a sketch on paper, and then pushing that sketch one step further with each redraw. Sometimes this means redrawing it another 10 times, and other times it means scratching the entire idea completely and staring over. It’s the process that is exciting because it pushes me to think outside the box, express my creativity, and push the envelope for what a tattoo can consists of.

Is there a mission driving your creative journey?

As an Aries, I love challenges. It’s important to me to continue progressing and pushing myself in my career, so I find a thrill in setting intentions on areas of focus every few months. It helps me stay accountable to my goals, and also witness my own growth along the way. Aside with these minor goals, my main goal is to create meaningful connections with my clients and to give them a beautiful tattoo that they are proud to wear for the rest of their lives.

Contact Info:

• Website: meganrosetattoos.com
• Instagram: @meganrose_tattoo