Rising Stars: Meet Victoria Love

Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Love.

Hi Victoria, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hello, everyone, my name is Victoria Love I am from Knoxville, Tennessee and I am the owner & educator here at Feather Touch Academy which is the first tiny tattoo dedicated studio in the USA! Originally, I am from a small town in Eastern Europe. I came to the USA back in 2012 to start my journey on the way to my American dream.

I started my permanent makeup business from a small rental room that I was sharing with another lady who was also working as an esthetician part-time. It took me quite some time until I figured out my way of doing things & those changes brought me to where I am right now.

As my brow clientele was growing & I was pleased with all the results, but at the same time, I did not feel satisfaction as I had always dreamed of being an artist, and I kept looking for more. I always enjoyed drawing, and one day I drew this tiny single-line rose. It was so simple, dainty & feminine that I decided to get it tattooed on me.

I felt it would change everything for me, and it did! All inspired and excited, I went to the best tattoo studio in town and was sad to find out that they won’t be able to do it as they don’t have needles for it. ( I was like, well.. let me try it again. So I went to a different shop.

This time I showed a picture from the Internet for size reference and got an even more interesting answer… A big guy with a beard, all covered in tattoos, grabbed my phone, stared at the screen for a minute & and then replied:
“It’s a sticker, it can’t be done that small!” It was a whoa moment for me!!!

That night I couldn’t sleep, I had to find someone who will teach me how to do those tiny tattoos! I spent another month looking for someone but couldn’t find anyone in the USA who would teach me my new obsession with small tattoos.

After a few more months & I finally found an artist who agreed to train me but he was in Europe!!

So I packed my stuff and went to Europe. I learned a lot about the history of tattooing different machines and inks. Unfortunately, I still was not confident that tiny tattoos are possible as the lines were not as thin as I imagined them… But it was time to go back to the USA.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
As I came back from Europe, I was practicing day and night but still could not figure out the way to keep the lines thin & let them heal the way I wanted.

Later on, as I got more experienced, I realized that I was taught a traditional way of tattooing in Europe, which I figured was not suitable for tiny tattoos and the work that I was dreaming about (thin, sharp linework).

So over the way of trials & failures, I developed my own technique that allows me to get nicely healed thin lines Tiny Tattoos.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I always thought that the only way to be good at smth is to perfect one thing and for me is – Tiny Tattoos. I don’t do big tattoos or detailed pieces but I am obsessed with linework and I feel like I am pretty good at it!

There are not many artists that do Tiny Tattoos. I feel like a lot of artists just don’t take this type of work seriously. For me it’s different – I love taking time and perfecting each loop, and each letter, I am a perfectionist, and attention to detail is everything when it goes to Tiny Tattoos.

In normal life being a perfectionist is hard, but if you want to be a Tiny tattoo artist – being a perfectionist is a must.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Here are a few assumptions associated with Tiny Tattoos that are completely wrong!

Tiny Tattoos = Small tattoos, that’s why they are cheap. (That’s a wrong assumption – Tiny tattoos not small tattoos. Perfect Linework of Tiny Tattoos and the amount of detail that is being put on the area typically less than 3 inches takes an enormous amount of attention, expertise, and precision. Sometimes Tiny Tattoo can take up to 5 hours to complete That’s why Tiny tattoo can’t be & will never be cheap!

Tiny Tattoo = Small Tattoo because it’s small, so it’s not really serious. I always say to my clients – It does not have to be big to mean a world. (small does not mean less meaningful).

A huge benefit of Tiny Tattoos is that we can create a design that will represent the idea of the client and can be placed in a hidden spot sometimes making it more personal and more meaningful than any traditional size tattoo.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tinytattoos_feathertouch/, https://www.instagram.com/tinytattooqueen/