Q&A with Em Higgins

1. First things first - what lights up your soul? Tattoo related or not!

Such a good first question and it would have to be helping people heal - whether that be through tattooing, mindset or just holding a for them space.

Being apart of someone’s healing journey is the most rewarding & humbling experience. There’s an exchange of soul energy and words aren’t enough to describe how special that is.

2. Where is your studio? Tell us about the vibes and how you like to work?

I own and work from The Little Tattoo Rooms. A gorgeous boutique studio in the middle of Brontë Country. It’s a light and airy studio that’s calm and peaceful. I’m neuro diverse and working in fast paced, small, cramped environments is not for me and TLTR reflects that.

We won Best Creative Business in 2022 for our commitment to quality over quantity and raising industry standards.

All our artists are certified in blood borne virus & cross contamination and pride ourselves on duty of care to our clients.

3. Do you have a style that you niche in or any particular work you want the universe to get through the studio doors for you?

I personally specialise in Black & Grey realism with an emphasis on pet portraits and floral female composition work. I’m award winning in both categories & I believe that’s down to how passionate I am about my work and the relationships I build with my clients which allows for not only a lot of free rein but also freehand.

The confidence change I get to witness in my female composition clients is an absolute honour and the tears of gratitude and love from clients I’ve completed a pet portrait for is always enough to get me crying with them!

Our artist Tama hails from Indonesia and specialises in black linework pieces whereas Ryan specialises in gorgeous geometric and ornamental dotwork pieces.

The only thing we’re missing is a solid colour artist and we would LOVE to take on some more guest artists for this.

4. How did you take enquiries and bookings before we came into your life? And what would be on your Get Ink wish list to help you streamline your admin and client onboarding process further?

Before Get Ink changed my life, I used a variation of Jotform & emails which regularly left me switching between platforms, repeatedly sending out deposit details and generally being flappy and stressed out by my admin!

Get Ink is sent straight from the Tattoo Gods and is EVERYTHING our industry needed - going forward it would be incredible to be able to use Get Ink for both email lists and disclaimer forms as well.

5. If you could tattoo anyone in the world, who would it be and if you had total creative control, what would your dream tattoo be?

If I could tattoo anyone in the world it would have to be Jordan Peterson and for total creative control it would have to be a birds and botanicals female composition piece or a recreation of a famous painting.

6. If you could change anything about the tattoo industry, what would it be?

The mindset so many artists have of accepting working conditions for themselves that would be illegal in any other industry.

I’m super passionate about helping artists prioritise their wellness in their working practises so they can continue to work a job they absolutely LOVE without it being detrimental to their physical or mental health (I’ve been there).