Award winning tattoo artist opens first studio in Fife

Joe Quinn (23) and Jodie McIntosh opened the Tattoo Parlour at the start of October, and were quickly inundated with bookings, being left with just five free days for the rest of 2019.

“We’ve been taking bookings since before we opened,” said Joe. “ You can’t complain. It was pretty nerve-wracking at first. I’d never seen the High Street on a busy day, and I didn’t realise it would be as busy as it has been.

“This is the first shop I’ve run. I ran a shop in Cyprus a little bit and I’ve worked in other shops in Scotland.

“But this is my first studio.”

Joe had originally planned to open his first studio next year, but when the chance came up to open the store in Leven, Jodie urged him to take the opportunity.

He started his career in the tattooing industry five years ago, with an apprenticeship in Cyprus, where he had lived since he was six years old.

Meanwhile, Jodie, who had been travelling for nine years, decided to stay with family in Cyprus before returning back home to Scotland.

The couple met when she went to get a tattoo.

“I went in to get a wee octopus tattoo and walked out with one from my hip to my knee – and a boyfriend,” Jodie said. “So it worked out pretty well.”

Joe, who described Cyprus as a “nice place to visit, but not an easy place to live” was convinced to move to Scotland.

Earlier this year, he won an award for best tattoo of the day at the York International Tattoo Convention for his tattoo of a woman’s head, with an octopus wrapping itself around her.

But what is it that Joe loves about being a tattoo artist?

“I like meeting new people,” he said. “I like how they come in with an idea, give you the trust to put a design together and put it on them for the rest of their lives. It’s a privilege. It means a lot to me. I love it.”

While the parlour schedule is packed with bookings, the couple do leave particular days empty for ‘walk-in days’.

People are encouraged to walk in, no bookings required, with any design or idea they want.

Customers are taken on a first-come-first-serve basis.