> friends IN INK Westerlund and Thomas tattoo each other.
Leah Westerlund
Holly Thomas
Shop: Classic Tattoo Age: 28 Style: Neo-traditional
Shop: Classic Tattoo Age: 28 Style: “Everything but new-school”
Temporary tattoos are one of the many hallmarks of childhood—nearly everyone has a memory of trying to pass off a fake Spider-Man tat for the real deal. So when Leah Westerlund’s ink didn’t wash off at age 12, her parents were livid—naturally. “My parents grounded me for like four months,” she says with a loud, infectious laugh. Having grown up around the arts (her father is an art dealer), Westerlund has always had creative outlets, first drawing and painting and then tattooing. “Seeing it on different friends and seeing you can transfer your artwork onto people’s skin, it seemed really neat to be able to do that,” she says. “It’s something that you can always grow at, and that’s really held my interest.”
Holly Thomas began tattooing like lots of artists do—“scratching” or tattooing out of her house and practicing on her own body. “I finally realized what I was doing was bad, so I got rid of all my equipment and tried to forget everything I thought I knew, start over and focus on design.” And it paid off to do things right. “A tattoo apprenticeship should not be easy, ’cause if it was, everybody would do it.” As for the macho mentality of most traditional shops, she adds, “If people are messing with you, it’s because they like you. In our circle, you f*ck around with each other because you like each other.” It may look like they’re always having fun, but Thomas takes the work—and its permanence—seriously. “The best part is just making somebody happy. No matter what career you’re in, if you can do your job well, you feel good.”
18 LasVegasWeekly.com May 28-June 3, 2015