2020 and 2021 were, frankly, a bit much.

In 2022, we managed to regain a little bit of normality by making it to a bunch of conventions and visiting some of our sponsored artists. We were treated to a few new products, got the inside scoop on some of our favourite companies, and filmed plenty of binge-worthy tattoo timelapse videos!

From everyone here at Killer Ink, we wish you a happy new year and hope you have a killer 2023!

Conventions were back in business this year and we kicked off a season of events with a visit to the Brighton Tattoo Convention, our first con since 2020 (and boy did we miss them!). Kirsten Pettitt took home a ‘Best of Day’ prize for her collaboration piece with Stephanie Melbourne, and it was well-earned!

Next stop was Tattoo Tea Party in Manchester, which was a blast, partially thanks to the dynamic and very flammable Fuel Girls! Plus we got to watch our sponsored artists Bintt and Reece Mortiboys take home a prize in the ‘Best Large Tattoo’ category.

We also visited the first post-pandemic Liverpool Tattoo Convention, our local convention that was due to be one of two this year. With the second postponed until next year, we’re glad we made the most of this event, which included burlesque entertainment and interviews with Helen Warren, Arron Raw and Aggie Vnek from Abrakadavra Tattoo Art Studio!

In September we went down to London for the inaugural Big London Tattoo Show and caught up with J Becerra, Isobel Morton, Cloto and Tiggy Tattoos to find out what they all thought about the weekend. Their verdict? Huge success!

And finally, we finished the convention calendar up with the prestigious Milano Tattoo Convention. We interviewed some world-class artists and got to see several of our sponsored artists take home awards, including Sampaguita Jay claiming ‘Best of Show’!

Also in Milan, we got up close and personal with the Kuro Sumi Pro-Team, a powerhouse of Italian artists creating great work including Marta Make (using her Fine Art Black & Grey ink set), Mr Nobody and Lucky Luchino.

Throughout the year we hung out with some amazing tattoo artists as they created their art, and have the timelapse videos to show it! From cartoon colour experts like Tiggy Tattoos to the king of colour realism David Corden, this is your chance to see tattoos being made from start to finish.

Some timelapses came from convention visits, like David and Tiggy’s - we also got Lom and Akos Keller at Liverpool Tattoo Convention, plus a whole host of excellent artists at Milano Tattoo Convention including Caterina Molin, Duda Lozano and El Whyner.

We also managed to grab a few timelapses while visiting our sponsored artists’ studios - this year we were lucky enough to visit Matt Daniels at Season One Tattoo in Preston, as well as Laura Lenihan and Adrian De Largue at Six Bullets in Islington.

We celebrated Halloween with Thomas Carli Jarlier, making both an in-depth video interview and a timelapse of his gothic horror piece. We also hand-picked a selection of Horror Movie Tattoos to keep you up at night - or if Halloween’s not your thing, check out some of our other Best Tattoo blogs for celebrations like May the Fourth, Pride Month and Christmas.

As usual, we highlighted one of our sponsored tattoo artists every month, with write-ups showing off the lives and works of Jay Butler, Simon Mora, Rachel Van Machelen and Calvin Moktar.

Then we changed tack, and decided we should get to know more about the real artists - so you can now check out interviews with the likes of Toni Angar, Priit Salusoo, Keira Rose, Gaby Castel, Spendlo, Eliot Kohek, Sissy_Ink and Joe Frost!

In terms of equipment, FK Irons truly spoiled all of us this year with a host of new offerings. The Flux Max with Powerbolt II might be our favourite wireless machine and battery pack combo to come out this year, and you can check out our review of it below.

But the company didn’t stop there, oh no - we also got three new battery packs from FK Irons with the Airbolt, Airbolt Mini and Powerbolt+. And then we were treated to the Killswitch foot pedal, which is compatible with all the new battery packs, plus new grips for FK’s Flux and EXO machines.

Cheyenne released its long-awaited HAWK Pen Unio to much excitement - a heavenly amalgamation of its HAWK Spirit, Thunder and Pen models in one machine! The continuously adjustable stroke length and wide stitch frequency make the Unio ideal for most tattoo styles.

We welcomed Recovery onto our roster of aftercare products with a huge range of products for tattoos, piercing and stretching, including stencil lock, saline sprays and barrier film to keep your body mods healthy and happy.

Meanwhile A Pound of Flesh released their tattooable Cutie Dolls that stand over 10” tall, available in Fitzpatrick Tones 2-5, as well as their Lucky Ducky and Grapefruit pieces, which joined the line-up of tattooable fake skin products from the brand. 

The dreaded EU REACH regulations also came into effect this year, and we saw tattoo ink manufacturers race to produce the best REACH-compliant ranges. Kuro Sumi released its Imperial range, while World Famous dominated the colour market with its Limitless range, to huge relief from European artists!

Both companies are creating great REACH-compliant inks, as well as specialised ink sets made in collaboration with tattoo artists. World Famous released Limitless sets with A.D. Pancho and our sponsored artist Thomas Carli Jarlier, while Kuro Sumi Imperial released the Zhang Po Grewyash Shading set, the Marble Stone set, and Marta Make’s Fine Art Black and Grey set.

With Kuro Sumi and World Famous leading the charge to make EU-safe colour inks, we wanted to get as much information out of them as we could. Check out our interviews with Lou Rubino of World Famous and Zhang Po of Kuro Sumi for more information about these titans of the tattoo industry, how they’re managing the new regulations, and what they think will be the next big thing in tattooing.

And don’t forget about our other behind-the-scenes interviews with the likes of Hustle Butter’s Richie Bulldog, David Barroso, Founder of Mustoku and Richard Weiss, Head of Product Management at Cheyenne, who were kind enough to answer our questions and give us a bit of insight into these companies we love. We even caught a moment with Hannibal Helmurto, Tattooed Man for The Circus of Horrors, whose tapestry of ink is almost as mesmerising as his sword-swallowing skills!

It’s been quite the year and we’re looking forward to fitting even more in 2023 - keep your eyes peeled and don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for competitions, live chats with industry legends, and tattoo inspiration!