Design
Girls Don’t Cry
– How did Girls Don’t Cry come about? Had you all worked together before?
NG: The four of us had all worked together (at The Ink Factory) and knew we all got along really well. One day we just decided we wanted a quieter life and it was time to make the jump to the next chapter and hence a private studio was formed. We threw a lot of names out and Girls Don’t Cry was the one that felt right.
LH: We all had the same desire, just never discussed it together before. Once the realisation came to light that we were all on the same page with the same vision, we decided to make it a reality immediately. Everything fell into place very fluently and felt natural. It was meant to be.
– How has it been setting up a new studio in the middle of this global challenge?
MC: I think it was meant to be, this global pandemic changed a lot of people’s reality, creating a lot of suffering but at the same time creating opportunities for people to rebuild themselves, reconsidering the importance of being happy and satisfied with the time spent on the daily basis. We can’t wait to be back to work with our customers once this second lockdown is over.
NG: It’s been crazy throwing your life savings into something while there’s always another potential lockdown around the corner, but there’s no doubt in my mind that we will sacrifice what we have to to make it work.
– Tattooing has blown up globally in the last few years and that has created a lot of competition and opportunity in the market. What’s your approach for Girls Don’t Cry and making sure you stand out from all the others?
NG: Honestly, I don’t think we have any particular approach. We all work seamlessly together and everything just kind of flows naturally. We’re all just there to do some good tattoos, work hard and just have the laughs while creating a comfortable atmosphere for our clients. I’ve never seen anybody as my competition. All I want is for each tattoo I do to be better than the last and to constantly push myself outside of my comfort zone. If we continue to do that, I hope the work will speak for itself and that GDC will be somewhere that people automatically gravitate to.
LH: I don’t view tattooing as a competition. That’s a very old school approach to the industry and there’s room for everyone. Art, like music, is a very personal taste depending on you as an individual. I think what I love the most about Girls Don’t Cry is that we all have the same love, outlook and approach to the industry and tattooing. Instead of focusing on how we can stand out from all the others, we focus internally on being the best we can be ourselves and constantly allowing artistic growth. Not everyone is going to like my work, and there’s
absolutely nothing wrong with that. There’s an artist out there for everyone.
– Who are your tattoo heroes here in Dublin and globally?
MC: I wouldn’t call them tattoo heroes, but artists around the world that inspire me every day, like Makkala Rose, Chris Green, Sneakymitch and Bryan Povac. Looking back at many years ago, I could label Filip Leu, Guy Aitchison and Lyle Tuttle absolute masters of the tattoo history evolution.
NG: There are so many artists who inspire me. I’ve always felt it particularly important to support other female artists. We’ve been the underdogs but the industry is changing and through hard work female artists are garnering the respect they deserve. I am hugely inspired by the work of Claudia DeSabe, Valerie Vargas and Gaia Leone as well as other artists like Robert Ryan, Sway and Kojo Ichimaru.
– How long does it take to learn the skills needed to do it professionally?
AH: The simple answer is as much time as you are willing to put in.
MC: It’s very hard to say, it’s very personal, today is definitely easier compared to when I started, the equipment for tattooing was very different, no disposable grips, no disposable needles ready to use too! You had to buy single needles in the
size that you preferred, long taped or not and solder the needles together, then clean them in ultrasound bath and then finally sterilise them, I was spending every Monday getting needles ready for my mentor and I for the week, grips were only in steel, thin as a cigarette and the tattoo machines very heavy, so definitely not easy to work with. It’s funny looking back at a kind of prehistoric, mesozoic era of tattooing, it’s beautiful if you think that this handcrafted art is constantly evolving.
– Where did you hone your craft?
NG: I learned from a lot of different artists along the way, but I credit the vast majority of what I learned to Iain, Antone and Maja (@iaincummins_tattoo, @antoneel90, @majabohemien). They picked up my confidence when it had been knocked and taught me so much from each of their styles which has all been beneficial in developing my own way of tattooing today.
LH: I moved to Dublin in Feb 2019. I realise now I had very little knowledge when it came to the technical application, understanding my equipment to the full, focusing on the longevity of the tattoos I was creating, etc. I’m indebted to the artists I worked alongside in the studio when I moved to Dublin. The talent, encouragement and support I was surrounded with pushed me every day to be better. I was given the knowledge and help I needed to progress,
picking up tips and techniques off every artist of every different style.
– Any advice you would give to others considering carving their own paths and creating their own luck?
AH: I don’t have a secret recipe but the only thing I can truly say – stop overthinking it and just do it. And persist if you really believe in it.
LH: Just go for it. If the idea terrifies you, even better, the satisfaction of finally achieving it will be all the more euphoric then.
– What are the main tracks blasting the
GDC stereo at the moment?
NG: We all have very different music tastes but they all mash together! Right now, we’re listening to the new Deftones album, some Phoebe Bridgers, Fontaines D.C. and any emo that came out in 2005 which was hands down the best year for music ever.
MC: We play different music genres, usually we play something soft/chill/trippy, sometimes ‘80s, that can help us to concentrate and that helps clients to relax and enjoy their time with us.