Today we’d like to introduce you to Phillip Leslie.
Phillip, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I got my start doing an apprenticeship at a shop by SDSU. It was pretty rough, but it was well worth it. The shop was super busy all the time, so I got to learn a lot while I was there. I worked at that shop for a couple of years after my apprenticeship, then landed a spot downtown and I’ve been working there for the past six years.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
A smooth road? What’s that? Honestly, I can’t complain, it definitely hasn’t been easy and there have been a few times I’ve wondered what I was doing, but I wouldn’t change it for anything. Tattooing is all I want to do and if I had to eat 25 cent soup forever to keep doing it, I would.
We’d love to hear more about your art.
The traditional aesthetic in tattooing is what drew me to it in the first place. When I was young, I got super into hot rods and choppers and that was the kind of art that kind of surrounded those circles, so that’s how I found out about it as a whole, so that’s where my style comes from. Lately, I’ve been really into smaller line weights and black and grey, but with the same imagery you’d find in traditional tattooing. I’ve been really lucky as of late to have clients that will give me a basic idea of what they want but let me take creative control of it. I feel like that’s the best way to get a tattoo you can be proud of forever, but that’s just my opinion.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
I’m sure everyone has their own definition and markers of success, but I’ve been doing what I love for almost ten years, so to me that’s already a success. I haven’t had to think up of an excuse not to go to work since I started and I love that. Ultimately though, a giant piece of land with a thousand different animals on it would also be a pretty cool marker of success for me.
Pricing:
- $180/hr
- $100 deposit
Contact Info:
- Phone: 6199138272
- Email: imakedrawings@gmail.com
- Instagram: @phillipleslie666
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