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The Garden Studio Bringing Nature-Inspired Tattoos to Life

Words by Adam Jolley
27.11.24
The Garden Studio Bringing Nature-Inspired Tattoos to Life

Creating nature-inspired tattoos from a garden studio, artist Cath Pilling brings tranquillity and intention to every design. Her handpoke tattoos celebrate the organic beauty of plants, animals, and natural textures, creating an oasis for nature lovers seeking unique, mindful ink. Here she shares her story.

I studied fine art at uni 20 years ago, and back then I always preferred being creative in a more private, quiet setting. Looking back, I heavily masked my way through intense social anxiety, I don't think many of my friends knew.

The art studios could be noisy and busy, so I'd either wear headphones to be able to block out distractions, or I'd go in when I knew it would be quieter. About 15 years later, I found out that I'm neurodivergent and some of my sensory and social struggles made sense.

"I always preferred being creative in a private, more quiet setting"

My last studio was a private space which was attached to my house, no other artists, just me and my clients and some chilled music. I loved my cosy little space, so when our family relocated to Bedfordshire in 2023 I wanted to replicate it.

We were lucky to have a great garden space to build the studio, with views of fields and a lot of sky. It's a really wonderful place to work from. It feels like a calm haven where I can properly focus on my clients, giving them and their tattoos my full attention in a peaceful setting.

My husband works for a commercial architecture and interior design practice and he's great at DIY, so he designed the studio and we constructed it ourselves. It's a SIP panel structure covered in black composite cladding, which sits on concrete decking blocks.

"We were lucky to have a great garden space to build the studio, with views of fields and a lot of sky"

Prepping the area and ground was a hard slog. We took down a large old greenhouse and the ground wasn't flat, so that took 3 or 4 weekends. We managed to get the outer panels up in one day, then the roof the following day, before a few weekends of cladding. In-between work and family life, the prep, build and finishing took around 3 months. My husband has said we're never moving again because he never wants to build another one!

When we first moved to the village I was a little nervous about our neighbours' reactions, but the response has only ever been positive and they often ask me how business is going. We live in a friendly close-knit community and although some people know what I do, I don't advertise locally and I only talk about it if someone asks. I've tattooed a handful of new friends in the village, everyone is very supportive!

"I was a little nervous about our neighbours' reactions, but the response has only ever been positive"

I love autumn - the colour of the light, the changing colours of leaves, the slight crispness encroaching.. but each year I struggle with the dark evenings. I naturally want to go into hibernation mode and get frustrated that there's less daylight to do the things I want to do in addition to working, like gardening or going for a long walk in the fields. I have to squeeze them in when I can. I can't wait for spring to come back around!

I work in the studio all year round, so it keeps me motivated and happy through the darker months. I have heating in the space, but it gets a little chilly sometimes so I have an additional heater and some pretty fairy lights to make it feel extra cosy.

"I love autumn - the colour of the light, the changing colours of leaves"

I exclusively tattoo natural objects, so nature is the sole influence on my designs. I love being outside and looking at the features and details in plants, rocks, fungi, shells… For me the inspiration in the natural world is so rich and exciting. Nature makes me feel like I can breathe and get perspective on what matters and what doesn't so much, maybe because nature itself is so incredible and clever.

"Nature makes me feel like I can breathe"

I'm always in awe of even the tiny things like a bit of lichen on a branch. It feels like nature is one of the very few pure and honest things that we have in the world. My favourite designs to tattoo are shells and fossils, birds, moths, and I've done some wood grain tattoos recently which have been really enjoyable to work on.

"I create each tattoo by gently poking ink under the surface of the skin, building up shading and details dot by dot."

Without the use of a machine, the process is quieter, calmer, and less invasive. This means a more comfortable experience for the client and less trauma to the skin, so healing time is often shorter in comparison. It suits my designs and the general sizes of the tattoos I do perfectly. I have a machine and have used it on silicone skin, but I just really enjoy the process of handpoke.

"I create each tattoo by gently poking ink under the surface of the skin, building up shading and details dot by dot"

The process of handpoke is a back to basics method and seems to go hand-in-hand with a slower pace of living and being surrounded by nature. Going for a tattoo can be an anxiety inducing thought for many people, and I think a positive experience is almost as important as the tattoo, so I try to keep things as chilled and calm as possible in the studio. The studio setting definitely supports that.

"I often feel inspired by plants, animals or natural objects which are a bit more unusual, aesthetically interesting or rarely seen."

I saw a woodpecker in the garden whilst I was working in the studio last week which I got very excited about! I regularly see muntjac deer in the field behind the studio too, they're gorgeous. Gerberas, roses, small daisies, spiders, snakes… I'm not a fan!

"I try to keep things as calm as possible in the studio. The setting definitely supports that"

I think almost all of my clients have an obvious love of nature and being in nature, and they view handpoke as being a more natural, gentle method of tattooing. It fits with them and their lifestyles, the type of people that they are, and hopefully what they want out of the experience. It all seems to align.

Sometimes people get hung up on the meaning of a tattoo, but they don't have to mean anything specific. A tattoo can simply represent your love for that natural object, and sometimes it's about your relationship with your own body. There are so many reasons why people have tattoos.

Follow Cath on Instagram @cathpillingtattoo.