Tattoo Fan Says She "Won't Stop Until There’s No Space Left On Skin"

Shanie, a 23-year-old tattoo fan and parlor owner first became obsessed with the art form at the age of 12.

She is now on a mission to cover her entire body in ink and she is already well on her way.

“Honestly, I don’t really know why and when it started.”

“I remember when I was maybe 12 years old I was looking at a YouTube channel of a girl covered in tattoos, and I wanted to be like that so bad.”

“Now that I have many tattoos, I think I love them because, first, I really love the way they look."

Shanie got her very first tattoo at the age of 16. “I really wanted (a tattoo) for a long time and my mother decided to sign permission for me to get it.

“I originally wanted a quote, that I now don’t remember, but my parents didn’t like it. So, I was looking on the internet for a different quote 30 minutes before my appointment!

“I ended up with ‘Peace begins with a smile’ on my back.”

Her thoughts on her first tattoo have since changed as well.

“Honestly I never really liked it, I just wanted a tattoo.”

“I discovered after that it‘s a Mother Theresa quote, I think it‘s funny, but I‘m going to cover it up when I get my whole back done!”

That however isn’t stopping her from getting more of them.

“I will stop when I don’t have any more space left on me.”

When asked what kind of tattoos she likes, “My next appointment is in a couple of weeks to continue my left sleeve.”

“I will probably book some appointments this fall to get more on my legs, but I don‘t know yet what I want to get! The ideas will come – I‘m not worried."

"I love crows so I got one. I love black flowers so I got some. I don‘t think too hard for them, I just find artists that I like and get a tattoo that fits their style and the placement on my body I want to get.”

Even though she has a lot of tattoos, her current ones all mean something to her.

“Everyone can get something so different, it makes the person even more unique to me. Tattooed people are literally walking art pieces! And for a lot of people, it‘s really a good way to love and to really own their bodies. I love my body way more now that it‘s tattooed.”

There is one however that she particularly loves,

“My favourite is the one on the side of my face, it‘s an ‘É’ for my sister Éveline that I love very much. It‘s the only tattoo that really means something to me and it‘s always going to be my favourite.”