Meet Sophie, the co-owner of Tainted Oak and ceremonial tattooist

10 questions you asked to get to know Sophie..

What inspired you to open up Tainted Oak?

I’ve always known I wanted to work for myself ever since a young age when I was making pop up shops at the end of my drive as a 6 year old selling poems and drawings for 5p to anyone who walked past 😂

I feel I’ve always wanted to excel in anything that I wanted to go into, and I had visions going into my tattoo career that I wouldn’t be able to achieve staying in a studio that wasn’t my own.

I was pregnant with my first baby and voiced my ideas to my partner Michael (co owner of the studio) and we agreed to go at it together! And here we are!

What is a tattoo ceremony and how did you decide to combine your spiritual practises with your tattoo career?

It’s all about setting intentions that align with the energies of your design. It’s a way to connect with the design at a soul level and weave the energies and symbolism with the piece into your being.

The decision to combine my own spiritual practises with tattoos is a strange one really! I was feeling a bit lost within the industry and a bit demotivated. That’s when I started getting signs to incorporate my spiritual practises with my tattoo practise. I always put intentions and meanings into my designs, so that came naturally anyway. But to go deeper with it started by just seeing the odd post on Instagram of a tattoo artist doing a tarot or oracle reading with a client, or laying out the symbolism within the design. That’s when I came across a ceremonial tattooing course. The voice in my head didn’t even sound like mine when it said that this was what I was supposed to be doing! So I took the course, and realised that a lot of it was as simple as bringing my own practises into the tattoo session.

Now I couldn’t go back to the ‘normal’ type of tattooing!

What is your favourite subject matter to tattoo?

Flowers are my absolute favourite. Or anything organic and botanical really. I love infusing them with symbolism and numerology.

What is the most rewarding thing about your work?

How I can bring a deeper experience to people through tattooing that they may not get anywhere else. 

I have a lot of clients come back, and creating a relationship with them, watching them grow and evolve as people is SO rewarding. The friendships I’ve made through this job make the hard work behind the scenes worth while.

When you’re not tattooing, what are you doing in your spare time?

Being a mama! I have 2 beautiful babies that aren’t babies anymore, but I will always call them my babies 🤍 I love to get out and explore with them. Watching them grow is one of my favourite hobbies!

I’m also probably working on my other brand, Lunaia. I feel like Lunaia is my soul business! I absolutely love crafting and bringing ritual to everyday life and this is where I can bring that to people.

I also love to read, anything witchy, spiritual and self development is right up my street but I’m also getting back into my fantasy books!

Any advice to stay disciplined but soft..

This is such a good question!! Really looking into the key elements of what masculine and feminine energy mean for you (key word: for YOU. As it can vary for everyone) was a game changer for me. For me, discipline is that masculine energy and I like to be disciplined with my routines, work ethic and a bunch of other things that are mainly action based and tapping into my masculine energy, but my soft side amongst all of this (feminine energy) is making sure I take a break when I need it, scheduling in self care, being empathetic towards people’s situations (even if it effects your masculine flow of action).

Feeling into your body too, if you planned a busy day of work, exercise, socializing but your body is crying out for a day on the sofa, reading a book or taking a long hot soak, then listen to your body and do that!

What is a country you would love to visit and why?

I want to see most countries but this is an easy pick for me as it’s been top of manifestation list for years and it’s Bora Bora! The tropical climate, jungle island vibes, nature.. need I say anymore?? One day I will be soaking up that Bora Bora air and I cannot wait 😂

If you could only take one thing to a desert island, what would that one thing be?

Some kind of writing utensil so I can journal and keep log of my thoughts and draw… I feel like this is a boring answer haha!

What is your favourite film and why?

Harry Potter because it’s magical and transports me to a whole magical world where my inner child is completely fulfilled. Everyone who knows me, knows I’m obsessed with HP 🤍

What’s your favourite moon phase?

New moon!! The renewal and rebirth energy is what I live for 😅

To keep up to with Sophie, follow her on Instagram @sophieelizabethtattoo