As many of you know, in 2021 I announced my hiatus from piercing. I left Icon in 2022 to take a few months away from piercing to work on my mental health and recover from the burnout I had gotten myself into after years of overworking myself in this industry during my apprenticeship. Burnout is notoriously difficult to recover from, and I knew that in this state I was unable to offer the best of myself to my clients and coworkers. I am incredibly grateful I was able to take my hiatus and focus on recovering. This time was incredibly healing for me, and in the spring of 2022, I began traveling part-time. I was still not ready to be back piercing full-time, but I split my time between guesting and creating content. Traveling has been the most amazing adventure- I have seen so many new parts of the country, spent time with friends and colleagues who have become near and dear to me, and met so many incredible clients, followers, and friends. I truly love and enjoy traveling and have a deep love for guesting that will never go away.
But there are some things you miss out on when traveling. Not being located in a single studio means it’s harder to build repeat client relationships that can become truly magical. It makes it difficult to work on larger piercing projects. I can’t often offer shadowing while I travel. I miss designing and ordering jewelry and having a consistent staff to work alongside and grow with. After a very healing, enlightening year and a half, I find myself ready to return to full-time work. In truth, I expected to spend at least another year traveling. I was ready to, even as I felt the call to return to a studio getting stronger. But sometimes the world has other plans, and when I found a studio that feels like a perfect fit, I couldn’t say no.
Beginning in late July of 2023, you will be able to find me full-time at Laughing Buddha Body Piercing in Seattle, Washington!
I am so beyond excited to call Laughing Buddha, and Seattle, my new home. I have visited multiple times during my travels and I have fallen in love with the studio, the city, and the clients. The entire staff at LB is incredibly welcoming, supportive, and genuinely committed to creating a safe space for employees and clients alike. The clients I have met and worked with in Seattle have been amazing, and often push me to do unique and interesting projects, find connections offering affirming piercings, and have wonderful ideas and plans. Seattle itself is a vibrant city, and as someone from the east coast, I’m excited to try living on the west coast for a bit.
Being stable in a single studio also allows me to begin exploring plans and ideas for piercing projects, content projects, and other ideas I have had brewing in my mind for a while. If you live in Seattle or the surrounding area, stay tuned because I will be posting open calls for clients and models for a number of very exciting projects once I am set up there. And for those who have not gotten to see me on my travels, don’t worry! This isn’t the end of my guest spotting time. I love traveling and guesting too much to fully stop. While I will be traveling less once I am settled in Seattle, I will still be doing occasional guest spots and you will still be able to find me on the road from time to time. Having a stable home studio actually affords me the ability to do some travel work I’ve been dreaming of for a while (international guest spots in 2024, anyone?).
I am so incredibly excited for this next chapter in my life and in my piercing career, and I thank all of you for your support, from the bottom of my heart. I couldn’t do this without each and every one of you. Thank you all so much, and I’ll see you in Seattle! <3