Thinkin’ about ink

A  profile of local tattoo artist, Allie Charbonneau

After two weeks of being a guest artist at Modern Addiction Tattoos, Allie Charbonneau decided to extend her stay for a full year. Then, after the year ended, she decided to keep working as a resident artist in Guelph.

Hailing from Saint-Lazare, Que., Allie stumbled into the industry when tattoo artist Jeff Wiet noticed her artwork and invited her to start an apprenticeship at Expressions Tattoos in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que. She began working at the shop at the same time that she was studying illustration and design at Dawson College; she started tattooing full-time when she graduated in 2015.

Her detailed nature- and animal-themed tattoos have attracted a dedicated clientele. Enthusiasts, like Kari Hitchcock, have had as many as five tattoos done by her.

But with week after week of endless tattoo appointments, Allie became stressed out by the number of projects she was taking on. Since then, she’s had to change her booking process. There’s a consultation waiting list now so that clients that have been patient get a fair chance at getting an appointment.

“I still don’t know how to make people happy in terms of bookings,” said Allie. “I’m so, so flattered that it’s so busy here and that people want to get tattooed by me, but I hate the fact that I can’t do it right away, or can’t commit to an appointment yet.”

Outside of tattooing, Allie recently ventured into selling sweaters, tote bags, and prints with her artwork on them. She was a vendor at the Guelph Night Market, an event that was organized by one of her clients, Theresa Mullin.

“It was really overwhelming, but it was a lot of fun,” said Allie. “I would totally do it again and try to do more markets and things.”

Even on her days off, Allie is always drawing and prepping for the next tattoo. In the rest of her free time, she often takes her pug, Clementine, for walks at the University of Guelph Arboretum or in Elora.

When asked if she would be staying in Guelph indefinitely, Allie was unsure of the future.

“My plan is to have no plan right now,” she said. “I really love it here and that’s really all that counts.”

Photos by Karen K. Tran/The Ontarion