[00:00:00] Billy: Even though I know that’s true with body tattoos, I was under the impression that after a certain point with permanent makeup, it just plateaus and stops fading.

[00:00:08] Nadine: I did one session with you guys. It went so well — it was so chill, it didn’t hurt at all, and the way they faded was flawless.

[00:00:19] Billy: Just so you know, when we tell you to ice it, it’s not only for pain and swelling. It cools the tissue down as well.

[00:00:25] Nadine: I definitely expected my ear to blow up like a balloon and it didn’t at all. I even forgot I got the removal that day.

[00:00:33] Billy: A lot of clients come in and that’s one of the main reasons people want tattoos removed — the memory associated with the tattoo.

[00:00:38] Nadine: I’m happy to express myself with my tattoos where they can be hidden, but still look classy when I go out.

[00:00:51] Billy: Luckily, there’s the option to remove it. What would you do if removal wasn’t an option? You’d just have to live with it.

[00:00:59] Billy: Welcome back to the Faded Podcast. Today we have tattooer Nadine with us. Nadine goes by the name Cranky Goblin.

[00:01:08] Nadine: I do.

[00:01:09] Billy: On Instagram. Are you on other socials besides Instagram?

[00:01:12] Nadine: I have TikTok, but I usually just use it to post fashion stuff and to beef with people in the comments — so it’s not really professional.

[00:01:22] Billy: Okay, so mainly Instagram?

[00:01:24] Nadine: Mainly Instagram.

[00:01:25] Billy: That’s where you post your work?

[00:01:27] Nadine: Yes, definitely.

[00:01:29] Billy: And what studio do you work at?

[00:01:31] Nadine: I work at Grapevine Tattoo in New Westminster. It’s an all-female studio — gorgeous, talented women. It’s probably my favorite shop I’ve ever worked at. I don’t see myself leaving anytime soon.

[00:01:47] Billy: All-female staff — do you have male clientele or is it mainly women?

[00:01:52] Nadine: No, a lot of male clientele actually. I wouldn’t say surprising, but we have an even mix because all the artists have different styles. We bring in every walk of life.

[00:02:08] Billy: Nadine was a client — she came to us to get her brows removed. When was that? Last year?

[00:02:17] Nadine: Literally exactly a year ago.

[00:02:19] Billy: At that time, I don’t think we knew each other.

[00:02:23] Nadine: No.

[00:02:23] Billy: I don’t think I knew you were tattooing then. But we met again at the Vancouver Tattoo Convention.

[00:02:31] Nadine: Yes.

[00:02:31] Billy: That’s when I put two and two together that you were the same person who came in for brow removal.

[00:02:37] Nadine: Yeah.

[00:02:38] Billy: Was it one session we did?

[00:02:41] Nadine: One session, and it went so well — so chill, didn’t hurt, and the fading was flawless.

[00:02:51] Billy: Really?

[00:02:51] Nadine: I got lucky. People talk about orange pigment, but the girl who did my brows used cooler tones, so they faded really nicely. They’re pretty much gone. I could use one more session but figured I’d wait, especially with summer. And sometimes the longer you wait, the more the tattoo fades — the ink keeps metabolizing.

[00:03:19] Billy: Have your brows faded more over time? I know that’s true with body tattoos, but I always thought permanent makeup stops fading eventually.

[00:03:31] Nadine: Honestly, over the past year I’ve noticed them fade even more. There was still a bit of a tail on one side after you did it — it’s way more faded now than six months ago. I compared photos and it’s crazy.

[00:03:47] Billy: Okay, we’ll take another look next time you come in.

[00:03:50] Nadine: Yeah.

[00:03:51] Billy: At the tattoo convention, you mentioned you had some tattoos you wanted removed.

[00:03:55] Nadine: Yes.

[00:03:59] Billy: You came in last week and we zapped those. That’s when we decided to have you on to talk about it. We did a couple behind your ears…

[00:04:09] Nadine: And the ear.

[00:04:09] Billy: And inside your ear. Which one was the most painful? People will want to know.

[00:04:15] Nadine: Definitely the neck/behind-the-ear one. It was such a small tattoo but it stung in this weird spot in my head. Hard to explain, but definitely the most painful. The face and the ear were so chill. I expected those to hurt more.

[00:04:34] Billy: That’s right — we did one on the side of your face too.

[00:04:36] Nadine: Yeah.

[00:04:37] Billy: So the face, the inside of your ear, and one on each side behind the ear.

[00:04:44] Billy: It seemed like a smooth session. Nothing looked super aggravated when you left.

[00:04:51] Nadine: No. I expected my ear to blow up like a balloon and it didn’t at all. I even forgot I got removal that day. Maybe I’m just not someone who over-cares for tattoos — even with my brows I didn’t go overboard. I iced it a bit and let my body heal. That’s probably why the reaction was better for me.

[00:05:24] Billy: That’s great. If you know you don’t need extra icing or aftercare, do what works for you. But when we say ice it, it’s not just for pain — it cools the tissue. Even if you’re not worried about swelling, it’s good to cool it down.

[00:05:39] Billy: Honestly, I thought you were going to get cauliflower ear. Have you seen MMA fighters with cauliflower ears? I thought for sure that would happen — that tattoo was right in the danger zone.

[00:05:59] Nadine: Yeah.

[00:05:59] Billy: There are tiny blood vessels in there. If they break, it balloons up. Luckily that didn’t happen — that wouldn’t be cute.

[00:06:06] Nadine: No, I expected that. That’s why I didn’t book clients, wore my hair down — but it was so chill. It didn’t even feel hot afterward.

[00:06:28] Billy: Is there a story behind any of those tattoos?

[00:06:32] Nadine: There’s always a story behind tattoos you remove. The one on my face — I got it at seventeen. Tumblr days. I saw a girl with a Queen of Hearts tattoo in red on her face. I thought it was so cool. I had no tattoos then, maybe one tiny rib tattoo. I went in with a fake ID and asked for it, but not in red — I wanted a Queen of Clubs. I thought it was so fun and edgy. And now it’s just… tacky.

[00:07:37] Billy: It’s on your face.

[00:07:38] Nadine: It’s on my face.

[00:07:39] Billy: Nothing against face tattoos, but if you barely have tattoos, that shouldn’t be your first placement.

[00:07:51] Nadine: That guy just wanted my money. He didn’t care.

[00:07:56] Billy: Did your family freak out?

[00:07:59] Nadine: I was a rebellious teenager and I come from a conservative-ish European family. They were furious. But my mom was smart — she never grounded me. She knew I’d deal with the consequences later, like when I had gauges and later paid to get them sewn up.

[00:08:25] Billy: You got them sewn up?

[00:08:26] Nadine: Yeah.

[00:08:26] Billy: How was that?

[00:08:30] Nadine: Honestly, the chillest procedure. They numb it fully. You can hear them cutting your ear open, but it doesn’t hurt. Takes less than an hour.

[00:08:56] Billy: That’s a good service — a lot of people have stretched ears, noses, lips…

[00:09:05] Nadine: If you love it, do it. But I got gorgeous family heirloom earrings and couldn’t wear them because of the huge holes. And downtown surgeons wanted to charge $3,000. I found a reputable surgeon in Abbotsford who charged $800 for both ears.

[00:09:56] Billy: Did you see a portfolio?

[00:10:17] Nadine: I knew he did my friend’s breast implants and they looked great. I figured if he can reconstruct someone’s body, he can handle an ear. I looked at his lipo and tummy tuck results too — everything looked good. My ears look flawless now.

[00:11:05] Nadine: Same with my nose job — I went to someone who does facial reconstruction at VGH. If someone rebuilds faces, that’s who I want.

[00:11:09] Billy: So you wanted the face tattoo gone. Why the one inside the ear? That one’s less noticeable.

[00:11:23] Nadine: I’m gonna talk a little shit — my mentor did that tattoo. He was a good artist until he started dabbling in… paraphernalia. He was on a downward spiral when he did it. It’s janky. I didn’t enjoy my apprenticeship either. So I don’t want to look at anything he put on me. Tattoos hold memories, and that one is not a memory I want.

[00:12:23] Billy: The one inside your ear?

[00:12:24] Nadine: Yes. Out of all my tattoos — back, leg, arm, even my armpit — that’s the one people comment on the most. I hate it. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.

[00:12:40] Billy: If it’s a bad memory, I get it. Many clients want removal because of emotional attachment — even if the tattoo is nice.

[00:12:59] Nadine: Exactly. I don’t even see it because it’s in my ear — it’s other people commenting that makes me think about it. I don’t want to think about it. Remove it.

[00:13:22] Billy: Luckily the option’s there. That tattoo will probably fade quickly.

[00:13:30] Nadine: My plan is to fade it enough to maybe put something beautiful in there.

[00:13:40] Billy: You’ll need it lightened significantly to cover it properly — such a small space.

[00:13:48] Nadine: I know. I might not cover it. I just like ear tattoos — I want it done right.

[00:14:08] Nadine: Same with the tiny one on my neck — it’s actually a cover-up. Loved the concept, didn’t love the execution.

[00:14:27] Billy: So you have more tattoos you might remove?

[00:14:38] Nadine: Not remove, but… I hate my sleeve.

[00:14:42] Billy: Really?

[00:14:47] Nadine: It’s not the top — it’s the bottom. My mentor did it while relapsing, and another artist had to come fix it mid-session. Every time I look at it I cringe. I don’t know if I want to remove it or cover it. It’s a big area, so I’m scared.

[00:15:18] Billy: You might as well start lightening it. You’ll have months or years to figure out your next steps.

[00:15:41] Nadine: You’re right. It’s just tough. The part I hate the most is on the back of my arm by the elbow — nobody sees it, but I do.

[00:16:07] Billy: Were those done at the same time as the ear tattoo?

[00:16:11] Nadine: No. They were done two years ago by a girl — they’re not badly done.

[00:16:19] Billy: But they were saturated.

[00:16:22] Nadine: Very.

[00:16:22] Billy: Saturated tattoos hurt more during removal — more pigment means more reaction, which means more pain.

[00:16:41] Nadine: Honestly, getting that little face tattoo was the stupidest thing I’ve done.

[00:16:46] Billy: It’s not that bad — it’s small.

[00:16:47] Nadine: It’s small, but I’m gonna toot my own horn — I’m a really pretty girl. There was no reason for me to put something like that on my face. If you want face tattoos, do it — but it’s not the look I want.

[00:17:12] Nadine: I’m in the tattoo industry, yes, but I also represent brands and create content for wealthier, classier consumers. They don’t want to see that. I don’t want to see that. I like expressing myself but still looking classy. Hand tattoos? Cool. A random face tattoo from age 17? No.

[00:18:12] Billy: Luckily there’s removal. If there wasn’t?

[00:18:20] Nadine: I’d probably conceal it with makeup every day.

[00:18:23] Billy: Forever?

[00:18:30] Nadine: Or wait until I’m older and get a facelift and have them tighten the skin. Not at 40 — maybe 60.

[00:18:38] Billy: That’s a long time to live with it.

[00:18:39] Nadine: True. But I’d deal with it. The ear tattoo though — I’d have no options.

[00:18:50] Billy: I’m glad you’re removing it. We’ll be seeing you more — it’ll take time to fade.

[00:18:58] Nadine: I’m scared.

[00:18:58] Billy: Don’t be scared — you’ll be fine. Maybe we’ll have you back in six months for an update.

[00:19:09] Nadine: You can show my face again.

[00:19:11] Billy: We’ll check your progress and talk about the experience. If we remove anything else, we’ll film that too.

[00:19:22] Nadine: I’m scared.

[00:19:23] Billy: Don’t be. You’ll be okay.

[00:19:25] Nadine: Thank you so much for having me — I appreciate it.

[00:19:27] Billy: It was a pleasure. And thank you all for tuning in to Faded. We’ll see you next time.