"I moved away from using stencils and sought a much more direct method, switching to freehand—drawing directly on the body or experimenting with different textures or even working directly with the machine. I wanted to find a technique that would even surprise me. The person getting the tattoo doesn’t necessarily know what it will look like in the end—they don’t have a precise image in their mind, on their hand, or on paper showing exactly what it will turn out like, and neither do I. I prefer to lay down some basic lines and directions to work from, and as I go along, new ideas come to me. In the end, the result is a surprise for both parties, and I find it more interesting this way."