October 27, 2025 • 17 mins
Alexis chats with Valentina, the Colombian-born artist behind Nakdlines Tattoo and resident artist at More Than Tattoo Melbourne.
After leaving her teaching career to follow her creative passion, Valentina now channels emotion and identity through both tattoo and digital art. Tune in as she shares her journey from the classroom to the tattoo studio, and what it truly means to live as a full-time artist.
If you’d like to see more, you can follow on instagram; @ nakdlines_
This episode was recorded on 28 September 2025 on the lands of the Woiworung Peoples. We hope that this episode inspires you as a creative person and as a human being.
Thanks for listening, catch you on the next episode.
Psst! We are always on the lookout for creative people to share their story and inspire others. Have you got someone in mind who would love to have a chat? Get in contact with us via Instagram @throughthecreativedoor
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CREDITS
Created and Hosted by Alexis Naylor
Music by Alexis Naylor & Ruby Miguel
Edited and Produced by Ruby Miguel
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:09):
Hello, my name is Alexis Nailer, and I am your host here at Through The Creative Door.
On behalf of myself and my guests, I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians on which this podcast is recorded and produced.
May we pay our respects to all First Nations people and acknowledge elders past and present.
(00:32):
On this podcast, I'll be chatting to an array of creative guests, getting a glimpse into their worlds and having some honest and inspiring conversations along the way.
I am delighted to welcome you to Through the Creative Door.
Oh my goodness, Valentina, you are such a gorgeous soul.
(00:53):
I'm so chuffed to be chatting to you.
For those listening, I met you at a tattoo parlor in Fitzroy.
Yes.
And you were doing this amazing creative.
Business there and I was like, I need to know more about this woman.
Mm-hmm.
This was a
year ago.
I
know.
It's taken me a year to get you on the potty.
(01:15):
I'm so excited.
But I loved in that initial chat that we had where obviously I saw you, you know, being in a tattoo parlor and obviously working as a tattoo artist, but also seeing your beautiful print.
And those beautiful stickers and different like creative artworks that you create.
Yeah.
Oh my goodness.
Just so lovely.
(01:35):
I actually have one of your stickers on a few of my music bags.
You do.
Oh, I makes you so happy.
But without further ado, let's launch into these questions.
Let's get started.
Yay.
Now
I'm interested because obviously as a taboo artist.
(01:58):
One would think that a studio space might be your answer for this.
Mm-hmm.
But also because you, you are an artist, so you draw and paint and you like creating digital prints and things.
Yeah.
So I'm curious, what does a creative space mean to you?
Look at the beginning, I thought my creative space was where I work, but it's not like that.
(02:19):
Like for me it's like, it can be, it depends pretty much on how I'm feeling.
So sometimes when I go into work and we're drawing flash all together, it flows, but sometimes I go into work and it's just, we're having chats and I get nothing done.
So then I'll be drawing at home or I'll be going to the park.
So it's pretty much like how I'm feeling and where I'm feeling creative.
Yeah.
(02:40):
Yeah.
Do you think that it's also a mindset?
'cause you were saying like when you're around other people, do you feel like they, it's the distraction.
Oh, you're bouncing
off each other's energy.
A hundred percent.
Yeah.
So, yeah, it's pretty much a mindset.
I also get into my creative space by listening to music.
Interesting.
I love that.
Especially listening to soundtracks of different movies.
(03:01):
That's, yeah, that's my guilty pleasure.
And so is that calming?
Does it like take you into another place?
Yes.
Also depends what I'm drawing.
So for example, a couple of weeks ago, I was drawing a back piece for a client that was inspired on dragons.
And I just happened.
'cause the back piece was inspired a little bit on how to Train Your Dragon, you know, the kids movie.
(03:23):
And I put it on and I absolutely love the soundtrack.
So the next day when I, I was creating the back piece and getting inspired, I just pulled the soundtrack and it was, yeah, it was very beautiful.
Very beautiful.
Oh, I love that.
Yeah.
Oh, I do think that we, colors and sound can really teleport us and help to be able to develop ideas.
(03:43):
So that's awesome that you get to do that audio.
Through that creating.
So you've been creating for a long time.
Is there something that you are most proud of creating or something that's come about that you are just like, this is, I'm really proud of this.
Yes.
(04:03):
I actually thought about this.
Um, for me it was my first flash sheet.
November will be four years.
When I first started tu I was studying friends of friends or like close friends or myself at home.
And at that point it was all drawn by hand.
So I didn't have a stencil printer.
It was just on my iPad.
And then like practicing on the iPad and then doing it on literally the transfer paper that you used to put on the skin.
(04:28):
And I remember my friends were like, you need to open on Instagram and like get like show people your work.
And I was so nervous 'cause that's putting yourself out there doing something very different that I used to do that was teaching and I was like, I'm gonna do it.
But where do you start?
And something I love and something you'll see in my print is I love all the nostalgic cartoons and anything that will run you of your childhood.
(04:52):
So I sat down and I created this flashy, in spite, on all the like nineties cartoons, and it was maybe like seven or 10 different designs.
And when I finished it I was like, oh my God, like this is the real deal.
Like once I post this, like I am showing everyone that hey, like I'm actually open for business.
I'm
legit.
Yeah, I'm legit.
And then I finished it and I remember I was at my friend's house and I finished it and I'm like.
(05:14):
Like I should post it.
Maybe I should run an ad. And she's like, you definitely should run an ad. So I remember we're sitting down next to each other and like I press it and I'm like, oh my God, like this.
This just happened.
And that's when people started messaging me that were outside of obviously people that I knew and we're like, I saw you Patrick Design and I want to come and get a tattooed.
And he was welcoming people into my house.
(05:36):
That was literally back then in my like living space and tying them there.
And being like, this is, oh my God, this is happening.
This is not on like only a hobby.
This is a career.
The door has been opened.
Yeah, it
has been opened.
It was like, this is legit.
This is happening now.
So yeah, that first flash sheet is very special to me.
(05:57):
Oh, I love that.
And also those cartoons, those listening are just so cute.
I have to show on socials.
Because it's so cute.
I love the one with the like little chili.
Oh, that was my first, I told myself a little chili.
So cute.
Yeah.
Now on the flip side of things that you're proud of,
(06:18):
yeah.
And we've spoken off camera about some of these trials and tribulations.
Mm-hmm.
But what do you think has been most challenging around your creativity?
I'll say for the past, and this is getting like very.
Like personal has been dealing with anxiety, like growing up.
(06:40):
Yeah.
Every now and then you'll feel it and it's a normal emotion and all that stuff, but I would say maybe like nine months ago I started having like proper panic attacks and I was like, what is going on?
I was very confused.
I was also very scared because I find, I don't know, like I, when people ask me like, who are you and how do you see yourself?
(07:02):
I always saw myself as someone that's.
Happy and bright and chatty, and then experiencing all these feelings that are polar the opposite.
I was like, who?
What's happening with me?
What's wrong with me?
And now what?
Nine months later or 10 months later, going to therapy and like digging in or what the actual course is.
(07:23):
It was just like past things that I never worked on.
Like the best way that I could describe it is I was for so long living on autopilot and.
When things calm down in my life, kind of settle down a little bit.
Everything just came out all at once.
And that left.
I changed jobs, I left, I changed studios.
(07:43):
I got into a really healthy relationship and I had no idea what I was doing.
No idea.
And that really impacted me on the way that I created and just the way that I saw myself.
Yeah.
And you were saying that it changed how you were creating, like in what ways do you think.
I think because you're so focused on trying to feel good about yourself and navigating all these emotions, I kind of put my work to the side and then it's hard being an independent business, you rely on the things that you do every day.
(08:13):
So if I'm not drawing, if I'm not posting, then you're not bringing in client.
So then that adds up to the stress of, I'm feeling this way and now I can't perform as I used to perform in my job and be as creative as I used to be.
Like, what am I doing?
It's just a spiral.
Mm-hmm.
And that was really hard to trying to get out of it because you know this like the less you post and the less active you are and the less creative you are.
(08:40):
Then it puts your job back.
You leave all Instagram, you leave all the stuff that you create and the interactions that you have with your clients.
And I just feel like I wasn't showing up like I used to be.
So that was, yeah, that was very hard.
And how do you think you navigated and mitigated that?
One thing was acknowledging that is a normal thing in life to feel this way, which honestly has been a process, but opening up and relying on the people around me.
(09:09):
I've always been really proud and I think it comes like from my family that when you are struggling, you're meant to struggle by yourself.
And these actually made me open up and be like, I can't pretend like I'm working in a space where all these amazing women that are so encouraging and I'm there, I work struggling internally, but outside being like, everything's fine.
(09:31):
And it catch up to you, like it really catches up to you.
Or like being with an amazing partner and then being like.
You can't be the best version of yourself.
You have to open up.
You have to, you can't hold it in.
That's something that you can't hold in for a long time.
So opening up to the people that were around me and being like, I'm struggling with this.
And it really surprises you, what people will say to you and how people show up, which they showed up in the best way.
(09:54):
So that has been really helpful.
Yes.
Oh,
thank you so much for sharing.
That's okay.
We obviously.
The tapestry of our lives is, is all sorts of pressures.
But exactly what you were saying, when you are a sole trader, which a lot of creatives are, it's that a added level of anxiety that like Yeah.
(10:16):
Puts pressure.
So it's like you, you need to step back a little bit to be able to have that self care.
Yeah.
But it also is that sort of vicious cycle of
Definitely.
Definitely.
Even I feel bad like showing up to my clients, like I'll be showing up to appointments.
And I, I think it's the best part of my job meeting all these different people and listening to the stories.
(10:38):
So then on the back of my mind, I knew I was struggling, but I also wanted to show up for them.
'cause every appointment doesn't matter if it's a big title or a little title, it's an experience.
So I'm like, I wanna show up the best version of myself for them.
So I really have to like start doing that internal work.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Oh,
so true.
Go therapy.
(10:58):
I know.
I know.
We are getting there.
Oh look.
Anything worth anything?
Slow process.
Yeah.
Now I'm curious, do you have an object or thing that you can't live without when you are creating
you?
Yes.
For me it will have to be my rings.
(11:19):
I wear these rings every single day, even though they sometimes rip my, um.
My gloves.
But yeah, I wear them every single day and each one of my rings means something different for, so for example, this one here, my grandpa gave it to me years ago when I first started working with him on my summer job back in Colombia.
(11:39):
And then this one I have with one of my closest girlfriends that we've been in friends for almost 10 years.
This chili one, one of my clients gave it to me when I started tattoo full time and she was studying her own business.
Making jewelry on the side.
Yeah.
And now it's a very successful business.
She's doing awesome.
So she custom made it.
We were talking and I'm like, for me, chilies has always been like a bit of a trademark, although I'm terrible with spice, but I don't know.
(12:05):
I've always loved it and I always wish I have a better tolerance of spice, but it's always been a trademark.
And we were talking and she's like, let me design something for you.
And she didn't.
It's just, it reminds me like when I first started this journey of the twin, it has a little chili.
So cute.
And this one's my mom and another close girlfriend that I treated, that we did last year through Europe.
(12:26):
And just each one of them is just a special person and a special moment in my life.
Can I just say I resonate with you because I have each one of my rings.
I'm such a ring person and I never take them off.
But you feel naked without them?
I feel naked without them.
And they've all got a story.
Yeah, they've all been picked up at certain points and they've all got a story.
You're gonna laugh at me.
When we went to Europe and I was trying to pick a ring.
(12:48):
And I told my friend, I'm like, there's so many options and this feels so permanent.
And she's like, Valentina, you're covered in tattoos.
And you'll be like, I like that duck.
I'll get that duck on me.
But when it comes to jewelry, I am so picky because when I see it, like it has to just represent something special.
Yeah.
I hear you, sister.
I hear you.
I hear you.
(13:08):
I'm exactly the same.
Yeah.
Oh, I love that.
Yep.
If you could give one piece of advice, one nugget of gold, yes, to somebody, what would it be?
I'll say, try to surround yourself with people who have similar goals to you.
(13:30):
And I think I've learned this past couple of months that I started my new job.
Surrounding yourself with people who are also as passionate as you are in the creative arts is just, it lifts you up.
It really, really does.
And then it opens you up to new experiences.
Like I struggled a couple of months ago to get into that creative mindset and start drawing more flash and I thought it was only me.
(13:51):
And then I spoke to the girls at work and they're like, I'm feeling like that too.
I'm feeling a bit stuck.
I'm struggling to get creative.
And then we started doing the social nights at work.
Yeah.
Where it's like the next one is like in a week.
And we are painting these like bunny rabbits.
And it's just the way of getting out of, 'cause when you work in a creative area.
It becomes your job.
(14:12):
And I feel sometimes, not that you lose the passion, but it becomes like work where you also want it to be like, yeah, fun.
Fun.
Exactly.
Yeah, fun.
So this is like, let's take that fun part to spark that creativity
and you're doing a little working.
Be together.
Exactly, exactly.
Doing anything, doing either clay or painting or drawing, or anything that gives you that fun.
(14:36):
Yeah.
That spark.
'cause when you draw every single day, it can feel a little bit like work and not so much like fun sometimes.
So yeah, to get you out of that little funk.
Oh, I love that so much.
Yeah.
So surrounding yourself with people who are, that have those goals as well is very, yeah.
Very important.
Finding your people, basically.
Find your people.
(14:57):
Yeah.
Yes.
Love that.
So true.
Now,
what would you recommend if someone wanted to develop their creative?
Space, their creative world to try and do what you do.
Mm-hmm.
Would you recommend any resources, any books, any videos, any courses?
(15:22):
I'll say, well, something I did that helped me was watching lots of videos and doing your research on different artists on Instagram and seeing different techniques and just trying it out.
Don't be scared to try it out.
Buy some fake skin.
And a cheap machining.
That's what you can afford at the time.
And just watching videos of people doing it.
There's heaps online.
(15:43):
There's a platform that I used at the beginning called Domestica and it's like very basic stuff, but those courses were amazing.
Yeah.
To get you started.
Amazing.
Oh, love a little bit of an upskill.
Love it.
One last question for you.
Yes.
If you could hear anyone come on this podcast and answer these questions, who would it be and why?
(16:06):
I'll have to say, um, my friend Danny, she's a piercer, but she's also studying her business on piercing play, which I didn't know what it was.
It's very different form of art, but yeah, she's one of the first people in Melbourne to do it.
Piercing play.
Very interesting.
Very interesting.
Very different.
I was just about to say, I'm so intrigued already.
(16:27):
Yeah.
She went from film industry, she studied film and loves film, and then migrated into piecing and now.
This like new type of body art, I will say.
Yeah.
Amazing.
Very different.
Love
it.
Oh my goodness.
Thank you so much for chatting.
We threw the creative door.
No, thank you so much.
This has been such a fun.
(16:47):
This has been so fun.
I love it.
Yay.
Thank you Alexis.
Thanks for tuning in for another episode of Through The Creative Door.
If you enjoy our episodes and find value in them, consider supporting us by making a donation.
Just visit buy me a coffee.com/through the creative door, or buy the link in our Instagram buy where you can choose an amount and even write us a little message.
(17:19):
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We'll catch you on the next episode.
Bye.
Hello, my name is Alexis Nailer, and I am your host here at Through The Creative Door.
On behalf of myself and my guests, I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians on which this podcast is recorded and produced.
May we pay our respects to all First Nations people and acknowledge elders past and present.
(00:32):
On this podcast, I'll be chatting to an array of creative guests, getting a glimpse into their worlds and having some honest and inspiring conversations along the way.
I am delighted to welcome you to Through the Creative Door.
Oh my goodness, Valentina, you are such a gorgeous soul.
(00:53):
I'm so chuffed to be chatting to you.
For those listening, I met you at a tattoo parlor in Fitzroy.
Yes.
And you were doing this amazing creative.
Business there and I was like, I need to know more about this woman.
Mm-hmm.
This was a
year ago.
I
know.
It's taken me a year to get you on the potty.
(01:15):
I'm so excited.
But I loved in that initial chat that we had where obviously I saw you, you know, being in a tattoo parlor and obviously working as a tattoo artist, but also seeing your beautiful print.
And those beautiful stickers and different like creative artworks that you create.
Yeah.
Oh my goodness.
Just so lovely.
(01:35):
I actually have one of your stickers on a few of my music bags.
You do.
Oh, I makes you so happy.
But without further ado, let's launch into these questions.
Let's get started.
Yay.
Now
I'm interested because obviously as a taboo artist.
(01:58):
One would think that a studio space might be your answer for this.
Mm-hmm.
But also because you, you are an artist, so you draw and paint and you like creating digital prints and things.
Yeah.
So I'm curious, what does a creative space mean to you?
Look at the beginning, I thought my creative space was where I work, but it's not like that.
(02:19):
Like for me it's like, it can be, it depends pretty much on how I'm feeling.
So sometimes when I go into work and we're drawing flash all together, it flows, but sometimes I go into work and it's just, we're having chats and I get nothing done.
So then I'll be drawing at home or I'll be going to the park.
So it's pretty much like how I'm feeling and where I'm feeling creative.
Yeah.
(02:40):
Yeah.
Do you think that it's also a mindset?
'cause you were saying like when you're around other people, do you feel like they, it's the distraction.
Oh, you're bouncing
off each other's energy.
A hundred percent.
Yeah.
So, yeah, it's pretty much a mindset.
I also get into my creative space by listening to music.
Interesting.
I love that.
Especially listening to soundtracks of different movies.
(03:01):
That's, yeah, that's my guilty pleasure.
And so is that calming?
Does it like take you into another place?
Yes.
Also depends what I'm drawing.
So for example, a couple of weeks ago, I was drawing a back piece for a client that was inspired on dragons.
And I just happened.
'cause the back piece was inspired a little bit on how to Train Your Dragon, you know, the kids movie.
(03:23):
And I put it on and I absolutely love the soundtrack.
So the next day when I, I was creating the back piece and getting inspired, I just pulled the soundtrack and it was, yeah, it was very beautiful.
Very beautiful.
Oh, I love that.
Yeah.
Oh, I do think that we, colors and sound can really teleport us and help to be able to develop ideas.
(03:43):
So that's awesome that you get to do that audio.
Through that creating.
So you've been creating for a long time.
Is there something that you are most proud of creating or something that's come about that you are just like, this is, I'm really proud of this.
Yes.
(04:03):
I actually thought about this.
Um, for me it was my first flash sheet.
November will be four years.
When I first started tu I was studying friends of friends or like close friends or myself at home.
And at that point it was all drawn by hand.
So I didn't have a stencil printer.
It was just on my iPad.
And then like practicing on the iPad and then doing it on literally the transfer paper that you used to put on the skin.
(04:28):
And I remember my friends were like, you need to open on Instagram and like get like show people your work.
And I was so nervous 'cause that's putting yourself out there doing something very different that I used to do that was teaching and I was like, I'm gonna do it.
But where do you start?
And something I love and something you'll see in my print is I love all the nostalgic cartoons and anything that will run you of your childhood.
(04:52):
So I sat down and I created this flashy, in spite, on all the like nineties cartoons, and it was maybe like seven or 10 different designs.
And when I finished it I was like, oh my God, like this is the real deal.
Like once I post this, like I am showing everyone that hey, like I'm actually open for business.
I'm
legit.
Yeah, I'm legit.
And then I finished it and I remember I was at my friend's house and I finished it and I'm like.
(05:14):
Like I should post it.
Maybe I should run an ad. And she's like, you definitely should run an ad. So I remember we're sitting down next to each other and like I press it and I'm like, oh my God, like this.
This just happened.
And that's when people started messaging me that were outside of obviously people that I knew and we're like, I saw you Patrick Design and I want to come and get a tattooed.
And he was welcoming people into my house.
(05:36):
That was literally back then in my like living space and tying them there.
And being like, this is, oh my God, this is happening.
This is not on like only a hobby.
This is a career.
The door has been opened.
Yeah, it
has been opened.
It was like, this is legit.
This is happening now.
So yeah, that first flash sheet is very special to me.
(05:57):
Oh, I love that.
And also those cartoons, those listening are just so cute.
I have to show on socials.
Because it's so cute.
I love the one with the like little chili.
Oh, that was my first, I told myself a little chili.
So cute.
Yeah.
Now on the flip side of things that you're proud of,
(06:18):
yeah.
And we've spoken off camera about some of these trials and tribulations.
Mm-hmm.
But what do you think has been most challenging around your creativity?
I'll say for the past, and this is getting like very.
Like personal has been dealing with anxiety, like growing up.
(06:40):
Yeah.
Every now and then you'll feel it and it's a normal emotion and all that stuff, but I would say maybe like nine months ago I started having like proper panic attacks and I was like, what is going on?
I was very confused.
I was also very scared because I find, I don't know, like I, when people ask me like, who are you and how do you see yourself?
(07:02):
I always saw myself as someone that's.
Happy and bright and chatty, and then experiencing all these feelings that are polar the opposite.
I was like, who?
What's happening with me?
What's wrong with me?
And now what?
Nine months later or 10 months later, going to therapy and like digging in or what the actual course is.
(07:23):
It was just like past things that I never worked on.
Like the best way that I could describe it is I was for so long living on autopilot and.
When things calm down in my life, kind of settle down a little bit.
Everything just came out all at once.
And that left.
I changed jobs, I left, I changed studios.
(07:43):
I got into a really healthy relationship and I had no idea what I was doing.
No idea.
And that really impacted me on the way that I created and just the way that I saw myself.
Yeah.
And you were saying that it changed how you were creating, like in what ways do you think.
I think because you're so focused on trying to feel good about yourself and navigating all these emotions, I kind of put my work to the side and then it's hard being an independent business, you rely on the things that you do every day.
(08:13):
So if I'm not drawing, if I'm not posting, then you're not bringing in client.
So then that adds up to the stress of, I'm feeling this way and now I can't perform as I used to perform in my job and be as creative as I used to be.
Like, what am I doing?
It's just a spiral.
Mm-hmm.
And that was really hard to trying to get out of it because you know this like the less you post and the less active you are and the less creative you are.
(08:40):
Then it puts your job back.
You leave all Instagram, you leave all the stuff that you create and the interactions that you have with your clients.
And I just feel like I wasn't showing up like I used to be.
So that was, yeah, that was very hard.
And how do you think you navigated and mitigated that?
One thing was acknowledging that is a normal thing in life to feel this way, which honestly has been a process, but opening up and relying on the people around me.
(09:09):
I've always been really proud and I think it comes like from my family that when you are struggling, you're meant to struggle by yourself.
And these actually made me open up and be like, I can't pretend like I'm working in a space where all these amazing women that are so encouraging and I'm there, I work struggling internally, but outside being like, everything's fine.
(09:31):
And it catch up to you, like it really catches up to you.
Or like being with an amazing partner and then being like.
You can't be the best version of yourself.
You have to open up.
You have to, you can't hold it in.
That's something that you can't hold in for a long time.
So opening up to the people that were around me and being like, I'm struggling with this.
And it really surprises you, what people will say to you and how people show up, which they showed up in the best way.
(09:54):
So that has been really helpful.
Yes.
Oh,
thank you so much for sharing.
That's okay.
We obviously.
The tapestry of our lives is, is all sorts of pressures.
But exactly what you were saying, when you are a sole trader, which a lot of creatives are, it's that a added level of anxiety that like Yeah.
(10:16):
Puts pressure.
So it's like you, you need to step back a little bit to be able to have that self care.
Yeah.
But it also is that sort of vicious cycle of
Definitely.
Definitely.
Even I feel bad like showing up to my clients, like I'll be showing up to appointments.
And I, I think it's the best part of my job meeting all these different people and listening to the stories.
(10:38):
So then on the back of my mind, I knew I was struggling, but I also wanted to show up for them.
'cause every appointment doesn't matter if it's a big title or a little title, it's an experience.
So I'm like, I wanna show up the best version of myself for them.
So I really have to like start doing that internal work.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Oh,
so true.
Go therapy.
(10:58):
I know.
I know.
We are getting there.
Oh look.
Anything worth anything?
Slow process.
Yeah.
Now I'm curious, do you have an object or thing that you can't live without when you are creating
you?
Yes.
For me it will have to be my rings.
(11:19):
I wear these rings every single day, even though they sometimes rip my, um.
My gloves.
But yeah, I wear them every single day and each one of my rings means something different for, so for example, this one here, my grandpa gave it to me years ago when I first started working with him on my summer job back in Colombia.
(11:39):
And then this one I have with one of my closest girlfriends that we've been in friends for almost 10 years.
This chili one, one of my clients gave it to me when I started tattoo full time and she was studying her own business.
Making jewelry on the side.
Yeah.
And now it's a very successful business.
She's doing awesome.
So she custom made it.
We were talking and I'm like, for me, chilies has always been like a bit of a trademark, although I'm terrible with spice, but I don't know.
(12:05):
I've always loved it and I always wish I have a better tolerance of spice, but it's always been a trademark.
And we were talking and she's like, let me design something for you.
And she didn't.
It's just, it reminds me like when I first started this journey of the twin, it has a little chili.
So cute.
And this one's my mom and another close girlfriend that I treated, that we did last year through Europe.
(12:26):
And just each one of them is just a special person and a special moment in my life.
Can I just say I resonate with you because I have each one of my rings.
I'm such a ring person and I never take them off.
But you feel naked without them?
I feel naked without them.
And they've all got a story.
Yeah, they've all been picked up at certain points and they've all got a story.
You're gonna laugh at me.
When we went to Europe and I was trying to pick a ring.
(12:48):
And I told my friend, I'm like, there's so many options and this feels so permanent.
And she's like, Valentina, you're covered in tattoos.
And you'll be like, I like that duck.
I'll get that duck on me.
But when it comes to jewelry, I am so picky because when I see it, like it has to just represent something special.
Yeah.
I hear you, sister.
I hear you.
I hear you.
(13:08):
I'm exactly the same.
Yeah.
Oh, I love that.
Yep.
If you could give one piece of advice, one nugget of gold, yes, to somebody, what would it be?
I'll say, try to surround yourself with people who have similar goals to you.
(13:30):
And I think I've learned this past couple of months that I started my new job.
Surrounding yourself with people who are also as passionate as you are in the creative arts is just, it lifts you up.
It really, really does.
And then it opens you up to new experiences.
Like I struggled a couple of months ago to get into that creative mindset and start drawing more flash and I thought it was only me.
(13:51):
And then I spoke to the girls at work and they're like, I'm feeling like that too.
I'm feeling a bit stuck.
I'm struggling to get creative.
And then we started doing the social nights at work.
Yeah.
Where it's like the next one is like in a week.
And we are painting these like bunny rabbits.
And it's just the way of getting out of, 'cause when you work in a creative area.
It becomes your job.
(14:12):
And I feel sometimes, not that you lose the passion, but it becomes like work where you also want it to be like, yeah, fun.
Fun.
Exactly.
Yeah, fun.
So this is like, let's take that fun part to spark that creativity
and you're doing a little working.
Be together.
Exactly, exactly.
Doing anything, doing either clay or painting or drawing, or anything that gives you that fun.
(14:36):
Yeah.
That spark.
'cause when you draw every single day, it can feel a little bit like work and not so much like fun sometimes.
So yeah, to get you out of that little funk.
Oh, I love that so much.
Yeah.
So surrounding yourself with people who are, that have those goals as well is very, yeah.
Very important.
Finding your people, basically.
Find your people.
(14:57):
Yeah.
Yes.
Love that.
So true.
Now,
what would you recommend if someone wanted to develop their creative?
Space, their creative world to try and do what you do.
Mm-hmm.
Would you recommend any resources, any books, any videos, any courses?
(15:22):
I'll say, well, something I did that helped me was watching lots of videos and doing your research on different artists on Instagram and seeing different techniques and just trying it out.
Don't be scared to try it out.
Buy some fake skin.
And a cheap machining.
That's what you can afford at the time.
And just watching videos of people doing it.
There's heaps online.
(15:43):
There's a platform that I used at the beginning called Domestica and it's like very basic stuff, but those courses were amazing.
Yeah.
To get you started.
Amazing.
Oh, love a little bit of an upskill.
Love it.
One last question for you.
Yes.
If you could hear anyone come on this podcast and answer these questions, who would it be and why?
(16:06):
I'll have to say, um, my friend Danny, she's a piercer, but she's also studying her business on piercing play, which I didn't know what it was.
It's very different form of art, but yeah, she's one of the first people in Melbourne to do it.
Piercing play.
Very interesting.
Very interesting.
Very different.
I was just about to say, I'm so intrigued already.
(16:27):
Yeah.
She went from film industry, she studied film and loves film, and then migrated into piecing and now.
This like new type of body art, I will say.
Yeah.
Amazing.
Very different.
Love
it.
Oh my goodness.
Thank you so much for chatting.
We threw the creative door.
No, thank you so much.
This has been such a fun.
(16:47):
This has been so fun.
I love it.
Yay.
Thank you Alexis.
Thanks for tuning in for another episode of Through The Creative Door.
If you enjoy our episodes and find value in them, consider supporting us by making a donation.
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(17:19):
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We'll catch you on the next episode.
Bye.
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