It’s that time of year again when Inked Magazine run their competition to find the Inked cover girl of the year. This year you can vote for our very own Octavia Principe.
We asked Octavia.
What was your first tattoo?
Two Peacemakers (6-shooter pistols) on the back of my neck. My tattoo artist was leery about placement as it was my first tattoo. He was also pretty amazed at the fact that I sat like a stone for it. I’ve always been one for the Wild West lol.
What are your tattoos and what do they mean to you?
I personally love being able to wear art around throughout my journey in life. This way I get to keep my most meaningful pieces nearest to my heart instead of being restricted to solely visiting pieces in a museum for example.
Well, let’s see lol! I have quite a few so I hope that you’re ready for storytime haha.
My Peacemakers
These two six shooters are a nod to quite a few things. My ability to graduate from college on my own (guns blazing) after not having my immediate/closest familial support in my life, a nod to a long-time significant other at the time for their support, and a representation for my love & desire for the Wild West.
My Roses & Butterflies
These tattoos are for my mom…even though she was completely against me getting them lol. I let her know that the rose on my shoulder was the closest that any tat would get to my heart…& that it was for her. She softened up on them after that. We would plant roses along the side of my house growing up and Monarch butterflies would always come fly around me & land on me after they would emerge from my neighbor’s milkweed tree.
My Anatomical Skull with Vertebrae
It’s a reference to death, but not in a negative or scary way. There is still beauty in the imperfections that come with life & death. It also kind of ties in to the Monarch butterflies as well. I watched my neighbor torch their milkweed tree one spring when it was still full of cocoons. An image that kinda sticks with you as a little girl. Instead of taking the situation literally with actual flames, I proposed this interpretation to my artist & he rolled with it. That’s why if you’ve ever seen it up close, you’ll see whisps of smoke in the butterfly swarm in greywash. Kinda heavy I know, but it was a beautiful way to document the trials & tribulations of my life. The fact that I’ve been through so much but I still see so much beauty in coming up through the ashes.
My Frankenstein’s Monster
I love reading & this guy from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein really stood out to me in my literature courses. He was sorely misunderstood. All he ever really truly wanted was love. Relatable lol.
Where The Wild Things Are
This one is a scene of the wild rumpus from one of my favorite books as a kid. I really struggled with learning to read at first as a little girl, but once I did I consumed books like pieces of cereal! I am an only child so I’d escape to so many various wonderlands, galaxies, & places where dinosaurs tromped with ease instead of being on my own when friends couldn’t play or when my parents were busy.
My Realistic Timber Wolf & Wolf Totem
The wolf is my spirit animal. I know that sounds cliché, but a jet black timber wolf with ice blue eyes came to me in my dreams over a consistent period of time during a really rough patch in my life. It came with the message to believe, to not give up & not to stand still. To keep believing & move forward towards better days that were on the horizon.
My Luke Spiller Tattoo
You know after I came out of that rough patch that I was talking about when I mentioned my wolf tattoos to being in a good place, but still a bit shaken by what I’d been through; I remember hearing Could Have Been Me by The Struts as the first song to come through the speakers of the very first car that I purchased on my own. Luke’s voice & that song spoke to me on a soul level. It was a really happy time in my life, soundtracked by such a truly amazing song. Their music has always been there for me, no matter what. It’s gotten me through a lot and it continues to do so to this day. I couldn’t be more grateful so I couldn’t think of a better way to document how much all of it truly means to me.
What will your next one be?
Finishing my sleeve with lace cuff accents and then a butterfly silhouette burst transition from a lace pattern on my shoulder. The next complete one will be creeping rose vine & lace down my left side that ends in a Scorpio on a bed of roses on my glute/upper thigh. It’s going to be pretty painful with the rib cage and all & fairly expensive so it’s why I’ve been holding off lol.
What will you do if you win the competition?
Pay off some of my pandemic struggles. Donate to NIVA & CIVL. Create/produce a song of my own to reignite the fire for my career in music. GET MORE TATTOOS lol! Finally get my Harley-Davidson Softail. …And do some much desired traveling. I’d love to see the northern lights in Iceland & I’ve never been to Disney World believe it or not (I’m a major Disney movie girl). I’d love to visit a few places in the Pacific Islands, Northern Africa & Ireland as well. I’ve made it a point recently to visit places that are parts of my heritage. I finally got to see Italy last year & it was truly a blessing. Thank you so much for taking the time out to interview me on my Inked Magazine Covergirl Competition experience Andrew! You really got me to spill the beans haha! Hope I didn’t talk your ear off too badly lol.
