There’s a brand new Tattoo Fixer in town… meet the show’s new inker Glen Carloss
Glen, 30, from Surrey, is set to join the E4 show after learning the art of tattooing seven years ago
TATTOO Fixers is back on our screens at the end of this month – and there’s a brand new Fixer in town.
New boy Glen Carloss is joining Jay Hutton, Alice Perrin and Sketch at their pop up studio for the new series of Tattoo Fixers on Holiday, which kicks off on July 25.
The 30-year-old, from Surrey, fit in instantly but promised the odd needle-off when the Fixers present their designs.
He told The Sun Online: “There’s competition when we pitch, definitely.
“Jay’s not very competitive but Sketch is and I am VERY competitive so there will be a lot of rivalry over the ideas.”
“But as soon as I walked into the building we all clicked. It was easy. We just started chatting straight away because, as tattoo artists, we have such a big passion in common.”
Glen, who specialises in bold, realistic designs, with plenty of colour, is a relative newcomer to the game.
He first picked up the needle five years ago, after giving up his day job as an electrician.
He said: “I’ve always loved tattoos since I was little but I never knew how to get into tattooing. I was an electrician for seven years but it wasn’t the job for me so I took steps to come away from that and started tattooing.”
Glen’s first step was to start practicing on his own LEGS – with less than perfect results.
“It didn’t go very well to be honest, but it was a start. I spent a long time practising and I did loads of ropey tattoos.
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“The legs are still a work in progress – I’ll get someone else to cover them in time – but it’s not uncommon.
“You have to understand how much it hurts and how much damage you are doing to someone’s skin. "There’s a lot to learn and if you make mistakes on yourself it’s fine, but if you make mistakes on other people it’s a big deal.
“The first time I tattooed someone else was nerve-wracking.
“It’s a lot of responsibility. I always find it challenging, even now, when I start a tattoo. It still makes me nervous if I think about it too much.”
After trying out his skills on his own thighs, Glen got an apprenticeship at a local tattoo parlour before moving on to train at various studios for months at a time.
He then spent a year in Belgium before opening his own studio, Ladies and Gentlemen, in Surrey. He often posts pictures of his designs on Instagram.
Glen says he is “massively excited to join the Tattoo Fixers family” and insists the difference the artists make is inspiring.
He said: “We have seen some real shockers in this series but there are also some that you think aren’t too bad until you cover it up and see their reaction.
“Then you realise how much it means to them. We see tattoos every day and we can get a bit numb to it but when you hear the stories – both shocking and moving - it’s a reality check.”
Like his fellow Fixers, Glen has a fair few tattoos of his own, but he singles out three tiny figures on his fingers as the ones that mean the most.
He said: “The special ones for me are the numbers on my three fingers which are the 12, 3 and 19th letters of the alphabet. They stand for my three sisters’ initials. L, C, S.”
Tattoo Fixers on Holiday returns on July 25 on E4