Angel Kisses for SNS LA

We sat down with the owners of LA based tattoo studio Angel Kisses, Jayna Won and Sabrina Drescher to discuss their friendship, co-owning a shop together and their individual passion for tattooing.

SNS LA : Thank you so much for sitting down with us. Let's start with who you are and where you're both from.

Angel Kisses : Jayna Won is a hand poke tattooer and the co-owner of Angel Kisses Studio. I’m from Los Angeles California. Sabrina Drescher is a tattooer and co-owner of Angel Kisses Studio and is from Virginia.

SNS LA : How did the idea of opening your own shop come together?

Angel Kisses : We met during a trade and instantly felt connected. Pretty soon we started sharing the studio and talking about how we wanted to open a space that offered safety and community in a way we felt was needed in LA. Eventually we started looking for spaces and really discussing what we wanted the space to be not just for us, but for any artist or client that walked through the doors.

SNS LA : Angel Kisses is a QPOC owned, inclusive studio. Have you been met with challenges or obstacles as owners because of that fact?

Angel Kisses : No we haven’t. In fact the support we got from other artists and the community was overwhelming. People we had never met before came by to give their blessings!

SNS LA : I think it's incredibly important to notate that you've pledged to train your residents and apprentices in tattooing darker skin. Is this due to misrepresentation or a lack of knowledge throughout the industry's history?

Angel Kisses : Yes, it’s also important that everyone here is showing the world that they’re work is available to everyone. We heard too many times that people were scared to get tattooed because they didn’t know if it would look good on dark skin, or that they would scar. It’s important to us that our artists showcase their work on people of all skin types so our clients feel safe. It also can be discouraging to browse the page of an artist and to only see white skin when you’re brown so we want to teach our apprentices early on that if they want to be inclusive tattooers they need to prioritize that.

SNS : How have you seen the industry change since you both started working?

Angel Kisses : Tattooers have become more supportive and encouraging to each other and it’s been incredible to watch. We both came into this industry stoked on other people’s work but afraid of the competitive aspect. What’s happened is the community has become so loving right as we entered this phase of our careers. We don’t believe in competition because everyone’s art is different and unique to whoever is making it, there is room for everyone and it’s been nice to see so many others align in that belief.

SNS LA : What can we expect and or look forward to from Angel Kisses and yourselves this year?

Angel Kisses : Fun guest artists! Hopefully some fun events once it’s safe, and we’d like to showcase art from local artists in the space as well. We’re looking forward to making this shop a place of love and community.

A really healing thing has developed over the past year. It’s almost radical that this kind of work is happening when time and contact with others has become so limited. People are choosing to spend that time with us, and choosing to step away from all of the chaos into a consensual, and productive pain and adornment that seems superficial. It has made the entire practice so much more potent, transformative and empowering. I guess even if the house is falling apart, we can still decorate the walls!

Interview by Garcia Segura Feb, 2021

Photography by Are Bernard