Pro Artist of the month – Clara Cosh-Escott

May 01, 2025 - 3 weeks ago

Her merch is raunchy, you’ve seen her signature ghosties everywhere, and she’ll always stand up for what she believes in – it could only be Clara Cosh-Escott!

Clara, aka coshtattoos, is a wonderful tattoo artist that can be found splitting her time between Aldershot and London, and at some of the best conventions in the UK, when she’s not deep into a playthrough of one of her favourite videogames.

We spoke to Clara about her love for all things pink, the importance of BIPOC representation in tattooing, and why booking platform Get Ink has changed her admin life.

What first drew you to tattooing, and what inspired you to turn it into a career?

Nobody in my life or family ever had tattoos, so even though I was always arty, tattoos were never on my radar. It wasn’t until my first relationship in secondary school that I was introduced to them properly, his dad was a tattoo artist. So I sometimes watched and asked questions and that fuelled the fire, I never considered any other path after that.

I went to uni to study illustration, because my mum was absolutely not having me be a tattooist, hated it, ended up getting an apprenticeship anyway. I think she’s over it now, sorry mum.

Were there any challenges early on in your tattooing journey, and how did you face them head-on?

The biggest challenge I faced was not getting ahead of myself. I wanted to be great at it from day one, and when you’re starting from the bottom it’s never going to be like that, you’re going to make mistakes, be rubbish at stuff, and learn from it.

I also wanted to find my style immediately, but I feel like your style finds you. For instance as an apprentice I thought I’d go on to do dark black and grey gothic stuff, I did a bit of colour and found it really difficult, but I tried it more and look at me now. But I’m so grateful to have explored every style, it means in the slower seasons I can pay my bills… 

Who or what has influenced your tattooing style the most, and how do you feel it’s changed over time?

My biggest influence I feel has always been pop culture, TV shows or films, memes, online trends, etc. Before I tattooed I had a successful merch business selling TV shows/film illustrations. They can be niche, they can have sentimental meanings, they bring people together.

And as a ‘new gen’ tattooist, it’s mostly been random artists I’ve followed online that give me the most style inspiration. There are some artists I follow that just have my jaw on the floor, and I’m always trying to dissect how they’ve done it, and I end up trying to tattoo a bit differently because of that.

How do you split your time between New Hope Tattoo and True Tattoo London studios?

New Hope is my OG studio, I was receptionist and then apprentice, I’ve been there for 6(!) years. So that is my resident studio for the majority. Then for three days a month I’m over at True Tattoo. It’s a completely different vibe so it’s really nice to split my time between the two; it also branches out my client base a little bit more into the London direction.

How do you ensure that your workspace is welcoming and inclusive?

The vibe you give off is the forefront of being inclusive and welcoming. I think people take one look at my profile and see that I’m a very open, liberal, good time gal. And I’ve found that puts a lot of people who are maybe a bit more anxious, at ease. I always post political/social/informative posts on my story, and will always do my best to fight the good fight for those who can’t.

I take on and post every body type, because representation creates trust. Pronouns and skin types are asked on my booking form so everybody feels included. 

You have an Instagram Story Highlight for tattoos you have done on BIPOC clients, how important is it to you to show this representation?

BIPOC representation is super important just as with anyone who feels like their bodies aren’t ‘right’ for certain tattoos. Especially colour. Colour is for everyone, we may have to make some tweaks depending on your skin undertones, but working with that is half the fun. And it makes me so angry when my clients come in and say they’ve been told they ‘can’t have’ colour. It’s bollocks. Some artists just can’t be bothered to figure out colour theory…

From the initial consultation to the finished tattoo, can you tell us your process for working with clients?

My process has always been the same: give me all your ideas, you rock up, and I tat you. In my 4.5 years of tattooing I’ve only had to redraw something on the day maybe six times? If someone is a first-time client and needs a consultation/extra reassurance, then I am more than happy to assist. But I draw everything up for the day, if it’s a big project maybe a couple of days before. Everyone is different but this works for me, as long as I have every bit of info.

I enjoy my regulars just rocking up without having a scooby, seeing it, and immediately being like ‘yeah slap it on me’. This is why Get Ink is so amazing, every bit of info and inspo I could possibly need is right there, so there’s no back and forth.

What advice would you give someone getting their first tattoo, or to artists starting a career in tattooing?

For someone getting their first tattoo, just make sure you’ve found someone whose style you love, you’ve seen their healed work, and who you trust. And don’t be afraid to ask questions, we’ve all been there and it can be scary. But that’s what we’re here for.

And for artists, good luck! It’s a total labour of love so be prepared to cry, have no money and work yourself silly to reap the incredible benefits of having the best job in the world at the end. But above all else, draw all the time.

What are your favourite brands and products that you can’t tattoo without?

Get Ink is a tool every tattooist should have. When your admin is sorted, you can really focus on your craft.

Butterluxe Stencil Glue, most of the time I have to wrestle the stencil off the skin with it. Whenever I see them at conventions, I’m stockpiling it like it’s 2020.

My Valknut machine is my trusty steed, it can smash out all the styles I offer. It’s the machine I’ve stuck with the longest (and I’ve never stuck to one for long).

Your set-up is usually pink, pink and more pink – is it fair to say you’re pink-obsessed?

If it’s pink, I’m buying it. No questions. But if we’re deeping it, I’m loving the way more people are steering away from the classic dark and moody ‘stab shack’ vibes. Everyone needs more pink, tattoos are fun so why shouldn’t your space be too.

I think it also helps with being inclusive, my space is where I can be pink and cute, so my space is also where my clients can be completely themselves

What aftercare advice do you give your clients, and do you have any top tips?

90% of my tattoos I use second skin. I just absolutely love it, especially for colour. They are so exposed those first few days, and with colour you have to be extra careful, so second skin is perfect to prevent any cross contamination/infection, etc.

Tattoos are a commitment, colour tattoos are an even bigger commitment. If you’re not protecting them with SPF whenever the sun comes out, they WILL fade. I say if you’re not ready to look after them every day in the summer, colour tattoos aren’t for you.

Where did the inspiration come from for your signature “cosh ghosties”?

My ghosties started on a whim. I needed to fill a gap on a Friday 13th flash sheet when I was an apprentice, so I put a ghost with a strap-on… and the rest was history. Slowly it became ‘I like that ghost you did, could I get one with…’ and 350 ghosties later they’ve become an army. I adore every one, and people get them for lots of different meanings and reasons.

Some of your merch designs are more risqué than your tattoos, is this something you’d like to lean into more with your work?

It’s a good point. When I had my illustration business and going into my apprenticeship, my drawings were complete filth, a lot of my first flash sheets were full on flaps and all. I tattooed a good few but it’s very niche. Not a lot of people will be up for having it on their bodies, which is understandable. If I had the choice, I’d do it all the time though, maybe this is a nod to draw up some more…

As a big Pokémon fan, any idea how many you’ve tattooed by now? And which ones have been the most fun – or the trickiest – to tattoo?

I’ve just sat down and counted, I’ve done 52 Pokémon tattoos, that’s nuts. I’ve only been doing them for maybe 1.5 years. I love Pokémon doing silly things, I tattooed Charmander paddle boarding and that brought me so much joy. I find they’re only tricky if people ask for them as cover-ups. Most Pokémon are so tattoo-able, I love every one.

What are your top five videogames of all-time, and which one(s) are you currently playing?

Had to think long and hard about these. I came to gaming quite late so a lot of older games aren’t on here. In no particular order:

• Spider-Man (PS4)
• Spyro Reignited Trilogy
• Skyrim
• Lego Star Wars (any)
• Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

At the moment, I’m on a playthrough of The Last of Us Part II - tissues at the ready.

How did your sponsorship with booking platform Get Ink come about?

It was really random, I was an apprentice at the time so I couldn’t afford pretty much anything, and they posted a year’s subscription giveaway which I won! I loved it so much I continued my subscription with them and have been using it for three years, now as a sponsored artist. I will never stop shouting about the amazing platform they’ve built for tattooists.

What are the main benefits to using Get Ink over other booking platforms?

It keeps everything in one place. I found with things like Jotform, it’s fine for getting all the info but there’s still a back and forth over emails about dates/times/deposits, etc. Get Ink keeps all of that in one smooth transaction: your client chooses their dates, they pay the deposit, done.

Get Ink also doesn’t take a cut of your deposits and final payments, a lot of ‘free’ booking systems actually take a big cut of your tattoo appointments and get your clients to pay a huge platform fee, which isn’t fair. Get Ink is one price per month, no matter how busy you are.

Nath, Andy and Lucy have built it from scratch and provide that amazing small business care that you don’t get with other companies.

How important is it for you to be a strong female voice in the tattooing community?

It’s so important, we each have our own platform and should never take it for granted. I faced wrongdoing at the hands of a tattoo artist when I was 18, and going into the industry at 23 I swore I wouldn’t be quiet about issues in the industry.

Unfortunately, problematic behaviour is still rife in artists, suppliers, conventions, etc and I will be an absolute pest on bringing these things to people’s attention

What conventions are coming up for you this year?

This year you’ll find me at Newbury (my favourite convention of 2024, I can’t wait); the Great Western Tattoo Show, which’ll be a new one for me; and Big London.

What is next for Clara Cosh-Escott?

It’s a good question! This year I was riding the wave of the economy, so I bunkered down at New Hope and focussed on improving my colour work. But at the end of this year, I’m going to start working on exciting new things for 2026; you reach a stage where you feel like some change is brewing and I feel like it’s coming, so watch this space I guess.

We want to give a massive thank you to Clara for taking part in our interview and giving some of the most in-depth answers! Make sure to check out everything she has going on over on Instagram at @coshtattoos, as well as Facebook and TikTok too.