Ink Art: Slaughterized Ink establishes itself in Ocoee

The tattoo gun in Billy Slaughter’s right hand buzzes with a light hum as he slowly emblazons an old-timey sailing ship on a client’s shoulder.

It’s a little after 5 p.m. on a Saturday, and for most, the idea of having to work on a weekend is a nightmare. But for Billy Slaughter, it’s not so much a job as it is the realization and culmination of a lifelong journey.

There, at Slaughterized Ink Tattoo and Piercing Studio — located on Story Road in Ocoee — the duo of Billy Slaughter and his fiancée, Jessica Slaughter, has built something it’s proud of.

“I’ve been tattooing since 2000, so I’ve worked in a number of different studios in the Central Florida area, and it’s always been kind of a dream of mine to have my own spot,” Billy Slaughter said. “My fiancée kind of took the dream on as a co-signer with it, and together we’ve been able to open a business, and it took off really well, and it’s doing good.”
 

LEARNING THE ART

One doesn’t just become a tattoo artist or professional piercer overnight — it’s something that requires time and effort learning every aspect you can.

In the case of Billy Slaughter, his love of tattoos spawned out of a love of drawing — which he’s done since he was a kid. With a natural talent for looking at something — or sometimes coming up with an idea — and drawing it, he would be a natural fit for the world of tattooing.

Back in 2000, one of Billy Slaughter’s good friends was a tattoo artist. He asked Billy Slaughter to draw certain custom designs and said he’d pay him back in tattoo work.

“Being around the tattoo studio and all that, some of the other guys who were working there at the time started seeing the drawings that I was doing, and they were telling me, ‘Man, you need to be tattooing — I don’t know why you’re just drawing stuff for this dude,’” Billy Slaughter said. “So one of them did a little six-month crash course in how to do tattoos with me, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”

During that learning period, Billy Slaughter tattooed on items like oranges and grapefruit to get a feel for the tattoo gun and how it operated. Through the years, he’d also learn that everyone’s skin is different and aspects like smoothness and elasticity played a role in how you tattoo, he said.

“Every canvas, as far as skin goes, is different — it moves, it bleeds, it changes colors … so it’s totally different than just sitting down with a piece of paper and you can erase if you make a mistake,” Billy Slaughter said. “It’s one of those things that, for me, (in) the first five minutes of working on a different person, I kind of figure it out — what kind of skin, what kind of technique I need to be using for this particular kind of skin.”

Billy Slaughter would eventually make his way into the tattoo world full time 12 years ago after his boss at his old day job made him mad. He proceeded to take his portfolio around to a few different studios — all of which wanted him onboard. From there, Billy Slaughter found his way through the world of tattooing.
 

BUILDING THE EMPIRE

While Billy Slaughter’s experience started all those years ago, Jessica Slaughter’s foray into piercing started as a means of both helping bolster her fiancé’s dream and finding a creative outlet herself.

Leading up to the shop’s opening last November, Jessica Slaughter took course after course learning the intrinsic nature of piercing — and it was slightly stressful, Jessica Slaughter said.

“I was thrown in the deep end and had to swim — it was sink or swim,” Jessica Slaughter said. “So the person that was apprenticing me was on and off — he would be here a couple of times a week toward the evening time — but then honestly for the rest of it, I’m really self-taught as far as hands-on, and I’ve done a lot of research.

“I’m really proud of what I’ve established, because, yes, some of them are from Bill — clients of his who want piercings — but other than that, I have made a name for myself,” she said.

Jessica Slaughter recalled those first piercings she did and how it felt like her heart was going to explode, but she never let it get to her. In fact, it got easier as time passed and as she developed her clientele base. It was a job that came naturally, which Billy Slaughter said wasn’t a surprise at all. 

Since opening last November, the studio has become a big part of their lives. For the Slaughters, a big part about this fairly new adventure is making a living doing something they like, while also providing for their five children. And given the artistic genetics, the hope is that maybe one day they’ll keep the legacy going into the future.

“We’re building an empire — this is just the first stone as to a dream that we’re accomplishing,” Jessica Slaughter said. “It’s just the beginning.”