Everybody I tattooed in July 2025...

Hiya everyone,

Yup, this July round up is coming to you a little late 🙃 — but that’s because my books opened at the beginning of the month and it’s been a busy one for me here at the studio!

I’m really grateful to share that I am now fully booked for this Fall. Winter tattoo bookings will open in the first week of November (1st–2nd). As always, if I have any cancellations (or new floral practice pieces!) I’ll send out a newsletter so you can grab a spot.

Other than being busy scheduling custom tattoos, my July has been pretty low-key. Well… except for my little trip to Montreal to see Tyler the Creator!!!! Even that was fairly chilled — just wandering around the city, eating far too many glorious pastries, a little retail therapy, and of course a best friends spa day after the show (Stacy and I have made it our ritual 🥰).

You can read more about what else I’ve been up to (and get a good Malone fix) at the end of this newsletter. But for now, let’s get into what we’re all here for… all the beautiful people I tattooed this month, from symbolic blackwork tattoos to feminine flower designs, and nature-inspired pieces, all here in Toronto.

Tattoo Time

Side note: My Instagram engagement has been a bit low lately, so if you do have time to click through and like some of my posts I’d appreciate it so much 💕. It also means my work as a Toronto floral tattoo artist is more likely to show up in your feed in the future 🙂.

Tattoo Time

Side note: My IG engagement has been super low lately, so if anyone does have the time to click thorugh and like some of my posts I'd appreciate it so much!!! It would also mean my works is more likely to come up in your feed in the future 🙂.

Kelsey

I did Kelsey's original hip tattoo back in January 2019! And at the beginning of July I got to extend it 🙂. I absolutely love adding to my tattoos, and seeing them settled in. We incorporated some of the same flowers and foliage from her OG piece, and also added some peonies too. I love how much of a statement this feminine floral tattoo has become.

We freehanded the design and you can see the 'before' drawing, and more angles, on this IG post.

Large-scale blackwork floral thigh tattoo featuring peonies, daisies, cosmos, and leafy botanical elements in a soft fineline style. Feminine and flowy floral composition created by Lu Loram-Martin at her private tattoo studio in Toronto, Canada, specialising in custom black and grey floral tattoos for women.

Mary-Anne, Allegra & Courtney

I love doing matching tattoos! Especially when they're for the best group of best friends ever. Mary-Anne, Allegra and Courtney, got this beautiful bouquet of cosmos, aster and larkspur (one flower for each of them). Symbolic, personal, and so pretty. Such a fun day at the studio.

Three matching blackwork floral tattoos on forearms and upper arms, featuring fine line cosmos, larkspur, and aster flowers. These feminine bouquet tattoos were created by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin as a best friend tattoo design. Delicate, detailed linework with botanical themes, perfect for those seeking elegant matching tattoos in Toronto.

Stacy

Yup, that Stacy, my bff and studio co-owner. I had a last minute cancellation and we decided to finally cover her first tattoo that she never liked. I took awful photos on the day, so here is a quick one I took a couple of weeks post tattoo (I'll get better photos soon 🙃 I mean I see her almost everyday 😂)...

Large blackwork floral tattoo on a woman’s lower back and ribs, featuring fine line peonies and botanical leaves. Feminine black and grey floral tattoo created by Toronto botanical tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin, showcasing soft shading, symbolic flower design, and delicate linework.

Jennifer

Jennifer made the trip all the way from Oregon for this piece 🥹, and trusted me to freehand it for her too 🥰! We included her favourite flowers ... peony, poppy, dogwood and anemone, to make a garden for the bee tattoo she'll get matching with her son once he's old enough. Such a meaningful, symbolic botanical tattoo.

Black and grey floral arm tattoo featuring peonies, anemones, dogwood, and poppies, created by Toronto-based tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin. This fine line blackwork sleeve design highlights soft shading and detailed botanical elements, ideal for those seeking feminine tattoos for women in Toronto or elegant blackwork floral tattoos.

Josh

I got to finish up Josh's project this month!!!! I'm so happy with how it turned out 🥰. Only the leaf details and some little extra contour lines in the gardenia are fresh, and you can see more photos in this post. So yes, all that stippled shading in the mandala is fully healed, no touch ups.

The thing I love most about this project is how happy Josh is with it 🥰, he's a wonderful client, and has giant arms so lots of canvas space 😂. We're going to be working on a cover up on his other arm soon, and I'm sooooo stoked for it.

Kally

Kally had one last space on her patchwork sleeve, and I am so happy she chose me to fill it 🥰. I tattooed a peony on her outer arm over two years ago and it settled in beautifully (you can see that in this post). So we included another peony in this piece (for continuity) along with the sunflower, a perfect combo for her blackwork floral tattoo sleeve.

We freehanded it to fit, and you can see that process in this video. Happy days.

Feminine floral sleeve tattoo featuring fine line blackwork peony, sunflower, and delicate blossoms, seamlessly flowing around the upper arm. This custom freehand piece by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin blends natural floral elements with soft shading, ideal for clients seeking elegant black and grey floral tattoos in Toronto.

Matthew

Matthew came to me with this really fun idea of having a book cover depicting all the things he loves 🥰🌿. It was so much fun to design this for him, and figure out incorporating all the meaningful pieces into one cohesive custom tattoo design (and also make it work as a book cover without any title!). Great challenge. He also sat really well, which is so helpful for all these little details.

Custom thigh tattoo combining fine line blackwork florals with a detailed storybook scene, featuring books, flowers, mountains, stars, and personal imagery. Designed by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin, this unique black and grey illustrative piece blends floral tattoo artistry with narrative symbolism—perfect for clients seeking meaningful custom tattoos in Toronto.

Meghan

I love how patchwork sleeves can be built up over time! Meghan started hers years ago, and adds pieces whenever it feels right. I love how they can tell a story over time, like a cabinet of curiosities of sorts. A few years ago I added a shark and tulip piece on her lower arm, and now we've incorporated this beautiful orca too 🥰🌿. Hopefully next is a dinosaur piece!!!! So stoked. You can see how her sleeve is coming along in this video.

Jessica

Any long-term newsletter followers will have seen plenty of Jessica's work before as I've been lucky enough to tattoo her for several years now, and honestly my favourite tattoo sittings are with her and her best friend Victoria. We always have great conversations, and I come away with so many great recommendations for books, tv shows, movies, podcasts etc.

This time we completed her patchwork sleeve with a peony, dahlia, and anemones. I also did her teacup, rose in her ditch, the small floral piece on the outside of her wrist (and some poppies you can't see on the back of her arm) around 6-7 years ago! More photos here.

Healed floral patchwork sleeve tattoo featuring fine line blackwork dahlias, anemones, and peonies. This custom floral design by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin showcases feminine botanical elements in a flowing, cohesive composition—ideal for clients seeking blackwork flower tattoos or sleeve tattoos for women in Toronto.

Megan

It turns out I am yet to post Megan's beautiful cover up on my IG as of yet. I am so annoyed at myself about it. It will be going up soon and you'll be able to see the before tattoo! I was really luck that Megan had gone through multiple rounds of laser to lighten her tattoo enough for us to barely have to alter the way I regularly tattoo to cover it. And I can't thank her enough for it. Keep an eye out for photos on my IG VERY soon!!!!

We freehanded this coverup and it flows beeeautifully around her forearm.

Karen

I first tattooed Karen a year ago with an Alice in Wonderland inspired key. And this month she asked me to add this 'tea party' ode to the other side of her arm 🥰🌿. I love how subtle the Alice symbolism is in her pieces. And her key has healed up so perfectly (more photos here). We have plans to add more in the future too!

Alice in Wonderland–inspired forearm tattoo featuring blackwork teacups, roses, pansies, and lily of the valley in a delicate fineline floral composition. Created by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin, this whimsical floral tattoo blends vintage charm with elegant botanical tattoo design—perfect for fans of storybook tattoos and feminine blackwork florals.

Maddie

Maddie travelled from Minneapolis to start her critter & florals sleeve!!!! Because she is so far away we decided to make sure this strating piece works as an individual tattoo, and get it finished up, rathern than outline her whole arm, and leave her with an unfinished tattoo. Check these photos for more angles and close-ups of those details 🥰!

We included a blue jay, cardinal, poppies, peony and forget-me-nots, as well as the bees and ladybugs 🥰🌿. A perfect start to her nature-inspired floral tattoo sleeve.

Fineline blackwork bird and floral tattoo sleeve featuring a blue jay and cardinal surrounded by wildflowers and botanical elements. Nature-inspired tattoo on upper arm by Toronto tattoo artist Lu Loram-Martin, known for delicate feminine tattoos and detailed floral designs.

Tajah

My final project of the month was with Taj, who travelled all the way from Long beach California for this glorious floral sleeve tattoo!!!!!! I'm so in love with how it turned out.

We worked around her existing bouquet (by another artist, but blends in perfectly with my work) and covered up another little lettering tattoo (check the photos to see the before, and up-close details!). We included a rose, peony and lily, as well as a teeny bumble bee on her shoulder - love!

What a fantastic way to end the month 🥹🥰.

In Other News

Malone…

Decided she had enough of me working at home and chewed up my apple pencil 🙃.
Has decided birds will no longer do and she is now a bear hunter (on the tv).
Is my painting assisstant (she's actually a nightmare and tries to chew my brushes).
Is still a perfect angel, obvs.

I've been doing...

I went to the Joyce Wieland: Heart On retrospective at the AGO. I didn't know much about her work before going and now I'm OBSESSED. Highly recommend checking it out before it closes (you have until Jan 2026 though so no rush).
I went to the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair and picked up some prints from local artist Joy Zheng. Check out her work.
I've been working on getting 1000 Tik Tok followers so that I can finally put a link in my bio, and got there!!!! And I've barely posted since 🙃😂
I went to baseball game with a bunch of friends! I am not a sport person, but really enjoyed it! The crowd felt very wholesome 🙂, my kind of sport haha. And the poutine had mushroom gravy!

I've been drawing...

Here's a flip through of my July sketchbook pages!
I've been painting a little bit with gouache
I'm been working through the Laws Guide to Nature Drawing and Journalling - I highly recommend this book if you want to improve your drawing! This is what you see a lot of in my sketchbook pages.
I've been prepping some new tattoo Practice Pieces' as you will have seen in an earlier newsletter if you've been around long enough 🙂. I have them booked in August, so you'll have updates in my next round up!

I've been reading...

The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch // Melinda Taub - I'll read any Pride and Prejudice adaptation, and I loved this one! Redemption for Lydia (but she's still herself), Kitty is actually a cat (!!), and spells galore. Fun read.
Be Ready When the Luck Happens // Ina Garten - The memoir of The Barefoot Contessa! Recommended by my lovely client Jessica. I really enjoyed listening to her story. Such a driven woman.
Breasts and Eggs // Mieko Kawakami - my 'serious' book of the month, It's two Japanese novellas about the same characters (two sisters and one of their daughters) set 10 years apart. It looks at feminine gender roles in Japan. I particular liked the daughter's story in the first book. But there was one scene in that book that seemed transphobic to me, so warning.
Better Than the Movies & Nothing Like the Movies // Lynn Painter - I didn't realise these were YA until I was 25% of the way through the first book 🙃 (waiting for a time jump the whole time) but they were super cute.

I've been watching...

A Big Year (movie, older) - Huge thanks to Josh for recommending this!!!! It might be one of my comfort movies now. Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson all try to win 'The Big Year' in Birding - spotting as many birds as possible in one year.
Jurassic World: Rebirth (movie, new) - Look, I'll love any movie in the Jurassic park universe, no matter how objectively terrible it is.
Shrinking (Apple TV series) - Really enjoyed the first season of this! Not in a rush to start the second for some reason though (might have something to do with Zelda: Breath of the Wild taking up all my time, but more on that in August's round up).

I've being drinking (matcha update):

Matcha yuzu lemonade from Tsjuri - nice but I prefer my matcha with milk
Starbucks matcha with white chocolate macadamia cold foam!!! Decadent
Mos Mos - one of my IG posts suggested spots - good, but either then matcha itself or the sweetener had a strong floral taste. I don't mind that though.

That's all the news I have for now! Other than a reminder that my books will next open on 1st - 2nd November for winter bookings. Pop it in your calendar if you’re hoping for a spot at my Toronto tattoo studio.

Thanks for reading, have a wonderful (rest of your) August,

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