We recently connected with Cheyenne Challenger and have shared our conversation below.
Cheyenne , we are so deeply grateful to you for opening up about your journey with mental health in the hops that it can help someone who might be going through something similar. Can you talk to us about your mental health journey and how you overcame or persisted despite any issues? For readers, please note this is not medical advice, we are not doctors, you should always consult professionals for advice and that this is merely one person sharing their story and experience.
As someone who suffers with several mental health disorders, it can be difficult at times to find a good balance between work life and home life. Maintaining my anxiety, depression, and PTSD is work in itself at times. It’s taken a long time to truly understand how my mental health affects my day to day life, and how to get through the harder days.
At the beginning of my career, I was always spreading myself a little too thin. Squeezing clients in making my days extra long or even coming in on my days off. I was always trying my best to make everyone happy, despite how much I was neglecting myself. I’ve always tried my best to go above and beyond no matter what the job is. So when I got a job doing something that I loved all I wanted to do was work, make people happy, and create some awesome artwork. I always felt like I had something to prove. And while at the start of my career I did, I think I held onto that mentality a little too hard.
I absolutely love my career and I wouldn’t trade it for a thing, but even I didn’t think about just how much goes into this career. Somedays I’m tattooing for 8 or so hours straight, then going home to draw for a few more hours before I go to bed and do it all over again. I love it, but sometimes it can be draining. I found it hit hardest when I was feeling the lowest. A crazy work schedule for anyone, but add a depressive episode in there & it adds even more anxiety to the pot.
I realized how much constant pressure I was putting on myself and I needed to step back and figure out what worked for me, and not just everyone else. Last year I made it a point to take better care of myself. I took a few vacations, saw some of my favorite artists live, and actually enjoyed my off days. I stopped overbooking myself and started taking more time for each client. This year I’m doing a handful of tattoo conventions and guest appearances at shops across the country. I rarely feel burnt out, in fact doing all these things has helped in many ways in my life. I think it’s extremely important to ensure you’re taking care of yourself. My work has excelled, my clients are happier, and I am happier too.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
My name is Cheyenne Challenger and I’ve been tattooing in Portage, Indiana for about 3 years. Art has always been my biggest passion in life and I’ve been so lucky make it a career. I specialize in glitter tattoos, though I also work in several different styles. From soft black and gray, to bright and bold colors, to heavy black work, I love the ability to switch things up. However, 99% of the time I will at least ask if we can add a little glitter.
Glitter tattoos have really taken over in recent years, and I can absolutely understand why! There’s something so satisfying about individually placing hundreds of little dots to create one cohesive, and sparkly, design. Glitter tattoos really allow me to go crazy with colors as the possibilities are endless. Whether it’s rainbow, a single color in every shade, or even black and gray, I’m your go to gal for glitter tattoos!
My style is sometimes described as “trippy traditional” as a lot of my original artwork includes extra eyeballs, quirky cartoons, mushrooms, skulls, and more creepy yet cute things.
If you’re ever looking for a fun piece, I work at Bluebird Tattoo in Portage, Indiana. I also travel to tattoo and have a lot planned for this year! You can catch me at the Villain Arts Tattoo convention in Chicago March 22-24th. I will be tattooing in Portland, Oregon in late May. I also hope to be in Colorado, Florida, and Texas this year. You can follow me to keep updated on where I’ll be this year! Rainstormtats on Instagram or Rainstorm Tattoos by Cheyenne Challenger on Facebook.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
I’d say my work ethic was the most important part of my journey. Despite the “starving artist” position I found myself in through my apprenticeship, I never folded. I still showed up everyday, and put my apprenticeship before anything else. I worked hard, and constantly found ways to go above and beyond. When I found myself frustrated with my work, I took steps to improve and tried again. If you aren’t putting in the hard work, there’s no way to see progress.
In my career, having an artistic ability is crucial. I’m lucky to have been drawing and painting for as long as I can remember. I definitely was the kid with heavily decorated notebooks or book covers. I took every art class I could in school. Art was my therapy and any time I could be creative in any way, I was. Learning to tattoo was like learning to draw all over again. There was a lot to keep in mind as far as what can be tattooed versus was can be drawn on paper. I drew probably a thousand circles during my apprenticeship. Practice means improvement!
I also think it’s super important to have some adaptability. Things are constantly changing, especially in my industry. We see a lot of “trends” in tattooing, and those can change in days or years. Every client has a different vision, and you have to be able to adapt to ensure you’re creating a piece the client loves just as much as you do. One day I can be tattooing a campfire/landscape scene, and the next I’m tattooing a 4 eyed rainbow cat. You never know!
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I would love to collaborate with like minded tattoo artists! I’ve been dying to get out there and do more guest spots at shops around the country. I’ve got a few conventions under my belt, but only one guest appearance. I did my first guest spot in Portland, Oregon in August. I visit the area often as my Dad lives there. It was a lot of fun to finally be able to tattoo while I was there, as well as tattooing in a new environment! Constantly learning is so beneficial in this industry. I admire the bold, colorful, cartoony style. I would love to work with some color and/or glitter artists to see how they’re brains work!
Contact Info:
- Website: Rainstormtats.com
- Instagram: Rainstormtats
- Facebook: Rainstorm Tattoos by Cheyenne Challenger
Image Credits
Brigid Yates Photography
