Jeremy Ratliff
Reporter
Wednesday morning, the city’s third tattoo studio will open; courtesy of Merrill native Deamon Boettcher.
Located at 1319 E. Main Street, Boettcher’s 550-squar- foot studio, “Inked Horizons,” will offer a full range of tattoo services.
“I’ve always loved art ever since I was little, more specifically drawing,” he explains. “As I got older that passion led to an interest in tattooing. Now as I’m about to open my own tattoo studio, I see this is a way to combine the two, have fun and make a living while I’m at it.”
Despite having a life-long passion for art, and body art for that matter, the road to Deamon opening his own shop hasn’t come easy.
In fact, Boettcher readily admits his endeavor marks a turning point in his life.
“Having my own tattoo studio has always been a dream since I was a teenager, and then my teen years ended up being a very rough period in my life,” he explains. “I spent a lot of time in and out of jail.”
Then in 2012, Deamon was sentenced to three years in prison.
“Being sent to prison was a low point in my life, but I continued to draw,” he said. “Drawing is therapeutic for people like me, it keeps my mind busy in a positive way. When I was released in 2015, I knew I needed to change, I needed to change my life for the better. I wanted to find work doing something I enjoy, rather than sludge through life at a job I hate and potentially end up where I was before.”
While his past certainly led to a few obstacles in pursuing his goal, Deamon found the opportunity he was looking for last year in securing his first tattoo artist apprenticeship.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity I was given to learn, now I’m ready to branch out on my own,” he adds with a grin.
Due to now having a family and a young son, business hours will be based around Boettcher’s family obligations. But he hopes to add more staff and regular business hours as his customer base broadens. While weekday hours will vary, Inked Horizons will hold regular weekend hours of 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
“I’m excited to start a new chapter in my life, take a turn away from the life I knew before and work to make my dream come true,” he added. “This is something I’ve always wanted.”
For more information, Deamon can be contacted at 715-921-9002.