"I was in year eight so probably 14 or 15-years-old and to watch was really cool. I thought 'I really want to do this'," she said.

"Walking out of high school I thought 'yeah, this is what I want to do'. I was the girl walking around with tattoo books under my arm like textbooks."

Ms Cafe had been drawing since she was in year six.

"My dad was a really good artist. I would draw and he'd draw a little bit with me," she said.

"I was an outside kid so I'd always be in the backyard. Sometimes I'd sneak into my dad's shed and he'd have all these tattoo books that I would look through."

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But despite knowing what she wanted, when she finished high school, Ms Cafe said she had no confidence and didn't believe she'd ever get a chance to work in the tattoo industry.

"Sharica was looking for someone to run the counter and I was in here all the time after school buying jewellery and getting piercings, so I applied for the job and was lucky enough to get it," she said.

"When I was working in the shop I thought 'this is just as good'. I was around tattoos and piercings and was in my element. It was my home."

Then her boss Patsy asked Ms Cafe a question: 'I know you love to draw, I know you love tattoos, would you like to be a tattoo artist?'

She spent the next 12 months learning the ropes from an experienced tattoo artist.

After a year of learning the setting up and packing down, all the health and safety requirements, and everything in between, Ms Cafe asked a friend to come into the store so she could do her first tattoo.

"I was really nervous but because it was my friend I felt comfortable with him. I tattooed all over his legs. You can see the nerves and shakiness and how I progressively got really good. It was fun," she said.

"When I transitioned from tattooing him to tattooing other people, the first 12 months was terrifying, absolutely terrifying. But it went really well. I got quite a shock at how welcoming people were when I was tattooing them. They had a lot of faith."

Ms Cafe built up her confidence and her clientele.

"When I first started I didn't know if I would last. Because of the nerves and having to build my confidence. I'm a doubter. Especially in the first 12 months I was thinking 'am I good enough to do this?'. But now it's fine, it's second nature."

The tattoo artist said her favourite designs to create were watercolours, which weren't popular when she first started. However, Ms Cafe said she also liked doing traditional tattoos, from pin up girls to pirate ships.

The designs people look for have changed in the last decade.

"For a while there, before I started tattooing, our tattoo artists were doing a lot of what celebrities had, what were the fads or in fashion. Now people are branching away from fads and going more personal," Ms Cafe said.

"I'm so relieved by that. I try and get people to think about what they want. You don't want to put something on them and in five years time have them regret it. Especially if they're younger. I don't want them to grow up with it and have them hate me."

Ms Cafe said the only kind of tattoos she rejected were portraits.

"I wouldn't know where to start on a portrait. That's a whole different skill level."

Ms Cafe got her first tattoo when she was 18-years-old. Now she has around 30.

"I think with meaningful tattoos, they're really good closure. When my dad passed away I got a tattoo for him and I got a lot of comfort from that. Things like that keep you coming back," he said.

Sometimes if she has a spare half-an-hour, the tattoo artist said she would ink herself.

"It is an addiction but it's really hard to describe. It gives you confidence too. It makes you feel pretty."

Four-and-a-half years since she started in the job, Ms Cafe said she still loves it.

"I love seeing people at the end who are really, really happy, especially if it's something that's really special. I love the friends that I've made from tattooing and the regular clients. I would be here if it wasn't for them," she said.

"If I've done something that's a challenge and it comes out really well, I love that."