Young couple use artistic talent in their new business

SHELLEY:  Scotty and Andrea Thompson own Amonara Creations, a new business in downtown Shelley.

Amonara is Scotty Thomson’s fourth tattoo parlor and the third-owned shop. In the past, he owned a shop in Boise and one in Idaho Falls, known as Thompson Tattoo Shop, which he closed to open this parlor.

“And before that, it was training in Idaho Falls. I was learning under Christian Buckingham, who popped up on three seasons of Ink Master, which became quite a big deal.   So, a lot of people in Idaho Falls knew him and got tattooed by him; we went and watched all the shows as a tattoo family and cheered him on. He never won, but he got second three times,” Scotty Thompson said. “[Christian] has a shop in Virginia and Florida, he bounces back and forth to, but he now lives in Florida.”

Andrea Thompson, also known as Dre, has worked for six years next to Scotty. They were married on February 13, 2020. 

“She has wanted to get into tattooing since she was 13. And about 6 years ago, I gave her that chance. It was a chance that paid off huge for us both! She’s a natural. Also, a perfectionist and overly obsessive in all the right ways,” Thompson said.   

• Why did you move your shop to Shelley?

Scotty moved to Shelley when he was ten years old. He went to school in Shelley. He has moved back and is living in the home where he grew up.

“I moved to Boise for a bit, but I have always been close to Shelley. Plus, my dad has always lived here,” Thompson said. 

• How many people do you plan on employing?

“Well, this back shop here is still a work in the making. So I can’t say how many we will end up with. But I can say we will have seven to eight people in the main area,” Thompson said. “A receptionist, a piercer, and the rest will be tattoo artists. 

• So a tattoo shop is a destination point?

“Yes, it is. I have clients from Montana to Boise who follow me. When you find an artist, you trust and get along with, and you’re going to be in the chair all day, you tend to follow them wherever they go.

For example, during our interview, a client of Andrea’s stated she was from St. Anthony and moved back to the area from Boston during the pandemic. 

• Is the tattoo industry growing?

“The tattoo industry has been rapidly expanding since I have been in it,” Thompson said. “It hasn’t increased or decreased. It has been steadily paced. As more people pop up in an area, you need more artists. Like honestly, we have a full schedule. People want you immediately, and you can’t. And they get very frustrated, and I don’t blame them.”  

Over the five years to 2021, tattoos have become increasingly popular nationwide. With each successive generation, tattoos have become more widely accepted. Today, 46.0% of Americans have a least one tattoo, says Tattoo Artist Industry in the US – Market Research Report. (Updated July 30, 2021.)

For example, when Scotty first started in the business, it was a pirate industry for gangsters and thugs. It wasn’t popular. It was very taboo and very renegade. 

“I have seen it shift drastically to more mainstream. I have tattooed police officers, doctors, lawyers, all walks of life, and everyone who makes up a community,” Thompson said.

• And what drives this demand?

“There is such a huge demand with pandemics and things like that. They really drive it home. I think a lot of people, when they are trying to move past pain or trying to tolerate pain or whatever, it is like, I need to get a tattoo. It is like a stamp to remember, or creating a balance point, so to speak, to remind yourself what is important,” Thompson said.

And Thompson is no stranger to pain. When he was 15 years old, his parents divorced, which turned into a wrong door, crowd, and decisions.

“I’m sure you know the spill. I am sitting in a dark room, and the door led me into “metaphorical” I decided to make my own light which only revealed I was sitting with all these monsters. So, I evicted all the monsters one by one and decided to decorate it. As I became happy with the results, I let others in to see, and I’ve been doing it ever since,” Thompson said.   “Sometimes I feel a little too often there are a lot of hurting people out there, and for whatever reason, tattooing seems to help…a lot.”

Scotty’s wife, Dre, has also had a difficult life. Although raised by two awesome parents, she was shot at several times and severely beaten as an adult.

“I’m against violence so much I don’t even watch fights with my friends, so I think that was appreciated,” Thompson said. “But she is a survivor and puts all her passion into every aspect of her life. We consider ourselves Twin Flames on a twin-flame journey. We are fire and ice, so we contrast awesome. We bring balance to one another, which I think greatly helps bring that healing nature to tattooing.” 

• What are some of your other interests and talents beyond tattooing?

Scotty has created stained glass windows and done airbrush and charcoal on canvas. Dre has done art as watercolors. Scotty says she is an accomplished guitarist with a beautiful singing voice, but due to extreme stage fright, she only shares these talents with him and the kids. Scotty also enjoys Harley Davidsons, rock climbing, gardening, fishing, hiking, Pokémon, and Fortnite with the kids.