Fine Line Tattoos: Taylor’s Version

Fine Line Tattoos in Carlton embraced the Taylor Swift weekend from February 16 to 18, hosting a special tattoo event for enthusiastic Swifites to commemorate The Eras Tour with permanent ink.

Noticing a surge in bookings leading up to Ms Swift’s Melbourne shows, the Fine Line Tattoos’ team thought up a unique experience for fans attending the concert.

Initially posting a presale for Swifties “travelling from interstate and wanting to plan out their weekend”, they found there was an overwhelming demand for Taylor-themed tattoos.

“We ended up selling 300 tickets in ten minutes,” Fine Line Tattoos founder, Shaylee Caracciolo said.

“From there we decided to open it up to a walk-in event for February 16, 17 and 18 – we put on additional artists to cater to walk-ins.”

Fans were able to choose from 23 distinctive designs, researched and created by co-owner and head artist, Cholo.

Designs included Taylor Swift’s lucky number 13, a pair of dice, and heart-shaped sunglasses, that “every Swiftie would be able to tell you which album or song they relate to”.

Ms Caracciolo said that the most popular designs throughout the event “the little dragon and the disco ball”.

“Over the three days, we did nearly 1000 tattoos – most people waited three to five hours to be tattooed,” Ms Caracciolo told Inner City News.

“It was an incredible three days, the best vibes and the nicest people.”

Across the three concert nights, the pop superstar enchanted audiences of more than 288,000, making her Melbourne run the largest crowds she has seen in her career so far, affectionately declaring the city the “love of my life”.

For fans who weren’t able to get tickets, crowds of more than 20,000 gathered “On The Other Side of the Door” of the stadium each night to sing, dance and trade friendship bracelets.

The University of Melbourne also hosted a "Swiftposium" lecture series which unpacked Taylor Swift's impact on society and the economy.

Following her final Australian Eras Tour shows in Sydney, Swift makes her way to Singapore to continue her international leg. •