Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years. These permanent pieces of art — sometimes simple, sometimes painstakingly-detailed, but almost always personal — have served as a status symbol, a declaration of love, a talisman or sign of religious belief, and even as a form of punishment. But for local tattoo artist Sondra Simmons Kretschmar, they’re a family thing.
Kretschmar works by appointment at both of her sons’ shops, Lucky In Love Tattoo in Temple, Texas and Bubba’s Family Tattoo Parlour right here in San Marcos. The proud mother and grandmother has been tattooing for 25 years.
Kretschmar got into tattoos when she was married to her first husband. He wanted more tattoos, and her being a gifted artist with a pen or pencil, he thought it would be a great fit. But it wasn’t until she was laid off in a plantwide layoff from a chemical company that she started down the path. Kretschmar took the package she was offered by her former employer and instead of moving on to another chemical plant job, she went to talk to a tattoo artist, art portfolio in hand.
