Vickilicious: the tattoo art brand that feeds its creator’s soul

We talk to Vicki Ashurst, who has stepped from clean and considered identity design into the wild world of tattoo-inspired merch and NFTs

Based in South Wales, Vicki Ashurst has a portfolio full of fine branding work, plenty of experience, and she loves being strategic and purposeful in her work. But working in studios, impressing creative directors and meeting client briefs doesn’t completely scratch the creative itch. So, she decided to start her own brand – Vickilicious.

“Vickilicious is a tattoo culture-inspired brand built around bold illustration, storytelling and apparel. I create art prints, handmade embellished cards, graphic t-shirts, and high-quality hard enamel pins. Each piece is designed to feel like something with attitude and soul, not just a product. It’s for those who love ink, symbolism and a bit of beautiful rebellion,” explains Vicki.

She is so clear-minded about the proposition, you can tell that here, as in her client work, she is once again being strategic and purposeful. Yet the Vickilicious brand has painful and highly personal origins.

“Working as a graphic designer, especially as one of the only women in the studio, slowly chipped away at my confidence and my joy,” says Vicki. “I found myself torn between designing to answer a client brief and designing to satisfy the opinions in the room. The constant criticism and inequality started to drain the fun out of creating. I’d lost that fearless, messy little girl who just made art because she loved it.”

That fearless little girl covered herself in paint, ink and glitter, drawing, cutting and sticking into the night so much so that her mother declared her bedroom a no-go area. But the messy inner child resurfaced in 2010 when Vicki lost her mother to cancer and discovered a box of treasures – the cards and other creations Vicki had made, which her mother had kept. Vicki designed a tattoo in her memory… which led to another epiphany.

“I started creating again, not for approval, not for a brief, but for meaning. It began with small prints and hand-embellished cards for friends. One of my friends said, ‘You should sell these’. So I did,” continues Vicki.

Soon she was creating enamel pin badges for people to collect – tiny wearable art with soul. T-shirts followed, and Vickilicous had its first sub-brand: Worn to Death. Here, her imagery leans into streetwear and skater styles with even more attitude. The tees are a bold statement and, again, something you can wear.

Tattoo culture is at the heart of everything Vicki creates, symbolising life, love, rebellion, grief and strength. They are used to tell stories and hold meaning across many cultures.

“Stylistically, I’m inspired by the bold composition and confidence of traditional Sailor Jerry tattooing, the flowing movement and folklore-rich storytelling found in Japanese tattoo art, and the floral symbolism of Sugar Skulls from the Mexican Día de los Muertos celebrations,” says Vicki. “I’m not recreating one specific heritage style. I’m stitching together influences, respecting their visual language, and building my own universe from them. It’s tattoo culture reimagined through illustration. Story-driven, symbolic, collectable.”

Vicki’s product will soon include skateboard decks – under the Ride to Ruin sub-brand – by popular demand. And, she has found global fame by taking her aesthetic into the world of NFTs with The Cute & Creepy Gang. Collaborating with Web3 expert Fraser MacLennan, she identified a gap in the market for her unique blend of tattoo culture, symbolism, and a cute-but-sinister aesthetic.

It began with 10,000 Dead Cute Sugar Skulls, given out free. Then the current Lunar Witch collection, consisting of 6,666 coven-inspired Russian dolls. “Every full moon, I create a bonus Mystic Moon illustration NFT that becomes a reward for anyone who mints during that moon cycle. That ritual element keeps the creativity flowing and ties the art back to something symbolic and cyclical, which I love,” says Vicki.

The digital imagery can be purchased using the Ether cryptocurrency, and for Halloween, Vicki and Fraser launched the Coven Clash trading card series, which sold out in 24 hours. It’s led to Coven Radio, which interviews other artists and builders in the Web3 community.

“I have never been so motivated or excited to create,” says Vicki. “Meeting so many like-minded artists and collectors from all over the world has been incredibly inspiring. It even took me to New York for NFT NYC, where my artwork was showcased and appeared on a billboard in Times Square. I genuinely could not have imagined that in my wildest dreams.”

As you might have already guessed, there’s plenty of momentum behind the Vickilicious universe. For Vicki, it’s a lot more than a sideline, but not yet big enough for her to kick brand design into the long grass. And she still loves that track in her career. But don’t be surprised one day when you see Worn to Death or her upcoming Witchy Moon Relic pins – spell books, potion bottles, Tarot cards, crescent moons, snakes and more – popping up in high street boutiques.