Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex.
Hi Alex, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I moved back to Houston from San Antonio freshly graduated from high school in 2005. It was my first time away from my family, living on my own with a little bit of money in my pocket, and a hand-me-down 1997 Pontiac Bonneville. I hit the ground running on the north side of Houston where I grew up. With no one to tell me where to go or what to do, I was definitely NOT doing what i told myself I would be doing. Prioritizing girls and partying was definitely getting in the way of my goals.
So I quit everything cold-turkey, no drinking, no drugs, no partying, and found myself an apprenticeship at the Houston famous (at the time) Sacred Heart Studio in Montrose.
I apprenticed at Sacred Heart Studio for a little over a year and started tattooing full-time in November of 2006.
After some time and some inevitable “tattoo” drama, I found my way to the first Bombshell Tattoo location on Westheimer where I met a lot of the friends I have today. Cut to 2009; a couple colleagues and I opened Gaslight Gallery.
23 years old, a new popular shop, and playing in a well known Houston punk band (The American Heist) during the Montrose hay-day, was a combination I could’ve only hoped for as a young Tattooer! *If you’ve ever attended a Gaslight Party or seen me at Boondocks or Royal Oak, you know what I’m talkin bout.*
After 3 more years of shenanigans and getting hitched, I moved onto helping open Old Crow Parlor in 2012. A solid 4 man crew in a tight spot above Big Kat’s Barber shop in Midtown.
The crew and popularity outgrew our modest little spot above the barber shop, so by 2015 we migrated back into Montrose and opened Richmond Ave Tattoo.
A few more years and one divorce later I found myself amongst the crew at the Legendary 713 Tattoo! The Owner Homer Saenz, took me in and gave me a home for the next couple years.
It’s 2018 and 12 years into my career, and I find myself craving more! By late 2018 I teamed up with my friend Danny G and we opened a small private studio on the east end of downtown. Brought in a few more heavy hitters a year later and opened the first iteration of CRY LATER TATTOO!
Our crew went from 5 to 9 in a couple quick years and Once again we outgrew our roots. So we packed up and moved into a new spot right off of Navigation at what would come to be known as THE Cry Later Tattoo!
One of the best crews I’ve ever worked with. Slangin tats and crushing conventions came with forever memories. Sharing life with the crew came with them seeing me grow my family, Buying a home, Getting married to my Gorgeous wife, raising my two step-sons, and the birth of our daughter, Nova!
But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Sadly Cry Later shut its doors permanently in April 2026.
But from the ashes came a new idea and a new crew…SANCTUARY TATTOO was born! I’m now crewed up alongside my friends Juan (@brownwizardry), Cisco (@ciscotattoos), Big Mike (@Wicked.clacas), and long time homie and colleague, Rozie (@roze_of_texas).
We officially opened our doors May 2026, keepin it growin’ in our new home on the East End. So stoked to see the shop and life grow from here.
@Sanctuarytattoohtx
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road to building my 20 year career was full of road bumps and hurdles, but nothing that hindered me from reaching my next set of goals.
I thrive in adversity and work well under pressure, so any obstacle that came I only took as a challenge….still haven’t came across one that I couldn’t handle.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’ve been tattooing in Houston for 20 years. Coming up in this industry in the early 2000s, we didnt have social media to help us as individual artists advertise ourselves and be able to dig ourselves into the niche of our choice. Instead, if you wanted to make money and be prevalent in the city you’re working in, you had to be good at everything. Traditional, new school, color, black n grey, Japanese, lettering, you had to be able to do it all.
It wasn’t until after my 5th year that I ended up honing into a specific style and leaning in on that for a while. About 10 years to be exact.
Traditional/neo trad, whatever you wanted to call it, that’s what I did. I leaned into it, taking my fine art background and applying it to the rules of this style. Which helped refine my craft and create a recognizable style of my own.
Since then, I’ve pivoted my focus and skills on learning how to tattoo in the fine-line black n grey style. A style stemming from the incarnated and chicano culture on the west coast. Again, taking the fundamentals of the style and laying my 15 years of experience on top and creating a new style I can give you my clients.
I’m probably most proud of my tenacity to actually stick with tattooing as long as I have. I’ve always had a alot of hobbies, but tattooing has a been my creative constant.
What matters most to you? Why?
What matters to me most is my happiness. I didn’t pursue a career in tattooing for the money or fame. I pursued it because being creative, be it art or music, was always a passion and something that made me happy. I was just lucky to be able to have a knack for it.
Never did I think becoming a tattooer was a thing that could happen, let alone be able to set myself apart in a very saturated industry.
Who would’ve thought monetizing a talent would pay off. LOL!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.instagram.com/sanctuarytattoohtx
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexdoesradtats2.0
