What a former Santa Rosa woman learned as she competed to become a Inked Magazine cover girl

A former Santa Rosa woman with dreams of opening her own tattoo shop came close to becoming Inked Magazine’s newest cover girl.

Krystina Hoag, a 2009 Windsor High School graduate, was among the thousands of women across the United States who entered the magazine’s annual contest to become the face of the popular tattoo lifestyle magazine and win a $25,000 cash prize.

She made it to the fourth round and despite not winning, she said she learned a lot and has no regrets.

After submitting photos and a few short essays about her tattoos, her inspirations, and what she would do with the prize money, Hoag was selected to compete for the reader-chosen cover spot in January.

“During this process, I learned that I had more supporters than I could possibly imagine. It made me feel so good that I had so many people supporting me and wanting me to succeed,” Hoag said.

Out of the dozens of tattoos on her body, Hoag said she got her most meaningful design at Faith Tattoo in Santa Rosa as part of a fundraiser after the 2017 Tubbs Fire. Money raised went directly to people affected by the devastating blaze.

“What better reason to get a tattoo?” Hoag said.

The spider web and rose she got inked on her right forearm that day is her favorite, because it was an outlet for her during dark times, she said.

“When the Tubbs Fire tore through Sonoma County, I not only had friends who lost homes, but also friends who lost their lives. It was traumatizing for the whole community,” Hoag said.

The rose symbolizes Santa Rosa, and the spider web reminds her of time spent as a child flipping over rocks to find insects, an interest she still has today.

After getting the fire-inspired ink, Hoag’s love for tattoos grew, prompting her to pick up a tattoo gun herself in 2020 and start tattooing her friends to make extra money while working as a mortgage loan processor in her new home state of Oregon.

She was laid off in February and now has set her sights on opening her own tattoo shop, a big reason she entered the Inked contest.

Hoag is in the process of becoming a licensed tattoo artist and recently became an apprentice to a tattoo artist in Eugene while taking tattoo courses in Portland.

Though she is now out of the running for the cover, she said the whole Inked experience helped improve her self esteem and she’s grateful she was a part of it.

“It helped me get my confidence back and feel better by putting myself out there - all of me - which was a big deal,” Hoag said.

The winner will be announced April 13.

Along with the cash, the winner will receive an exclusive tattoo session with renowned tattoo artist Ryan Ashley and join celebrity photographer Christopher Kolk for a professional photo shoot.

Each vote cost one dollar with 25% of the proceeds from voting donated to MusiCares, a California-based nonprofit dedicated to providing services and resources for musicians in need.

To find out more about the contest, go to cover.inkedmag.com.