indelible marks // ephemeral flesh
burlington, vt tattoo shop
about stranger still
Hello, and welcome to Stranger Still, a private tattoo shop located in Burlington, Vermont. This studio was created by Karla Dagovitz to be a safe and welcoming space for folks to receive quality, lasting artwork on their bodies. It is located in the beautiful Karma Bird House at 47 Maple Street, close to the waterfront.
The owner is a tattoo artist and illustrator based in Burlington, Vermont. She draws inspiration from natural illustration of the botanical and avian persuasion, decorative design/embroidery, folk art inspired patterning, and illustrations of myth and magic.
Karla completed her traditional tattoo apprenticeship in 2017 under Simon Gentry at Bitterroot Tattoo in Moscow, Idaho. She eventually became business partner and solo owner of Bitterroot Tattoo, and sold the business in 2023 to the artists that worked there as a co-op, and is proud to see it continue to thrive. After moving to Burlington Karla worked at Onyx Ink on Church St before founding Stranger Still.
She prides herself on creating and maintaining a safe space where my clients feel welcome to share in her weird and wonderful artistic world.
A note from Karla: It is an immense honor to put artwork on someone’s body forever, something I do not take for granted, and I strive to make sure each and every client leaves feeling seen, heard, and happy with their art. From time to time I participate in tattoo-based fundraising, it is my way of giving back. Organizations I have worked with or raised money for include Still Not Asking For It, Northwest Abortion Access Fund, Adelaide Koala Rescue. In my personal life I love nature, camping and hiking, as well as travel to see my favorite music, museums and botanical gardens. You can follow along with my day-to-day work and catch glimpses of my life on Instagram @slizzerandhiss.
“My daughter and I came from out of town and worked with Karla... She was very nice and worked us in on one of her busier days. She drew up our pieces and they were exactly what we wanted. Also it was my daughters first tattoo and she took the time to explain the process and even stopped a few times while completely her tattoo just to make sure she was doing okay. ”
“She is super professional, sweet, and as a fellow female she always made me feel super comfortable despite being a bit out of my element... Karla turned the images and thoughts I had in mind to life and I couldn’t be happier with what ended up on my body. ”
“Great shop. Karla did great work, and was super professional. I think people will have a great experience here, both if you already have tattoos or if it’s your first.”