What Every Ink Master Season Winner Looks Like Today

It's no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic ruined a ton of stuff. According to People, that included the Season 13 of "Ink Master," which cancelled the finale in light of government mandates and public health restrictions. It was set to be the biggest finale in the show's history, but even the best-laid plans can go awry.

The three finalists were all given cash prizes, and let's be honest here: That's life-changing money.

Throughout the show's run, winners have typically gotten $100,000, a feature in Inked magazine, and sometimes, some other goodies (via EW). But $100,000? Anyone would be there for that kind of money, and that's the sort of stuff that can kick off fulfilling dreams on a whole new level ... along with, of course, the tattooing cred that goes along with an "Ink Master" win.

So, here's the question: What have the winners been doing since their time on the show, how have things changed for them, and what do they look like today? Let's take a look back at all the winners and see what they're up to — and how they've changed.

Steven Tefft took home the Season 2 win from "Ink Master," and then returned for Season 10's masters face-off. He spoke with 247 Ink Magazine ahead of it, saying "I loved the concept, I thought it was cool. It's the one thing that I think most of us wished we would of had. ... Someone to keep you away from some of the mistakes that you would make."

Tefft has also been candid about how getting to where he wanted to be as a tattoo artist wasn't easy, telling Big Tattoo Planet that he started practicing on some friends, before he realized that it was something he was going to have to take seriously. So, he apprenticed with a local shop while working another job, and when he and his mentor stopped seeing eye-to-eye, he went in his own direction and opened 12 Tattoos in Groton, Connecticut.

Years later, 12 Tattoos is still alive and well, with Tefft's owner status and "Ink Master" cred at the forefront of the site. Tefft says that, while he was glad to be able to show off some old-school skills to the younger artists on the show, he's taken what he learned, folded it into his years of practice, and used that prize money to expand his business, too. The end goal? " ... to give every client an amazing tattoo and an amazing experience, and to change people with the art that we are so fortunate to do."

Not all stories of the "Ink Master" winners have a happy ending, and in 2015, Variety reported that Season 4 winner Scott Marshall had been found dead in Chicago. The initial reports said that he had died in his sleep of heart-related causes, and a further investigation (via NBC) and autopsy found the cause of death to be a heroin and benzodiazepine overdose. His death was officially ruled accidental.

Marshall had been working at the Roselle Tattoo Company at the time of his death, and his passing was acknowledged by the show in a statement issued by Spike TV: "Spike and entire 'Ink Master' family are stunned and saddened by the news of Scott's passing. He was a great competitor and talented artist. Our deepest condolences go out to the Marshall family and friends." Roselle Tattoo Company posted a brief message on social media, and declined to comment further.

Marshall left behind a wife and three children.

There are multiple styles of tattooing, and it wasn't until Season 6 that a traditional tattooist took home the $100,000. That was Dave Kruseman, who described what it was like to win in an interview with Carter Matt: "It was the best words I heard all season! I was overwhelmed with pride on so many levels. I was the first artist to win with a true traditional tattoo!"

Kruseman continued working at his own tattoo shop post-show, as, according to what he told the Frederick News Post, life was already pretty good. "Not one day has gone by in the past 20 years that I have ever woken up and not wanted to come to work. I love my job, and to me, that is success."

New work regularly shows up on the social media accounts for Olde Line Tattoo, but it hasn't been all smooth sailing. Their West Coast shop, Olde Line Tattoo West, was one of the casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic, and closed in May of 2020 after being open for just two years. The original shop in Maryland is still going strong, though, and for those people in other areas of the country, it's entirely possible to catch him at various tattoo festivals.

When Ryan Ashley was named the winner of Season 8, she was lauded for being the first female winner. According to what she told ScreenRant, though, she wasn't a fan of being identified like that. "I mean, it was definitely cool being the first woman to win, but being a woman never had any importance on my workload, or how hard I strived, or my integrity as a tattooer," she said. "I always just wanted to be treated equally. In no way did I want myself being a woman to separate me from the guys."

As of 2022, she has become one of the resident artists at Elysium Studios in Grand Junction, Colorado (Her husband, Arlo DiCristina, also works there.). Her Instagram is regularly updated with new work — including plenty of the fine jewels and delicate black-and-white work that made her so popular on "Ink Master," along with all her thoughts on being a new mother.

Those jewel tattoos? It's entirely possible that's just a phase, which is what she told ScreenRant: Much like Picasso went through different periods in his artistic journey, she says that she's doing the same — and she knows that this is just one more step in life's journey.

Josh Payne walked away from Season 10 of "Ink Master" as the winner, and when he spoke to Inked a bit later, a lot had happened. Not only did he return in Season 12 as a coach and a mentor, but he had toured the country's tattoo festivals and continued to hone his craft at Ascend Gallery in Cortland, New York.

When the Ithaca Journal talked to him, as his winning season aired, he made it clear that he was already seeing just what kind of impact the show was going to have: "I have at least 600 emails I haven't even touched yet," he said. But he took away more than just a higher profile: "Getting to spend that many months around artists, being engulfed in art, the amount of stuff you learn is incredible. ... My work is so much stronger than it was prior."

Payne says that his return to "Ink Master" for the Battle of the Sexes idea was absolutely brilliant, but added that he had a bit of an iffy relationship with the idea of men vs. women, saying, "I don't believe that there should be any divide or there is any difference. I think that an artist's hand and an artist's mind is exactly that, it doesn't matter what it's attached to."

As far as his own career since the show goes, his social media directs to Art by Scissorhands and the Alchemist Art Studio in Cortland, New York.

Season 12's Battle of the Sexes ended with two female artists vying for the win, and in the end, it was Laura Marie who walked away as the winner. When she spoke with Inked, she described the entire season finale as "an out-of-body experience," and one that she chalked up to being so difficult because of her anxiety.

She not only talked about how things had changed for her — more than she thought, starting with the requests she was getting for work — but also about how it hadn't been an easy road. When she was starting out, she had multiple tattoo shops refuse to even give her a chance: " ... they would say, 'It's because you're a woman.'"

Ultimately, that's why the win meant so much: Not only was it a win for her, but it put her in a position where she could be a role model for other women considering breaking into what's typically been a boys' club.

It's a little unclear just what's going on with her tattooing career as of 2022: Her social media still points to her being the artist and co-owner at Atomic Roc Tattoo, but it also notes they're closed for bookings, and the website is no longer in operation. She regularly updates her Instagram with new work, though.