Male answers here:

Yes, I would date a girl with a tattoo. I don't think I have a preference of any sort.

I personally like interesting tattoos. To me, tattoos can be elevated to a form of art, or degraded to a drunken mistake (almost like sex, actually). I like the history of tattoos and body art. The feeling of having a symbol that is permanent as a part of your body has meaning to me. If something incredibly important happened to me, something I'd never want to forget, I'd get a tattoo for it.

tattoos rarely change my opinion of women in significant ways. I tend to see the girl as more expressive, or emotionally intuitive. But all sorts of types of women get tattoos.

There is honestly only one type of tattoo that changes my mind about a girl. Yes, that's the tramp stamp. Honest, every girl I've met with a tramp stamp was a little bit more sexual, wanted the attention, wanted to bed a bad girl. As such I do modify my behavior if I see the bullseye on the lower back.

Nope dont like them, especially on the lower back.

The only one I do like them on is Angelina Jolie. Megan Fox is often compared to her, but I think she looks tacky with them on. Kinda like a kid trying to be tough.

For the record I was going to get the picture of the evolution of man, from monkey to human on the side of my torso. You know the one you always see in biology books. I knew it would be an ugly tattoo but that's exactly why I wanted it. For kicks and for laughs and cause I can never read enough about evolution.

I have a few large tattoos. I didn't get them with any particular meaning (Miami Ink *gag*). I just wanted a few designs (celtic) placed in certain places and that's what I did. I find men with full sleeve tattoos attractive but my husband doesn't have any. No tramp stamps. Funny too since I posted a picture of one my tattoos on my Facebook and my cousin said she knew it couldn't be one because I have more class than that.

I have a tattoo and I am a conservative married mother. To look at my lifestyle, you would never be able to guess that I have a tattoo.
I got my first @ 14. I was in a group home because the nanny state decided my mother just wasn't good enough. (A long story; I won't bore you.) Another girl had a bottle of Indian Ink, a needle, thread, and a lighter and she offered to give me a tattoo.
I had her ink me w/ the Indian ink (in the outline of a Gothic cross pendant I owned) on my upper right shoulder. I chose then, at 14, to carry with me a permanent reminder of the hell I had been through. The week prior to getting inked, I was beat severely by a gang of over 50 girls during a riot @ the home and had clinically died for three minutes. (It was nothing personal. I just happened to be the wrong color) I had also found out I would never be able to go home and I was going to be "placed" with the uber duber christian OMG if you don't believe in G*D and don't do/believe everything Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson tell you, you will go right to HELL foster parents. (Nutcases who decided I was possessed and they were going to save me.)
I needed that tattoo to remind me of who I was, where I came from, what I had already survived, and what I could survive.
I truly believe I would have forgotten w/o that visual reminder every day. It helped me survive that home until I was placed with a sane foster parent.
The second tattoo is over the first.I had it fixed up by a professional. I added a red ribbon, a blue rose wrapped around the cross, and had some shading done.
The ribbon contains my deceased fiances name. He suddenly passed away one week before our wedding.
16 years after the period of hell & 9 years after his death, the tattoo is still a reminder of what I survived & the pain I went through after his death.
It's also my personal memorial to him and a testament to the woman I have become.
I am married now to a man who would never get a tattoo and doesn't really like them.
However, he understands what mine means to me and he's never asked me to have it removed or covered up w/ something else.
I am not the type to show it off because it is so personal.
IMHO, anyone getting a tattoo should feel the same way.
I don't think women who get tattoos are any different than women who don't.
There are wrong reasons and right reasons to get one. Just like with any other major decision in life, ppl sometimes choose badly. (Tramp stamps?! That's basically telling a guy to cum on the bulls eye.)
Regardless of the style, it's the individuals decision to make.
I don't treat anyone any different if they have tats or not. I treat people on how they treat me.

Hmmmm. Lets see. One or a few small tattoos would probably be more of a relationship irritant rather then a deal breaker.

A whole lotta tattoos would be a major turn off.

Simply put because tattoos on women is like the song " livin laveta loca" First few months it is great, its sexy and interesting. A year down the road your might be a little annoyed with the song but you still groove to it. Three years later you dislike the song but understand the attraction you had for it. Ten years later you loath the song and hates anybody who sings it. Tattoos with women generally do not age well. Heck even with men .too.

Heck on a another note check out the following link (NSFW)
http://news.bmezine.com/2006/10/28/michelle-the-pass-around-girl-the-publishers-ring/

As to this girl I am on the bloody fence. The male part of me say go for it. The rational/moral part of me goes eewww.

> The rational/moral part
> of me goes eewww.

It's just fashion... We shouldn't let ourselves get convinced it's a grand moral issue of straightforward logic. Tats may not age well, but almost nothing ages well.

If you want to take control of things so that they age well, you should work as hard as possible to take control of your taste. Doing so has done a lot for my appreciation of beauty. It's not a perfect approach: I think tats look goofy and grim. But I'm an older (49) guy, and that's one reason young women get them, to repulse guys who look like their father.

Works out for everyone.

purplepen: Here you go.

-----

Tats: I know a serious biker, a short guy with Santa's beard who has been riding Harleys since he was a junior in high school, and his look sorta natural on him.

I've seen a flabby Gene Shalit lookalike with "Harley-Davidson Booty Patrol" on his left arm. Hilarious. In place, it really meant, "LOSER. RUN AWAY."

I have pics of two college girls we chatted with at Daytona Bike Week who had thunderstorms & rainbows done on their upper backs. About 10" x 12", each different and quite beautifully done. I don't think they'll have regrets.

Tats look terrible on flabby people.

And I think George Carlin said, "I like a girl with a tattoo. It shows she makes rash decisions."

I might get one for religious reasons. It would be discreet, and in a place usually covered. There is the option of getting one on the wrist, but I don't want it to be visible, for a variety of reasons.

> Tats look terrible on
> flabby people.

Not trying to be nitpicky, but like, does anything look good on flabby people? Isn't this kind of a double-slam? Why you so harsh, dood?

I'm moderately flabbazoid myself. Just sayin'.

(Maybe it's time for Amy to do her wacky seasonal rant about "waist-to-hip" ratios).

Not everything that Hollywood fashion-people tell you about the attractions of the slender is, in the strictest sense, y'know, true.

I'll never get a tattoo because I can't even commit to a permanent border on my garden. That said, I love tattoos and I think you can tell a lot about the person wearing them. The intricate designs of sleeves indicate to me a person with a plan, for tats and possibly other areas in his or her life. Tramps stamp says follower of trends.

I have 2, and may get more. I'm in my 30's, working on kid #4, and pretty darn conservative. I think it's a bit of a tribal thing, customizing your body, I don't know. I don't get pictures though, just designs, and they're all hideable when needed.

I find pictures of things on bodies weird. DH has 5 tats and wants more. I am discouraging it.

When I see people covered in them, I think "that really isn't going to age well" and I also assume they aren't white collar workers. Other than that, no big deal to me!

I had the webbing between my thumb and forefinger pierced. I LOVED that. Then it got pulled out in a, shall we say, energetic night with DH. Oh well.

I don't like them or have one. I was a Marine, but my attitude was "they don't pay me to advertise."

My wife doesn't have any. They aren't socially acceptable in Japan, being associated with the Yakuza. In fact, some onsen still ban anyone with a tattoo.

My daughters each have one of their middle name in Japanese characters. They are adults and get to make their own choices. Slightly off topic, my wife is often amused by some of the tattoos she sees on people who don't know the language...

I once knew this girl in Japan who had a magnificent, full back tattoo of the goddess of mercy on her back. The colors were far better than what you see here, and she had the unblemished skin to pull it off. That is the only tattoo I ever saw on anyone that I thought looked good.

I have one tattoo, on my upper back, of a pair of wings. I had them individually designed to represent regrowth and flight from an unhealthy period in my life. They are vivid, colorful, well-done, and are covered up 99% of the time. That's my actual preference - however many tattoos someone has, having them in places that can be easily covered up is a very practical concern.

I do see why people get addicted to them, though. Mine took four hours, and it was painful, but I got the adrenaline rush of a lifetime, my head was floating.

Then, of course, there's the attention and shock value that accompanies tattoos that are in indiscreet places - such as the aforementioned "tramp stamp". Originally, I would have argued it wasn't a bad place to get a tattoo, because it can be easily covered up. Once all of the girls in the classes I taught started showing up in short shirts and low-rider mini-skirts, though, my opinion changed...it just ends up adding to the general trashy appearance.

I have a small (inch-and-a-half square) tattoo of a red maple leaf, Acer rubrum, on the inside of my left forearm. (It's a surprisingly discreet place to have ink. It took my grandmother two years to notice it!) I got it when I was 23 as a rite of passage into adulthood, and perhaps more importantly, as a reminder to accept and embrace the changes life brings-- I had always had the problem of feeling overwhelmed/paralyzed by change, but was determined to change that. I chose Acer rubrum because it grows in all sorts of habitats and soils and is one of the first trees to turn in the autumn and bud in the spring. On my tattoo, the leaf is just beginning to turn colors from the green of summer to the red of autumn, so the veins and leaf margins are tinged in red. At the time, the color choice was also religiously symbolic, green for Goddess (female creative principle) and red for God (male creative principle).

I drew the tattoo myself so that it would be botanically correct, because I'm just a total nerd like that. :)

My husband likes it (and he likes my total nerdiness, lol), and coincidentally, I got the ink on his birthday, before we were even dating, which is just cool.

I would never date a guy who had a problem with "women with tattoos," because to my mind that bespeaks of a guy who perhaps has other, more substantive problems seeing women as people, not just as this category of things known as "women." I certainly don't consider myself "a certain type of girl," and I would never demean myself by dating someone who would categorize me thusly, rather than seeing me as an individual human being.

I have one tattoo. It's rather large but it is almost always covered up (it's on my thigh). I wanted to get one just for me and wanted to get it in a place I would not regret and could easily cover up. I still like it quite a bit. That said, if I could go back, I would not get it again.

My biggest issue when I see people with tattoos is when I see somebody that has something they obviously didn't give much thought too. They just wanted a damn tattoo. I thought about getting a tattoo when I was just a youngster and, when I turned 18,found a tattoo I really liked and had it modified so that it would be unique. I still thought about my tattoo for a solid month before getting it, to make sure I wouldn't regret it.

It's never been an issue as far as dating though. I've never dated a guy with tattoos and they've never taken issue with the fact I had one. They rarely even know I have one until we get to happy fun times because I tend to forget I have one. It's just become such a part of my body and it's been over 10 years since I got it that I don't really think about it.

Hi,

Well in a belated bout of adolescence after my first marriage... with the hair almost gone, I figured a kokopeli on my lower leg would garner me some younger prospective mates. I would up settling for a reliable jewish woman, and I can tell you regret is a daily sensation. It uses light colors... so need high frequency laser to get it off. Then, if I chelate, there will be an odd scar. Think long and hard, and don't let "hard" get in the way of thinking.

Rod

I don't have any and wouldn't get one. I've thought about it before, but I'm glad I never did it. I had a couple of piercings, and the reason I figured those were OK was that they can be taken out. (And they were taken out, years ago.)

Husband has one that runs from his shoulder to his bicep; it's actually covering a really bad tat that he got when he was 14. He would HATE it if I got one. He claims he doesn't like them on women, but I do know he nailed a few girls that were REALLY tatted up before we started dating. I think he associates them with wild, slutty girls. Ya know, the kind of girl you f*ck, not marry. It may be a double standard, but you like what you like.

My brother has lots of piercings, one tattoo that covers his entire back, and one on his leg. He loves girls that are tattooed and pierced. I don't know if that's just his "type," or if it's more of a fetish thing.

When I see a tattoo on a woman I am instantly turned off. It screams "ghetto trash" to me.

Most of the tattoos I see on guys nowdays say "I'm insecure and will do anything to belong."

But I don't pretend to understand humanity any more.

PS- I know it sounds snotty of me, but Amy asked for opinions. I realize it is like Crid said, fashion. I'm also on the other side of "being cool" at age 44, so it's also a generational thing.

This is all great -- keep 'em coming. And, Eric, I want people's honest opinion. Need honest opinions on this, and I think there are a number of or many guys who share yours.

Purple Pen, I love that idea, The Ascent of Man. It's up there with the anatomically correct heart.

I'm old enough (37) to think visible tats on women are just plain trashy. Although most of my male friends growing up had tattoos, it was still not really acceptable for girls to have them. However, it is not just age; my long-term boyfriend, who is considerably younger than I, thinks tats should be restricted to sailors and ex-cons, and that even the most beautiful woman with a tattoo becomes immediately undesirable.

I can understand a discrete tattoo for a personal reason. For example, a friend of mine has an original minimalist tattoo of the silouette of a caribou herd in profile right above her pubic hair line as a symbol of her Alaskan Native heritage. But any tattoo on a woman that I can see just screams "biker bitch/slut" to me. Then again, I never considered any guy with a tattoo marriage material either. Amusingly, with the trendiness of the 90s, tattoos have "jumped the shark" with hipsters, and you will always "date" yourself with the tramp stamp.

Tramp stamp - very lower class.

I find tattoos disgusting in general. But the worst ones are the "tramp stamp" and tats in the pube area. They say "I'm willing to show my privates to a complete stranger so he can inject my body with ink". I equate that desire with pornstars, not mate material.

Or as someone said above "the kind you fuck, not marry."

Most people add tattoos to their bodies in the same way that they doodle in a sketchbook, totally at random, with no overall plan; just grab a pen and start drawing. Thus you end up with your body as a sketchpad, showing "art" that was poorly planned or not planned at all.

I think that individuals should plan tattoos the way you would plan a paint job on a hot rod: symmetry and in keeping with the type of vehicle you're working with. Work with an overall concept, and tattoos might turn out right.

As for girls wearing them, I'm always of the opinion that it's a sign of insecurity with body image. I'm not talking the needle junkies, who can't stop getting tattoos, but the typical woman who gets one or two. The sight of a tattoo on a woman like that tells me that the girl doesn't like her looks, and thinks that, rather than losing weight or working out, a quick run to the tattoo artist will make her desirable again.

I worked on a series about tattooing--more anthropology than Miami Ink, and I can truthfully say I hope I never see any ever again. I met people who get ones inspired by music, who get one for every book finished, for ever kid born, for everything and anything. I've seen them everywhere possible on a human body. Some are art, some are junk, and I'm just sick of seeing them.
The Top Chef chick with the sleeves--all I could think was that she probably has Hep C and she's handling food.

The first guy I ever met who had one who wasn't a WWII vet or merchant seaman was an architect in the US Army. He had a meat stamp ( US Prime)on his butt. Hot at 27, must be weird at 50.

The self-expression part might be true for really ornate, Yakuza-style work, but most people get rather mundane images, like the Chinese characters that don't mean anything or Celtic knots or Tweety or the SunDevils logo.

I few discrete tats wouldn't affect me either way. Lots or highly visible would be a definite turn off because it implies that the women craves attention. If I got to know the woman and she had other qualities I liked I don't think it would be a show stopper.

I'm saving up for a full back piece. I've had the design for two years now, just need the $$. There are certain images that represent a great deal to me about where I've been and where I'm going.

My personal rule is you have to want the same design (with no changes) and made up your mind where you'll put it (no changes) for a whole year before the needle touches your skin.

I used to live near a USMC base and I saw a LOT of tats. A large majority were got-drunk-on-a-friday-night quality. There were a few that really were works of art. Strangely the ones that were art-quality were nature scenes (trees, koi, water, panthers, etc). One old guy who came into our shop was covered from neck down with faded, blurry prison tattoos. He looked like a rumpled road map.

This is off-topic and I apologize.

Does anyone know what those scars are from on her back?
http://news.bmezine.com/2006/10/28/michelle-the-pass-around-girl-the-publishers-ring/

Three tats. One from college when I was in the Counseling Ed/Counseling Psych M.S. program, interlocking symbols to read as Peace Between Men and Women. What can I say? I was an Idealist at the time..... also have Japanese script that matches one my husband has, relevant to us. Third is a diver down flag; I wanted the Cayman Turtle Pirate but the tattoo artist said it was copyrighted and I couldn't have it. We love our scuba diving. All are on my ankles and very discreet. Should age well unless I pack on a ton of weight or have runaway edema.

Seeing a person as a whole, and not just parts, makes tats neither turn on nor off to me. By the time I find tattoos on a girl, I probably know a few things about her, anyway. To me it's either permanant fashion ala Crid, or it is rememberance... but both are part of the whole. I'm prolly less charitable with guys... If he just got divorced, and totally changed his image to go looking for another mate, I think he is stupid to get inked for attraction. Seems like poseur to me. But it's their call. I just advise against it because it's difficult to get rid of. If I run into a woman who hates beards, I can shave it off. If one likes them, I can grow it back, I don't care that much... not so much with a tat.

I would never question one for rememberance, certainly, even if it's something seemingly unrelated. By the time you find out about that, hopefully you know something about the person... If you find an oldfather with a crude number on the inside of his forearm, you have discovered something about his life...

I don't think I would date a girl with tattoos and I prefer women without them. I don't find them trampy and I find it interesting to look at the tattoos people have. Some of them are just incredibly beautiful. It just seems like something where it doesn't belong.

To me, if G*d wanted me to have a tattoo, he would have given me one. I do have a series of moles set closely together that have a pleasing constellation type quality that is beautiful in its own way. I'll have to be satisfied with that. It may sound strange, but I see my body as something I was given to get me around for 80 or 90 years. I don't feel as if I have the right to alter it.

A current friend of mine -- a very smart and grounded woman, now about 38, and in a design profession -- got one at 17 (a tiny heart on her ankle). She explained, "I liked breaking taboos and I didn't know any other girl who had one."

I have a "tramp stamp" I'm guessing. really more on my butt than back, very low down curving around my cleavage. It can't be seen unless I want it to be. And, wasn't common when I got it (oh, how we age!) I am definately the sort of girl men marry, AND have fun with. I've never had a guy not want a relationship when I did. I tended toward serial monogamy, and am now a happily married mom.

All my guys have LOVED my butt. As one said, that tat is great framing for some amazing art. A guy that would judge you on that-unless you're looking for that-is a guy I wouldn't be with anyway. One who has issues with women being people with desires, as opposed to "wives", whatever that means in their minds. I imagine it's restrictive for their wives, for sure.

I have a small tattoo on my left ankle, and I got when I was 18 and left for college. (I'm 30 now.) I consider the design meaningless now, but the act of getting it was important to me at the time and still is. Tattoos were frowned upon in my family, and my family was very controlling. (I was the youngest of three by quite a lot.) I got the tat when I left for college, and it was a personal statement that my body and life were my own.

I'm old enough to remember when tattoos were considered on the far end of the rebellion scale. Nowadays tattoos are for those that want to be part of the trendy crowd. What a change.

I think tattoos on women are simply ridiculous. Why do otherwise attractive women feel the need to permanently decorate themselves?

Though this may sound harsh, I think women (and men) who need to have tattoos probably have self esteem issues and get tattoos simply as a way to be noticed.

"I'm also on the other side of "being cool" at age 44, so it's also a generational thing."

This isn't age-dependent, it's peer-dependent. Look for Indian Larry, Jesse James and so forth.

I have to ask: Where did any of you learn where the "tramp stamp" came from, and/or that only porn stars got tattoos only the doctor should see?

Living in SF, I see lots of skin art. Some of it's quite beautiful, and wonderful to look at. Most of it is ehh, and a lot is quite awful.

I do wonder at the trend toward neck tattoos. I associate neck tattoos with prison and gang members. I'm starting to see them on young punkish hipster types. Last weekend, I saw the big dipper constellation on the neck of a girl of about 19. I wonder how she'll feel about that in a decade?

"I see my body as something I was given to get me around for 80 or 90 years. I don't feel as if I have the right to alter it."

Excuse me. I have to go stand over there now.

I have to ask: Where did any of you learn where the "tramp stamp" came from, and/or that only porn stars got tattoos only the doctor should see?

My guess, rad, would be from watching porn

"I see my body as something I was given to get me around for 80 or 90 years. I don't feel as if I have the right to alter it."

Ok younlion are you a man or a woman, because if your a woman that means
you can never have sex, as it will alter your hymen,
never have children as it will alter you skin and uteres,
never shave or cut any of you hair no matter where it grows
or ever wear make up, get peircings, or wear bras.

If your a guy then god has commanded you to have half the skin ripped off you dick within a week of your birth and therefore I'd bet he's ok with physical alterations

I don't have that much of an opinion in general. Don't have one myself; it's not something my generation did. I see a lot of young women who have small ones somewhere, usually on the ankles. Seems harmless enough, although I can't imagine it felt too good getting that done. See a lot of tramp stamps too. From what I've been told, a lot of young women get them when they are 16-17 and then regret it later. The ones that are proud of them seem to think that they are edgy and fashion-forward, but there's so many around that that can't be true anymore.

People who get large ones on places that are hard to cover, like on their arms, I just don't find that attractive. The problem is, they may want me to see their whole person, but the tat draws too much attention to itself. It's hard to look past. And if you didn't want me to notice it, why did you get it in the first place?

The one type of tat I can't stand on women are the ones that cover the tops of the breasts. Sorry, that just puts me off my lunch.

I have a guardian angel tattoo on my back, upper left shoulder. Got it after being in 2 car accidents within 24 hours of each other, one year after one of my best friends in the world got killed on his motorcycle. This was in 1991. It's small, only about 3 inches tall; the wings are upraised. No color, just shading. My friend's intitals in a banner the angel is holding. I KNOW my friend was watching over me when I got in those accidents. The first one, I got broad-sided by a van in my Mustang. Fortunately, the guy hit the passenger side, and I was able to walk away from it. The next day, as the tow truck driver was bringing me to the garage to see my car, and assess the damage, we got hit, in his small pick up truck, by a guy who came out of a gas station the wrong way. We both got out of the truck, walked over to the curb. Waited for the cops and the ambulance. Both the cops and the EMTs were amazed the we were okay. Nothing happened to driver I was with; I chipped a tooth. The guy who hit us died.

Turlington's Lower Back Tattoo Remover
http://gprime.net/video.php/tattooremover

I see a tattoo as a way to send a powerful message. After all, it is a mostly permanent body modification. I will have no problem with someone showing lots of "ink", unless he can't back his tattoo with a serious explanation. I can clearly understand the need to show love for someone by tattooing their face on one's back but I have a hard time respecting someone who get his tenth cheap tribal tattoo just for the kick of it.

This is the reason why I don't have tattoos; I have yet found an ideal worth turning my body into a public board for it. This being said, the greatest tattoo I ever saw was an old, greenish and faded regimental tattoo on the right arm of my late Grand-Father, a volunteer during world-war two.

I miss the Tattoo, the Man and the Ideals that bounded the two.

Also younglion that means you cant ever take medications, suplements, Vitiman D enhanced milk, eat anything with artifical preservtives, wear clothing, seek medical attention for a broken bone or any other aliment.

All of these thing are not natural and would therefore "alter" your body in some way

lujlp - grow up.

SwissArmyD- like this oldfather? (I hope the link works)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1650106#1653416

It's the Non Sequitir comic where the recurring character Danae meets an elderly man on a park bench; she says: “Mister, that's an awfully boring tattoo on your arm. It's just a bunch of numbers.” The old man replies: “Well, I was about your age when I got it, and I kept it as a reminder.”

“A reminder of happier days?”

“No, a reminder of when the world went mad. Imagine yourself in a land where your countrymen followed the voice of political extremists who didn't like your religion. Imagine having everything taken from you, your entire family sent to a concentration camp as slave laborers, then systematically murdered in this place. They even take your name and replace it with the number tattooed on your arm. It was called the Holocaust, when millions of people perished just because of who they were.”

The little girl, with tears in her eyes, said: “So you kept it to remind yourself about the dangers of political extremism?”

“No, my dear, to remind you.”

yes, Juliana, just so.

found the base site of the image. it's from a 2006 non-sequitur, so it's not in their archive.

Try this one if the other site isn't working

Argg, gocomics.com is soooo proprietary. Maybe this one, and click on it once to enlarge?

http://bkmarcus.com/blog/images/comics/nq060611.gif

I love Wiley Miller. He can have you ROFL, or as in this case, crying over a "comic" strip.

I saw Harold and Maude about a dozen times before I noticed the concentration camp tattoo scene... it still gives me chills.

"I have to ask: Where did any of you learn where the "tramp stamp" came from, and/or that only porn stars got tattoos only the doctor should see?"

I just learned the term here.

"I can clearly understand the need to show love for someone by tattooing their face on one's back "

these are the ones I don't understand. Especially people that get memorial tats. How important was that person to you, really, if you have to see them on you to remember them? My loved ones are tatooed on my heart and soul, and I need no help remembering them.

Tribal tats, of course, is how the art originated. And still where I think it excels when done right. Coolest tat I ever say was a bunch of varying triangular shapes on a girls lower back. Looked random, till looking a while you realized they were a tiger, stripes only. Way cool.

hmmm, thanks for reminding me Eric...

Harold and Maude Tattoo fropm Modern Arthur Blog

As far as it goes, well done ink can be a work of art...but its very iffy.

Frankly if you intend to put something permanently on your flesh, something you will see even on the last day of your life, if sight you still have then...it should mean something.

But, yes, I would go out with a wench with ink, it could even be sexy if its well done.

I got my tat when I was 27. So that was almost 20 years ago. I was a fine art major and designed it myself, what it meant to me at the time was a sort of lovely personal branding. It is small and I had it applied in a place that was not weird, but in a bathing suit, it would not be visible. So for the men I have dated, it's sort of like finding a suprise. It's on my backside and I can never remember what side it is on. I wear a suit most days now, and as the freewheeling artsy gurl, I still knew I needed to think about the long term commitment. One of the men that I dated, said when he got to see it, was like finding the holy grail...yes a got to see a few times more after that :)

What do you mean 'grow up' brian?

And I'm till waiting for your response younglion

The girl I was in my late teens and early twenties was the kind of girl to get tattooes. The woman I became in my late twenties is not. Unfortunately changes of heart do not come with new skin. Fortunately the man I married understood that my skin was about the least of what he was getting with me.

lujlp -

We get it. You hate religion. That horse is dead and rotted, and you continue to kick it.

Either learn to ignore shit, or your head is gonna explode.

Believe me, I've got a lot of work to do on that front myself if I'm gonna get through these next four years without ending up in a padded room.

44 Year Old Male here ... I don't like tattoos on women and don't understand why a woman would get one ... unless she was in the Navy. :-)

I'm convinced that the reason growth in tattoos is identical to the growth in people owning Pugs: they were popularized in movies. Period.

Pug breeders should be sending payments to Will Smith. Tattoo parlors should be sending payments to Angelina Jolie.

Originally I'm sure that some women convinced themselves that getting a tattoo made them "unique". But 6 months into that new trend, about the only thing they could say is, "I have a weak sense of self and need to get a tattoo to remain part of the branded herd."

Apologies to those with tattoos who are offended by my words but I believe my analysis of the psychology at work is spot on.

Its not that I hate religion brian, despise is a far more accurate word.

What I hate are the brian dead morons who sell themselves as slaves to it, and the fucking retarded shit that pills from their mouths.

Our new poster younglion said something monumnetally stupid.

I felt obligated to point out the logical conclusions to an 'unaltered' body, and the very real fact that 'GOD' cant really be that concerend about ink given that the freak is into gential mutilation

I think younglion's opinion was elegant and eloquent. He spoke for himself, and didn't foist his opinion on others.

I just see Tattoos like anything else. There are good tattoos and bad tattoos.

I hate needles. No tattoos for me. I don't care passionately about them one way or another, but I will observe that visible tattoos will typically affect people's opinion of your personality and IQ, however unfair this may be. I prefer to keep people guessing about my inner self, but that may just mean that I'm pretentious.

I also consider someone getting a romantic partner's name tattooed on him/herself a surefire indicator that they'll break up relatively soon. YMMV.

I have occasionally thought of getting makeup tattooed on as part of my never-ending quest to streamline and speed up my morning routine. However, I understand that those tattoos fade and must eventually be redone. Plus, the boy likes me best makeup-free, so why pay money and go through pain to take away that option?

All that having been said...temporary tattoos are cool. I've greatly enjoyed the henna tattoos I've gotten at various times; having a decoration that doesn't come off when you wash yourself has an appeal. Not enough for me to take the more permanent route, though.

lujlp -

We get it. You hate religion. That horse is dead and rotted, and you continue to kick it.

luj, as long as you're succinct or clever about it - and I thought you were this time - I hope you keep kicking.

As to the original question, analysis-wise I agree with Crid and Radwaste.
Personal choice-wise, unless they are particularly discreet and good, tattoos always turn me off to some degree. Still, I've never seen any bad enough that they would make me not want to have sex with an otherwise good-looking woman.

>> I also consider someone getting a romantic partner's name tattooed on him/herself a surefire indicator that they'll break up relatively soon. YMMV.

I know a couple is doomed when the term "soul-mate" comes up....

I have a tattoo on the outside of my thigh, only visible if I'm wearing short shorts. It celebrates an amazing, life-altering trip I took with a group of friends. Nine of us have the same tattoo, in various locations. It's a symbol of the country we visited, and years later I don't regret it at all.

It's interesting that some people think tattoos are strictly an attention-grabbing ploy. While I'm sure that's sometimes true, I know for that for me that wasn't the case. Most people I deal with have no idea I have a tattoo, because it's a personal thing for me, not a "see how cool I am" thing. I know other people, male and female who are the same way about their tattoos.

I'm surprised that many men would apparently cross me right of their "decent" list for having a tattoo. I wonder what it is about our culture that makes tattoos seem so naughty/sexual/icky/whatever.

Interesting topic, Amy.

Can a few of you guys explain any further why you cross a girl off the list for a tattoo?

And thanks, Kimberly.

P.S. This comes out of a request somebody made of me for advice. I love interesting problems like this, and I can always use questions that aren't from women with low self-esteem (too many of the questions I get). So, if you (anyone reading here) have an interesting problem, feel free to write me for advice. Or even a boring one. Answer those, too.

"I have to ask: Where did any of you learn where the "tramp stamp" came from, and/or that only porn stars got tattoos only the doctor should see?"

My father believes in a well rounded education. When I was thirteen, a woman of the age of 40 bent over to pick up something on a lower shelf in the grocery store, and proved a winning example for the betterment of my wisdom. Thusly, the term "tramp stamp" was passed down the generation.

"A guy that would judge you on that-unless you're looking for that-is a guy I wouldn't be with anyway. One who has issues with women being people with desires, as opposed to "wives", whatever that means in their minds. I imagine it's restrictive for their wives, for sure."

I don't know wether I would care about a wife having it cause im not looking for one, nor have I had one. I'm 22, one of the younger readers here, im guessing. I don't think its that I look down on girls with tramp stamps, despite the negative connotations that word choice might imply. Its that every girl ive met with one was just that much more of a flirt, and walked on the wild side. Does it hold for all women? Im not a scientist, and I truly don't care enough to go researching it. Ive had enough experiences in my two decades of life that I go in thinking slightly different things of women with this particular tattoo type.

I really like some of the stories behind people's tattoos on this board though.

I am mulling getting Euler's formula, "e^i.pi + 1 = 0", as a tattoo on one bicep. The only thing stopping me is figuring out what to put on the other one.

--
phunctor

A while back I (very briefly) considered getting a small rosebud tattoo on my posterior. Then I thought: "Girl, one day you will be 70 years old and that rosebud is gonna look like a raisin!"
So much for that.

Amy -

The turn-off is the same for me as with a nose stud or those stupid piercings below the lower lip.

Why'd ya have to take a perfectly good face and mess it up with that shit?

I know a girl who has the piercing through the eyebrow, two green studs out the whatever you call the space between the lower lip and chin, and a big honkin tattoo of a flower on her foot.

I have trouble taking her seriously, but other than the holes, she's a nice girl.

Some people look good with nose peircings, very very few people look good with a lip ring centered on the lower lip.

And absolutly NO ONE looks good with any sort of lip stud, and your right brian, noone looks good with a peirce on the skin crease between the mouth and the chin

Interesting responses.

(Girl)

I have two, one at 21, one at 23. I'm 32 & still like them. I got them because I could. Because it's my body & I'll mark it if I feel like it. It felt like I was taking ownership of myself. Before I had done anything, before I felt I really knew what my "self" was.

I don't regret them. I actually want more. It's now part of what I am, & whatever I will be.

I don't get the argument for it'll look bad when you're 80. Well, yeah, everything will bad when you're 80. Everything is still going to sag & wrinkle.

I like girls with sleeve tattoos. It seems so brave. If even a "regular" tattoo makes people give answers like the above, then I admire how much more it takes to put your arms out there & say Yes, this is what I like.

BF has some arm/shoulder area tats & is slowly working towards sleeves. Even if I didn't like each individual picture, it wouldn't matter. They are decisions in his past, that led to who he is now, & I like who he is now.

I have four. The best thing I've ever heard about tattoos was on a sign in some tattoo parlor I was in:

"The difference between people with tattoos and people without tattoos is that people with tattoos don't care if you don't have one."

This seems to hold true a lot of the time.

All but one of mine is easy to cover up (the one on my ankle is virtually unseen in the cold weather) and I put a LOT of thought into where to put them - I didn't want them anywhere they might "stretch".

I had wanted a tattoo since I was 28, but didn't get my first one until I was 32. I put a lot of thought into where/what I wanted, and made sure I knew what I was doing.

My most recent one (this past October) was a tramp stamp. I'm 42 now, so it's not like I'm running around in hipster jeans showing it off, but it was a design that lent itself to that area, and that's where it went.

I had 3 of my 4 tattoos when I met my boyfriend, and he never cared one way or the other. As a matter of fact, he went with me when I did the last one and photographed it for posterity. LOL. We've been together 8 years and he keeps saying he wants one, but hasn't done it yet. I never encourage or discourage him, but I do tell him to remember it's permanent. It did freak his mom out when we first started dating and she saw them, but she got over it and now I think she likes me better than her daughter-in-law. :D

At the same time, I do kind of feel there can be too much of a good thing. I'm not a fan of the full sleeve/whole leg/full back tattoos, I don't know why. I would never do it myself, but if that's what you want then go for it. I think my tattoos are for me, which is why I have them in places I can cover them up 90% of the time.

Looking at nose studs makes my nose itch (and if the stud's not in place, what happens when the wearer sneezes?). Lip piercings remind me of cold sores, and tongue piercings always remind me of unswallowed food. But hey, that's just me.

"Can a few of you guys explain any further why you cross a girl off the list for a tattoo? "

Depends on the girl and the tat, I think.
For instance, if a girl has

17th Street Latin Queens
*I'll Cut You, Bitch!*
Homies 4-Ever

inked on her body, I tend to be a little turned off.

I got one after I turned 18. I am not in love with it but I rarely see it. It's on my left upper thigh, right below my hip. Sometimes you don't even see it at the beach if I wear boy shorts-style bathing suit bottom. I'd probably not get it now if I had waited, as the design doesn't have much meaning.

But, since I don't see it unless I'm naked/in underwear it really doesn't bother me. Regretting it would be a waste of time. It's colorful and happy. I guess it isn't a bad thing.

I got another tattoo a few weeks ago. It's about .5 inches x .75 inches - a broken, squared off infinity symbol. It has a lot of meaning and I thought about it for a year and a half. It's more discreet than I thought and easily covered up by my awesome, bulky Toy Watch. It makes me happy. I like when I'm at the gym, pushing myself, it gives me something to focus on to get out my 8th rep when I'm on my 15th set of biceps.

BF doesn't like it. He thinks tattoos are low class/trashy. I think they can be, too. I might classify the one on my lower hip as on a the trashy side - except you never see it. He doesn't have any, thought I think one well place, cool looking tattoo would be attractive on him. His body is amazing and I like a simple tattoo on a muscular body. I don't want any more tats.

I don't believe I could ever be considered a "trashy" person. Most people would consider me on the boring side, with a few conspiracy theories up my sleeve.

When I see someone with sleeves I think that the tats are interesting, but I always feel like I enjoy seeing my own skin. I like my skin. I think it would bother me to have "stuff" all over my body. Like in the way I always want to pick a scab.

and photographed it for posterity

Don't you mean posteriority?

Are several tattoos on a woman trashier than several tattoos on a man?

Can a man have a bunch of ink and still be more "marriageable" than a woman who does?

Nothing bespeaks the optimism of youth like a tatoo. You have to be pretty young (at the very least, never having given birth) to assume your body and the tatoo are going stay the same.

Male Opinion:
I never had a preference if my dates have tattoos or don't. It's a case-by-case thing. If it looks like they have it just to get attention (tramp stamp), then do they seem desperate for attention? My wife has seven tats, all of which can be hidden by a long-sleeved shirt 5 going across from one shoulder - over the back - to the other shoulder, and one on each forearm. Her employer for almost two years didn't even notice one of them until she'd been there for several months.

I don't have one myself, but I plan on it soon. Sort of a "deal" I made with my wife. I join her in "club-tat" in exchange for us having a kid. Considering what she had to go through, I think that's fair.

Well, if Gretchen has one or two, I will have to rethink my stance...

I have many tattoos-two full sleeves and six others-but they were all done with the idea of a cohesive whole and they are all original artwork.
My significant other doesn't have any. I wouldn't say that I have a preference one way or the other, but, I will say that I would prefer someone who doesn't have any tattoos over someone who has very unoriginal ones. I don't think tattoos in and of themselves are tacky, but some certainly can be.

Although I knew I would get a lot of questions from people about mine (and as such I generally dress to cover them) I was surprised by how they made strangers feel like they were permitted to offer their opinion about them. I mean, you wouldn't walk up to someone with a really ugly haircut and demand to know why they got it, right? But for some reason people seem to think that civility goes out the window when it comes to tattoos.

It's also really funny when someone I know but who hasn't seen my tattoos starts going on about how tattoos make you look trashy or uneducated. Besides, at this point so many people have them (including the CEO of a nonprofit I worked for, a really lovely and elegant woman) that if you say that without being absolutely sure the person you're talking to doesn't have one, you're going to look like an ass.

I don't particularly care if some people find them unattractive, that's their perogative. But just like I wouldn't date someone who wanted to change my appearance, (obviously) I wouldn't date someone who didn't like them. I do, however, think that regardless of your opinion about them, it is still incumbent upon you to be polite to people who have them, and refrain from offering your unsolicited opinion.

Jamie, that doesn't sound like much of a bargain to me. ;)

Megan, the thing you have to keep in mind about large, visible tats is that it's like dyeing your hair green, or wearing loud, tacky clothes every day. It's the first thing about you that people will notice, and the last thing they will remember, long after they've forgotten your face. So you have to think about what kind of image you are projecting. If after thinking about that, you still want to do it, more power to you. However, I and most of the other people here don't have any sympathy for people who go out of their way to make their lives difficult, and then whine about it.

As for the "why do you cross a girl off the list for a tat?" question, I would do so in two situations:

1. The tat is something really obnoxious.

2. As I said before, tats in the cleavage area. To me, that just screams "trailer trash".

(And note that I didn't mention tramp stamps. I don't have anything against them; I just think they are a cliche now. But I wouldn't be put off by a great gal who had one.)

It's the bad decision aspect that puts me off. What
are the chances that in 30 or 40 years you'll be just
as happy with the tattoo as when you first got it?

Seems to me that, in most cases, it shows either
arrogance (of course I'll never change my mind or
regret this) or lack of ability or inclination to do
long-term thinking. How many people would be content
to decorate their living room and never make changes
thereafter?

There's also the taste element. It's like painting
pinstripes on a classic car. Some people like it, but
for me, it just seems a defacement. To my mind, if you
looked good before the tattoo, then getting one won't
be an improvement. If you didn't look good, getting
a tattoo wouldn't help.

Female. I got one at 39. I don't think it's trendy, or cool, or dangerous, and I don't care if other people see it or not. It's not for other people.

I have metal allergies and can't wear my wedding ring without ending up green and crusty. So, for our 10th anniversary, I had a gold band and some decorative surrounding stuff tattooed on my forearm. It can be visible or covered as I prefer, but frankly, I don't generally consider it when I choose an outfit. It *is* my wedding ring.

And because I know well enough that tattooing someone's name or other indicator of permanence on yourself is tempting fate, I specifically designed it so that it could easily be altered into a flower and look lovely. Hopefully, the fates will thus not be tempted.

As someone else said earlier, tattoos are just one part of a person, so discreet and/or attractive ones are neither here nor there for me (if I was looking for a mate). Face and neck would perturb me, but otherwise, no biggie.

This http://www.flickr.com/photos/storyspinn/740725716/ however - absolutely not.

Is it cheaper to have your penis tattoo'd when it's not erect?

Maybe, but if you have a grower rather than a shower any tat you get would be deformed by the erection

And what kinda moron get his dick tattooed and cant even get the eyes placed properly?

Oddly enough I had a dream one night that I had a full body tat of a dragon, kind of a cross between european and chineese - long sinous body but with the full wings and tail

Its tail startes at my right foot, wound up and around my body, up over my left shoulder, down onto my cheats and the tounge ran out onto my penis.

And Amy its probably offshoot discussions like these that get you sight flaged as porn

DAVE -

Megan, the thing you have to keep in mind about large, visible tats is that it's like dyeing your hair green, or wearing loud, tacky clothes every day. It's the first thing about you that people will notice, and the last thing they will remember, long after they've forgotten your face. So you have to think about what kind of image you are projecting. If after thinking about that, you still want to do it, more power to you. However, I and most of the other people here don't have any sympathy for people who go out of their way to make their lives difficult, and then whine about it.

~~~

I get what you mean.

But it's still all subjective.

The image one wants to project may be what one group sees, but not another. No one look says the same thing to all people. We could just as easily discuss sweater sets. One group will say, down to earth, good people, prosperity & charm. Another will say, uptight, prudish, misanthrope, snob.

I agree about the whining.

I know a number of artists & musicians who have an outlandish look, just to let others know to keep their distance. If they are to be judged by someone on their look, they want to get it right out there in the first place. I can appreciate either approach, dressing to impress or dressing to avoid.

Can a few of you guys explain any further why you cross a girl off the list for a tattoo?

When I was growing up in the 80s, none of my parents' friends had tattoos I could see; that wasn't something that people like us ("our tribe") did. In a sense they symbolized rejecting "normal" society, and so my gut response is that they're daring or edgy, even though these days they can just as easily indicate conformity. ("We all reject the mainstream! Yeah!")

I like to think that I'm not bigoted against people with tattoos; plenty of my friends have them and I don't think any less of them for it. I don't think I could identify with somebody whose tattoo is a central part of their self-identity, though, because not having a tattoo is part of my self-identity.

"That girl with all the fuck me tattoos was something else. In a link a while up in the comments here."

Nothing says "I want to be owned by a biker gang, sold into prostitution, and eventually murdered, dismembered, and scattered in the desert after mouthing off to the wrong meth-addled psychopath" quite like that set of tats.

Megan, it sounds like you've thought it through. Fair enough.

Pseudonym - I think you've nailed one part of it.

I wanna be a non-conformist like everyone else!

Not bothering to confirm the specifics, but I recall reading that membership, or perhaps being "made", in the Yakuza requires getting lots of one's skin area tattooed, not the modern way but with sharp bamboo - far more painful.

Spoiler: this joke is bigoted:

A white guy is showering at the gym when a Rastafarian walks in and starts to shower. The first man notices that the Rasta's penis says "Wendy" and he exclaims "Hey, I have a girlfriend named Wendy, too!"

The Rasta says "No, it says 'Welcome to Jamaica, Mon, have a nice day'"

And that is why you have to have a grower tattooed when it is erect Eric

I'm not sure WHAT is says about a girl's personality who gets a tattoo. But when I run across women in their 30s or 40s (I'm late 40s) I may wish to date, or enter into a realtionship with, and I find they have one, it's a bit of a turn off. how much of a turn off is directly related to how MANY theRE are and how large they are and where they are.

But one thing it does do, no matter how old the girl/woman is, is make me ask the question, if even only to myself, "What is it about you, or your personality, that EVER made you think that that was a GOOD idea? And is there anything left of that personality in you that may come out in our long term relationship"

A LITTLE drawing on the ankel, or hip I can take. But this stuff all along the small of the back or some big thing on the shoulder blade or, WORSE, something carved into their boob(s) is just GROSS! As is most any kind of writing.

And i think it is just plain stupid for a woman to have her husband's or boyfriends or kids name (and/or birth dates for the kids) tattooed on herself. That is like white trash or gang banger stuff.

Getting tattooed as selfexpression is also silly because it's so hard to change. What you feel the week or year you get it may not be how you will feel the next year. In fact, I am sure it will be different. Dyed or cut hair or shaved heads or body pireicing, weither you are punk or goth or whatever, are all so easy to revert back or change as you grow older and so do you taste in self expression. But tattoos need to be lazered off. And then you have a scar.

Lastly, just remember; That tattoo may look good/cute when you're the grand-daughter, but what about when you're the grand-mother?

THINK BEFORE YOU INK.

A guy here. I'm not against discreet tattoos -- even a tramp stamp if the lady usually keeps it covered. But then there are the chicks (and guys) that have so many that they can't hide them.

We had copier repair guy that was contracted to our company for a while. He wore long sleeve shirt most of the time. Probably a nice guy, but I avoided him because I could see through the shirt sleeves -- heavy tattoos. Same thing with a woman -- if she has that many tats, am I going to wake up missing a wallet, a car or a kidney because she went psycho on me?

Sorry, but I forgot one other point.

Guys may SAY that they like tattoos on chicks and, in fact, I'm sure they do, on certain TYPES of girls. It makes those type of girls more easy to identify.

After all, who do you think it was that came up with the term TRAMP STAMP?

And that is tramp spelled E.A.S.Y. S.L.U.T. in the minds of many/most guys.

"Oh, but I'm no tramp/slut", you might protest. Well, you can try to sell that, but your actions speak louder than words.

That's something to think about BEFORE you next show up to your favorite culb with your new body art.

I am a woman, in that over 40 crowd. Would never get one myself, have known older people who have them and they look terrible after several decades!
As an employer, someone with a visible tattoo and/or piercings is out of the running if they want a job in my company. Customers are hard enough to come by - I certainly don't intend to offend them in any way. In this economy, there are plenty of potential employees that look clean cut; someone with a tattoo shows that they have poor judgement and rash decision-making skills. Would you want your doctor, nurse, attorney, or even your insurance agent "expressing themselves" thru body art?
The newest business craze is tattoo removal. What sounds like a great idea in your twenties can be a huge disadvantage several years later. One dermatologist who is specializing in tattoo removal made the comment, "These stupid kids are going to make me rich!"

Kendra--her scars are the least of her problems, but they might be from tight lacing?

I never understand getting the kid's name--can't you remember it? Maybe the Octo-mom needs to get those names done.

I have a pair of tattoos. They are deeply personal reminders for me. I have had them for 10 and 8 years, respectively, and I do not regret them for an instant. They are also easily covered by normal clothing, and are only there for me. I didn't get them to show off or to be cool or any fool reason like that. Most people I interact with have no idea I have them at all.
To me, a tattoo is a little like silk underwear. You shouldn't advertise that you're wearing them.

Hey Amy!

So I'm a girl with two tattoos, a broken heart on my shoulder blade a bit bigger than a quarter and a maple leaf on my lower back. They're visible when I want them to be.
What kind of girl am I?
A late 30s university professor who is extremely picky about her choice of partners and grew up in an upper-middle class home. I'm also a rebellious last born, so maybe that's the reason. :-)

I do not think that all inked people are 'sleazy' or 'cheap'. I think it depends on the size, location, and quality of the tattoo(s). I've seen some that are absolutely gorgeous, and some that make me wonder if they got theirs with a free coupon that came with purchase of a can of Rockstar. Locations are also a factor. 'Sleeve' tattoos do not impress me in a potential date, and neither do tattoos with names. Not necessarily a deal-breaker, but one piece of data I keep in mind while deciding. Part of the big picture, overall.

Tattoos on women...I don't really think about it too much, since I've never been incredibly attracted to women. The lower-back 'tramp stamp' tattoos do not impress me. Tattoos on the deltoid part of the shoulder don't look terribly good on women--but it strikes me as something that can look good on a man, possibly because men have bigger delts.

I myself do not sport any ink. Something about the permanency of it doesn't work for me. It's not that I think I'd choose a design I'd regret. It's that I think I'd get tired of having it on me for a while. Also, they've become so mainstream that the 'individual/nonconformist' angle is totally and completely gone. I went to college during the early/mid-nineties, and even sorority girls were getting dolphins or roses inked on their ankles, and Christians were sporting various Jesus or cross tattoos.

My husband has four tattoos, so clearly I have no problem being with someone who has tattoos. He had all four before we met. He's thought about getting a fifth, but hasn't. When he had them done, he was smart enough to get them in places that aren't highly visible, so they're never an issue for employers. I know not all employers worry about that. But sometimes visible tattoos can limit a person's job options.

For both genders, I think that tattoos are often a 'less is more' thing. Like the previous poster's comment about silk underwear.

Male here:
Don't care about tatoos. Have dated women both with and without, It just has not made any real difference when push comes to shove.

Seems to be a lot of "how can they..." and "what will happen when..." perspectives in the comments. At the end of the day, isn't that the problem of the person with the tatoo? If one's entire basis for judgement is whether or not an individual has ink, I would suggest that one's judgement is impaired.

Oh...tramp stamp = ass hat? Heard that one once and laughed my ass off. Apologies for those that expect to see the standard internet acronymn.

I'm a female and I have no tatoos, because I can't make that kind of commitment! I would get bored of the same image on my body, so I keep myself a blank canvas.

I love the Japanese style tatoos, beautiful artwork style. I think they look very nice on a woman, or a guy. Too much on either sex makes me think they're untrustworthy-that's just my gut reaction.

If a woman has a tramp stamp, if she acts confident, then I think she's a powerful woman who enjoys sex, and if she acts desperate, it just amplifies what a doormat she is.

Um, quick question: If I'm standing near a woman wearing a scoop- or vee-neck top with a very visible tattoo on her her chest, am I supposed to, you know, look (discretely, I mean), or demurely turn my head?

I dislike tattoos. Like many people, I just hate the permanence of a tattoo. It's there forever. And things change. Tastes change. The colors fade. Skin sags. You get scars, and other marring features. While one girl said "What do I care about what they look like at 80?", I certainly would care what they look like at 40 or 50! It's still possible to look *good* at those ages, without having a faded, blurry picture of the sun and moon on my body. There are too many "what-if's" concerning tattoos for me to ever consider getting one.

As for other people, I'm one of the younger posters on this board. My generation LOVES tatts. In fact, during senior year, I'd say about a quarter of the senior class went and got a tattoo on their lunch break. I'm just not wow'ed by 'em. And I think that any tattoo on your neck or breasts is tacky as hell. There's nothing worse than stretchy, warped cat paws peeking out of your blouse. I'm also not a big fan of the "tramp stamp", because most of the guys I know really do equate with being "easy". I don't like to see any girl make herself look slutty.

Same holds true for guys. Tatts on the chest or neck = no way. Nothing ruins a washboard chest like a flaming skull. I just think that the human body is pretty nice to look at without adding huge amounts of ink to it. Especially since most of the people I know who have tattoos got them for pop culture stuff they really love, or got them to cover up girlfriends' names they had already tattooed. That stuff fades, man.

I don't really try to judge people's characters by them, though, because I know most were done in a fit of passion for ... whatever it was, and that a flaming pac-man isn't really what means most to them in life. But I don't get why people feel so possessed to mark up their bodies with it.

I've seen some beautiful tattoos, really. But whenever I see them, I wonder how it will look in 20 years. I wonder about what would happen if it got scratched up or if they had to get surgery. It seems like beautiful artwork should be treasured more, and not on the human body, which gets dinged up so regularly.

As for people who get tattoos for themselves, and who keep them covered, more power to you! I certainly don't care, even if I don't understand it. I like someone else's comment about silk underwear...

I'm a 27 year old female with one tattoo. I'm also an attorney working in a professional environment.

One of my best friends drew the design for the tattoo, and the three of us each got it done months later while on vacation together. I suppose its location makes it a de facto tramp stamp, although the tattoo itself is of a flowering pea pod.

We did it as we were graduating college (I was 20 at the time) and moving to different parts of the country. It symbolizes the beauty of our friendship and binds us together. We chose the location because it was discreet and less susceptible to skin changes (aging, scaring, pregnancy).

I don't regret the tattoo, and never will. Even if we all decided not to be friends tomorrow, the meaning behind the tattoo will remain. They impacted my life, and I like the visible reminder that there are always two people out there who love and care about me. Plus, when/if I'm 80, I'm not going to be able to see it back there anyway, so if it looks terrible, so be it.

The two boyfriends I've had since I got the tattoo have not cared about the fact that I have it (aside: they were/are not tattooed). Current BF is significantly older, and was pleasantly surprised by it when he first saw it - after knowing me for over a year.

In general, I think tattoos can be beautiful. I love sleeves or large pieces that are intricately woven together to tell a story. I think a really well done piece is a form of living art. I also commend people who are dedicated enough to get large pieces that are well planned for their commitment to the art of tattooing, and for not caring that others may not see the beauty in it. I tend to assume people with large, visible pieces are artsy, or at least not corporate.

Personally, I don't think an assortment of seemingly random tattoos is attractive on either men or women, but I have no idea what the person was thinking, or what they mean to the person, so I can't and don't judge a person by their tattoos. That said, if I was interested in a guy and learned that his tatoos were just random things he picked out of a tattooist flash book while drunk with his friends as recently as last week, I would likely be turned off by them. Not because tattoos are inherently bad, but just because his would show a lack good judgment.

One thing missing here is the distribution of subjects considered acceptable for permanent ink. You will see Harley-Davidson tats on people who only get out twice a year on their bike; you won't see a Suzuki or BMW tattoo on the guy who lives on it. I've seen a few things which were nice, but most are sorry. Some leave me scratching my head, like this one. The FSM is satire, invented to rebut the idiocy of Intelligent Design advocates, and I really don't find it appealing to be reminded of such lunacy by my own skin.

I chuckled when I read the "difference between those with tattoos versus those without them is that those with them don't care if you have them or not" remark once again. That equates in my book with saying "heroin addicts don't care if you shoot up or not whereas those not addicted probably don't consider heroin addiction a desirable trait". Substitute most any other behaviour, addiction or potentially divisive issue and it reads the same. There are also exceptions, which are mostly "inversions", like religious fanatics who actually do care whether or not you subscribe to their particular sect. Back to the tat comment itself, it stands to reason that most people with tats don't mind them whereas a higher percentage of those without them don't have them because they don't like them. People with tats are a self-selected subset, albeit perhaps a majority these days. While the actual remark under discussion is probably true, it should not be used as any sort of an argument, IMHO.