Let's talk about tattoos

[Dirge Eterna]

I have 9 tattoos, all on my arms or legs. My first tattoo was a tribal symbol/flash art that I got when I was 18 home on leave from basic training on my left arm. I got it redone and added onto 4 times so far to get it to what I want exactly. I am a big fan of Star Wars so I have a scene from the Return of the Jedi where the Emperor is sitting on his throne flanked by two Imperial Guardsmen on my outside Left calf. I have my name in Arubesh which is the language of SW around an Imperial symbol on my right outer calf. On the inside of my left ankle I have a representation of my son. On my Right inner calf I have a painting by Luis Royo of a zombie/dead soldier. On my left wrist I have a small lucky 13. On my right shoulder I have a tattoo to commemorate my service in the USAF. It is my military police badge over my rank in front of a US and POW flag. On my right wrist I have my family crest and on my right forearm I have a song quote that means a lot to me and my past. "You Don't Know Peace 'til You've Had Suffering". One of my close friends is a tattoo artist so as I can afford it I will eventually have full sleeves and a back piece. My wife has 6 tattoos and is also getting more.

I personally love tattoos, well I love well done ones. No one hates a crappy tattoo more than people who see it as an art form and love them. If I see someone with a really awful tattoo I might think either they don't know what they want or can't describe it or they went to a really bad tattooist. I look at tattoos wherever I see them and it is a way to connect with people. I have never personally had a bad experience or received negative feedback except from religious nutballs who have told me I am going to hell for having tattoos. I personally don't like skulls and evil things just to shock. I am a dark person in general I love the macabre and weird crazy stuff. I can appreciate the artwork and the skill even if I don't like or enjoy the subject matter. I have no regrets for my tattoos and each one has a meaning to me, it reminds me of my life at that time. It is an expression of myself and I don't care if someone doesn't like it, its not for them.

 

[Operative1980]

I have a tattoo on my left shoulderblade. It is in essence a 'Mom' tattoo with a difference. her name in the middle (Vicki), date of birth above, date of death below. The dates are in roman numerals so it all has a uniform look.

Im fine with tattoos in general but for me the turning point is when they are on your face. Dont like them there.

 

[Dirge Eterna]

I have a tattoo on my left shoulderblade. It is in essence a 'Mom' tattoo with a difference. her name in the middle (Vicki), date of birth above, date of death below. The dates are in roman numerals so it all has a uniform look.

Im fine with tattoos in general but for me the turning point is when they are on your face. Dont like them there.

Yes I Personally don't like facial or hand/finger tattoos very much. I like chest pieces on women but not the funky boob ones of a name or something janky.

 

[Archer666]

I'm planning on getting my entire back inked. Gonna start it with tattoos of a black panther on my left and a white tiger on my right shoulder as a yin-yang kinda thing. Then I'll probably get something along the length of my spine, like a sword or a tribal chain. After that, who knows.

 

[Vildleder]

I've been thinking of saving up for a tattoo on my back, featuring the rod of Asclepius (the traditional symbol of the medicinal profession). A trite unoriginal, I know, but becoming a doctor has been the dream-goal for a long-ass time, so when I finally do become one in a couple of years time, I could treat myself to something which at least has a little meaning.

Waiting a couple of years after the idea has come into my head will give me time to mull it over, and tattoos being as permanent as they are, its never a light decision.

The only problem I might have with a back tattoo is that it isn't visible I agree with other posters, that a tattoo with meaning might enhance it for yourself, but dammit, if I have a piece of art-work on my body, I'd at least like to be able to look at it. I want to admire my sweet bod, yo!

 

[purplecactus]

I've got two so far, nine red tally marks on the inside of my right wrist (which attract a lot of questions and weird conclusions about me) and a vegvisir on the back of my left shoulder. Both have personal reason behind them, and both were planned out well in advance of actually getting them inked on.

I did have a few people say to me that I shouldn't do it in case I regret it fifty years down the line, but I'm not going to not do something just because there's a slight chance I may regret it when I'm a pensioner. If I get that far along in life. I willingly partake in a lot of dangerous sports, which I know for a fact I'll regret when I get to pensioner status due to the injuries I've had etc, so who knows what's going to happen.

Tattoos are a personal choice. Personally I can't stand hand/face/neck/foot tattoos, but I don't tend to alter my opinion of people who have them just because they have them (unless they're a complete disaster and painful to look at). So far no one has made a snap judgement about me for my tattoos that I know of, and I haven't been turned away from jobs or told I'll end up in hell or anything like that.

Heh, we'll see what happens when I get my next one.

 

[SonofaJohannes]

Don't have one, don't want one. I've never liked tattoos, I think skin is good the way it is.

As far as judgement being affected... I don't know, haven't really thought about it. But probably, since everything people do has some effect on my judgement of them, to some degree. So I guess tattoos do affect it.

 

[Casual Shinji]

You can't take 'm off.

Common knowledge ofcourse, but I generally like to be able to change things when I get tired of them. And I think after just a half year I'd be totally done with that same sign on my skin.

Also, tattoos are typically chosen from your current mindset. And that mindset is probably going to change over the years. I'd have a tattoo reflecting the way I look at the world right now, but who's to say that view won't completely change in 10 years, making my tattoo a worthless blob attatched to my skin.

I'll leave the final word to coach McGuirk...

 

[Angie7F]

I dont have one and I have a fetish for men with tatoos.
But when I think of how they will look in the long run it makes me sad.

 

[bliebblob]

Don't have em, don't want em. I have yet to run into any image / symbol / whatever that I wouldn't mind seeing and being associated with every single day for the rest of my life. This is mostly because I know for a fact that my opinion on what is and isn't awesome will chance multiple times throughout the rest of my life. How do I know this? Because that's what happened in the 24 years up to now.

Furthermore, I don't see how anyone could ever do feel like it's a good idea. But then again I guess you don't have to not get sick of it for all eternity, only just as long as you live.

So yeah thinking about it, a tattoo probably does lower my opinion of you. But only by a neglegible amount because I do realize other people can and will have different views on how to live a life, and they're not necessarily wrong. Plus god knows there's no shortage of far worse things you could do to yourself, like smoking /FLAMESHIELDS ACTIVATED.

 

[roushutsu]

I think I'm too chicken to get one myself, unless we're including Henna. I get those all the time when I go to fairs, and usually they're simple like a flower design or something on my arm or my back. My dad has the bird from Emerson Lake and Palmer's debut album on his arm and it's beautiful. My little brother's got a cross with our family name on his back; again, very beautiful. Of course I've seen my fair share of tacky tattoos on classmates or coworkers, but I tend to remember the pretty ones more.

 

[Shock and Awe]

I was going to get pic related without the text on my upper arm this Saturday, but I talked to someone from the AFROTC department at my college and he said that some may see it as "Calling my loyalty into question", and advised against it despite a clear reg saying it wasn't allowed. It probably wouldn't be an issue but I agreed with him that its really not worth the risk of losing a commission. Though I plan on getting USAF on my arm after I graduate.

 

[The Unworthy Gentleman]

I like tattoos and I think they look really good but for the life of me I can't think of a single thing I'd want permanently drawn or written on my body. People who complain about their shit tattoos annoy the shit out of me too. Otherwise they're pretty great to see.

 

[Super Kami Guru]

Personally, I've always wanted to get three lions tattooed on me, but not on my arms or legs or anywhere it's immediately apparent. (I'm a sucker for national pride)

Don't, it's a chavy, awful idea of a tattoo that's on a par with getting a partners name or your date of birth as "Est:1989" for example.

These are mine:

Lyrics from my favourite song.
[img=http://s15.postimg.org/7qk7eckuj/377653_10151511961719282_1681976367_n.jpg] [http://postimage.org/]
screenshot pc [http://postimage.org/app.php]

A Raptor claw because I'm a massive dino-nerd

[http://postimage.org/]
image [http://postimage.org/]

I don't judge someone for having tattoo's, however I do somewhat depending on what that tattoo is, I despise generic tribal tattoo's and the ones I mentioned above. The worst I've ever seen in real life (not on the internet, there's awful ones online) was someone who get there surname across the top of their back (like a football shirt) with praying hands in the middle and EST 1990 across the bottom of his back.

 

[Super Kami Guru]

Personally, I've always wanted to get three lions tattooed on me, but not on my arms or legs or anywhere it's immediately apparent. (I'm a sucker for national pride)

Don't, it's a chavy, awful idea of a tattoo that's on a par with getting a partners name or your date of birth as "Est:1989" for example.

These are mine:

Lyrics from my favourite song.

[http://postimg.org/image/6bimpmjrb/]

A Raptor claw because I'm a massive dino-nerd

[http://postimage.org/]
image [http://postimage.org/]

I don't judge someone for having tattoo's, however I do somewhat depending on what that tattoo is, I despise generic tribal tattoo's and the ones I mentioned above. The worst I've ever seen in real life (not on the internet, there's awful ones online) was someone who get there surname across the top of their back (like a football shirt) with praying hands in the middle and EST 1990 across the bottom of his back.

 

[Artina89]

I don't have a tattoo and I don't really like them, as I have the feeling I would want to wash it off. I don't judge anyone who has tattoo's though, as it is their body and they can do whatever they please with it.

 

[sageoftruth]

Personally, I've always wanted to get three lions tattooed on me, but not on my arms or legs or anywhere it's immediately apparent. (I'm a sucker for national pride)

Don't, it's a chavy, awful idea of a tattoo that's on a par with getting a partners name or your date of birth as "Est:1989" for example.

These are mine:

Lyrics from my favourite song.
[img=http://s15.postimg.org/7qk7eckuj/377653_10151511961719282_1681976367_n.jpg] [http://postimage.org/]
screenshot pc [http://postimage.org/app.php]

A Raptor claw because I'm a massive dino-nerd

[http://postimage.org/]
image [http://postimage.org/]

I don't judge someone for having tattoo's, however I do somewhat depending on what that tattoo is, I despise generic tribal tattoo's and the ones I mentioned above. The worst I've ever seen in real life (not on the internet, there's awful ones online) was someone who get there surname across the top of their back (like a football shirt) with praying hands in the middle and EST 1990 across the bottom of his back.

So, what are you planning to do when your favorite song isn't your favorite song anymore? Isn't that how guys end up with "Green Day" logos tattooed to their chest?

 

[frizzlebyte]

I'm not a huge fan, actually, and would never, ever get one myself, but if done well they can be pretty cool, at least until they get weird-looking. One problem I see is that women get something like a rose or star on their ankle, and to me it's just gotten kind of cliche to have one.

And a "tramp stamp" is just the worst, IMHO. HOWEVER (in the interest of not offending those of the Escapist who have one), I don't think less of people who have one (tramp stamp is just what I call them for lack of a better description), unlike some people. If you like it, that's fine. I just don't know why you want one there.

 

[Idlemessiah]

So Escapist, what are your thoughts on tattoos? Do you have one? If so, tell us about it. Has your tattoo ever affected your life in any noticeable way?

Furthermore, does someone having a tattoo affect your judgement of them?

Personally, I've always wanted to get three lions tattooed on me, but not on my arms or legs or anywhere it's immediately apparent. (I'm a sucker for national pride)

I have several tattoos, one covering my entire left arm. I've generally had positive reactions to them, since they are very bold, striking and colourful designs.

I've never had a problem with them at work. My old boss told me to cover them up since the customers were offended by them, so I asked her to show me the apparent complaints since I had only heard praise from customers. Not another comment out of her. On a related note, she left a few months after that because all the other staff thought she was a total *****.

Sorry, sidetracked there...

I DO judge people with tattoos, sure. If I see somebody with a wonky, badly shaded piece of shit (or even worse a spelling mistake) then I will think that you're a silly twat for going to a bad tattooist and not doing your research properly.

One of the main reasons I love tattoos is that they are an instant conversation starter. I had a nice chat the other day with a Polish bloke in broken English about an absolutely stunning African savannah scene he had on his arm. Didn't matter that we were from different places, didn't matter that he could only speak a bit of English. He had a cool tattoo, and I wanted to talk to him about it.

Also, with regards to your three lions thought. It's a little common don't you think? I know thats kinda the point of national pride, it's the same reason people get football club badges tattooed on them. But I'm pretty sure you can come up with a better idea, sure use the three lions as a start point, but make it your own design, subvert it in some way. Also, there are plenty more things that represent England than the three lions that you could use.

And my final thought to you, bigger tattoos look better. It's a simple fact due to the size of a tattoo needle. The bigger your design, the more detail and shading you can get in it and the better it will look.

And my final FINAL thought is, draw it yourself. Tattooists get bored doing the ones on the wall. A tattooist who gets the chance to flex their skill on a new design is a happier tattooist. Also I'd advise pinning your drawing up somewhere you'll see it every day, even if you can't draw that well. If you get sick of it, tear it down, start again. If you look at it every day for 3-4 months and still want it on you, then thats the right time to hunt down a good tattooist!

And that was way longer than I intended. Hope some of it was helpful for you!

 

[Floppertje]

I have a stylistic phoenix in black lines and red/orange/yellow colors on my right upper arm. Just high enough to be covered by a normal T-shirt. The only effect it has had on my life was people complimenting me on it. How it was pretty, rather than the usual tribal/name/etc tattoo's you see a lot. And then me having to explain why I got it and such. But nothing else really.

Could you upload a picture of it? It sounds really cool.
I've got a tattoo of the bass I learned to play on and two clasped hands on my upper left arm. I only got positive reactions so far, but it can get a little exhausting to have to explain what it means to every new person I meet, mostly because it sounds kinda cheesy. I generally object to tribals and chinese characters because they're kinda tacky. Also no things like people or bands because it makes you look like you're obsessed and you definitely look stupid if you stop liking them. The only exception would be if something impacted you in such a way that it would still be a part of who you are even after you stop liking it/them.

Also, they're addictive as hell. Ever since I got the first one (note the use of the phrase 'the first one' rather than 'it', I always say that, even though it's the only one I have), I've been thinking about what my next one should be. Had a few ideas, but somehow they're never quite good enough.