You got Inked! ...do you regret your tattoo?

Tattoos are a permanent, visual reminder of past choices and unless surgically removed by a professional, will be etched into your skin forever with no turning back. So the question arises...to ink or not to ink?

I've been asking myself this question for over twenty years. As a rebellious teenager my right of passage included getting my ears pierced repeatedly and taking up smoking, one of which wasn't too bright. But what I really wanted was a symbolic tattoo that marked my transition into womanhood like a flower or a butterfly. Yet I kept coming back to the realization that having an artist's rendition of my 'feeling' permanently etched into my skin could easily become a regret.

My last desire to repeatedly have myself stabbed with sharp needles resurfaced a few years ago while on vacation with an old friend of mine. Both her and I want a tattoo and felt the timing of our vacay would be the perfect and memorable for the occasion and guess what?...we chickened out!
The reasons I use to justify neglecting this 'want' of mine comes down to a few things; the pain, the forever quality, the fact it may not turnout and that people may pass judgement.

If I look back, I've never even dated a man with a tattoo, is that wrong? This seems odd as nowadays the beaches are loaded with tattooed bodies. Men with their arm cuffs of barbed wire and women with their lower back tramp stamps. Tattoo's are not the taboo brand of an outlaw biker or gangster, they've become accepted almost commonplace. Trendy parlours and shops appear on main streets rather than in seedy, offbeat locations and TV shows document tattoo artisit's and their clientele. I'm personally a fan of Kat Von D, her artwork is absolutely amazing. If she would consider being my tattoo artist, I'd consider letting her poke me enough times to get a whimsical, fine line dragonfly out of her. Pssst, pass it on ;)

What I'd really like to know though is if you have any tattoos that you now regret having? and what do you did you do about it? and how do a tattoo created 25 years ago on young, tight skin look on not so young skin? Have people questioned you over it so much you're sick of explaining or do you love telling the story? Is it stretched out or distorted from weightgain, pregnancy or simple gravity? Feel free to leave your comments...

Read about Tattoos and Tattoo Removal at Wiki or check out tattoos inspired by Guerrilla  marketing techiniques in the world of advertising, ewww!

Have you think all tattoos are cool, check out Tattoo Failure for a chuckle!

Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer Light