If you don't like tattoos

[TheAverageJoanne]

Can you say why?

I'm fed up of people who think those with tattoos are rough arsed bikers, thick or common.

And also, however mainstream they become, and however many doctors and rocket scientists people know with tattoos, they do have negative associations.

If 2 people went for a job, and they were identical in every single way except that one had a massive spiders web tattooed on their face, I’m pretty sure the non-tattooed one would get the job every time.

Because I think bare skin always looks better than tattoos. I’ve seen some that are OK but I always think the person would have looked better without them. Just opinion though no judgement on those that have them.

I wouldn't judge anyone for getting a tattoo. I just don't like them. No real reason. I just think bodies look better without them.

@MumblesParty I agree, I don't care. But if somebody genuinely has the curiosity to ask, and listen, I think it's an interesting discussion from both sides of the fence. Why do people want them is an interesting question to me.

I don't mind them if they can be covered up or discreet if they arent a medical tattoo. I don't like them if visible in smart clothing (male or female).

Mostly I dislike their permanent nature, the way they lose definition and colour so something detailed with hands slowly looks like claw monsters as it breaks down or colours blend or a flower ends up looking like a cabbage.

I have a lot of friends with tattoos most have multiple and all of them regret or dislike at least 1 of them and with the cost and pain of removal are stuck with them!

I don't particularly like tattoos. I haven't got one but I've got friends who have - although only small discreet ones. I don't like the permanency of them (appreciate you can get them lasered now) and I wonder what the tattoo you had in your 20s will look like when you're 70 and wrinkly.

I don't really get why people have their entire arm/leg/body covered in them or the name of a partner tattooed across the knuckles. I also often don't understand the expense of them often paid for by people who could least afford them whilst struggling to put food on the table/keep a roof over their heads.

I don't like them-even though some are utterly beautiful-because I don't think it's a good idea to modify your body permanently. I don't, by the way, think people with tattoos are rough arsed, thick or common.

I think they look messy and ugly and ruin a perfectly good arm, leg, neck etc.

I hate even looking at them. Sometimes I’ll see people and think ‘you’d look stunningly beautiful if it wasn’t for that tattoo’.

you did ask…

No, I think you misunderstood my post. I was asking OP why she cares if other people don't like them.

It’s actually hard to tell if someone has an unfortunate birth mark? What business is it if yours if they have a birthmark? This is such judgemental bullshit. This says a lot about you.

I have never particularly liked tattoos but my husband is heavily tattooed. They're not scribbly ones - they're huge ones covering his entire back/arms/legs. I think I prefer that to the small scribbly ones. His tattoo artist is very talented though.

Do you think the same about all tattoos? I recently had cancer surgery which has left a visible scar across my shoulder blade. I was told it would be hidden by my bra band but it curves up and can be seen if I wear anything with straps. I absolutely hate being reminded of cancer every time I see it. It makes me feel sick and I want to forget I ever went through it. I had considered a tattoo to hide the scar so I can see something prettier but I would be bothered if I thought that other people saw me as common.

A few people have likened them to something ugly like scars but plenty of people have tattoos to hide scars.

Ah I see, apologies. I thought you were asking why the anti-tattoo people cared. I misunderstood.

Quick question to those people who are saying the more unpleasant stuff like they look ugly/scruffy.like scribbles etc - do you feel the same about tattoos on the bodies of those who see them as culturally important? Māori or Native American for example? For those cultures, tattoos are extremely significant and a part of Their history and culture - or does that shift the situation for you? Is that acceptable whilst Jenny from the down the road having a rose on her forearm is ‘scruffy’?

For me I would never get one because they seem so limiting. Say I get an anchor tattoo.. that might look cool on a day when I'm feeling androgynous or wearing a breton top or am hanging out by the sea, but what if I have a phase where I feel all ethereal and fairy-like and want to waft about in a lilac tutu? With my body as a blank canvas I can style it however I want, without being limited by these permanent markings all over.

Also they tend to look terrible as the colour bleeds over the years.

I don’t currently want a tattoo, but I can see that I may in the future should I lose a loved one. It would be somewhere only I could see and would be a little piece of a memory of a loved one.

I don’t like most tattoos, I think that they age badly and think it strange to place them somewhere where you can’t see them yourself.

My feelings are contradictory, and I think that they are usually a bad idea as you change your likes and dislikes many times during your lifetime.

I was a rough arsed biker when I was young. Now I'm a rather sedate 62 year old having given up that life. I get an awful lot of comments at work and a lot of disgust too. I have tattooed arms and have to wear short sleeves as I work in medical. I'm not ashamed of my tattoos. I dont know why everyone gets so excited about them.

Someone who I dated a few years ago decided to get Elvin (elvish?) script on his arm (Lord of the Rings) and told me it was trendy and cool at the time. I think he regretted it later as he wasn’t really a tattoos kind of man. Why be a sheep?

I think they all look horrible

I just don't like how they look. I wonder why people would do that to their body and what they really gain from it. I'd like to know why they want visible taboos, particularly ones they themselves can't see, eg all over their back. There must be an image they want to portray, but I don't know what it is.

The ones on the face or neck I think are particularly horrible. There is someone on Masterchef at the moment with a huge bee on his neck and it actually makes me feel a bit sick looking at it. I just dont understand why he wants people to see a massive bee underneath ihs face

That's my view, which is what you asked for BUT I would never say anything like that to someone with tatoos. I also think.people can do what they want and shouldn't be excluded from any job or profession because they have them.

No problem, I probably made it a bit confusing!

Why is it 'judgemental bullshit'? For a start, it's an opinion that was asked for by the OP. The fact that it doomday's opinion is one that is widely shared, even if people don't openly judge, means that the person with the tattoo has considered that their choice may limit them and/or that their personal display isn't validated.

I mean, they must on some level know this and think, "don't care what you think' or they'd be really foolish, wouldn't they? I have every respect for people who do what they want to their own bodies, not so much for people who do this and then need to keep canvassing opinions on it.

Own your choices and accept that other people may or may not like them.

Frequently they appear like a tattoo for a tattoos sake, if they follow a fashionable design.

Where there a multiple tattoos, I often wonder if there is an element of body dysmorphia or low self esteem driving a compulsion to cover more skin.

Facial or neck tattoos, I think the owner doesn’t think through consequences.

Mostly, I think tattoos visible under a vneck or short sleeved shirt are just quite ugly and badly done.

They just look like a random drawing plonked on your skin. They don’t enhance someone’s appearance except in incredibly rare circumstances. Often they just look dirty to me.

I hate it when people share a photo of a very fit and cool looking older man as an example of how they won’t look crap the older you get. When the reality is they are mostly on middle aged fat men with 90s tribal tattoos.

A bit of a sad comment. My daughter has quite a few tattoos. I dislike tattoos and was very disappointed when she decided to get them, especially as some are very large. But she is by no means rough or common or thick. She is a lovely, thoughtful, caring young woman who made a choice regarding her own body. Would I rather she had never had them done? Yes, most definitely. But I appreciate that it's her decision and it doesn't affect how much I love her.

Honestly don't worry about what other people think. Just do what makes you happy.