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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To want a sleeve tattoo done on my arm?

310 replies

JellyDiamonds · 12/10/2014 13:00

Ive been looking at getting another tattoo done for a while now but have been unsure on what to get done and where. Whilst looking online for inspiration I've seen some amazing sleeve tattoos and have decided that I want one of them, the designs and artistry are amazing. I think that if they are done properly by decent tattoo artists then they are like works of art.

The thing is that everyone I've told about it has looked at me like I'm going mad. My mum was absolutely horrified, said that they are "revolting" and that I'll look like a sailor. But I don't think I will, I saw a photo on Facebook of a friend of a friend and she had a floral sleeve on her arm and yet still managed to look feminine. Not that I'm particularly feminine and girly anyway, but the point I'm trying to make is that not all sleeve designs are for blokes who start fights in pubs which what my mum was clearly trying to get at.

Should I just bite the bullet and go for it?

OP posts:
LilAnnieAmphetamine · 13/10/2014 18:45

I am asking you Findo unless you lack the courage of your written convictions.

googoodolly · 13/10/2014 18:46

Little we can wear nail polish so long as we're not working with fresh food.

LittleBearPad · 13/10/2014 18:47

As I say times have changed.

LilAnnieAmphetamine · 13/10/2014 18:47

Thanks for the definitions.

What a deeply unpleasant insult with all kinds of disablist connotations. Now who is being snide?

Fairenuff · 13/10/2014 18:49

It sounds like an offensive term for a person with special needs. I don't think it should be used.

YackityYakYak · 13/10/2014 18:51

LilAnnie - I wouldn't worry, this comes from someone who thinks people can just choose who their bosses are - given that lots of people are lucky to get A job at the moment, let alone be overly fussy as to who you are working for I find it highly amusing!

LilAnnieAmphetamine · 13/10/2014 18:53

Yackity

Yes, wryly amusing and very naive.

Bunbaker · 13/10/2014 19:04

This thread clearly demonstrates that people still do judge tattooed people and therefore it is something to take into consideration when deciding where to have one.

OTheHugeManatee · 13/10/2014 19:14

I'm curious to hear from the people with both tattoos and jobs what it is they do for a living.

Milmingebag · 13/10/2014 19:16

I have never seen a tattoo that I think looks nice. Ever. I don't make judgements about people who have them but I just think, aesthetically, they aren't beautiful and don't add anything to enhance a person.

combust22 · 13/10/2014 19:19

milmingebag- I agree. I think all tattoos are hideous. I have never seen a nice tattoo.

Bogeyface · 13/10/2014 19:21

I dont get why I cant say that I dont like tatoos and that my perception of someone will be different if they have a visible tattoo without being called dull, boring, unimaginative, judgey, "mouthbreather" etc. I have a tattoo and I still dont like them!

If you want one then have one, but ffs dont ask for opinions if you are just going to get snotty with people who think they are ugly, tacky and could limit your job prospects. Whether you agree that tats limiting certain careers is right or not, the fact is that it does as this thread has shown. Its up to you whether you choose to avoid those careers and accept the limitations or not.

Oh and re the "mouthbreather" comment, my IQ is 155 according to MENSA, that puts me in the top 1% of the world. I would suggest that anyone who posts such an offensive term is the one lacking intelligence, not me.

combust22 · 13/10/2014 19:24

Laser tattoo removal is a booming business. Doesn't that say something?

TiggyD · 13/10/2014 19:28

I don't like them. So I won't get one.

Fairenuff · 13/10/2014 19:32

OP why don't you buy one of those fake tattoo sleeves and see how long you can wear it before you get fed up looking at it. Or see whether it actually does affect the way you want to dress. Would it look attractive if you wore a ball gown, for example, or a cocktail dress?

SpidersDontWashTheirHands · 13/10/2014 19:32

I'm curious to hear from the people with both tattoos and jobs what it is they do for a living

I don't have a job. It must be because of my tattoos

Fairylea · 13/10/2014 19:34

Dh is tattooed all over from the neck down. Two full sleeves, both legs and chest and back. In a suit you would never know. He doesn't have his neck or hands done because he can't cover them in a suit - he doesn't regret any of his tattoos and plans to get his neck and hands done when he retires as a present to himself.

He is a graduate and works in retail management. He is quite artistic and draws in his spare time. His tattoos are his main hobby and he absolutely loves them - in general I mean.

He has never found them to hold him back in his career because he never shows them. As I said in a suit you wouldn't have a clue.

However, people do judge especially if we are out as a family on a hot day and he has a t shirt on. Despite the fact we look like a nice little family with a toddler and an older dd people do give him some disgusting looks - and this is despite the fact he has spent more than £3k on the work in total from exceptional artists. He does get lots of positive attention to but sometimes I find it hard to take those who are rude to him. It's just skin for goodness sakes. None of his tattoos are remotely offensive.

Personally I would never get sleeve tattoos. In the hot weather you have to either show them off (which might not suit all occasions because of other people's prejudices) or sweat to death in long sleeves.

I've got tattoos myself. I don't regret them at all but I can cover them easily even in hot weather if I want to.

combust22 · 13/10/2014 19:37

I have never dated a man with tattoos. ( Except my late OH who had medically necessary tattoos) All the men I have been involved with seem to think tattoos are as silly as I do.

googoodolly · 13/10/2014 19:41

Manatee I work in retail. Lots of my fellow colleagues (and managers) are tattooed. DP is a factory supervisor.

I also know teachers, drivers, builders and businessmen with tattoos. Some are coverable, others visible in short sleeved shirts. It's perfectly possible to be tattooed and successful.

SirChenjin · 13/10/2014 19:46

Successful in certain fields goo - you definitely limit your career choices if you have visible tattoos. Or, there may be dress codes which mean you have to cover them - which limits your choice of outfits (and levels of comfort) in certain weathers.

HoneyDragonMumshnet · 13/10/2014 20:13

I have visible tattoos and piercings

My CV in no particular order

Finance and banking (client facing /major banks)
Preschool
Sales and Marketing (international clients, well known brand representatives)
Factory
Superstore Store

At my factory's we have visible tattoos up from the shop floor to the directors. As long as the jobs done well it doesn't matter.

I've never been refused a job because of my piercings or tattoos.

combust22 · 13/10/2014 20:16

"
I've never been refused a job because of my piercings or tattoos."

I doubt you would have been told.

HoneyDragonMumshnet · 13/10/2014 20:21

I've never not got a job or promotion I've applied for Grin

SirChenjin · 13/10/2014 20:23

And that's great for the jobs you did/do - but there are jobs in other professions you either wouldn't have got with visible tattoos (I take it you mean face/hand/neck?), or at the very least you would have had to cover them.

HoneyDragonMumshnet · 13/10/2014 20:27

I've responded to the poster who wanted to know what professions people had worked in with visible tattoos.

I don't get your point?

There's nothing to debate about that or be proved wrong, I've just said what I've done, I'm not out to prove anything Confused

I probably couldn't do an advert for Sanex skin care no. But haven't applied to do so.