First tattoo, age of DS, DD?

[NYCgrrl]

Youngest son has none.
Oldest son has a pair of scary eyes on his shoulder blades; weirdly bizarre and I’ve no idea how old he was when he did it. Wasn’t living in my house that’s for sure.

 

[Boopuff]

My eldest DD got her first tattoo at 18 and she didn't even discuss it with us (it's Tinkerbell on her foot) my youngest DD got hers at age 27 (a Mickey head on her foot). Both girls want me to get a small - family - tattoo.... I"m thinking....

But I do remember in 7th grade I really, really wanted my ears pierced. My dad was so old school... "what's next? shave your head? why the he$$ would you want to poke holes in your head?"

 

[prairie_girl]

Got mine when I was 19. I’m older than that now and will get two more in the next few weeks, and paying for my 20yo daughter to get one too. Unless it’s a swastika on your forehead, what does it matter to you?

 

[FlightlessDuck]

 

[redrosesix]

Well this thread is new for me so I'll just post...

My daughter begged for one at 16 and I said no. Then at 18, she wanted a different one and I strongly discouraged it -- a bit shocking she listened to me. She's 21 now and she said she may get one some day, but it wouldn't be either of the ones she thought she wanted at 16 or 18.

I'm going to stick with discouraging it. she changes her mind drastically about a lot of things.

 

[ronandannette]

IDK - I think my son was 19 or 20? He never expressed an interest in getting professional ink. That summer, while working as camp counsellor, he designed his own and others, and he and his fellow camp staff did stick-and-pokes; like prison tats. {{shudder}} I hate it and think it's ugly but beyond my personal opinion, it's a non-issue. And in case the OP is wondering, these were all young Christian adults working at church camp. It was a non-issue to the leadership there too.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

Neither my husband or I have one (never came up with one I want forever). Our daughter got one when she turned 18. She is an adult and it is her body so i didn’t have a say in her getting it. Her friend designed it for her so there actual is meaning in the design, which I like.

 

[Buzz2014]

First one I was 16 then another at 18 a couple more in my 20s they are all very "me" my husband got most of his in his early 20s.. we don't have anything crazy just zodiac signs.. portraits ( he has my son as an infant) on his leg it looks awesome he always gets compliments.. I have " Made in New Jersey" stamped on my shoulder, that's sometimes a conversation piece. So the reason that I post is that I think many people don't regret it, it's part of them and there is logic with the choice even if it's just something they chose on a whim.. it means something to them at one point in time.
I also see a trend with my friends that have older teens.. if parents have tattoos they don't necessarily want one, maybe it's not as cool because mom and dad have one. I acknowledge the contrary may be true as well.. that kids may want one just like mom or dad.. but in my group of friends the teens are just not as interested.

 

[C&Jx2]

IDK - I think my son was 19 or 20? He never expressed an interest in getting professional ink. That summer, while working as camp counsellor, he designed his own and others, and he and his fellow camp staff did stick-and-pokes; like prison tats. {{shudder}} I hate it and think it's ugly but beyond my personal opinion, it's a non-issue. And in case the OP is wondering, these were all young Christian adults working at church camp. It was a non-issue to the leadership there too.

That’s kind of amusing... Sorry. Just unexpected.

 

[C&Jx2]

My kids are 14 and planning theirs (I’m sure it will change a million times). My husband is fully sleeved and working on a Harry Potter leg sleeve (nerd alert). And I have 1 1/2 sleeves, a large thigh piece, and various others.

Were the first few I got custom art, award winning tats, like I get now? Heck no! They’re terrible... But I don’t regret them. They’re a snapshot of a time in my life, who I was then, and while I’m not necessarily proud of them, I’m not embarrassed of them either.

 

[LovesTimone]

I got a tattoo at 40... its not visible, and it marked a milestone in my life for me personally...

I am thinking about getting another one for my 60th birthday, something small... and most likely Disney related... and this one will be visible..

Neither my DD or my SIL have any tattoos...

My DH has 2 one on each arm...

 

[mamamary]

As of now no tattoos for us or our kids.

 

[luvsvacation]

My daughter turned 18 last year and since then she’s gotten 4. Doesn’t matter to me one way or the other. The only thing I ever said was that my kids had to wait until they were 18 because I didn’t want them to come back to me at 25 and blame me and say why did you let me do this I was only 15/16 I didn’t know any better. At 18 it’s on them if they later regret it. I’ve never had any tattoos, but my daughter did convince me to get a matching one with her a few months ago, I love it!

 

[aprilchem]

My husband is 51 and has several tattoos. He is neither a sailor nor a biker - he's a robotics engineer. So probably add them in with the sailors and the bikers?

 

[ronandannette]

That’s kind of amusing... Sorry. Just unexpected.

Yes, well, here's a little unsolicited parenting advice: practice under-reacting now because at some point they'll surprise you.

 

[sam_gordon]

We got our son his first tattoo when he was 3. It made it so much easier to find him at the pools at WDW. He really stood out against all those peeling press on tattoos they sell on property.
The ear and lip piercings followed over the next couple of years.

You waited until he was 3? You're slow. We had a tattoo artist come in the delivery room!

 

[Erica_Haley]

I got my first one at 18. Now I'm 27 and have 7. Most of mine are small, but I do have a large one on the front of my thigh. I've had it for years and my grandmother still gets amazed how many comments I get on it when we go out, some people even asking to take photos!

 

[person]

IDK - I think my son was 19 or 20? He never expressed an interest in getting professional ink. That summer, while working as camp counsellor, he designed his own and others, and he and his fellow camp staff did stick-and-pokes; like prison tats. {{shudder}} I hate it and think it's ugly but beyond my personal opinion, it's a non-issue. And in case the OP is wondering, these were all young Christian adults working at church camp. It was a non-issue to the leadership there too.

ronandannette:

FYI, a quote I saw:

Around here (Bible Belt), it is common, especially among evangelical Christians, for the girls under about 40 to have religious tattoos. More do than don't, especially when you get to the under 30 crowd. I hardly know any female at church that is under 30 that does not have a tattoo.

forums dot thewelltrainedmind dot com

You're right.

It's simply what they do, isn't it?

 

[Jennasis]

What is your deal?

 

[tzolkin]

It was a thing to do when I was in high school 25 years ago. Many of my friends got them as soon as they turned 18 or shortly thereafter. The large majority of them regret it now.

This is what I was going to say as well. Just like the earring thread, I think this was a bigger thing 20+ years ago than it is now. My husband still often jokes that he doesn't know how we made it out of the 90s without a stupid tattoo (he does have piercings). Pretty much everyone we know who is our age has at least one tattoo.

All three of my siblings have a tattoo. My mom took them to ensure they went somewhere professional. Two of them were under 18. She figured it was better to take them when they needed parental permission than tell them "no" and have them run out and get something impulsively when they turned 18. My brother was planning to become a Catholic priest, so he has a religious tattoo on his upper arm where it can't be seen with regular clothing on. I'm sure that influenced my parents' decision and they would have been less likely to approve if it were just something random.

My kids (22, 17, 15) have no interest in tattoos at this time (but they do have some piercings). My older two are both artistic/free spirit types, but they have recognized how much their personal aesthetic, their art interests, and their clothing styles have changed over time so they are hesitant to do anything permanent and then not like it a year or two later.