Are Tattoos Fashionable and Edgy Anymore?

Discussion in Fashion & Apparel started by shopnow1 • Sep 21, 2012.

  1. shopnow1

    shopnow1New Member

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    Nowadays, it seems like everyone and their mom has a tattoo that can be easily seen in public. Tattoos used to be a sign of rebellious behavior back in the day when only bad boys/girls would have them. I know that when I would see someone with a tattoo back in the early 90s, I would immediately think that they were dangerous and exciting to be around. But now it's just not the same when a 60 year old women (that has had a midlife crisis) has gotten herself a butterfly tattoo on her arm. While tattoos still serve as a form of self expression, I just don't see them the same way that I used to. So what do you think? Have tattoos lost their edginess now that a lot more people seem to be getting them?
     
  2. phoenix17

    phoenix17New Member

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    Depends on what part of society you're in, and the reason you're getting the tattoo. I've always thought of getting one, but I'm not sure and of where. I've thought about using the "I was drunk" excuse to justify my reason for getting one.

    One of my mates has about 4 tattoos, I'm not even sure the reasons he gave were reasonable, I didn't see any good reason to getting a tattoo. It just seems he wanted them, like I do. He has a tattoo of his brother's name just above his right nipple (It's funny actually, his brother's name is Steve, but the tattoo font reads Stebe, we give him crap about it all the time).
     
  3. tosaytheleast

    tosaytheleastActive Member

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    Tattoos are not the symbol of being rebellious anymore. Everyone think of it as the new freedom of expression now. It is more of an art and I personally love tattoos even though I do not have one. I am planning to also have my first tattoo but I am still confuse what should design should I have. Any suggestions?
     
  4. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    I agree with phoenix, that it depends on what part of society you live in. I generally hang out with musicians, artists, dancers, and the like, and yeah, in that group, everybody and their mom has a tattoo. There are still parts of society, though, where tattoos are considered inappropriate, and so the only tattoos present can be easily covered by clothes when necessary.

    Think long and hard, because tattoos are permanent. Don't just get one to get one. You'll regret that. Is there a quote or a symbol that has special meaning to you? If so, get that.
     
  5. SEA81

    SEA81Active Member

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    I think in this day and age if you get one, it should be because you want to! Not because you're trying to be edgy, because they so aren't anymore.
     
  6. tommymac

    tommymacActive Member

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    Tattoos are so ubiquitous now that parents are taking their kids to get them. It won't be long before we have nursing homes full of 80 year old ladies with tramp stamps.
     
  7. Lena51

    Lena51Active Member

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    I don't think they are so edgy and not very stylish. I wouldn't want my skin messed up with all that dye or paint or whatever is used. I feel it is not healthy at all for your skin to be dyed and what about when you really want to get dressed up and don't need that to show. I'd rather not do that, I love to be natural me with no marks.
     
  8. nick87

    nick87Active Member

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    Tattoos are still fashionable when they're unique. Enough with the guys with tribal, girls with butterflies and stamp tramps, anyone with asian writing that they usually don't know what it actually means, etc. Stay away from the overdone stuff, and they can still be fashionable (as long as they're well done, too...my brother got cheap tattoos which look like complete crap. That made me realize if I ever get tattoos, don't be stingy, and research the artist.)
     
  9. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    A couple friends of mine just recently got married, and got their wedding bands tattooed onto their fingers. Is that edgy? maybe not, but it's definitely unique and meaningful.
     
  10. ACSAPA

    ACSAPAWell-Known Member

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    I think Gen X is the first generation where tattoos were super popular and mainstream, so all the people in their 30's now are going to be a bunch of elderly people with tattoos that remember gangsta rap and reality TV shows.
     
  11. Nakhash

    NakhashMember

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    Whenever I see someone covered in tats I start to envision what they'll look like in a few decades when they're living in a rest home. Saggy ink. EEK! I don't think it's a trend that's going to end anytime soon. However, if grannies are getting them now, I think we've stepped way past the edginess and shock value jumped the shark long, long ago.
     
  12. Belindafierce

    BelindafierceMember

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    I think that tattoos have an entirely different meaning now. Friends, parents and loved ones are starting to get them now and even in the workplace, bosses are beginning to accept people who wear tattoos! This is a good thing. The tattoo is no longer a sign of rebellion, but I do think it still can be very fashionable. Only get one if you really want it and not just to look cool. Tattoos should mean something to the wearer.
     
  13. FlanneryCam

    FlanneryCamActive Member

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    Does it matter if tattoos are edgy anymore? Because I think at least in North America, they are socially accepted. That usually takes the edgy aspect away. Unless you tattoo your face/scalp/100% of your body! :)

    But tattoos are always going to be part of fashion. That's one of the great things about tattoos: it's your own expression of your fashion. Granted, not everyone is getting a tattoo that they will love for the rest of their life/something that has real meaning.

    If you want an edgy tattoo: get something designed for you by an artist (or give a shot at designing your tattoo yourself). At least then, it will represent edgy to you.
     
  14. Esperahol

    EsperaholActive Member

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    I never thought they were edgy or fashionable - mostly because people got them to be edgy and fashionable. A tattoo gotten just because is basically trying too hard. On top of which it can be a lot of trouble, tends to be painful, and generally lasts longer then whatever impulse led to getting it. "Oh you love Michael forever? What you broke up? Ah, I'm sorry I said something."

    Besides which there is always a cultural difference that underruns tattoos - in Russia all those butterflies and stars girls in America get would have people looking at them funny. In Japan you tend to be a certain kind of crook if you do a lot of tatting. Heck in America if you work in the corporate world you're gonna look like a cutter because of all the bandages.
     
  15. MoniqueSeibel

    MoniqueSeibelActive Member

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    I personally view tattoos as a form of artistic express. I don't think it is about being fashionable and edgy for a lot of people. However, I still do not think tattoo acceptance is widely recognized feat in society, even today. I think people have become a little more open-minded, but it still seems really looked down upon to a lot of individuals.
     
  16. andrew320

    andrew320Active Member

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    No. For me, they never seemed fashionable or edgy, but just weird. When I see people with tattoos it looks awkward and dirty. I never understood why someone would get a tattoo. If they want a tattoo so badly, why not just get a washable or removal tattoo? The ones you just paste onto your shoulder and then it washes away after a couple of days.
     
  17. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    This is only true if you tattoo impulsively. Another friend of mine got tattooed the name of what would have been her first child, except that the pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. She got the tattoo after the miscarriage. I think that's meaningful enough to be permanent.
     
  18. Parker

    ParkerWell-Known Member

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    ^^This is the main reason why I haven't gotten a tattoo. Tattoos used to be edgy, but now every other person I see has a tattoo. They are fairly common in California. I thought about getting one, but it wouldn't be visible. It was a personal statement, just for me. The pain stopped me.

    Also, tattoo removal is big business in California. All those impulse or gang tattoos that are a reminder of a painful past and making a lot of people rich.
     
  19. steph84

    steph84Active Member

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    My sister just got one last week from a friend in a random garage and it looks like hell. I second the poster who said to research the artist. I don't know if she was drunk or high, but it was just horrible. I have seen better tattoos from prison tats than the one she got. It really irks me when someone doesn't spell anything right or when they get too stylish with the script. It just screams ghetto.
     
  20. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    I agree completely. You should only get something like that done by somebody you trust, or by somebody that a person you trust refers. My husband has a lot of unfinished tattoos started by a very close friend of his in Las Vegas. (I can't imagine why he has so many, but hey.) He won't finish them now, because we live in New York, and he doesn't know any tattoo artists personally here. He says he'll wait until he can take a trip back to Vegas to get them finished by the same person. I think that's a wise idea.