Another tarty tattoo
I was in Macy’s last night and could not help but notice, as I made my purchase, that the salesgirl manning (or rather, womanning) the register had a tattoo of a type I’d not seen before.
I know, of course, that all parts of the human body have now become fair game for this sort of adornment. But this young woman was wearing a blouse designed to amply reveal that she had a small tattoo tucked away for safekeeping as a “now you see me now you don’t” teaser, smack dab in the chasm right between her breasts. It turns out THAT this is some sort of fad.
[ADDENDUM: Here’s a related post.]
What? No photo?
Ace would have a photo!
She sounds a beacon of taste and understatement, compared to a creature I saw yesterday in the subway (yes, I tried very hard not to STARE).
A woman was dressed in layers of various length and texture, but underneath all of them her tattoos were creeping out, like tentacles of some alien seaworld monster: onto her wrists, her fingers, her clavicles and her neck. They were showing up in a tiny sliver of skin between the tops of her socks and the hemline of her footless tights. Each of her cheeks was stitched with three vertical folds, Australian Aborigine-fashion. Earlobes were enlarged with huge wooden plugs.
She was a miniature size 4 or 6 and had a delicate face, suited for some Bronte heroine…
It could be worse, Neo. They could be rolling around in a vat of JELLO Or wearing Carmen Miranda- inspired jello sculptures on their heads.
I know a perfectly respectable M.S. in engineering going for his doctorate who has tattoos. Not my generation.
I am an old fogey who considers tattoos to be, shall we say, rather ghetto. Younger generations may consider that a compliment; I do not.
On a lighter note, here is the song Kids (What’s the Matter With Kids Today) from Bye Bye Birdie. That movie was a prime example of well-done popular art. I hadn’t seen the movie in 45 years, but still remembered that song. The movie looks just as good on a short second viewing 45 years later.
Yes, a flaky nutty pastry like me and I can’t stand the cleavage tattoo..
What does it say about the woman? It says she screaming “Look at me !!” Well… no thank you.
And if I was your man we’d be over.
The man you would attract is not a well-rounded sweet loving man like me with 50 skills and a good head on his shoulders who would treat you like a queen.
The man you would attract is…. he’ll speak for himself – if he can type.
I like chicks with tattoos. My wife has some very nice ones, so do I.
I think it’s a return to the norm. People have always enjoyed tattooing and modifying the body. There was just a weird 200yr hiatus of tattooing in the human history due to some class identification shifting and definitions ‘cuz of the industrial revolution.
It’s a less industrial world now, obviously.
The lack of tattoos was unnatural in human society. (religious traditions notwithstanding….)
there is status in the tatoo world as to where you get tattooed or pierced. around the nipple, sternum, neck, etc. some areas are real sensitive and or hard to do. americans usually tatoo without numbing spray so pain is a part of the whole thing.
i could explain so much more about these fringe areas, but then make everyone angry with the size of a post. (most are always angry with me anyway, so it matters little other than i really dont like bothering people)
Tatyana: Sounds more like a Melville hero—Queequeg, to be exact.
Gray, To each….
One man’s treasure is another man’s …
I personally do not think it natural. Drugs have been a part of humanity since who knows when…
At some point we evolve with new opinions.
My sweetie is unmarked and i love that.
There’s still a status thing to it. I’d like to get my arm “sleeved” with celtic tattoos. However, I work in the conservative world of defense engineering so I have no tattoos visible in work attire.
The thing is, as I get established enough and build a reputation of competence in my niche, I could get my arm sleeved with tattoos and get the status of: “That guys must be a great engineer to get away with visible tattooing like that here….”
I personally do not think it natural. Drugs have been a part of humanity since who knows when…
At some point we evolve with new opinions.
I never said it was ‘natural’. It is not natural. That is the point. I said we are returning to the ‘norm’ of a more tattooed world.
Humans here on Earth love modifying their bodies, inhaling smoke, screwing, and making their heads feel funny.
I’ve noticed that baby boomers come down on tattoos the hardest:
“Do yer own thing, mannnnn——what?! she’s got a little heart tattoo!? Dirty low class slut ignorant welfare mother! How are you going to afford my retirement tattooed like that!”
🙂
I’ve worked with some fine upstanding people with tattoos.
You will still find a lot of people like me (in generation x) who thinks that putting a tattoo on your cleavage DOES say something about you.
I like to feel good and make love. I like to do it naturally and positive feelings come from hard work and dedication to others not drugs.. 🙂
For 21 years I’ve built a reputation where I work also. Guess what? Opinions would change with SOME people if I started modifying my body or walking around with a woman next to me with a tattoo on her cleavage.
And rightly so.
Can’t imagine that it’s going to be a particularly widespread fad. Unlike the lower back, anything on the chest and ribs HURTS. A *lot*.
As for what it says about the bearer, this extensively tattooed woman thinks the most relevant bit of information is that you could *see* that she had a cleavage tattoo. None of mine show in normal street clothes, and if I had anything on my chest that wouldn’t show either, because I don’t really want people staring at my chest or anywhere else. The ink is for me and for my husband, not the public at large.
There are a lot of ways to say “look at me!”, but the underlying sentiment is consistent.
come from hard work and dedication to others not drugs.
How did the drugs get mixed in a tattoo thread?
Gen x raised itself while mommy and daddy were busy getting divorced, screwing around and “finding themselves”…. I think we went feral.
And rightly so.
‘Cuz people with tattoos are bad.
Yes, to each his / her own. Personally, I don’t want to see your damn tattoos. I would not hire you if they were visible. And I could give a damn about how competent you might be in your field and whether you feel more sexy or whatever for having them. There’s always another candidate who is just as competent, be it in love or in work, who has the better judgment, in my estimation, to not mark their up their bodies with typically poor and permanent so-called artwork. Yep, I agree that some have always enjoyed marking up their bodies. But it seems to me it’s been mostly those who lived in jungles and/or on the pre modern American great plains. I suppose centuries of Greek and Roman cultural history of valuing cleanliness and a lack of tart can be ignored easily though. You know what? I don’t live in a jungle and I don’t live on the pre 20th century American plains either. I am connected though to early Greek and Roman culture in lots of ways. Yeah I know, all that says something clearly about me just as your tattoos say something clearly about you. For my money Neo coined it accurately – the word is tarty.
That was quite a rant.
I am connected though to early Greek and Roman culture in lots of ways. Yeah I know, all that says something clearly about me just as your tattoos say something clearly about you.‘
It says you don’t know much history: Roman legionnaires and officers were tattooed. The latin word was “Punctilio”.
What thing does my tattoos “say clearly” about me?
I don’t want to see your damn tattoos. I would not hire you if they were visible. And I could give a damn about how competent you might….
Just the idea of me having tattoos caused a lot of cursing. Some people feel cursing is as bad as tattoos.
How could I trust the competence and judgement of someone who curses so much and takes The Lord’s name in vain?
You probably do drugs.
Speaking of bad judgement, the tarty and incompetent Winston Churchill had a tattoo of an anchor on his forearm.
Gray wrote, “‘Cuz people with tattoos are bad.”
I didn’t say that.
None of us are perfect. I don’t want you to ‘feel’ judged.
However, it should make people pause when I tell you how I ‘feel’ and other people relate to me.
It DOES say, “look at me”.
Again. None of us are perfect. But I’m not interested in a woman that does that 100% of the time. 😉
Drugs came in as a logical way of saying that you can’t justify something because of the LENGTH of time people have been doing it.
Logical?
It DOES say, “look at me”.
Maybe public tattoos do…. I guess we have to separate out ‘visible tattoos’ from tattoos covered by the usual office clothes.
Drugs came in as a logical way of saying that you can’t justify something because of the LENGTH of time people have been doing it.
I made my point badly. My point was that humans on this globe seem to have some funny similarities by the fact they are human: They love to inhale smoke, they love alcohol and they love to modify their bodies–on every continent, every people, every clime.
Some religions and societies proscribe these things for various reasons. I think it is funny that we are going back to a more tattooed world. I don’t think it is some kind of regression or ‘bad sign’. I think it is simply a return to a norm.
Someday all this anti-smoking nonsense will die with the baby-boomers and we will go back to a smokier world as a return to a norm as well.
As the Maha-Rushie likes to say: History didn’t start when you were born.
Kinda hard to say “look at me” with something you can’t see.
It doesn’t impact my feelings whether or not someone agrees with how I feel my tattoos look any more than I care whether a random guy likes my clothes. Their opinion just isn’t relevant to me, since they’re not the one that looks at me in the mirror or from the other side of the bed. I’m neither stupid enough or immature enough to think that generational difference of perception represents some sort of social persecution.
But, just as showing off a tattoo in your cleavage invites comment, so does outright stating that people are right to automatically declare tattoos evidence of low character and attention-seeking behavior regardless of whether the attention is ever actually sought.
I think LabRat deserves an award for the best comments here on this topic.
I find myself saying, “exactly”.
We all have our own style. And my style is what it is 🙂 and I actually am GLAD we have people who do what they do with tattoos. How boring would this world be without all of us being different???
I think LabRat deserves an award for the best comments here on this topic.
Agreed.
gray,
he was also said to have a bull dog on his butt.
Tattoos on women is sacriledge! I like how (most) women look with their clothes off. A tattoo is like an article of clothing that cannot be removed.
Tattoos on men? Meh, who cares?
I’ve never seen a woman with a tattoo that i thought was an improvement on her.
And its a funny thing with trends. The under 40 guy without the tattoo is now the rebel.
Quit fooling around and tart this posting up with:
http://www.uncoached.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/cleavage_tattoos_11.jpg
Hitler was clean cut and could meet many of today’s business standards for grooming whereas Einstein and Leonardo Da Vinci would have to shave and/or get a haircut. (well, they would some places, and certainly would in 50’s all-American culture.)
Earrings on men were mostly unseen of when i was in high school and college — but now seem sort of common by comparison.
The horror!
What do you mean “ANOTHER Tarty Tattoo?” You mean I missed one? Dang!
Quit fooling around and tart this posting up with
VDL to the rescue.
Tattoos on women is sacriledge!
I usta feel the same way. I think it’s an acquired taste like coffee or alcohol
It tastes like too much at first, but soon you will find you can hardly live without it.
Saw one of those cleavage tatts the other day while picking up some groceries.
Gotta say that’s the first time I’ve seen a butterfly THERE!
It was kind of icky, actually….and I know some ladies with some serious tatts that look pretty good.
Several funny thoughts regarding this subject though.
For instance, tatts are supposed to be about individuality – yet every college chick who gets drunk on spring break ends up with variations of the same tramp stamp to express their *individuality*.
Then there is the thought about what all of this ink is gonna look like in a few decades – not a pretty thought….
My husband had a tattoo that he had removed long before we met. He still refuses to tell me what it was, saying he doesn’t remember.
Well, I don’t believe him about not remembering what it was, yet I do believe him when he said he was drunk when he got it.
Tramp stamp.
Reminds me of old high school yearbook hair styles and the subsequent embarrassment they cause.
Oh, wait a minute…can’t exactly change a tat can you?
Imagine what it will look like, grey and flabby, 30 years from now.
How strange that some of us can be so sure of another’s character based on what is, really, an aesthetic judgment. What is it about humans, anyway?
I’m a cranky old boomer, but to me the tats are the business of the individual that chooses to get them. I wouldn’t do it to myself, but it has no impact on whether I would hire or fire someone. Today, I find that attitude kind of disturbing, actually. I wouldn’t have found it so disturbing ten years ago, though. Aesthetic judgment contaminating logical thought is what it is, I think.
I used to consider myself an “artist” when I was much younger and was a much less complete person in my understanding of how the world really works as a result. I had no doubt about what was good or bad in my personal realm of creativity, and was perfectly willing to impose that on my world, not really caring what the long term benefit or harm was for any of the many other individuals involved, though I gave it plenty of lip service. The desire to control the environment of my ‘show’ in the service of my own aesthetic was primary.
Now increase the scope. We have a word to describe artists whose scope is unlimited. Megalomaniac does it for me. Never forget that you-know-who was a “failed artist”. And to what end did the world suffer this aesthetic judgment? Examine your logic lest you judge.
Put a tat to draw attention to a part of your anatomy that most men will stare at anyhow? How many women resent that “no eye contact routine”?
mezzrow,
It’s completely acceptable to have what ever you want tattooed onto your body and nobody is going to give a hoot.
On the other hand, there are still certain professions where a level of professional image is important and is expected to be maintained.
In our office, for instance, there are several ladies with tatts – but they are in locations where you would have to know these ladies very well to find the tatt.
A young lady with a tatt between the boobies, on the other hand, would probably have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting hired simply because of the image thing.
My (female) boss would not be that openminded – and she has a tatt herself!
Then there is the whole judgement as well as human error thing to consider.
There is a young lady I know who had a triquetra tattooed on her lower back – but the tattooist screwed up and the 3 sides didn’t quite line up correctly – but she’s stuck with it now.
Then there was the guy I once saw years ago walking through a store who had tattoos all over – including a tatt of an eye in the center of his forehead!
So while people can get tatts any time they want to, they’d better be ready to live with the consequences of that decision.
That’s not judging them, so much as it is simply common sense and accepting reality.
Tattoos are attempts to express individuality – but they can also be real clues into the judgement of the person who has the tattoo…..and in certain places you just can’t hide the evidence.
People form opinions about you all the time because of you clothes, your manners, your accent, the car you drive, the stickers on your car, the house you live in, what you eat, how much you drink or smoke, how you cut your hair, whether you keep your shoes shined and hands cared for, your contributions to charity, the political poses you adopt or disparage, the plastic surgery you choose to have, who you sleep with and what you tell people about it, and where you vacation. These are all choices that announce, “Here I am! This is what I value!” Having a tattoo or body piercing falls into this category, and people will form opinions accordingly.
s/b “your clothes.” Your typing and spelling, too.
I could add, the books and periodicals you read and the words you use.
Heh….speaking of tatts, has anyone else ever wondered if these asian letters/symbols some like to have tattooed on really – REALLY – mean what they think they mean?
I wouldn’t know the chinese character for a$$hole from the chinese character for saint – so I would definitley be suspicious of anyone tattooing something on me when they don’t speak the language any better than I do.
I mean, has anyone ever had something tattooed on themselves using a language they didn’t understand, only to find out later it actually said something on the order of “I’m a dumb a$$!”????
I know tats are popular, but trust me — I’m not being a fuddy duddy when if comes to saying that, for women, tats are stupid:
1) If it says something…
1a – Do you really think it’s something you’ll want to say for 50 or 60 YEARS? Really? Are you stupid enough or foolish enough to believe that there is ANYTHING you unquestionably, inarguably, indisputably WILL be wanting to say in 50-60 years. I even say that as someone who really believes lifelong love is possible. I’m just wise enough to grasp it’s not something you can ever bet on.
1b – In further support I cite a Matt Groening “Life In Hell” cartoon from long ago when tats started becoming popular. Two Grampa Simpson types sitting on a porch in rocking chairs at an old folks home, wearing classic undershirts. One has a tat on his arm that says “Metallica Rules” and the other’s tat says “Alanis Forever”
2) If it says nothing — “it’s art” — two possibilities, with a followup comment.
2a – Your goal is to draw attention to an interesting feature… Um, is it going to be an interesting feature 50-60 years from now? Your hands, your breasts, are they going to be something you want to go, “Hey, Look At Me!!” in 50 years?
2b – As Art alone — OK, take it from a guy — there is NOTHING more pleasing to the male eye than soft, smooth, tanned female flesh. Any “artwork” is most emphatically NOT going to be more appealing. And if you’re missing some aspect of that — your flesh is soft, pale, flabby, whatever — see “2a” — you want to draw attention to this WHY?
2c – Your “art” — how is IT going to look in 50 years, when your skin sags substantially from where it is, now, and, more importantly, sags in a varying way — “So, why a ‘Z’?” “Well, 30 years ago it was an ‘N’…”
So, my case is there — tats are stupid for a woman. Not because I’m “too old to appreciate them”, not because “they’re not from my generation” — they’re just flat out stupid.
They’re too permanent, they draw attention eternally to things that one does not want attention drawn to forever, and, most importantly, aren’t an improvement over the bare canvas.
As a female, it’s your body, do as you will. But for women tats are stupid, and will always be.
Maybe we are focusing on the wrong word. The important and powerful word in neo’s post is “tart,” not “tattoo.” Tart is a “U” descriptor for an ancient and pervasive characteristic of human society. The real question is, “Who’s a tart?” Maybe the answer is, “Who isn’t?”
Though I know that isn’t true, either.
Your “art” – how is IT going to look in 50 years, when your skin sags substantially from where it is, now, and, more importantly, sags in a varying way – “So, why a ‘Z’?” “Well, 30 years ago it was an ‘N’…
If the tattoo looks that bad, imagine what the ass looks like.
With modern inks and techniques, in 30 years, the tattoo may very well be the most attractive part of the saggy ass!
Furthermore, if the only thing I am afflicted by in an old-folks home is sagging or fading ink, I will consider myself well and truly blessed on this earth!
I’m amused by people who claim tattoos are “permanent”. They are not; they only last as long as I do and humans are very, very impermanent in this unverse.
As I progress in my field, I am going to make it a point to hire the most qualified people with the nicest ink. I like people who are decisive and able to make a “permanent” decision.
In conclusion, ink on chicks is teh hawt, but it is an acquired taste. I’m sure some people think Guinness is icky too….
I think “Tramp Stamps” are cool. Especially on a slightly trashy but excellently proportioned hard body. Yes, Yes I imagine I am a dirty old man. Recently when I went for my VA evaluation I noted that my social counselor who is of the genre I mention above had this beautifully colored stamp in the small of her back which I would not have seen had she not bent over in front of me.
Hey! I’m single and not blind yet, what’s a guy to do?
I’m also not dead yet. I dooooooo get excited.
It was put there for a reason! I like them a whole lot more than pierced tongues and noses and other disfigured fleshy parts.
Ah well, when Janis Joplin got those tattoos, I wanted one. Then decided against the whole thing and used to rail against geezers getting them. Frankly, there are a lot of dreadful tattoos out there.
Mine is not one of them. So far, it runs down one hip and up to my shoulder (almost). The artist who did it truly is an artist during his off hours. And it’s not a cheap one. It’s based on a Japanese drawing of morning glories. It amazes me every time I look at it. If I’m going to have to see someone’s tattoo, I’d hope they’d spend the money and have some decent artwork done. Otherwise, stick with the temporary kind.
Having been around the military for much of my adult life, I got quite used to seeing a variety of tattoos–on enlisted men. Officers, unless they had prior enlisted service, rarely had them. When I was a lieutenant in Korea over 30 years ago, my fellow junior officers and I did a lot of strange things, generally involving alcohol in one way or another, but no matter how drunk we were, we were never tempted to stop in at one of the local (and technically off-limits, because of the hepatitis threat) tattoo parlors. It never even came up in discussion. Officers just “didn’t do that”, at least in the Army.
Now, that’s changed. In my last few years prior to retirement from the Reserves, I ran across a number of officers with tattoos, as well as a fair number of female military members, officer and enlisted, who were “inked”. As tastes change, these eventually get reflected in the military. And I never noticed any difference in competence between the tattooed and non-tattooed troops. So it’s not my thing, but if it makes you happy, go for it.
When I was a lieutenant in Korea over 30 years ago
I was a junior Lieutenant in Korea 17 years ago!
I didn’t have any tattoos as an officer. It ‘wasn’t done’ then either. I didn’t get any tattoos until I was out (the first time). Now I’ve got a bunch. I went back into the Guard under a different MOS as an enlisted guy. It’s very fun.
I know some Infantry Captains and Majors who are tattooed-up like fearsome warriors of old; and they are fearsome warriors.
“…I know some Infantry Captains and Majors who are tattooed-up like fearsome warriors of old; and they are fearsome warriors”.
I don’t doubt that for a moment. Most Army soldiers I see these days, Active, Reserve, and Guard, have combat patches, and quite a few have stars on their CIBs. We live in interesting times and have the best military the world has ever seen. If they want tattoos, for whatever reason, have at it.
I recall, many years ago, somebody wrote a piece on the bragging culture among Anglo-Saxon warriors.
I suspect some of it was assumed.
Anyway, the point of it was that, having bragged yourself into somebody badder than Beowulf around many a hall fire, when the shield wall wheeled into line (points for reference) and the bowels started asking for attention, the cumulative bragging was a way of holding the guy to his task.
He’d actually convinced himself he was not only brave, but really, really brave, and so competent at war that he need not fear, anyway, and, besides, his buddies were all watching (probably not, had their own sweat to worry about).
Seems to me, especially about the soldiers with their fearsome tatts, that a tatt is a kind of permanent brag which may function to modify one’s behavior, if not actual personality.
A butterfly on the butt? The owner of the butt is pretty free with it, one way or another, and having others expect it over and over …..
Seems to me, especially about the soldiers with their fearsome tatts, that a tatt is a kind of permanent brag which may function to modify one’s behavior, if not actual personality.
I don’t know…. That may be true for “aspirational tattoos”, but just the opposite for “commemorative tattoos”.
Note in my post I didn’t say their tattoos were “fearsome”. In many cases the tattoos are just the opposite; like my pal with “Free Hugs” tattooed like military spray lettering across his chest. They’ve already proven themselves….
It’s not a brag if you did it. Sometimes we do things so remarkable (even if just in our own eyes) that we mark it into our flesh. I have a couple of those tattoos. Love ’em. They make me feel good everytime I see ’em.
A butterfly on the butt? The owner of the butt is pretty free with it, one way or another, and having others expect it over and over …..
That is not true. All suppositions based cause and effect of women’s behavior are suspect.
“Women’s behavior”….lol…something I haven’t a clue about understanding.
Gray.
The point of the butterfly is that others may be led to expect a particular behavior, or a propensity on the end of the normal distribution, anyway.
What is the cumulative effect of being expected to….whatever? Over and over.
Last word ? 🙂
http://sistertoldjah.com/archives/2009/10/16/memo-to-meghan-mccain-if-you-dont-want-ppl-talking-about-your-breasts-dont-post-a-photo-of-them-online/
Worthless for the immense canvas, but I’m rattling crazy the new Zune, and comedian this, as advantageously as the fantabulous reviews few added fill make inscribed, gift aid you if it’s the honorable deciding for you.
keep posting dude. nice. Therefore do not make any tattoo on your body with any tattoo pictures, you must choose the tattoo that suits you and your body.