What Kind of Statement Do Horrible Tattoos Make

One of the biggest fashion statements in this, the 21st Century, is the tattoo. Everywhere you look, you will see boys, girls, men and women with tattoos on every conceivable place of the body. Some people choose to have a couple of subtle ones, while others go for absolutely horrible tattoos.

This form of body art is more than 5,000 years old. In 1991 the 5,000 year-old body of the 'ice man' was found on a frozen mountain. This discovery made headlines all over the world and it is still one of the best preserved bodies ever found. On his skin, there were no less than 57 tattoos.

Today, the sleeve tattoo is the most common. This is a big tattoo, or a group of smaller ones, with a theme. It almost covers the whole arm, from the shoulder to the wrist. A similar tattoo on the legs is also called a sleeve. Because the main purpose of a tattoo, apart from the fashion aspect, is to make a statement about the person, the sleeve design will usually reflect something about his or her character.

There are also half-sleeves and quarter-sleeves. As its name suggests, a half-sleeve covers half the arm up to the elbow. A quarter-sleeve starts from the shoulder and ends half way down the upper arm. A sleeve tattoo is usually a collaboration between the client and a tattoo artist. It requires a lot of planning and can take weeks, or months, to complete.

Some designs are really great. In fact, many are artistic masterpieces. They comprise intricate details of flowers, animals, family crests or religious icons. Horrible tattoos are ones that are offensive to people. These often include racist graphics and comments, anti-religious messages, profanities, distasteful drawings of people, and repulsive images of skulls, death, or cannibalism.

Fortunately, offensive tattoos can be removed. This is often necessary if a person is going for a job interview. Or, if someone has a gang related tattoo and no longer belongs to that particular gang, he or she will obviously want to get rid of it. Likewise, people who bear tattoos that symbolize prejudice or hate may come to their senses and realize it is time for their awful markings to go.

Removing horrible tattoos is most commonly done by laser technology. An expert therapist will be able to reduce scarring to a minimum, and often completely. The removal of tattoos is not a pleasant experience. It is painful for the person and painful for their wallet. The process is very expensive.