Gone are the days of tattoos being privy to the rippling biceps of military personnel. The faded-blue patriotic symbols that dominated tattooed skin in the 1940s are things of the past; enter today's intense hues, unique designs, and unquestionable works of art.
It's not just men sporting this permanent body art – the playing fields have been leveled and both sexes are hitting up their local tattoo parlors and getting inked.
The Surge of Ink: Tattoos Go Mainstream
Studies show that the number of women with tattoos quadrupled between 1960 and 1980. In the United States, roughly 36 percent of people between age 18 and 29 have at least one tattoo, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. The survey, which generated its results from a national probability sample of 253 women and 247 men between 18 to 50 years of age, also suggested that 22 percent of women, not far from the 26 percent of men, are tattooed.
And Sasha Snow, the manager of Utility Tattoo & Body Piercing Studio, says the division of male and female clients currently walking through her doors is about half and half. Women often come in for their first tattoo, and a substantially sized tattoo at that, and then come back for more.
"Girls usually go big or go home," she says, adding that women have a better pain tolerance and that their skin often takes the ink better than male skin.
Travis Driscoll, a tattoo artist at Sin on Skin, says he sees women on a daily basis. For the most part, women come in for feminine designs, such as butterflies, stars, flowers or writing of some sort, he says, and have cosmetic or aesthetic reasons for getting the tattoo.
Painted Ladies: Women with Body Art
Under-Cover Tattoos
Heather Fairclough, a Registered Massage Therapist, will surprise you when she tells you she's had nine tattoos inked into her skin. Found on joint areas that are easily covered up, Heather's tattoos aren't on constant display – although she doesn't purposefully keep them hidden.
"At the time, it was just something to do," she says of getting her tattoos. "And they say they're addictive – it is addictive. At the time, it marks your personality, so I find it a cool reminder."
Her first tattoo was at age 15 after her sister got one, and the following year she got a yin yang on her back with the zodiac signs of her loved ones surrounding it. Her next tattoo was a bit of a disaster - a crow with a circle around it - and she got it covered shortly after.
At 18, Heather added a frog to her collection as a sign of good luck, and after a trip across Canada and into Europe, she had the design of a "protector of travelers" pendant tattooed on her back.
"I like that one because my mom gave me the pendant," she says. "That way, I'll always have the symbol for protection with me."
Despite the few mishaps, including dissatisfaction with the yin yang on her lower back that she may eventually have altered, she says she's not going to regret her tattoos when she's older.
"You're going to be old and wrinkled and your skin is going to look ugly anyway, so why not have something on it," she says.
Extensive Tattoos
Alexis Klenck, a hair stylist at a chic hair salon, has tattoos on her arms, chest, feet and legs, ranging from a bold, black geometric design on one arm to a set of winged-scissors, a hairdryer and the word "vanity" on the other.
One piece, in particular, immediately catches your eye. Her chest is covered in a vibrantly colored tattoo of purple, pink, green and yellow stripes, along with stars, flowers, birds, a flaming heart and a banner that reads, "What I have in my heart I will take to my grave" - a tattoo that can be described as nothing less than beautiful.
The back of her arms read "Loneliness" and "Happiness," inspired by the balance between the two she felt she was trying to achieve at the time she got the tattoos, and her upper right arm, which features roses, a bird and a heart-shaped anchor, reads, "Learn and grow." The tops of her feet are adorned with straight edge tattoos and a little star encompassing an "A" (a friendship tattoo) sits in the crook of her ankle.
When Alexis was a teenager she started thinking about tattoos. Her older sister had a few and Alexis admired both her sister and her body art. Alexis also remembers flipping through tattoo magazines, becoming captivated by the images of women in the '50s covered in ink.
"I was really exposed to tattoo culture and I just wanted to jump right in," she says. "I just thought it was so gorgeous."
Addicted to Tattoos?
As to why Alexis keeps going under the needle, she says she can't quite put her finger on it, but it's definitely not because of how getting the tattoo feels.
"I don't know if there's any way to explain it," she says. "It has nothing to do with the physical process. I don't even like sitting there. They're just really gorgeous, and they become a big part of you."
"I'm never going to regret it. At the time, there was so much meaning. Now, I just think they're gorgeous."
Tattooed Alterations, Removal & Regrets
Heather is not alone in her tattoo alterations - according to the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology study, 5 percent of respondents had a tattoo covered, and 17percent had actually considered having a tattoo removed.
When anyone asks Alexis if she has any regrets, or what she'll think of her tattoos when she's 60, the answer is obvious: "That's the last thing I'm going to care about when I'm 60," she says. "I just want to be living life to the fullest."
