To tattoo or not to tattoo… this question has been bugging me since F O R E V E R. While I’ve heard in comments that a lot of fat folks use tattoos as a way to learn and enhance body-love… the reason why I haven’t gotten a tattoo is for the opposite reason. Most of the traditional tattoo places on my body don’t seem tattoo friendly to me. When I gain or lose weight (even though I do not diet or restrict, my weight still fluctuates – especially when I change my anti-depressants…) it is often in my back, legs and upper arms. I would like to avoid having some bizarre stretched out tattoo due to weight fluctuations… and it’s a shame, cuz I’ve always really wanted a tattoo. The places I have left for a tattoo (that don’t tend to change that much with weight) are very visible pretty much no matter what I wear. I would go for it, if I was a musician or an artist or something… but I’m not. I’m in flippin’ corporate finance. Fortune 100 companies tend to like me. Obvious tattoos are a no-no. Sigh…
So, folks – do you have any ideas about how to get around my tattoo obstacles? Do you have tattoos that you got for body-love reasons? What tattoo do you have? How does having that tattoo make you feel? 😀 Questions, questions.
–AngryGrayRainbows
Angry Gray Rainbows 
You can love your body with or without a tatoo. I am not into that but I would if there was something very special that I wanted on my body forever. G-d forbid if my daughter died I know I would do something special to memorialize her on my body. Othere than that, I haven’t run a marathon, joined a religion that I love, been in the Olympics or done anything that worthy of commemeration. I just don’t think I would want a tatoo reminding me I am a big bore.
If there is something you love and that is special to you, could you put it on your back, below where a shirt would fall? I saw a very large woman who had a giant butterly from the Very Hungy Caterpiller on her back under the neck, between the shoulders and it was stunning. That would be a good place. Upper back fat seems to be firmer than lower down. I am just presuming you don’t have topless day at the office.
The objection I have to the back is that you will need a mirror to see what you really love. Sometime the ankle works too. Can you talk to a good tatoo artist for suggestions?
Mine is on the front of my shoulder- location chosen because it seemed less likely to become deformed due to sag. I’m also in a profession that sort of frowns on tattoos, but even a cap sleeve covers it when I want it covered. Mine’s pretty small, but meaningful to me.
I love upper back tattoos on women. I think they look so lovely most of the time, and that does seem like a good place.
I’ve been thinking about getting one as well, downside, I’d never get to see it.
My tattoo is on the outside of my upper thigh. You can only see it with short shorts or a swim suit, but I don’t need a mirror to look at it. That skin doesn’t seem to change much on me with weight fluctuations.
It’s a viking long-ship, and I love it.
I have 10 tattoo’s total all of which can be covered by pants and a 3/4 sleeve shirt. Mine are on the inside forearm (both sides) next to my elbow. The back of my neck and from shoulder to shoulder. And then down the side of my calves both sides.
Mine were not “body love” – but were to signify something/someone special to me. I am currently 340lbs. I have been getting tattoo’s for the last eight years in which time my weight has has ranged from 245(ish) pounds to my current high of 340 lbs. I can’t say exactly what would happen to you for your body but I can tell you how the 100lb weight gain affected mine.
First off most of my tattoo’s happen to be large but not horribly complex designs. Mostly flowers (I can send you a link to the pictures if you like). Because of the fact that they are less complex I think they have held up well to the poundage fluctuations. I think if you talk to a good artist about what you want and where you want it – and about your concerns – they could easily help you come up with something.
Second, just realize that someday you’ll be an old lady in a home playing “guess what my tattoo use to be”. Everything eventually will sag/stretch/fade. On the upside, most tattoos are far more resilient than people give them credit form. I have had several friends who had belly tattoos that looked hideous during pregnancy but reverted to their pretty shape after.
Good luck 🙂
[IMG]http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s319/mamasink/IMG_2238cropped.jpg[/IMG]
To Ink, or not to Ink: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of disapproval,
Or to conform to societies belief to avoid troubles,
Or by opposing them, do you end them? To ink: to change;
and perhaps; by inking to say better express
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. To ink, to change;
To change: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that change of skin what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this normal skin,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,
The pangs of love lost, the law’s delay,
The insolence of family and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With bare body? who would want this,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something different from others,
With unchanged skin that with we bourn
We bare those ills, alone, unexpressed
Rather, make us bear those ills we have
Expressing, with our skin, what others may know not?
Don’t let society make cowards of us all;
But let the native hue of color added
To our sicklied pale cast of skin,
Be enterprises of great moment
With this regard our life we take the helm,
And in the name of knowing they self
Be all my trials and triumphs remembered in ink
I have tattoos on my calf and on the back of my neck. The calf tattoo was an alcohol-induced mistake, but I still won’t remove it. The one on the back of my neck, however, is a masterpiece and I LOVE it. I don’t think there’s much risk of this area becoming stretched out of shape or the tattoo fading due to sun exposure. I also can wear my hair down if I want to cover it up, or put my hair up if I want to show it off. I guess there’s an issue with needing a mirror to look at it, but this doesn’t concern me very much, I guess. I just like knowing it’s there.
I’ve been thinking about the Hungry Caterpillar butterfly, too! Except I’m wondering if the Caterpillar pre-chrysalis would be more apt . . .
Fear of weight fluctuations (or waiting to be thin) have kept me from getting a tattoo for years, but I’m done with that kind of thinking. Now I’m only waiting until I’ve saved up the cash.
A few of my coworkers have have discreet tattoos on their wrists (they look more or less like bracelets), but anything obvious is a no-no. I put on one of my coolest summer work outfits—short sleeves, skirt, relatively low neckline, light-colored fabric—to see where I might put something larger without worrying about how to cover it up at work. Maybe this would work for you?
I thinking of getting it placed on my right upper back, just inside my bra strap, since that area is naturally covered up where people will care. If it get stretched, I’ll just have it touched up.
I have a lot of tattoos, but I’m a tattoo artist so no career conflict there! I think the trick is to get things that are organic and do fine at either weight, then you can kind of go anywhere on your body with them. I have a circular piece on my lower back that changes as my weight fluctuates, it kind of amuses me.
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I don’t have any bodylove tattoos, but I will say that as far as I know the whole “your tattoo will stretch and look bad” is kind of a myth. I would do some research on that, if I were you, rather than just accepting it. I’d imagine extreme (in space or time) weight gain/loss could have some affect and sagging may occur if weight AND elasticity of skin is lost.
Otherwise, interesting post. I’d like to hear what people have to say.
I looked into a tattoo a couple of years ago and had the same concerns. I didn’t get mine yet (used the $ for an unexpected emergency) but I had decided on front of the thigh. You can go a little more outer or inner thigh depending on what looks right to you.
Unless you’re at the beach or pool with co-workers, or wearing Ally McBeal-length skirts to work (I’m guessing no), that’s pretty private, but you still see it and tend to it as it heals.
Your legs may be a lot different from mine, but most of the weight fluctation I have with my legs is inner thigh, hip/outer thigh, and calf.
I have a unicorn head (stallion with bared teeth) right above my left boob, on my chest. It shows, partially, when I wear tank tops or anything with a scoop neck. I’ve never had a job where it mattered if a tattoo showed, so I didn’t worry about it (I was 45 when I got it, and I’m 55 now, have gained a bit of weight, but it hasn’t shown up there). Shoulder blades are usually a good area, and the top of your upper arm, close to your shoulder is also good if you don’t wear sleeveless tops to work.
I have a tattoo on my upper back shoulder that I got in 2001. It will show if I’m wearing certain tank tops and that’s it. Personally, I love it. I didn’t get it to commemorate anything in particular, but the symbol has emotional meaning for me in terms of what I (at the time and to some extent now) hoped to grow toward. I didn’t find that it moved me so far toward more body love but I did loooooove the process of getting and the reality of having the tattoo – I find it so sexy, personally, that it makes me happy whenever I look at it, and it reminds me of a challenging but good point in my life.
i have a friend that got a tattoo *just* above her pubic hair; if you don’t have a belly apron that would aggravate the healing, it’s a very personal spot that doesn’t really stretch much (i don’t know your body morphology, it’s just the only thing that might prevent getting one there, even then there’s probably care that can get over that!) she got a little blue dove, about 2″ wide and 3″ tall off-center to the left(she’s a petite, slender lady, with slender hips, so that took up a lot of the room between hipbone and center-bush)
Tattoos certainly can enhance your body love. When I was first beginning my fat acceptance journey, I did henna tattoos on my ankles, wrists, and occasionally on the upper swell of my breast. I don’t have that much artistic talent–I used transfer paper and traced over the designs with henna, so I could do them myself and not spend a fortune on them. It’s a nice compromise to a permanent tattoo.
My tattoos are the only thing about my body that I consistently love. They’re both hidden by “regular” clothes, even swimsuits. They’re beautiful, they’re art. For the first time in a decade, I’m seriously considering another tattoo…
That said, I’ve lost and gained a lot of weight with my tattoos, and they’ve just stretched and shrunk with me. My tattoos get bigger when I do, and when my body changes, they react. They look just as beautiful as they always have, and I haven’t had any problems with shape-change.
i have 3 tattoos. i love them all.
two are on my underarms, from the wrist to 1/2 to my elbow. they are both in kanji. one says “hope”, and the other says “courage”. i have an ankh (egyptian symbol for life) in between my thumb and first finger of my right hand.
i LOVE my tattoos. i am planning on tattoing my ankle next.
my arm tattoos are not naturally noticeable… but i got them because when i hold my arms to myself, the tattoos are close to my heart. they are extremely meaningful to me — all 3 of them.
for me, a tattoo is a sign, or a statement, a symbol.
my weight is irrelevant to my tattoo decisions.
Aaaah, please get out of my head. I’ve been thinking about tattoos and not getting them for years and years, for pretty much the same reason. I’m also concerned about maintence, so I don’t end up with an ugly mess in 40 years time.
I always wanted to put mine on my right shoulder, so I could hide it at work with a little shrug, but otherwise it should be out there and proud!
The other place I always wanted one was my ankle.
I have a tat on the top of my right foot. It’s a realistic looking blue and black poison dart frog. I’m a dart frog hobbyist and frogs are my main spirit animal. And the tat has a lot more significance than that, but I won’t go into it here.
The top of the foot is a more painful place to get a tat and you need to find an artist that has some experience tattooing feet, but I can easily hide it in a shoe for my 9-5 and show it off with flip flops or sandals in my off time.
Whooo hoooooo! I love all the great responses!
I think the henna idea is great for a start… I wonder where I can get some henna and decals and stuff…
In thinking more about the tattoo thing, I realize I really want tattoos that I can see any time I want… at least to start. Maybe if I got something smaller and subtle on the inside of my wrist prospective bosses wouldn’t mind (I’m currently on a leave). I also like the ankle and top of foot. Now that I’ve thought on it more, the back of my shoulders would be nice too… but when I can decide some tattoo that I wouldn’t mind not being able to see all the time…
Anyone know where I can get henna and cool decals?
Right now the tattoo idea I like most are the tree of life, koi fish and buddha…
Go on over to my blog and search “tattoo”…! I’m getting tattooed again tonight, as a matter of fact, and I plan on posting a ‘tattootorial’ about it afterwards.
* : D
I’ve been tattooed probably 20 times by now. I have an office job too, and when I’m dressed, I do not look like the inked-up warrior woman I really am. *heh*
The ankle is a good choice….also upper thighs and upper arms…I really wouldn’t worry about a weight-change distorting a tattoo…
I have 2 tattoos and struggled with the same issue of placement and distortion. My first (and favorite) tat is in the middle of my upper back because of it’s size and image. Sad I can’t see it, but I feel great when I can show it off during the summer and it’s easy to cover up for the job. The 2nd is on the inside of my wrist, harder to cover-up but, honestly, most people don’t notice it unless I’m constantly around them. If I have to cover it up I usually use a chunky watch or bracelet. I plan on getting another one, but because of its size, am not sure where I want to put it.
My tats (all demon related) are more about self-love and -acceptance. They’ve helped me like myself for who I am.
@angrygrayrainbows: I got some really good quality henna powder and supplies from hennaking dot com. It was fresh and stained nice and dark. They sell stencils and pattern books too.
I mix my henna with a brew of black tea or strong coffee and cloves (boiled together and strained so you have just the liquid), and then add a few drops of eucalyptus oil. It smells great too! I’d stick with plain henna to start, though–I’ve read that the colored kinds contain chemical dyes that can burn your skin.
I have 5 tattoos. One small symbol of my husband and my own combined initials on my outer wrist; a butterfly above my left breast; a rose above my right breast; a pentagram in a wreath of roses on my lower back and a large upper back piece which is two roses crossed at the stems with a heart shaped locket sitting in the V of the crossed roses.
None of those area will be affected if my weight changes. I have other tattoos I want to get, one the backs of my calves and lower thighs and my outer upper arms.
To be honest, my weight never entered my mind when getting my tatts. The only time I ever thought about it was in relation to pregnancy, I didnt want a tummy tatt because pregnancy would be likely to stretch it. I am glad I realised that because I have some pretty bad stretching from my pregnancies.