I’m 39 and 10 months and the concept of… whoooah! Shiit!

Got my first tattoo at 18 still getting tattoos at 40. I work in a highly suited and booted conservative industry and ensure that my clients do not see my inkwork when im in “professional” mode.it certainly hasn’t hampered my career or my professional standing and at the end of the day your son is an adult. Just make sure that if he wants to be inked its something that has meaning to him and its worked up by a decent tatto artist not a flash monkey. Most people that regret tattoos just picked something from a book or wall of flash, rather than spent time working with an artist to get something that will work with the body and will still look good in years to come.

It doesn’t matter what he gets, he’ll pretend he loves it 🙂

he is 18, an adult. has bugger all to do with you

I didn’t get mine until I was in my forties! I have seven, and I’m currently looking into two more, but these will be a bit more complicated, and I’m probably getting them done at Electric Vintage in Bath.
The lad in question is eighteen, he’s legally entitled to get married, learnt to drive a ton and a half of metal at high speed on public roads, join the armed forces and kill people.
Getting a tattoo is no big deal, and it’s a fact that even the Victorians regularly had tattoos, and I believe even members of Royalty did too. People are more open about it now, across a much wider section of society, plus tattooists are becoming more and more skilled at creating extraordinary works of art in a medium that, by its very nature, is not forgiving; any mistakes are there for all to see!

Tell him he can get an m-dot tattoo but only after completing an ironman first.

Rachel

True, dat! I’d have needed 5pt Arial Narrow for “Welcome to Jamaica and have a nice day”

It’s his choice. I would just offer him some sensible advice to make sure he gets something decent and by a decent place.

I’d let Lou on Tattoo fixers do anything she wanted to me 😉

be glad that he’s told you.
I didn’t tell my Mum and got one when I was 19.
she cried when she found out.

poah – Member
 he is 18, an adult. has bugger all to do with you
My, what an amazing tone of address you convey.

CountZero – Member
I didn’t get mine until I was in my forties! I have seven, and I’m currently looking into two more, but these will be a bit more complicated, and I’m probably getting them done at Electric Vintage in Bath.

Yah, I know someone who got his first tatt in his 50s.
He only needs to shave the pelt off his back and employ a mirror, to view it.
😉

As for the “you can just have it removed by laser”.
I viewed some flesh, a few months ago, at an interim stage of tatt removal.
Messy, very messy and imo, an entirely unnecessary thing to do to one of your vital organs.

Carry on!

Edit
hora – Member 
Hes an adult not the OPs property.

OP isn’t implying ownership, but was expressing how they FEEL for which the OP is receiving some unwarranted comments.
You’re a funny bunch, you’re all peace and tolerance one minute, then venomous the next.

Perhaps try to understand the OP instead of have a go?

When I was 18 I wanted a tattoo to make me beautiful so that I could attract birds to get “free ones”.

I thought hard and long about the design then finally I came up with a triangle with an eye in it (was influenced by a TV programme of a female Egyptian super hero), the tattoo would be called Isis … 😯

Luckily, I came into sense that something was not right i.e. tattoo =/= beautiful =/= birds pulling success.

Imagine if I had that tattoo called Isis now … I would look like a fool or would probably get hunter down by Apache gunship or A-10 Thunderbolt II.

😆

edit: tell him it’s not cool and it’s so yesterday.

Very similar route here, but it was Iron Maiden tats I wanted. I actually listened to my dad’s advice thankfully.

Just found out that the £50 I just gave my niece for her 18th to go towards driving lessons is now going to be spent going towards her first tats. Not at all impressed.

me and my little brother have large tattoos from a 1960s comic strip on the same place on our backs..

as my sister was approaching her 18th she expressed an interest in getting something similar so in secret, I approached the cartoonist’s family in California by email (pre social networking) and they happily agreed to create a bespoke design for her…

one week before her 18th she went down to the local place and got a barbed wire wrapped rose tattooed on the place on her back

Bluntly put but nonetheless true. 18yo, can do as he pleases. By all means offer advice but accept the fact it may not be taken.

Yeah but you’re brown. If you weren’t you’d be this guy:

Chewkw – it is Sterling Archer of the International Secret Intelligence Service

🙂

One news piece on the topic had a heavily tattooed family, the rule for the kids was one old enough they had to have the design at the end of their bed for 6 months as the first thing they saw every morning and the last thing at night.

Like any good carpenter will tell you measure twice cut once, you want to make sure you want it there for life.

The best artists can have a queue. Start researching places. One in Hudds has a year long queue!

IT’S FISTING TIME!

(random high figure)% of tattoo-owners consider theirs to be ‘cool’ 8)
(I like Stimpy btw)

Maybe he’s a secret watchmaker or a Timelord? I always thought those Teddy-Boy style dads at school were secret sailors, so many of them seemed to have ships anchors tattooed on their forearm.