1. The Chinese word for “water” or “hope” or whatever else cliche term.
2. Semicolons. It has a great meaning but damn everyone wants one.
3. From my tattoo artist friend: pocket watches surrounded by roses.
4. Fucking crowns omg do I fucking hate crowns… with that being said… I did one tonight.
5. Nautical sleeves. I’m from an island and fuck is it brutal trying to make it “unique” when every fifth person has one.
6. My artist said he was sick of Longitude Latitude coordinates of their home towns.
7. Infinity symbols (especially with words), anchors, birds, feathers that turn into birds.
8. Fucking snake coming out of the eye of a skull and why does the guy who wants this tattoo always have a perfectly groomed goatee.
9. Tattoo artist from Alabama here. I am not religious at all but I think I’ve ascribed the entire bible on human flesh at this point.
10. Not an artist, but the tattoo shop I go to back home in the Caribbean has a running tally of how many times they have to tattoo palm trees on girls’ ankles.
11. Feathers.
12. “It’s an anchor to symbolize I can’t be held down.”
13. Mine told me he is refusing to do anymore forests around someone’s arm.
14. I was with a friend who was getting a tattoo and the artist mentioned he was sick of tattooing “This Too Shall Pass.”
Made sure to pull down my sleeve after he said that. But fuck it, I got it as a reminder when it comes to my bad anxiety, so whatever.
15. Infinity knots. Infinity knots with hearts. Infinity knots with names too long to be in the infinity knots.
Please infinity not.
16. I’ve seen get the mustache on the inside of your pointer finger. I feel like that fad has to have gotten old with a few artists.
17. Those two fucking birds on the shoulders…
18. I see a lot of people with the Harry Potter Deathly Hallows symbol. Overdone yet?
19. I hate when couples get each other’s names tattooed on each other’s arm and crap because then like 2 weeks later the dude will come back for a cover up because they broke up, it drives me up the wall.
20. Live laugh love.
21. I’d imagine crosses. Damn near everyone with tattoos has a cross somewhere.
22. What about the compass? I see those as much as I see the clocks.
23. For Australian artists: Southern Cross tattoos.
24. Clocks.
25. Asked my buddy. He said, “If I have to do another goddamn Latin paragraph on a chick’s ribs, I’m gonna shoot my brains out!” Ironically, he was doing one on his GF at the time he told me…
26. Surprised no one has called out astrological signs. Dated quite a few chicks with those.
27. I have a couple chemistry tattoos and my artist made a comment about girls getting dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin with the word happiness. Seemed like he might have done a few too many.
28. A tattoo artist I had once told me “koi fish.”
29. I’m surprised no one’s mentioned the yin yang symbol yet!
30. Shadow birds and infinity symbols with children’s names within them. Never again.
31. Barb wire on guys’ arms.
32. My artist HATED watercolor tattoos!! They also fade like shit.
33. Anchors that say “refuse to sink.”
34. Super tired of doing logos. Why are people so obsessed with logos? I’ve always thought that was weird.
35. All tats are cool as hell to do, no getting tired of any designs. Want that lemniscate? I can do those FOREVER! Titty Chandelier? Let’s hang em! Watercolor bird explosion?? I got plenty in stock! Crossing out Chad’s name and getting Luke’s instead? 3rd times a charm!
Seriously, people are paying you actual money for art, if you’re getting tired of that you’re in the wrong damn business. Everything is fun if you try to care about it.
