Tattoos are forever (more or less) but that doesn't stop some people from being committed to making really bad decisions—even when their tattoo artists try to talk them out of it.
The topic of tattoos so bad that even the artist tried to get the person making the request to think twice about it popped up in r/AskReddit recently. Specifically, u/wheregoodideasgotodi asked, "Tattoo artists, what tattoos did you [try] to talk a client out of, but they insisted that's what they wanted?"
Tattoo artists, their human canvases, their loved ones, and onlookers alike have all been chiming in with stories of past and future regret. And some of these may serve as a warning for anyone currently trying to decide on their own next tattoo.
1.
"A whale swallowing a dolphin swallowing a fish swallowing a shrimp." —u/Round-n-Rippled
2.
"I wanted to get a squashed bug under my foot. Artist wouldn't do it because it would fade away." —u/messonpurpose
3.
"A girl I went to high school with wanted her fiancés name on her neck in red ink. I double checked with her and she said “if it doesn’t work out, I’ll come back to you to get it covered up” I guess sometimes it’s job security." —u/JuryDutyToasterSmash
4.
"Not a tattooist, but I read an interview of an artist in a tattoo magazine years ago. The guy said he had many, many request for a facial tattoo. He said ok, but only if I can draw it on your face first, then you come back in a week, and we'll do it. He said less than 1% came back to actually get it." —u/dntdrmit
5.
"I went to get a tattoo and was denied. I wanted a smiley face on the tip of one pinky finger and a frowny face on the other. The artist said it would just smudge. I went back later and thanked her for not giving me a stupid tattoo." —u/ChrisWithWings
6.
"A freshly 18 yr old girl came in, with half of her soccer team in tow, and ask if I did lip tattoos. I was hesitant and asked what she was wanting to get. She wanted just 7 tally marks, said she was embarrassed about her body count and thought the tattoo would make her feel better. I told her no and found out later someone else did it for her. We live in a small town, she made a tiktok about it and was made fun of for the rest of the school year about it." —u/Inkqueen12
7.
"I had a girl that wanted a trampstamp of a postage stamp with Elvis' portrait, that said 'Lick it and Stick it'. I literally laughed at her and asked why she didn't just get one that said "Place Thumbs Here" with a thumbprint on each side. She laughed, I laughed. Two weeks later I was tattooing thumbprints above her ass. She eventually asked me if I would mind her having my idea done by someone else that would do it, so I broke down and told her if she had thought about it that long and still wanted it I would do it." —u/Tattoo_Yoo
8.
"A guy I went to school with shaved his head and had a tattoo of his face on the back of his head... They tried to talk [him] out of it." —u/SuperMarioChess
9.
"Not an artist, but was married to one. Whenever he is asked to tattoo a name that wasn't the client's child or deceased family member, he automatically asks when they want to schedule the cover up. Most of the time, they're back for it within a year or two." —u/that-1-chick-u-know
10.
"I dated a tattoo artist for a few years in college and hung out regularly at his family’s tattoo parlor… names ofc, (one pimp brought in THREE women to all get his name AT THE SAME TIME… and they did, even with me & my bf trying to talk them out of it), but the worst was a woman who got “cum here” just above her pubes, with a white droplet dripping off the “m”. I will never forget her." —u/Sunshine_Chick
11.
"Not me, but I asked the same question to a tattoo artist who I know, they said “Some guy came in with his girlfriend and wanted the word CUCK across his arse.” They said no, the guy and his girlfriend insisted, and the artist put their foot down and banned them from their tattoo studio." —u/SpiritedViolinist9
12.
""Rachel's Sissy Boy" tattooed large across his neck. Didn't feel comfortable with that, if it was small, somewhere easily hidden but shown when wanted, sure, but I felt icky doing it there. Then he asked me to humiliate him during the tattoo. So refused to speak to him anymore. Clearly just forcing kinks into people" —u/TAbathtime
13.
"Not a tattoo artist, but I knew a girl in high school who was warned not to get a tattoo on her pelvic area if she ever wanted to have kids. She ignored them, saying it would be fine as it was 'way down low' and that tattoos there are sexy, so she got out school mascot- a mustang. Low and behold, a year later, she got pregnant and that horse turned into a really warped giraffe. She cried about it the bigger she got and after the baby came when she lost the weight and it stayed fugly." —u/Icy-Sprinkles-3033
14.
"I was with my friend at a shop. He wanted a big mamma pig with little piglets sucking on the tits of the mom. Fire coming out of the momma pigs ass. Wanted it on his belly. The artist refused to do it" —uxb666
15.
"My tattoo artist had a girl come in (her first tattoo) with a quote written down and she wanted it written exactly like it was. He said there were 2 misspellings and punctuation error. He said he pointed that out and she said it’s what she wanted. A couple days later she comes back with her mom and they are furious that there’s spelling errors and a comma where it shouldn’t be. He said he explained to them that he pointed that out but she insisted that’s what she wanted. They threatened legal action but never did anything other than leave a bad review of the shop." —u/Natas-LaVey
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s newsletter here.
