# Are tattoos a deal-breaker for you in a relationship? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 28, 2015, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777 "2015-09-28T00:17:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Aeschines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aeschines/32/16251_2.png) [@Aeschines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aeschines)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/61 "2015-09-29T04:04:21Z")
> [@Rushgeekgirl](#): > > I could only assume based on the “white trash masterpiece” comment. You get more contrast on white skin, and I feel freer in putting down people of my own race/culture than others. Some tattoos are cool; a lot are born of an ignorant aesthetic I would call “white trash.” Example: A semi tractor horribly drawn with “Granpa” and his dates of birth and death. Huge on a chick’s back. “Hideous” just doesn’t begin to cover it… ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/62 "2015-09-29T05:07:01Z")
My very strong preference is for no tattoos. I can tolerate one or two relatively unobtrusive ones, but they’re still a detriment - NEVER an enhancement. Any more than that is a deal-breaker; it’s just trashy. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/63 "2015-09-29T05:17:43Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > It’s never a positive when it comes to attractiveness but it isn’t a deal breaker. As for relationships I suppose someone who would be into lots of tattoos would probably have a lifestyle that doesn’t match mine and visa versa. This is how I feel about them too. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/64 "2015-09-29T06:38:20Z")
A few small, discreet tattoos are ok. Not giving a specific number, what works for some may not work for another. Any facial/neck tattoos would probably be a deal breaker, but again, I’m sure there are some people who can pull them off. ---
**Author:** ![Annoying\_Buzz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Annoying\_Buzz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annoying_Buzz)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/65 "2015-09-29T06:58:28Z")
I’m ok with tattoos in general, but the content could easily be a deal-breaker. There are tattoos out there that are artistically beautiful, that are incredibly sexy, and that are deeply meaningful. There are also a lot of tattoos out there that make the wearer look like an utter moron with revolting taste. If you feel that ‘Two Girls, One Cup’ is worth permanently commemorating on your skin, then good luck with your life, because it ain’t gonna be anywhere near me. If that scribbled mess is supposed to be “‘Jennifer’ in Japanese letters!” then no matter how sweet or sexy you might be, I just won’t be able to take you seriously. (I’m appalled at how many people write into the Hanzi Smatter blog asking “I just got this tattoo. What does it say?”) And then, the tattoo might look perfectly nice, but if you’re _that_ deeply into (say) the Pittsburgh Steelers, I might doubt the chances of a long-term relationship just because I don’t think we’ll have that much in common. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/66 "2015-09-29T09:39:33Z")
Well, it depends on the number, quality, and placement. I dislike neck and hand tats, which scream “bad life choices” to me. Face tats aren’t even in the running – I’d be unlikely to even meet someone who has one. To me, they scream GANG MEMBER! A bicep tat? Ok. Maybe one or two tats on a guy. If it’s terrible and _ **old** _, well, you can chalk it up to bad youth choices. If it’s terrible and _ **new** _, bad sign, as anyone I date should be too old to make bad choices like that. I also really hate facial piercings. Now, get off my lawn! > [@Annoying\_Buzz](#): > > (I’m appalled at how many people write into the Hanzi Smatter blog asking “I just got this tattoo. What does it say?”) Two of my close friends speak and read Japanese and are big fans of Hanzi Smatter. They think it’s hilarious. For long and boring reasons…I have a small, nearly-invisible tat of “love” in kanji worked into the single tattoo that I have on my lower back (which I got decades before “tramp stamp” came into the lexicon). But said kanji was put into design by one of the friends, who also designed the tat. I have the one. It was cute when I wore my two-piece at the local on-beach dive bar, and was unusual at the time (not least because it wasn’t flash). Don’t feel the need for another. Bonus points: Externally, I’m pretty “lacrosse mom”. So when a younger female pal saw my tat, she was gobsmacked. As in, “YOU HAVE A TRAMP STAMP?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? \*\*YOU \*\*have a tramp stamp? You have a **TRAMP STAMP**!!!” It was hilarious. I had to explain that in 1994, it was not a “tramp stamp”, it was just a lower back tattoo that looked cute when I wore a 2-piece bathing suit. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/67 "2015-09-29T13:49:54Z")
[HIJACK] Good to see you, **Licentious Ectomorph**! [/HIJACK] > [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > Bonus points: Externally, I’m pretty “lacrosse mom”. So when a younger female pal saw my tat, she was gobsmacked. Yeah, I don’t look like the tattoo type, either. It can be fun. 🙂 But I think people tend to be surprised whenever _anyone_ who isn’t obviously counter-culture has one. As much as some folks like to complain about how ubiquitous tattoos are nowadays, plenty of 'em are still surprised when they discover that a 40-something educated professional woman has one (or two). ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/68 "2015-09-29T14:01:35Z")
All things being equal, I’d generally prefer no tattoos over tattoos. However, they’re so prevalent nowadays that insisting on no tattoos would cut down the number of potential partners tremendously, and why would I want to do that? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/69 "2015-09-29T14:22:42Z")
You must admit (you as in the generic you) there is a big difference between someone who has one or two small tattoos and someone who is tatted up. But I get the latter, too. When I got my one tattoo, I was all worked up and nervous - and then I got it and it was like, wow, that’s it? I was afraid of that?! So you think how easy it is to get another. I probably would have gotten another if I hadn’t known that my SO doesn’t like them at all. We are two adults who love each other so much so we made a sort of tacit unspoken agreement that he would tolerate and even try to like the one tattoo I had planned to get all my life, and I would not get anymore. If I got more, would he dump me? I highly doubt it, as we’ve been together 20 years, especially if they are small and unobtrusive like the one I have. But if I got my whole back tattooed or something? Well, first he’d probably have me mentally checked, and then, we might have a problem. But I’m sure even tattoo haters can get used to one or two small ones. Mine is very culturally significant to me, and it’s in a place where I can see it every day, every minute if I choose (inside of my wrist). It’s also easily hidden by a watch band if I choose. And though I know he will never love it, he loves me, and so it’s not a dealbreaker. And yes, lots of 40 year old women have one somewhere on their bodies. I am also totally not a “tattoo type” and yet, here I am. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/70 "2015-09-29T15:20:39Z")
As long as he doesn’t look like [The Enigma](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Enigma_(performer)), I’m fine with it. A really nice tat on a muscular forearm is very sexy. I don’t like facial hair though. It’s scratchy. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/71 "2015-09-29T15:30:33Z")
Yes, deal-breaker. I am not sure why but I have an extreme tattoo aversion especially on women. I don’t care intellectually if someone has a tattoo but even small ones immediately squash any sexual or romantic attraction I have for that person. It isn’t something that I am going to try to overlook, explain or even understand that deeply because there are plenty of women that don’t have any tattoos. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/72 "2015-09-30T15:05:50Z")
I like tattoos, so as long as it is not a swastika across his forehead or anything super gang-related, I am pretty okay with it…and on some guys ROWR! ---
**Author:** ![Reluctant\_A](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@Reluctant\_A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reluctant_A)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777/73 "2015-09-30T17:22:07Z")
The only absolute deal-breaker I have is smoking; everything else is evaluated on a case-by-case basis. As a general rule, I guess I’d probably say that I _prefer_ women who do not have large or multiple tattoos, but I’ll overlook a lot, if her boobs are big enough. 😃 > [@OneCentStamp](#): > > Speaking as a guy, I wouldn’t consider no tattoos on a woman a turn-off, but probably an indicator that we wouldn’t have a lot in common. What do tattoos indicate to you that you _do_ have in common with a woman, aside from the fact that you both have tattoos? 😕 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-tattoos-a-deal-breaker-for-you-in-a-relationship/732777.md?page=3)