# Design my Mid-life Crisis Tattoo **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 5, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983 "2011-11-05T20:43:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/1 "2011-11-05T20:43:42Z")
In two months, I will turn 45 and I’ve decided that my 45th year will be one of change. One of those changes will be my first tattoo. (I say first because I’ve heard once you have one, you yearn for another.) I’ve decided to have my first on the top of my foot. Yes, I know it will hurt like crazy to have it done there; however, I have several reasons for wanting it there. First, I want it in a location where I can see it (why get a tattoo on your back???), and two, it needs to be able to easily be covered (for work, etc.). I also spend the majority of my free time (ie. not at work) barefoot, or wearing the slightest bit of shoe I can possibly wear, which means I’ll have tons of time to see it when not deliberately coving it. Even in the summer, when I wear lightweight sandals, I’ll be able to see it. Another reason for the top of my foot is that it is the one place on my body which is unlikely to sag, wrinkle severely or distort, regardless of how much weight I lose or gain as I get older. So, top of the foot it is. I’ve decided to go with somewhat of a swirl pattern, coming from my toes, but haven’t yet decided on which one to go with. Right now, I’m evaluating designs I come across, searching for one that will work for me. Care to help me with my search and recommend a design? Have one that’s your favorite, or “if I was going to get a tattoo on the top of my foot, this is the one I’d get” design? Care to design one for me that says, “I love this tattoo and it’s kick-ass amazing”? ---
**Author:** ![Euryphaessa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Euryphaessa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euryphaessa)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/2 "2011-11-05T21:57:27Z")
Can you provide any examples of things you like? Might make it easier to think of something. 🙂 I have two tattoos on the top of my right foot, and I didn’t find either of them hurt that much. Certainly not noticeably more than the tattoo on my chest. And you’re right, once you get one, you will want more! ---
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/3 "2011-11-06T00:39:44Z")
Here are some possibilities. [I like the middle top one here](http://www.tattoodonkey.com/pics/s/w/swirl-tattoo-designs-tribal-tattoos-zimbio-o-o-tattoodonkey.com.jpg). [There are several I like here](http://d30opm7hsgivgh.cloudfront.net/upload/10693832_LZMT6mI5_c.jpg). Mainly the ones on the bottom row. Does that help? I figure I’ve given birth to three kids (one of them completely natural–no drugs at all) and had two major surgeries, and being allergic to most narcotic pain relievers, I’ve had to find other ways to address pain. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/4 "2011-11-06T00:42:49Z")
Here is the [tattoo](http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p4/rhiannon8404/?action=view¤t=IMG_2525.jpg) I got for my 40th birthday. So that answers the question of what I would get if I were getting a tattoo on my foot for my mid-life crisis. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/5 "2011-11-06T01:04:56Z")
The one on the [upper left](http://www.best-tattoo-pictures.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/chinese-tattoos-symbols-261.jpg) is the one I keep meaning to get… ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/6 "2011-11-06T01:09:53Z")
You might find a nice henna design, or look into the Celtic motherhood cross. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/7 "2011-11-06T01:28:40Z")
> [@Rhiannon8404](#): > > Here is the [tattoo](http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p4/rhiannon8404/?action=view¤t=IMG_2525.jpg) I got for my 40th birthday. So that answers the question of what I would get if I were getting a tattoo on my foot for my mid-life crisis. Is it holding up? I have friends with tattoos in that same spot that have to have them redone. After 4 or 5 years you can’t even tell they had one since their shoe almost completely rubs it off. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/8 "2011-11-06T01:38:27Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Is it holding up? I have friends with tattoos in that same spot that have to have them redone. After 4 or 5 years you can’t even tell they had one since their shoe almost completely rubs it off. So far so good, but it’s only been 2 1/2 yrs. ---
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/9 "2011-11-06T02:09:14Z")
I am strangely attracted to [this one](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Manutattoo10.jpg)–not for my foot, of course, but I am completely enthralled by it. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/10 "2011-11-06T02:17:48Z")
In your first example, I like the one in the upper top right, with the “stem” coming from between your toes and main part flowing over the top of your foot. You’re smart to pick a place that won’t sag. I got a heart on my left breast seventy-eleben years ago, ala Janis Joplin. It now looks like a chili pepper. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/11 "2011-11-06T02:20:20Z")
> [@Avarie537](#): > > You might find a nice henna design, or look into the Celtic motherhood cross. What is the Celtic motherhood cross? Do you maybe have a picture? ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/12 "2011-11-06T02:22:26Z")
> [@phall0106](#): > > I am strangely attracted to [this one](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Manutattoo10.jpg)–not for my foot, of course, but I am completely enthralled by it. That is seriously nice. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/13 "2011-11-07T00:05:29Z")
FWIW - don’t get a tattoo. They are not cool and they look like suppurating skin rashes. Find some other way to handle your midlife crisis that doesn’t involve body disfigurement. ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/14 "2011-11-07T00:39:53Z")
> [@Becky2844](#): > > What is the Celtic motherhood cross? Do you maybe have a picture? [![](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/4f560a4f-2f24-41df-b53a-c087d10ed057/d301pf2-37c6035c-c0f9-4440-8d77-5af363d9dff4.jpg/v1/fill/w_900,h_656,q_75,strp/celtic_motherhood_knot_2_by_shadofoxx-d301pf2.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpc3MiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwic3ViIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl0sIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiIvZi80ZjU2MGE0Zi0yZjI0LTQxZGYtYjUzYS1jMDg3ZDEwZWQwNTcvZDMwMXBmMi0zN2M2MDM1Yy1jMGY5LTQ0NDAtOGQ3Ny01YWYzNjNkOWRmZjQuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTkwMCIsImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NjU2In1dXX0.bU7q6abDK9rpY5L61_hvSVo37fAirTQ5IKqWBm-sspE) ](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/4f560a4f-2f24-41df-b53a-c087d10ed057/d301pf2-37c6035c-c0f9-4440-8d77-5af363d9dff4.jpg/v1/fill/w_900,h_656,q_75,strp/celtic_motherhood_knot_2_by_shadofoxx-d301pf2.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJpc3MiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwic3ViIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl0sIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiIvZi80ZjU2MGE0Zi0yZjI0LTQxZGYtYjUzYS1jMDg3ZDEwZWQwNTcvZDMwMXBmMi0zN2M2MDM1Yy1jMGY5LTQ0NDAtOGQ3Ny01YWYzNjNkOWRmZjQuanBnIiwid2lkdGgiOiI8PTkwMCIsImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NjU2In1dXX0.bU7q6abDK9rpY5L61_hvSVo37fAirTQ5IKqWBm-sspE) D’oh! I meant Celtic Motherhood _Knot_. The colored circle typically represent the birthstone of each child. ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/15 "2011-11-07T00:43:40Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > FWIW - don’t get a tattoo. They are not cool and they look like suppurating skin rashes. > > Find some other way to handle your midlife crisis that doesn’t involve body disfigurement. Why even waste your time, and everyone else’s, by posting in this thread? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/16 "2011-11-07T00:52:13Z")
> [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > Why even waste your time, and everyone else’s, by posting in this thread? Tattoo threads can’t exist on the dope without someone shitting on them. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/17 "2011-11-07T11:24:59Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > FWIW - don’t get a tattoo. They are not cool and they look like suppurating skin rashes. > > Find some other way to handle your midlife crisis that doesn’t involve body disfigurement. She’s already decided to get one. Please don’t derail the thread with comments of this sort. ---
**Author:** ![FasterThanMeerkats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/278dde/32.png) [@FasterThanMeerkats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FasterThanMeerkats)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/18 "2011-11-07T14:40:02Z")
> [@phall0106](#): > > (why get a tattoo on your back???) Minor digression. Having it on your back may have more of a connotation of “carrying” or “bearing” whatever the tattoo represents with you at all times. Also, not all tattoos are meant to be seen or shared all the time. But to each their own. 🙂 I recommend getting something that speaks to you or reflects a part of you that you don’t care if everyone else knows. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Gesturing\_Mildly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/65b543/32.png) [@Gesturing\_Mildly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gesturing_Mildly)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2011, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/19 "2011-11-07T15:44:38Z")
I have a tattoo on my foot. The artist was reluctant to do it, as he said a lot of them fade really quickly. That was 13 years ago, and it still looks vibrant (though I am considering a touch-up to change some of the design elements). I was really good about my aftercare, and still try to keep it out of the sun as much as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2011, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983/20 "2011-11-08T04:59:36Z")
> [@Avarie537](#): > > [http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2010/276/f/9/celtic\_motherhood\_knot\_2\_by\_shadofoxx-d301pf2.jpg](http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2010/276/f/9/celtic_motherhood_knot_2_by_shadofoxx-d301pf2.jpg) > D’oh! I meant Celtic Motherhood _Knot_. The colored circle typically represent the birthstone of each child. I’m disappointed…it doesn’t look Celtic to me. Reminds me of the Atomic Museum in Oak Ridge, Tn. Oh well. But thanks for the pic. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/design-my-mid-life-crisis-tattoo/601983.md?page=2)