I want to get a Tattoo very soon, but I’m not sure exactly what I want, probably a design no larger than my cellphone. The question that I’m really struggling with is where to place it.
I don’t want to see it all the time, and I work in a very professional environment so I really don’t want it on my arms (although that would look pretty sweet)
The one place that would be perfect for it would be on my back on one of my shoulder blades. This, however makes me wonder, the only people that I know who have ink there are female.
Is it acceptable for a straight guy to get a tattoo there? Because it seems to me a sort of feminine place to get a tattoo, right up there with the ankle or the small of your back.
So help me out dopers, shoulder tattoos, are they acceptable for most males, or should “real men” stick to arm ones?
I would say it depends on the tat. A snake wrapped around a skull and crawling out one of it’s eye sockets would be OK… a rose or a carebear? Not so much.
I have one just above my ankle and another one high up on my arm. Neither is visible in a typical work environment, even if I were wearing a short-sleeved shirt. So those are two good spots.
Alright, thanks a bunch guys, I think I’m going to go through with it as soon as I can afford it. I’m getting our Irish family crest with both of my brothers, if that changes any of your opinions. The biggest it would be is probably the size of a pack of cigarettes, maybe a little smaller.
Chiming in late here, but I vote for the chest. I love tattoos, but most of the guys I’ve ever known who have them on their arms have USMC or similar macho stuff, which isn’t so appealing.
My ex-bf, however, had a parrot inked on his chest – about 3", I think, and it was relatively tasteful because it didn’t show all the time.
And I think getting (or even having) a family crest is downright classy.
I got my Scottish family crest done on my right shoulder. It’s a good size: a little larger than the diameter of a coffee cop, but high up enough that you can’t see it even in short sleeves. I think it looks pretty good there, if I do say so myself.
I’d recommend high on the arm, near the shoulder. High enough that it doesn’t show in short sleeves, but easy to show someone if you want to simply by rolling up the sleeve. I have one tattoo there and one by my shoulder blade. The only disadvantage with having it on your back is that it’s very difficult for you to get a good look at it when you want to. If you feel like looking at one on your upper arm, it’s quite simple to do.
Chest works fine for some folks, but some of us are so hairy-chested that a tat would get lost in the forest.
FWIW, I have one just above my right ankle, and I’m a straight guy. I’m thinking about getting one on my left calf, too. Love the idea of a crest, by the way.
Slightly off-topic, but how detailed is the crest? How many colors? You might want to think about going a little bigger so you don’t run into blurring issues a few years down the road.