Question: How Many Tattoos Should I Have?
I would like to know how many tattoos should I have? Should I stop at one or become a full-body canvas? How do I decide?
Answer:
What a wonderfully important question. Before starting a body modification journey, it helps to have some direction for where you’d like your final art to lead.
That does not mean you have to have everything figured out. If you will, simply an idea and a blueprint of what you like, desire and see fitting into your future physical appearance.
Things to Consider
Altering one’s appearance has many effects. First, you can expect to be viewed differently if tattooed. While tattoos and body piercings are becoming much more socially acceptable, extreme modifications, such as Erik The Lizardman Sprague or Rico the Zombie, are still considered the most unusual.
Making this sort of permanent and physical body change profoundly affects how you are treated by society and even how you may later feel about yourself.
If your mind is not sound and at peace, this sort of transformation may be something you regret later. It’s always best to be happy, fulfilled, and self-accepting before making anybody change.
So, How Many Tattoos?
Image source: Blufashion
The average person could afford the cost of one tattoo per month, depending on size. That means you could easily have a dozen or so tattoos within a year, quite the tattoo collection. Even if that’s not what you desire, tattoos are addictive, so you want to be careful before embarking on a full-body art journey.
If you’re considering getting your first tattoo, it’s essential to ponder deeply about what you want and why. Getting your first tattoo is a significant step, and it’s more than just choosing a design. It’s about understanding your motives, the meaning behind the tattoo, and how it aligns with your identity or personal journey.
You might also wonder, What tattoos are good for overcoming fear? This is an important consideration, as many choose tattoos that symbolize personal growth, resilience, or triumph over challenges. These can be especially meaningful and constantly remind you of your strength and the obstacles you’ve overcome.
You may find yourself getting a tattoo just to get one rather than value its significance or purpose. That is not to say every tattoo has to have a long and winding story, but it does mean having too many could easily become a regret when they no longer represent who you are.
There is no clear answer as to how many tattoos you should get, but you should be certain to invest the time and energy in finding a design idea and a tattoo artist that you admire.
Artists often reject the hands, feet and face, so you’ll need to find one that works on these placements if you choose any of them.
Also, bear in mind the maintenance of your tattoos. Over time, they will fade and also change shape to expand and blur a bit. The more tattoos you have, the more you’ll need to touch up. Of course, that is not always necessary, but it does help to preserve the beauty of your body art.
Last, ensure you want a certain amount of tattoos. Perhaps your style will change later, and you may no longer feel like expressing things near and dear to you with body art.
These are the things that may cause regret down the road if you are not careful in the decision-making process.
I Have Too Many Tattoos, Now What?
What happens when you’ve jumped the gun and now have too many tattoos or a few you are no longer fond of? Laser tattoo removal is your best option for removing the work entirely, but bare in mind this procedure is not only painful, it’s also costly.
A better option may be to have an artist cover-up or change a design you no longer appreciate. If possible, seek out a good cover-up artist and see if you can transform those three or four small arm tattoos into a detailed and artistic sleeve.
Many times, less is more, so if you have to modify smaller pieces into one larger one to get the results you want, then by all means, do it.
In the end, how many tattoos do you have, and their style is purely a reflection of you? With proper consideration and time between each service, you better your chances of having body art you’ll be happy with and won’t have to hear your parents complain that you “have too many tattoos.”