Tattoos and body piercings were once a stigma in the workplace, but new research showed that times are changing. According to FOX Business, more and more employers are accepting applicants with body art in order to avoid decreasing their candidate pool.

Tattoos are now so prevalent that companies are somewhat forced to deal with them as finding a candidate without a body stamp may be difficult. The Food and Drug Administration estimated that more than 45 million Americans have at least one tattoo. John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an outplacement consulting firm, said “…With everyone from soccer moms to MIT computer science graduates sporting tattoos, preconceptions about tattooed individuals are no longer valid. Secondly, and even more importantly, companies have a vested interest in hiring the most qualified candidate.”

Challenger also noted that “those making the hiring decisions are younger and not as adherent to traditions about workplace appearance”. Studies showed that tattooing is more prevalent among younger generations. MSNBC reported that a 2010 Pew Research Center study found that only 15 percent of Baby Boomers have tattoos, whereas 32 percent of 30-45 year olds and 38 percent of 18-29 year olds have body art. Furthermore, half of the tattooed 18-29 year olds said they have two to five tattoos. Central Valley Business Times added that 30 percent of tattooed 18-29 year olds have their art on full display and one in four have piercings other than the ear lobe.

Although body art is becoming more common in the workplace, Challenger stated that some industries will continue to be conservative. “We may never see visible tattoos on bankers, lawyers, accountants or the clergy. However, areas such as advertising, marketing, sales and technology are more inclined to be progressive and more accepting of new fashion and lifestyle trends,” he said. Sue Murphy of the National Human Resources Association told MSNBC that tattoo-friendliness also depends on the position. She explained that employees in client-facing roles are more likely to be asked to cover up. “A company [needs] to decide what is an acceptable or unacceptable image,” she said.

MSNBC speculated that tattoo-approval is likely to increase as more of the younger generation joins the workplace. However, when in doubt, Challenger recommended that interviewees play it safe and either cover up or ask someone at the company whether body art is permissible at the office.

Bill Johnson, vice president of the National Tattoo Association and owner of the Tattoo Time shop in Orlando, Florida, advised employers to rely on the quality of their service or product, rather than the appearance of their employees. “You’re always going to have a small group of people, no matter, who are going to hate tattooing…” he said. However, if the current trend continues, we may see that group of people get smaller and smaller within the workplace.

Thanks CityTownInfo

NEW YORK, N.Y.—One day your kid wants a new bike. The next day, a new cellphone. Before you know it, your little darling is as tall as you are, demanding pierced ears or even a tattoo.

Pierced ears, you say, what’s the big deal? In some cultures, girls get earrings as infants. But how do you feel about pierced ears for a boy? Or five holes in one ear for a girl?

As for tattoos, these statistics might surprise you: 22 per cent of women and 26 per cent of men said they had tattoos in a 2004 survey published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. The numbers are higher among young adults: Tattoos were reported by 36 per cent of 18- to 25-year-olds and 40 per cent of 26- to 40-year-olds in a Pew Research Center survey from 2006.

But among 41- to 65-year-olds — the demographic most likely to have teenage children — only 10 per cent reported having tattoos.

So how do parents of teens, most of whom probably don’t have body art or untraditional piercings themselves, cope with kids who want nothing more than to look like LeBron James? Tattoos and earrings didn’t hurt his job prospects, so can you really argue that nobody will hire your child because of a flower on the shoulder or a stud in one ear?

Shelley Davis Mielock, who works with colleges and corporations on dress codes as part of her image-consulting business in Lansing, Mich., says parents should point out that tattoos and unusual piercings are still frowned upon in some industries and segments of corporate America. Disney employees, for example, are not permitted to have visible tattoos.

“At 17, 19 or 20, you don’t know what your future holds,” said Mielock. “I am not against tattoos or self-expression, but other people are going to form perceptions of you based on these things. I recommend if you’re going to get a tattoo, get it where you can cover it up.”

Mielock has two tattoos but has not allowed her 17-year-old son to get one. “He argues that I am being a hypocrite, but this is a decision I made as an adult and I made it knowing the perception other people could have,” she said.

Parents should also research state laws. Some states prohibit minors from being tattooed altogether; others permit minors to get tattoos only if they have parental permission or if a parent is present.

You might also point out that tattoos are not as easily discarded as video games or out-of-style shoes. J. Kim Wright told her daughter, then 15 and living in Chapel Hill, N.C., that she could get a tattoo as soon as she wanted the same design for a whole year. “She wanted Betty Boop for a few months. Then Tweety. She is now 26 and has no tattoos,” said Wright.

Kathy Sussell, like many parents, made the argument that as long as her teenagers were dependent on her financially, they had to live by her rules. “It’s my house,” said Sussell, of Brooklyn, N.Y. “If they needed to get pierced or tattooed, they could find another place to live.” Her kids are now 20 and 23, “and I think they are happy today not to have tattoos.”

But aside from rational reasons — legalities, health, future careers — experts say it’s also OK for parents to simply set limits based on what matters to them.

“I am not a believer in giving in to all kids’ demands,” said Dr. Fran Walfish, a family psychotherapist in Beverly Hills, Calif. “You say that the rules and practices are different in every family, and until you’re 18 years old, it’s a bummer, but this is what our family believes.”

She added that “nobody likes to be told what to do, or forced or over-controlled, so you need to say it clearly, but with empathy for how hard it is to be told what to do.”

Maggie Macaulay, a parent educator and parent coach who leads an organization called Redirecting Children’s Behavior in South Florida, also recommends setting reasonable limits while “side-stepping the power struggles when it comes to issues like this with teenagers. Make it a discussion so it isn’t laying down the law.”

You might ask your child why he or she is so interested in earrings or a tattoo. If you think you might agree to, say, pierced ears when the child is older, Macaulay recommends saying, “I am not ready for you to do that now,” while promising to reconsider in six months or a year.

Some parents have a more relaxed view. Dianne Sikel of Phoenix, Ariz., allowed her seven-year-old son to get his ear pierced. “He’s now 10 and rarely wears (an earring), but I don’t think it was a big deal,” she said. “It’s a tiny little hole.”

She feels a little differently about tattoos. She got one when she was 18, and now, at age 41, is considering getting it removed. “I don’t think tattoos are that big of a deal, but I am happy that he doesn’t have a permanent tattoo at 10,” she said. “Instead, we stock up on temporary tattoos like crazy.”

Susan Tordella of Ayer, Mass., doesn’t approve of tattoos, but three of her four children — now all young adults — have them. “If they want a tattoo or piercing, they’re going to find a way to do it eventually,” said Tordella, who writes a blog about parenting at RaisingAble.com.

She still thinks parents who are opposed to tattoos should let their kids know how they feel; withhold permission if they’re underage and hope that if they do get one, it’s “in an obscure place.” But she added: “There are many worse things they can do to themselves besides piercings and tattoos — which are not fatal, self-destructive or addictive,” she said. “Don’t make it a big deal or power struggle. That will only make it more attractive.”

Thanks TheStar

If you like the look of a tattoo but the idea of “forever” scares you, you may want to think about getting a henna tattoo.

Though it’s an ancient practice, the temporary body art is starting to become quite trendy. Even Vanessa Hudgens was spotted sporting a beautiful henna design on her hands at the premiere of her beau Zac Efron’s movie, Charlie St. Cloud.

Our copyeditor Jill was recently in an Indian wedding, where it’s a tradition for the bride and bridesmaids to get mehndi, which is the application of henna, right before the big day. All of the bridesmaids got henna on their hands (those are Jill’s hands in the photo — it’s been almost a week since she had it applied), and the bride had it on her arms and legs (it depends on what the bride wants as to how much henna she and her bridesmaids get).

The artist uses a plastic cone with a hole cut into it and applies it to the body — think of how you decorate a cake. The longer you keep the henna on your hands, the darker and longer the stain will last. Eventually, the henna becomes hard and you can flake it off. It will last for about 7 to 10 days, depending on how long you keep it on. Also, the higher your body temperature, the darker the stain. You shouldn’t wash your hands for 5 to 6 hours after the application, though a full day is ideal.

The actual ink is made from the henna plant, which has been ground up and mixed with water, coming out in a dark, mud-like consistency. It’s got the look of a tat, but washes off in about a week.

I love the intricate details — it’s pure art.

Thanks CafeMom

Candela, a Wayland company specializing in aesthetic laser treatments, issued a press release today seeking to get the attention of anyone suffering from a bad case of “tattoo regret.”

Citing data from a variety of sources, Candela noted that 45 million Americans sport tattoos, but half of them later want those tattoos removed, perhaps because surveys show that many folks regard a tattoo as a romantic turn-off when it adorns the skin of someone whom they might otherwise fancy as desirable.

Removing the tattoos of someone who has been gloriously inked in cinnabar and indigo can present quite a challenge to the aesthetician. Remember Lydia the tattooed lady? The circus star immortalized in song by Groucho Marx? Imagine her – or Angelina Jolie, perhaps – showing up at the clinic and demanding that their pink-and-white hides be returned to a pristine state. In the old days, a battery of lasers might have been required to do the job, according to Candela. (Jolie is shown at right in an AP file photo.)

“Previously, removing multi-colored tattoos meant using multiple lasers,” Candela said in a press release.

But no more. The company claims its AlexTriVantage laser is up to the task of eradicating a rainbow of tattoo colors.

“The AlexTriVantage extends the capabilities of traditional Q-switched Alexandrite lasers by offering practitioners the freedom to treat all colors using three unique wavelengths, 755 nm, 1064 nm, and 532 nm, all in one system,” Candela said. “In addition, the AlexTriVantage state-of-the-art energy delivery emits a precise and uniform beam resulting in minimal bleeding, tissue splatter, or scarring.”

If you or someone in your family is thinking of getting a tattoo, it is important to know how to get a quality tattoo done safely.

Pennsylvania law requires a person to be 18 to get a tattoo without parental permission. For those younger than 18, with 13 being the youngest, a parent must be present. If a place is tattooing minors, they should be reported and not considered reputable.

So now that you know the law and you know you want a tattoo, how do you know where to go? Start looking at people with tattoos. Ask where they got it done and how the experience was. Would they recommend this parlor? Tattoo shops’ best advertisers are their customers, so spend some time looking around. Each artist has a unique style.

The next step is to visit the shop and, I should note, there should be a shop. By this, I mean a reputable tattoo artist will not be working out of their home or in a garage or basement somewhere. Ask them about their safety precautions and sterilization procedures. All reusable tattooing equipment should be sterilized in an autoclave.

Most places reuse electric guns and plastic tubing which should be sterilized regularly. Some even sterilize and reuse needles. An autoclave uses high pressure steam to sterilize and is what medical facilities use. There is no substitute for safety.

When the tattoo is being done, there are several safety practices to be on the lookout for. First of all, the artist should wear latex for the entire procedure. Some artists may change gloves several times.

Next, the needles for the tattoo should all be in sealed sterile packages and opened in front of you. The guns and tubes may or may not be in a sterile package depending on how often they are sterilized. Anything that cannot be in a sterile packet should be covered with plastic covering.

In addition, all ink for the tattoo should be poured into disposable tubs while yo watch. I repeat, it should all be done in front of you. Needles should then be disposed of in a sharps container, like you see in a hospital. All razors used to shave skin prior to the tattoo should be new, opened in front of you and then thrown into the sharps bin. If the shop uses deodorant stick to help to adhere the design to the skin, it should be applied using a tissue.

The bottom line is take your time, research and ask questions to get the best, safest tattoo possible.

Thanks CentreDaily

The modern twin-coil electromagnetic tattoo needle was patented in 1891 by one Samuel O’Riley (sometimes known as O’Reilly), an Irish-American tattooist working out of a barber’s shop on Chatham Square in New York.

It worked – and, for that matter, still works – essentially like a doorbell, with two coils of wire wrapped around an iron core, two points, and a bar across the top that plunges down when power is applied to the coils, breaking the circuit, then springs back up again to recommence the cycle.

Imagine a sewing machine, without the thread.

What this means now for Will Wright, a 30-year-old landscape gardener flat on his back on a reclining chair in a handsome brick building on High Wycombe high street, is that three fine steel needles are puncturing his skin roughly 150 times a second. That’s just for the initial scratch outline of the red kite Wright is having across his stomach. Later, it’ll be a pack of nine needles, to darken the line; later still, a spade-shaped array of as many as 15 needles, a magnum, shading the bird’s wings and underbelly.

Will doesn’t feel much like chatting.

“It does hurt,” he says. “I do it because it looks cool, full stop. No deep inner meanings or anything. But it does hurt. Some are worse than than others; it’s worst where there’s not much flesh, close to the bone. But basically, it all hurts. I really wish it didn’t, but it does.”

It can’t hurt that much, though, because Sean “Woody” Wood, Jammes and Jay, three of the four tattooists in Woody’s Tattoo Studio, have full diaries today (Woody and Jammes, in fact, are booked up until January). The fourth, Lee, who’s taking care of the walk-ins, has already had to turn two people away. In a bright, white, unthreatening interior, all gleaming surfaces, comfy armchairs and select samples of tasteful tattoo art lining the walls, those machines are buzzing, buzzing, buzzing. “So,” Woody tells Will, gravely. “You are about to suffer for my art. Are you ready, sir?”

Behind the counter, jovial Alison in reception is busy doling out good advice: “That Cheryl Cole thing on the side of the hand? Trust me, love, everyone’s got one. Everyone. Same for Rihanna’s star. And don’t even mention Jordan’s bow.”

Tattoos, suddenly, are everywhere. According to one survey this month, a fifth of all British adults have now been inked (as contemporary usage has it). Among 16- to 44-year-olds, both men and women, the figure rises to 29%. Only 9% of over 60s have one, according to a survey of 1,000 adults by the Ask Jeeves website, but 16% of people aged between 30 and 44 have two. The survey, while not entirely scientific, is in line with a 2008 US study showing that 36% of Americans aged 18-25, 40% of those aged 26-40 and 10% of those aged 41-64 have a tattoo. America, Woody reckons, is “probably about a decade ahead in terms of popularity”.
(more…)

While there’s talk of a possible reality show for ‘The Hills’ star Brody Jenner and his girlfriend singer Avril Lavigne, what’s hot is a tattoo the two seemed to have gotten yet again. For those who don’t know Brody Jenner, he’s the Kardashian sisters’ step-brother.

Sources say that Brody has been asking Avril Lavigne to come on board for reality television, but it seems that she really doesn’t want to do the reality thing. Guess she’s had enough people watching and talking about her life.

As for their blooming relationship, Avril Lavigne and Brody Jenner has been dating since February and guess they wanted to share their commitment to each other once more by getting tattoos of each other’s name. Arvil got “Brody” on the side of right breast and Brody got “Avril” inside his arm. Previously the two got tattoos with the word “F—” on their rib cages after a short month of dating which was followed by another tattoo, a lightning bolt. For this new tattoo, Avril wrote her name on Brody’s arm before he was inked up. Cute or tacky?

Do you think they are moving a little too fast with getting love tatts, since Avril Lavigne just got a divorce from her husband Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 last year. As for Avril getting tattoos of her lovers, this isn’t anything new, both her and her ex-husband had got tattoos also. So what does this mean for Brody Jenner? Hmmmm.

Thanks RX

By GERRY WARNER

gerry@dailytownsman.com

I bet you’ve had this experience too. You’re standing in the supermarket lineup or maybe the liquor store minding your business and a quite comely female standing in front of you catches your eye. No, it isn’t her looks or her cleavage.

It’s her tattoo.

My goodness, what is this world coming to? Everywhere you go now, people are sporting tattoos, especially women! Now, I’m not a dirty old man and a jagged peak covered with snow is much more likely to catch my eye than Lady Ga Ga, Or maybe a 55 Chevy, but it’s getting ridiculous out there now.

And I don’t mean sweet young things trying to make an impression with that purple dagger blade pointing right at you behind her ankle bracelet. No, I’m talking also about matronly women of a certain age sporting some blotchy, psychedelic, screamer of a tattoo that ‘s coming up from the nether regions behind the back of her dress and maybe over her shoulder and right down her arm.

Weird!

Or in some cases they can be quite subtle. Maybe on the neck, just behind the ear or nestled down the throat or the calf behind the leg. And when they wear bikinis? Well, we won’t even go there.

Not to say that you don’t still see hairy, male forearms covered with a kaleidoscope of ink and inscriptions to some lost love or maybe even dear old mom. But we’re used to that and it’s not nearly as unsettling, or even upsetting, as seeing as surreal smear of ink on some demure female creature and many times in places that we shouldn’t really be looking, but given how little some women wear these days – even in the office – well, you try to keep your eye from wondering, but even the strongest among us sometimes give in.

After seeing this phenomena time and time again, I decided to do a little research and . . . well, read on. Tattoos go back into the mists of antiquity, as far back as the Polynesians and the ancient Egyptians. “Ta” comes from the Polynesian word for striking something and ttoo from the Tahitian word “tateau,” which means to mark something.

Historians theorize that the first tattoos were probably created by accident when a stocky Neanderthal tripped over a club or a bone and scrapped his arm and then rubbed ashes or something similar on it to ease the pain and found that it left a mark on his skin.

Remember Otzi, the “Ice Man” from the Bronze Age 5,000 years ago, whose wonderfully preserved body was found in a glacier in the Austrian Alps about 10 years ago. Well guess what. His swarthy skin bore 57 tattoos, which anthropologists theorize were probably some kind of treatment for arthritis.

But it was the venerable Egyptians, more than anyone else, that were responsible for the plethora of tattoos assaulting our eyes everywhere we go today. Mummies more than 5,000 years old have been uncovered by archaeologists in ancient Thebes, which display groups of dots, and lines that were aligned in abstract geometric patterns believed to have been associated with long-forgotten ritualistic practices.

Kind of makes you wonder what kind of messages tattoo-bearing women are trying to send today.

Whatever the case, there has always been something mysterious, sinister and vaguely indecent about tattoos. The Victorians loathed them and they weren’t seen in polite company. Pirates sported them proudly, but they also had rings in their noses, ears and other places and were not exactly considered polite company.

Tattoos were a major part of North American aboriginal culture and were used to signify rank and status, especially for warriors. Young native women marked themselves with tattoos to indicate their marital status. In modern times, tattoos have been mostly associated with sailors, military men, criminals and circus carnies. But in the last decade or so, they seemed to have crossed into the mainstream for reasons that are hard to fathom.

Whatever the reason, one thing can be said for sure. Once you decide to indulge in body art there’s no easy way of turning back.

Thanks DailyTownsMan

David Beckham is obeying his wife’s orders not to tattoo his chest, he has revealed.

The former England captain, who has several inkings on his body, would like to have more but has to limit himself because of Victoria and his mum Sandra, he said in an online Yahoo interview.

“I have restricted them to my arms and back – my wife doesn’t like to touch my chest,” he said before clarifying: “I mean, she does but doesn’t want me to get tattoos there.”

He added: “Each one has a meaning. My favourites are probably my boys’ names on my back and my wife’s name on my arm. I do have room, maybe I’ll have more but my mum will kill me.”

David also admitted Victoria would not be happy if their sons followed in his tattooed footsteps.

“My youngest (five-year-old Cruz) had tattoos all over his arms when I came home from the World Cup, thankfully not real,” he said.

“Romeo said he’s going to have Mummy and Daddy on his arm. I’m not sure Victoria will like that too much!”

The former Manchester United player told how his children have different personalities.

“Every day the kids say something funny. Brooklyn doesn’t say much,” he admitted. “Cruz will talk the whole day. Romeo the same but Brooklyn says hardly anything. He’s starting to notice girls, typical teenager.”

Thanks google

Angelina Jolie has a new tattoo — and she doesn’t want to talk about it. But, that hasn’t stopped from sleuths from trying to decipher the words inked on her inner thigh — that are barely visible in a new Vanity Fair pictorial. The best answer anyone’s come up with? Her thigh says: “Whiskey Bravo.”

Say what? Well, here’s the logic, according to Jezebel: “Brad’s real name is William Bradley Pitt. According to the alphabet the military use: William Bradley = Whiskey Bravo.”

Hm. It’s hard to say if that’s right, but why not? All she’s said on the matter is: “Ohh, it’s for Brad. It is something for Brad,” she said (via Us magazine).

The tattoo joins other inscriptions on her body, like a Buddhist Pali incantation that says “if you acquire riches, may they remain yours always,” and on her hip is a Latin quote: “quod me nutrit me destruit,” which translates to “what nourishes me, destroys me.”

Thanks Zimbio