Who hasn’t believed something their parents told them when they were young till they were much older. Finding yourself, the source of everyone's amusement as your world is falling apart around you. In high school there was always some urban myth everyone believed. Mine included Marilyn Manson and I’ll say no more, but a really prevalent one from my childhood was actually about tattoos and how you could never get a job. I say this with a confidence that I wish my citizenship teacher could see, yes you can get a job with tattoos. This month I thought I’d look into all those things that you may have heard about tattoos that just turn out not to be true, for all the reasons discussed above. I feel that tattoos definitely get a bad reputation and I know I had some pre conceived notions that may have been influenced by friends or other peoples comments (mainly my fathers negative views) or just my own fear.
Before I jump into breaking your realities and changing everything you know about tattoos, let's go into why so many of these tattoo myths might have actually stemmed from truth. Tattooing is a tradition that has existed in cultures all around the world for over 5000 years so as you can imagine the technology behind the inks, the application and the aftercare has changed dramatically. Much like all technology such as the smartphone, cars or computing hardware even over the last 20 years has only increased the trajectory of tattooing (They put people to sleep for full body suits, check out my other blog post). The quality of inks and also the mainstream views of tattoos have changed a lot over time so some of these myths may have rang truer in the past.
Myth: Tattoos are unbearably painful. There's no lying or dancing around the fact that yes tattoos do in fact hurt, and the person's pain tolerance will very much be a subjective fact when deciding ‘how much’ it hurts. The area of the body can also influence that pain scale but many people do find it tolerable and often meditative. I’ve had many tattoos now and the main thing that gets me through it is that the pain is temporary, looking badass is eternal.
Myth: They always turn green/fade quickly. As discussed, the days of green old faded tattoos are gone. The knowledge about tattoo composition, design and also how it will age has now become much more mainstream. The inks used means that the bleeding of the ink between lines is a lot less prevalent with modern inks and knowledge.
Myth: You cannot donate blood. In the UK they require you to wait 4 months after getting a tattoo before donating blood as this helps prevent the spread of blood-borne infections. This may differ around the world and in different regions but the idea that you cannot ever donate blood simply isn’t true.
Myth: You can't get an MRI. You may have heard of the story of tattoo ink being pulled out of your skin by MRI machines, but the evidence shows that the worst you may get from it is a skin irritation, heating or swelling which is most prominent on large, dark or fresh tattoos. The issue arises due to the metallic elements in the ink that react with the magnetic nature of the machine. Given that it reacts with the metallic elements in the pigments, this is most common on black and red inks.
Myth: Vaseline is the best for aftercare. This one seems like it makes sense. Vaseline will surely moisturise my tattoo and keep it looking fresh, I thought that a while back and…errm no. Vaseline is a petroleum-based product meaning its oil based, which can clog pores and trap the bacteria in the skin, damaging the tattoo. Water-based and unscented lotions is the preferred product for tattoo aftercare.
Myth: Tattoos are unprofessional. Its 2026, of course this myth is the easiest one to debunk. Tattoos aren’t protected legally in the UK in regards to hiring and discrimination however most importantly societal views have changed so much that there are a few people in the streets who would be clutching their pearls at the sight of tattoos. Some religions and cultures still prohibit and frown upon tattoos but for mainstream society there are little issues that will impact getting a job.
This being said, you do have to exercise some kind of common sense. People are still human and can be judgemental in private, yes you may struggle getting a childcare role if you have explicit tattoos on your face and neck and might not strike off the relationship you want from the get go.
Myth: You can't get a tattoo while menstruating. As a male writer this was one that slipped under my radar but from my research it shows that it is safe to do although there may be some increased skin sensitivity, high levels of pain and more bleeding due to hormonal changes.
Myth: Colour fades faster than black. ‘Colours fade faster’, ‘Black ink turns green’, both of these fall into the same category of modern inks and quality of aftercare representing a bigger effect on the end result, rather than the simple choice of black ink or colour as a style choice. Modern coloured tattoos can show vibrancy and depth that is able to stand the test of time with good composition and design, coupled with aftercare.
Myth: They are permanent/can't be removed. ‘You’ve ruined your life, how will you ever get a job?!’, the mother said to her son after he got an inappropriate tattoo whilst on a lads holiday in Magaluf. Don’t worry, laser technology has improved and made major advancements that means removing unwanted tattoos has become a much more feasible and affordable option; if you did get your ex's name on your arm or an inappropriate tattoo on holiday. You can also be super cool and get a black out piece.
Myth: White ink glows in the dark. White ink does not inherently glow in the dark no matter what you are told. There are however specialized UV inks that do glow in the dark, I actually saw a full leg piece being done with UV inks at a convention and the effect was really cool.
After discussing with the guys in the shop for a good few hours these are just some of the myths that we knew of and some we came across online. We hope this may have helped solve any of those misconceptions you did have. I will leave you all with one last little personal myth that Kevin spent a good six months correcting. ‘They are called tattoo machines, not tattoo guns’.
editors note from Kevin “For the first few blogs that Adam wrote for us I lost count of the amount of times I had to replace the word ‘guns’ with ‘machines. I’m glad he finally knows the difference 😂’
1 comment
Hello to anyone else reading these