Letting my 16 yr old get a tattoo.. right? wrong?

Question

Do you think I'm crazy?! lol .. she is maintaining her 4.0 in H.S. (Jr.) and a year ago was skipping like crazy ..

She's working very hard .. has a part time job, doesn't drink, smoke or do drugs .. it will be small'ish and on her shoulder blade or top middle of her back..

I've thought a while on this .. but kids need motivation to work for things just as when they get out in life .. money will be their motivation ..

Just curious what others think?!

I expected others to judge me and my parenting .. as you don't know me, her or how strict, involved I am with my kids (3) .. she also owns a Bible and we go faithfully to church lol

There have been a few mature answers, I have appreciated ..

If you don't have teens now days, not as you once were, but now days you won't understand my thoughts and how things are today ..

Trust me she is paying for this, she has looked for monthssss for a design .. and NO TRAMP STAMP or stomach, no way .. I WILL be in there with her and will ask them to show me their sterilization process

Nevada takes minors with a butt load of proof .. so it's not illegal lol

She is bi-racial and competes nationally in skating .. so she's not a dummy and is a real go getter .. she has researched this out .. it will be very tasteful, trust me on that

She is a Jr. and her Senior year next year she will be entering college in Nursing 1 (she's been taking 1-2 college classes) .. so academically she's good

Just because I posted here doesn't mean I have doubts. I was asking other experienced parent(s) OR others who got a tattoo young.

The rest can just judge away, guess and say what they want, I just pass them by.

I am a mom of 3 teens, trust me I'm very sure of myself.

The silly comments like that, and the negativity, I just ignore .. but thanks anyways.

Answer 1

I'm glad she's doing so well in school and doesn't do drugs ect... but thats not a basics to decide if she's should be allowed to get a tattoo.

I'd tell her she can have one but she has to plan what she wants. Once she has her design get her to pin it up somewhere that she will see it everyday for at least 3months. The more you look at it the more it makes you think do i really want this on my body for the rest of my life. I've done this and it's stopped me from getting alot of things that i would have regret. The things you like one month you might not like the next. I kept a design once for a year and the more i saw it the more i loved it and i knew i'd made the right choice.

If she get something really good it will take her about 6months of searching to find a good meaningful design. Another couple of months to make sure she gets the right location and again a couple of months to research tattoo artist. By the time she's done all that she'll have her ideal tattoo and also will probably be almost 18.

Answer 2

Is it something she has wanted for awhile? Is it meaningful to her, or is it just some random piece of flash on the wall?

If it has a special meaning to her, or if it's something she has wanted for a few years I'd say go ahead and let her.. just try to figure out if it's something she will want on her body for her entire life. Don't want her to regret it. I had my first tattoo in mind for about a year before I got it, and I love it to this day - 3 years later.

She seems like a very good kid.. My mom would have been very happy with me if I had a 4.0 while I was in high school. But, she knows that I could be doing worse then getting piercings and tattoos (as i'm sure the same goes with your daughter) Getting a tattoo by a professional in a clean sterile shop is a lot safer then her doing some illegal drug or going out every night and get wasted.

Answer 3

do you really want to know? lol I'm not your daughter (and I'm definitely not female) so I'll go with generic reasons of possible answers (bear in mind she's only 13): 1) shape of eyes and the childish smile 2) judging from the clothes he wears, body language he's giving off and the background of his bedroom: -single (60% certain) -modest income earner (somewhere in the high £20Ks; a lot in the eyes of a 13 year old, yet it's someone she think she can attract) -rather juvenile; as someone she believes she can relate to -casual (in manners) -personailty-wise he doesn't seem to be the sort to take advantage but I wouldn't recommend him either -he can be passionate -he can seem gentle (i.e. not shy, but also not the bold and confident type) At this stage, it should only be a phase, provided she isn't conditioned to think he is her type. I personally don't recommend her seeing him until she's an older age (17-18-ish) when she's more confident with herself and opinions. Parenting-wise, I wouldn't go Montegue/Camelot and say she must never see him again. I would condition a severe warning that they may talk but meeting is not allowed. After all I wouldn't want her to become rebellious of you or to teach her to hate her father because he's the 'god of all evil' I would recommend getting advice with a parent counsellor about this sort of situation before taking on my parenting advice. Good luck though

Answer 4

Well, from my experience (and a lot of my friends got tattoos the minute they turned 18): She's probably going to regret it at some point in the not so distant future. But at least it's a life lesson...
Seriously: The odds of her regretting this are pretty high when she gets it at 16. Tastes are still shifting around, there's a lot of experimenting going on and a tattoo is one of the most permanent things you can get. Maybe you should have a look into bio tattoos - they're meant to last for 6-7 years tops, maybe that would be an option.

Answer 5

you have now heard all the ups and downs on the subject

i wanted a tattoo since i was 13, i waited until i was 30 and went through many different designs in that time, but never far from the original one i picked at 13. i am completely satisfied with what i have and do not regret them at all.

i find it amusing with the different answers here stating that if she gets a tattoo what next, hanging with the wrong crowd, wrong impressions and maybe drinking and smoking next. i don't smoke, and never will the tattoo's didn't change that, people still think i am a nice person and are happy to employ me, i am a hard worker. all three of my tattoo's are very visible. as for wrong impressions, if they can't see if they won't know, wrong crowd? again how is the tattoo going to instigate that.

so long story short, i think its OK, i don't think your crazy
BUT make sure she is happy with a design she picks, that it means something to her now and will later on in life. and make sure she understands that if she wants to get it removed that its more painful and more expensive than getting it was.

good luck and congrats to her and her wonderful achievement of a 4.0

Answer 6

I have 3 children, and their still young but I've already thought about this. I have said they can have piercings, in appropriate places, but no tattoo's till their old enough to sighn for it their self. I say this because I have tattoo's, and I regret most of them. My mom asked me to wait till I was 18 to get one, and I did, actually I waited till I was around 20, and I still regret them. I personally don't think a 16 year old is mature enough to know that they want something on their body for the rest of their life. Their are other incentatives for hard work, other than ones that could be regreted later, and that can't be changed. Tattoo's are forever!

Answer 7

My parents made me wait until I was 18 and could legally get it by myself. I walked into the tattoo parlor to get my tattoo the day after my birthday. I am so glad my parents did this, because I spent two years looking for a design that suited me that I wouldn't regret getting...this is very important. Young minds change often, I'll be the first to admit this! (I'm 20 now)

I think if you make your child wait until 18, she will respect you and herself so much more for it. Tattoos are not evil or wrong, but there are quite a few people who get tattoos when they are young and regret it later in life. If you make her wait until she is 18, by then both of you will know that she really wants to do this and it is not just a spur of the moment trend.

Answer 8

I have 31 tattoo's my daughter is only 10 now but has already asked if she can have them at 16 I told her NO, she can decide to get tattoo's when she is legal, and a lil more mature! They are there forever, or the scars are from having them removed! Make her wait then she can never blame you for a regretful tattoo in 10-15or 20 years!

Answer 9

I got my first tattoo at 14 years old, i now have 4 and this first one is the only one i regret, if you do let your daughter get a tattoo make sure that it isnt just a flash off the wall of the tattoo shop, maybe you could both help design something so that it is personal and not something that she might regret in years to come, tattoos should have meaning to the person wearing them.

Answer 10

I'm glad that she's working hard and has improved herself. A tattoo will be another thing for her to keep in mind for a long term goal for herself when she turns 18. Then, she will have a lot of time to either plan something very meaningful for herself, or she will have decided that it's not for her at that point. But if she decides to get it when she turns 18, she'll know that she truly earned the right to get the tattoo.