A recent poll has found that more Americans have tattoos today than ever before. In fact, there’s been a 21% increase in people having at least one tattoo since 2012. And contrary to what skeptics believe, they are far from regretting it. In fact, 92%, which is a hopping majority, say they are totally happy with their ink art.
But when it comes to the older generation getting themselves a work of art embedded in the skin, skeptics get even more fierce. Luckily, the stigma is slowly going away thanks to some incredibly badass elders who rock their ink so well I watch them in awe.
So in order to celebrate seniors with fabulous tattoos, Bored Panda rounded up some of the most beautiful and creative examples in a list below. Scroll down, upvote your favorite pics and be sure to share your thoughts on tattooed elders in the comment section!#1
A Grandpa Got A Cochlea Implant Tattoo To Become Like His Grandson
This Is Tanya. She Is An ER Nurse. Last Year She Came To Me To Get Her First Tattoo Ever… On Her Head
She told me that she had developed alopecia, lost all her hair and that she was finally ready and happy to reclaim a bit of her identity back and own her Alopecia. Last week she came back for session 2 and we did this flower on the other side of her head
Grandma Gets A Tattoo
On her 90th birthday grandma Heather Brooks got her first tattoo. She chose a Cancer Research pink ribbon to signify her victory after a five year battle with cancer.
To find out more about tattoos for seniors and whether they’re more willing to go under the ink needle, Bored Panda spoke with Adam, the Studio Manager at Vagabond Tattoo. The studio was established in 2012 on East London’s popular Hackney Road and became known for their clean and original tattoos, spanning a range of styles. Vagabond Tattoo has made their name as one of the best contemporary tattoo studios in London.
When asked whether tattoos are getting more popular among older people, Adam said that he wouldn’t necessarily say so. Having said that, he explained the recent surge in people getting tattoos amid the pandemic: “I think we have seen an increase of older people who are already tattooed come in for more work then they usually would have. I think the fact that people haven’t been able to travel as much has meant they have a bit more spare income to spend on themselves. Possibly there’s more of a feeling of why put it off, let’s just get more tattoos whilst we can!”#4
Whang Od
How beautiful and bad ass does she look!
100% Agree With You Gramps! You’re Livin Life The Right Way. Tell Em How It Is. Wear That Shirt With Pride, And Be The Tattooed Gentleman You Are
I love this shirt.15
Coolest Gentleman Ever Wanted His First Tattoo On His Receding Hairline. Him And His Wife Were In Their 60’s But Couldn’t Have Been More Young At Heart
This is brilliant18
As for the particular tattoos he’d recommend for seniors, Adam believes there’s no rules. “Whatever tattoo they’d like to get!” However, some ink art designs may be harder on aged skin, so it’s good to keep that in mind. “I would say fine line tattoos are more difficult to tattoo on older skin, and they won’t look the same as a 20-year-old’s tattoos, but if it’s something they want to get, then we try and accommodate them.” Adam added that “if we don’t think it’s a good idea, we’ll tell them to do a similar design but in a bolder style,” so there’s always a solution that a good tattoo artist has at hand.#7
The Amazing Lilo Is Back. 92-Year-Old And Adding On To Her Sleeve
This woman survived a concentration camp. The holocaust. Cancer. The 70’s. And now she’s working on her sleeve. Amazing woman
One Of My Favorite Clients Of All Time, Ann. She’s 69 And She’s Amazing
Proof That Age Doesn’t Matter. My Grandmother Inked All My Tattoo Ideas. Amazing Woman
This Is Incredible
My Old Pappaw Has Waited So Long To Get This Tattoo
He was in the Navy Reserve as a young man and one night everyone was drinking and decided to get tattoos. He called home to ask my Granny if he could and she told him no. It’s a good thing she did because the next morning they all woke up with swollen, infected tattoos. Finally, 58 years later, he can cross this off his bucket list.
My grandad got a tattoo of my nans nickname a WEEK after he met her (they were 17!). She hated tattoos….and he spelt it wrong. But hey, 63 years later, they’re still married!9ReplyView More Replies…View more comments#12
Cool Tattooed Grandpa
Pia kjærgaard8 hours ago
He’s HOT to!!!20ReplyView More Replies…View more comments#13
She’s Amazing
Isn’t He Cute?
When People Ask What Are You Going To Look Like When Your Older With All The Tattoos? You’ll Look Cool
emiliogarciaphotography Report78pointsPOST
Dorothy Parker11 hours ago
He has some beautiful artworks.11ReplyView more comments#16
This Beautiful Maori Kween Is Terewai Kingi, She Had Her Traditional TaMoko Tapped 21 Years Ago
There is something so beautiful about the traditional chin tattoos
Met This Guy At Target Today, He Is 75
My 87 Year Old Step Grandmother Decided It Was Time To Get A Tattoo
Dorothy Parker10 hours ago
Her secret identity?
The Man With The Endless Vibe
I need him as a hippie grandpa please
My Friend Knows Me Well. “Assuming I’m Just An Old Lady, Is Your First Mistake”
I’m going to need that t shirt
So Yeah I’m A Grandpa
Cool from head to toe. Even the shirt tuck in front. His tattoos are just a part of it. And a grandbaby!
Still Collecting Ink After All This Time
April Stephens5 hours ago
Love it!
This Is How Our Generation Will Look Like In The Future. Cool
Dorothy Parker11 hours ago(edited)
He seems too young to be here. Looks great.
“I’m Sure My Tattoos Look Very Old Fashioned To My Children, Who Have A Different Approach”
womenwithtattoosproject Report54pointsPOST
I personally think it looks very elegant–I love the muted colour palette.
69-Year-Old Charlotte Guttenberg Has Officially Become The World’s Most Tattooed Person Ever With 98.75% Of Her Body Covered In Ink
How can she be the most tattooed person ever, when we have Lucky Diamond Rich, who has tattoos covering his entire body, including the insides of his eyelids, mouth, ears and foreskin? He has held the certified record since 2006, being 100 percent tattooed.
She Is One Of The Last Tattooed Tharu Tribe Women. They Used To Do Tattoos In Order To Be Avoided To Be Selected As Slaves By The Royal Nepalese Family
Catherine Binder1 hour ago
Wow. Just wow.
“Real Men Ain’t No Pussies”
That, I also considered, like collecting the cats I lived with. Four who lived between 12 and 20 years now, always started as a couple (the first were there before me), now I’m down to one, who needed to be adopted from incompetent humans (I had planned to look for old cats who aren’t that likely to get adopted, but she intervened and screwed my plan … love her, of course …)
Thom DeVita Showing Some Ink
Grandpa Has A Way With Babies
terresa7277 Report47pointsPOST
Mimi M7 hours ago
The good ‘ol football carry.
I Thought He Was The Best Daddy, Turns Out He’s The Best Papa Too
Blessed daughter and granddaughter. Beautiful tattoos, too.
Jane Is Totally Enchanting And The Biggest David Bowie Fan We’ve Ever Met
I finally got my Bowie tattoo last year (at almost 50)
Age Doesn’t Matter. My Clients Are The Best
Awesome tattoo.
Nothing Beats Grandpa Granddaughter Love
Granddad had a bad accident? Still handsome and cool but ow.
This Is Grandma Eva. I’m Looking Forward To Be Like Her
Pretty as can be.
Like Father, Like Son
There are some people with a lot of tattoos that don’t look out of place at all somehow. These two are some of those people 4Reply#36
Merv. 1980s
Secret life. Stunning.
Throwback To Tattooing My 88-Year-Old Nana. Such An Amazing Experience. So Much Love For This Beautiful & Tough Lady
Beautiful botanical artwork of ferns.
Proud Grandmother Has Drawings Of Her Granddaughter Tattooed On Her Body
Jack Paid Us A Visit Today
1992 Inkslingers Ball – Captain Don
giving me Chester vibes2
Note: this post originally had 113 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.
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Akvile is a list curator at Bored Panda. After finishing her Creative Industries studies, her career took off here at our office. She’s ingenious in finding the best pictures of funny and adorable animals, though she especially loves supplying readers with tattoo designs. If she were a president, she would make good coffee and sweets free of charge for the whole country. For now, she’s just a listmaker at Bored Panda…P.S. Tell your dog Akvile said hi! Read more »Show All Contributors
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