The most famous among temporary tattoos are those that can be transferred on to the skin. The Fruit Stripe chewing gum is very popular among kids for this very reason. They gave away free inserts of old fashioned temporary tattoos with their gum. But these of course were poor quality temporary tattoos that can easily be rubbed or washed off.

Temporary tattoos that transfer on to the skin of today last much longer than the lick and peel tattoos of a few years ago. Today the transfer tattoos are made from Ink and glue and they typically last for at least 3 or 5 days.

Henna (otherwise known as Mehndi) is another form of temporary tattoo that is quickly becoming very popular. These tattoos have their roots in the South Asian culture. These tattoos are made by applying the paste made from the powdered leaves of the Henna plant (Lawsonia Inermis) on to the skin. The paste is left on the skin for a few hours for it to stain the skin. The tattoo gradually fades as the skin sheds. These tattoos last a few days and sometimes up to a month provided the application and aftercare are done correctly. The only flip side to these tattoos are that they only come in shades of red, brown and near black.

Temporary airbrush tattoos are another form of temporary tattoos that have been around since 1998. These are done by placing a stencil on the body and applying the ink with an airbrush, and unlike the transfer tattoo these can be controlled by the artist. These are famous because they look and feel much like a permanent tattoo! These usually last a couple of days and sometimes even a week if they are taken care of well.

The most recent innovation in this area is that of the semi-permanent tattoo. Some offer temporary tattoos that can last up to a few years! These tattoos are applied just like a permanent tattoo (with a tattoo gun) the only difference is that these tattoos are inserted close to the surface of the skin and hence fade away over time. Some other artists claim to use special inks that disperse over time.

So many of us have tattoos today that it is almost impossible to find that fresh, unique idea that no one has ever thought of before, and what’s more if you do end up finding just the tattoo, you need to love it enough to have it on you permanently. The big question is where do you find this perfect tattoo? And there is no one answer to this question.

It is way better to get a tattoo of something you are passionate about than get a tattoo design that is popular. Trends change all the time and so do our ideas of what’s “cool”. It’s quite rare that a person’s love for something will change – quite often people grow fonder of their one true passion with time (like music or cats).

Simply looking up designs may cause a great deal of confusion. If you first decide in your mind what you want then you will find that there are plenty of resources to help you adapt your idea into a tattoo. You don’t have to be a great artist – If you have the idea any tattoo artist worth his / her salt will be able to flesh it out for you.

A good practice is to keep writing them down as you get these ideas. Make sure you have quite a few to choose from, before you refer back to them and pick your winner. Sometimes you find great tattoo ideas in the most unlikely places – keep an eye out for great ideas and make a note of them (I like to take pictures of all that I like, with the camera in my phone)

Tattoo Conventions are a great source for brilliant tattoo ideas. Artists display their work at these conventions. I’ve found that looking at tattoos on a live person often gives you a better idea of what it would be like than looking at them in a magazine or online. And where else can you find a large gathering of tattooed people than in tattoo conventions?!

Of course the other options are magazines, tattoo books and online galleries. Several of these online galleries (like ours) are free and so are all reference books in the library. All you need is patience and perseverance and I promise you – you’ll find that unique design!

Beckham is known for his sense of fashion and tattoos just as much as he is known for his skills on the football field. The majority of Beckham’s tattoos were done by Louis Malloy, a prominent tattoo artist of the UK. Beckham has several tattoos etched on his body, the most famous among them are: The one on his lower back that reads ‘Brooklyn’ – his oldest son’s name; the name Romeo (his second son) just below his neck and the name Cruz (his third son) below his shoulder blade. I’m pretty sure he has another one of those coming!

Between Beckham’s shoulder blades is the figure of an Angel with its wings outstretched. He calls it his guardian angel. On the back of his neck he has a winged cross (I can only speculate that this is a contemporary portrayal of ‘freedom of religious beliefs’!) Reportedly, his tattoo artist Louis Malloy was flown in from the UK while Beckham was in the middle of the UEFA for this piece.

On his left upper body (right on the ribs) are lines written in Mandarin which read “Death and life have determined appointments, Riches and honors depend upon heaven.” I can’t say I agree with it but yes, it is deep and thought provoking indeed!

On his right torso, below his ribs, is the picture of Jesus (supposedly on the way to the cross.) This tattoo is said to be inspired by the painting “The Man of Sorrows” by Matthew R. Brooks; a simple representation of profound values. On the outside Beckham may seem like a “hooligan” (according to some British fans when Beckham got a tattoo on his neck and shaved his head) but clearly there is more to him than what is popularly known!

Eric Marlon Bishop, better known as Jamie Foxx, is not only a talented actor but also a spirited stand-up comedian, singer, song writer and radio host. This multi faceted actor was born in Terrell, Texas during the heights of racial segregation. His birth parents abandoned him after a few months, and he was adopted and raised by his mother’s adopted parents – Mark and Estelle Talley. Foxx had the (then usual) strict Baptist upbringing and started training to play the Piano at a very early age.
Foxx’s first appearance in stand-up comedy was mere happenstance. He was dared to go on stage and crack a few jokes by a girlfriend, and he accepted the challenge. He later found out that the women (female comedians) were called to stage first and so he changed his name to an androgynous ‘Jamie’. He chose the name ‘Foxx’ as a tribute to comedian Redd Foxx.

Jamie Foxx got his big break with the movie Ray (a biographical film based on the life of musician Ray Charles.) He even won the Best Actor Award – Academy Award – for his performance in the movie. Foxx is also an accomplished musician (he won a Grammy Award) whose albums Unpredictable and Intuition were rated high on the Billboard 200 charts.

Foxx also has a love for tattoos, perhaps not the obsessive love for the art that we see among other celebrities. He has just two of them! (But one of them pretty much makes up for many, many others.)

Foxx has an elaborate and intricate Celtic design etched on his shoulders – spreading across his chest and arms (till the elbow lines). The look is that of veins (more like thick leafless grape vines) spreading across his torso. Does it mean anything? I guess not! And if it does, I’m guessing it means he loves plants – grape vines – wine! (Gee! he must really love wine!!)

The other tattoo is located on his head. At the back of his head, across the skull (about 4 inches wide) in an inverted arch is the next Celtic design. Like the back half of a wreath. I’m guessing this one doesn’t mean anything either. I guess not everyone really cares about what tattoos they get. If it looks good, it works!

Robyn Rihanna Fenty, better known as (the celebrated pop artist) Rihanna, was born in Saint Michael, Barbados. Most people simply assume she’s American because that is where she shot to stardom in 2005 with her debut album Music of the Sun. Rihanna moved to America (the US) at the age of 16 to pursue her career as a singer / song writer. She is best known for her hit numbers such as: There’s a Thug in My Life, Now I Know, Willing to Wait and Pon de Replay.

Music, as we all know, is her passion; her other obsession is tattoos. She has even confessed that she is addicted to the body art. When asked she said: “I like hanging out in tattoo shops. I am so intrigued by tattoos. It’s an entire culture, and I study it. Sometimes I go with friends, or just by myself. I get bum-rushed, but I don’t care. I don’t take security.” Rihanna loves the art so much that she keeps adding new ones every now and then. So you see it’ll be inaccurate if I said she has 13 tattoos.

Like most people who are into tattoos, Rihanna’s tattoos also hold special meaning and messages for her. Perhaps the first of them is the one on her ankle – two symbols of music notes; and obviously enough they represent her love for music that started at a very early age.

Behind her right ear she has the astrological symbol for the sun sign Pisces. That too is fairly clear – she was born on the 20th of February that makes it her astrological sign by birth.

She has a prayer (of sorts) inscribed on her hip, in Sanskrit (an Indo-Aryan language.) the first few words mean forgiveness, truth, suppression and calmness. Need we explain what she’s praying for?!

Rihanna’s other foreign language tattoo is the one on her ribcage. The phrase Freedom is God is inscribed in Arabic. Some of her other tattoos are: the expression “Shhh…” on her right index finger (no puzzle there!), the word love on her left middle finger and the date April 11th 1986 in Roman numerals on her shoulder (apparently her best friend / assistant’s birthday – I’ll die of shock if my boos did that for me! Now that she knows what it can do, she just might do it…)

Today in many instances the person getting a tribal tattoo wants the tattoo to illustrate something about them, almost like a tattoo of self identification. They are a way for a person to make a statement about themselves for other people to see and interpret. However, the tribal tattoo today is used not to group people into the same tribe but to express personality and individuality. (Hemingson, 1999-2009)
Oftentimes gangs, clubs, and military members will use a tattoo to identify themselves to others. This type of usage for a tattoo is similar to the use of tattoos five thousand years ago when the tribal tattoo art form is believed to have originated. (Syrkiewicz, 2008) Members of different gangs or military groups can identify each other by using a specific tattoo. They often form a bond around a particular symbol almost like a brotherhood. For gang members, the tattoo is used to define their members and lets them know who is friendly or not. All cultures have used tattoos as some form of identification and the trend is back in fashion today.

A tattoo magazine titled Tattoo Times, founded in 1982 by Don Ed Hardy and Leo Zulueta, started a new fascination with the tribal tattoo. (Tebi, 2004-2008) They called their first article “New Tribalism” and it featured tribal designs from the South Pacific, tattoos that had lost favor many years before. (Tebi, 2004-2008) Tattoo artistry itself had been going through problems with negative feelings from society at the time so an article illustrating these wonderful tribal designs helped alleviate some of the negative feelings people had about these tattoos. It actually had the effect of re-popularizing the ancient art form.
The tribal designs seen most commonly today are similar to designs used by the Polynesians for thousands of years. They often have a geometric silhouette pattern that may be considered too easy to do by many tattoo artists. Since these are not considered challenging, some artists do not like to do them. (Tebi, 2004-2008)

Celtic tribal patterns are also popular today. They were distributed by sailors hundreds of years ago as they traveled from Europe. Actually, sailors can be thanked for causing the original popularity of tattoo artistry in the modern western world. The word tattoo comes from the Tahitian word, ‘ta-taw’, which was thought to be the sound a person would hear when the tattooing instruments were used. When the sailors returned to Europe with tattoos that illustrated their adventures, people were fascinated and many wanted to have their own. (Tebi, 2004-2008)

The type and location of a tribal tattoo is a limitless as the unique personality of the person who wants it. Some examples are tribal armband, Celtic tattoo, tribal wolf tattoo, tribal shoulder tattoo, tribal scorpion, butterfly dragon, dog, bird, bull, tiger and many, many more. There are also tribal sleeve tattoos, lower back tribal tattoos, and tribal star tattoos. (Hemingson, 1999-2009) As with all artistic mediums and cultural developments, the art form of tribal tattoos is continually changing. But, the art form is always going to reflect the depth and potential of the person who wants the tattoo as well as the artist’s interpretation of the tribal design.

Works Cited
Hemingson, V. (1999-2009). Tribal tattoo design. Retrieved December 7, 2009, from The Vanishing Tattoo: http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tribal_tattoos.htm

Syrkiewicz, J. (2008, October 8). History and Social Impact of Tatoos. Retrieved December 7, 2009, from Suite101.com: http://cultural-anthropology.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_history_and_social_impact_of_tattoos

Tebi, D. B. (2004-2008). TatooJoy.com. Retrieved December 7, 2009, from History of Tribal Tattoos: http://tattoojoy.com/tattoo_articles/the_meaning_of_tribal_tattoos.htm