10 Things You Should Never Say to A Girl With Tattoos

1. I don't like girls with tattoos.

Oh, well, you're in luck then – there are loads of girls without tattoos around! Take your pick! Or do you actually mean that you'd rather us girls with tatts didn't, you know, wander around offending your gaze? Well... tough. And for the record, plenty of very wonderful people do like us. So ner.

2. You're so pretty though...

Yes, I am divine, it's very true – but IMHO, I was even less so before I added this beautiful piece of artwork to my already goddesslike form. Otherwise I wouldn't have done it.

3. You'll regret that one day!

Yes, yes, you're right. I'm only a grown woman with a mind of my own. How silly of me not to realize that you know better than I do how I will feel about my carefully chosen tattoos in 10 years time. I know one thing for certain - right now, if I hadn't had my tattoos, I'd be regretting that.

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4. You look like fun...

Sorry, folks. I know we're impossibly sexy and it must be frustrating for you, but having painted skin doesn't have anything to do with being "easy". Sorrrrrry!

5. My cousin has the cutest little ring of hearts circling round a baby dolphin on her ankle...

Urgh! Just because we're female it doesn't mean we have to confine ourselves to overly girly designs.

6. Do you have any anywhere else?

I went to see my mom sing in our local church choir on Christmas day and a guy actually brushed past and asked me this on his way up for the sacrament. With a great big leer.

It's not OK to ask us what we look like under our clothes simply because we happen to have decorated part of the area outside our clothes.

7. Didn't it hurt?

Yes. Someone attacked me with a needle for half an hour. More at 11. And if you want me to tell you that I cried and fainted like a delicate flower while all around me big tough men brazened out their five-hour back-piece sessions with peals of laughter, I'm afraid I can't oblige.

In fact, sitting in tattoo studios over the years, I think I've seen more men moan about the pain than I have women.

8. What does it mean?

It's OK to ask this one if you know someone, but otherwise it's probably best to play it safe. Of course, lots of tattoos are just nice pictures and have no meaning. Some of them, on the other hand, have a lot of meaning attached to them.

It's not always fair to assume that the wearer is willing or able to explain it to you. Their tattoo might be a memorial to a loved one who's passed on, a reference to a 1987 episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation or any other number of things that it's a bit uncomfortable/inappropriate to talk about with a stranger who's just accosted you on the bus.

9. Don't you worry about them looking saggy and ugly when you're old?

No, because they'll just go with the "saggy" and "ugly" rest of me, as part of a complete package of kick-ass rock 'n' roll grandma... and I CAN'T WAIT.

10. You'll never get a job.

You met me five minutes ago. You don't even know my name. At what point did the subject of my career – or lack thereof - come up? Oh that's right, it didn't. You're just assuming, wrongly, that I'm unemployed because I have tattoos.

It's true that visible tattoos are still a problem for employers in many sectors but you'd be surprised at the number of workplaces which have relaxed policies when it comes to showing a bit of ink. Attitudes are changing rapidly as tattoos become more accepted. HA.

Related: 13 Things to Never Say to A Girl With Piercings