Greetings From...The Tattoo Shop (2025)

Quick temperature check (especially for my fellow millennials)—how are we all feeling about our tattoos?

I recently got, yet another tattoo, after one of my friends convinced me to partake in a “buddy flash” session mid-fashion week. Why not. I had been toying with the idea of getting a dainty little ribbon bow (like every other bitch in New York City, apparently), on the back of my arm and it seemed like as good of a time as any.

It’s funny. There was a point in time when that quote “you wouldn’t put a bumper sticker on a Bentley” by Kim Kardashian (I know, I KNOW), was a pretty accurate summation of my thoughts on tattoos. The pain and cost of getting ink work were one thing. But the thought of permanently altering my body with some obscure symbol or motif—especially as someone who’s indecision can be crippling, at times—felt like an unnecessary thing to put myself through.

(According to my warped logic, piercings were fine, though, because by the age of 18 I had multiple cartilage earrings and a crystal belly button ring I *somewhat* successfully hid from my parents for months.)

Then, I went through a very tumultuous breakup at the age of 25…and again (from the same person) at 26—I hadn’t let them hurt me sufficiently enough the first time, I guess. Both times, immediately went to go get a tattoo. Now, at 31 I have a total of six, all of which have a special meaning and feel like they tell the story of my life.

Clean Slating It

However, I recognize that not everyone has the same reverence for their tattoos—including my best friend, who I convinced to get a flash design after work one day, mid-crash out (again, so sorry lol). According to Fortune Business Insights, the global tattoo removal market size was valued at USD 1.13 billion in 2024. It is anticipated to grow from USD 1.29 billion in 2025 to USD 3.57 billion by 2032. Insane to think about when everyone and there mother were just advocating for the return of the tramp stamp.

Pete Davidson, the SNL actor and comedian famously known for being completely covered in tats, spent $200,000 on tattoo removal over the last five years. And now, per a new campaign he did for Reformation he’s the internet’s *official boyfriend*.

It wasn’t necessarily his decision for a fresh start that caught my attention. In fact, I actually commend him on “ trying to clean slate it”. It was, more so, the way in which people talked (both on my timeline and in the media) about his decision to get them removed. “The new trend this year is to laser off your tattoos.” "He looks so much cleaner.” Similar to very drastic shift from Y2K logo-mania to the current penchant for “quiet luxury” or, worse, the “Old Money Aesthetic”, it sounded like a slippery slope towards conservatism that many people were overlooking.

Davidson called it “trying to be an adult”. While I respect anyone looking to reinvent themselves (I’m a scorpio after all) and understand that many of his tattoos came from a dark space, as many on social media have pointed out, there’s nothing intrinsically, immature about tattoos. So that framing seemed strange to say out loud, let alone on national television. To each its own, but I wasn’t loving the fact that the negative stigma around tattoos was slowly making a comeback—especially while we’re living at a time when our bodily rights are at risk under a fascist regime. And if you’re thinking to yourself ‘it’s not that deep’, you’re simply not paying attention.

Cultural Ties

Not to mention, for many people tattoos are more than just some trivial stamp of their youth; they’re an important part of their culture. Oriini Kaipara—a Māori broadcast journalist and translator in New Zealand—made history back in 2021 as the first personal with traditional face markings to host the news on national television. Kaipara decided to get her Moko Kauae or Māori facial/chin tattoo back in 2019 as a way to stay grounded in her power and identity.

“When I doubt myself, and I see my reflection in the mirror, I’m not just looking at myself,” Kaipara said in an interview with CNN. “I’m looking at my grandmother and my mother, and my daughters, and hers to come after me, as well as all the other women, Māori girls out there and it empowers me.”

But she’d come to receive a lot of backlash from viewers, who called it “aggressive”, “offensive”, and “a bad look”—despite the powerful meaning. This was just another reminder that not everyone is afforded the same privilege to wear tattoos without prejudice and the discourse around tattoos often has a real world impact, especially for Black people and people of color.

Tattoos As Red Carpet Accessories

Now, although, tattoos can have cultural significance, that doesn’t mean they can’t also just be fun or aesthetically pleasing. We’re at the tail end of award show season, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how much I love to see the girlies (and guys, too) showcase their tattoos on the red carpet. There’s just something about the juxtaposition of a seemingly elegant event requiring formalwear, like the Oscars, paired with a bunch of badass tattoos. Obsessed. Like, Dua Lipa’s archival, Fall 1992 Chanel Haute Couture bridal gown look (worn by Claudia Schiffer back in the day) at the 2023 Met Gala paired with her patchwork ink? Chefs kiss, truly.

For the 2025 red carpet season though, Miley Cyrus has been leading the charge in tattoos as accessories if you ask me. My millennial queen has been sporting an array of quite c*nty black gowns—with her detailed ink work serving as the perfect outfit accompaniment. Most recently, Cyrus took to the 2025 Oscar’s red carpet in a custom Alexander McQueen gown with Boucheron diamonds—still her tattoos were the star of the show.

The same was true for Ariana Grande; she wore a Schiaparelli gown (inspired by a Alberto Giacometti lamp in the house’s archive) with 190,000 crystal sequins, rhinestones, and cut beads. Not to mention, a healthy amount of diamonds courtesy of De Beers. Still, all I could look at was her strategically-placed ink.

Do we think mainstream tattooing will disappear or is the internet just yapping? Sound off in the comments!

With love,

SYH