Question:
what do u think abt Lower Back Tattoo Removal?
ALONG with a Roman haircut and a pog collection, the must-have
accessory of 1995 was a tattoo. While you could grow out the hair and
sell the pogs, Karma McDermott discovered the last fad was a pain in
the lower back.
"I thought it was cute and sexy," says McDermott, a 28-year-old
bartender at Lotus who had an angel inscribed near her derriere 10
years ago. "Now I hate it and can't stand it."
Not to mention the fact that the lower-back tattoo is "so cliché," she
adds. "I can't buy a pair of pants where you can't see it. I hate
having to search for clothing to hide it when I go home for
Thanksgiving."
So McDermott did what many Gen-Xers have been doing - she had the
tattoo removed.
Though a costly and painful procedure ($1,400 to take off a $100 tattoo
in McDermott's case), it's a necessary step for 20- and 30-somethings
who are getting promoted, getting pregnant or getting sick of their
near-permanent accessory.
In its last survey, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery said
tattoo-removing procedures increased by 27 percent from 2001 to 2003. A
new survey is due next month, and local cosmetologists say they won't
be surprised if the numbers go even higher.
Cosmetologist Carol O'Brien, the owner of Midtown laser hair and tattoo
removal shop Smooth, says that 65 percent of her clients come for
tattoo removal. That's up from 10 percent four years ago.
"I opened Smooth because I'm obsessed with hair removal. I never
imagined I'd be removing tattoos," O'Brien says.
Now, O'Brien is something of an expert, having removed more than 2,500
tattoos. Each one tells a story. "I'd like to write a book about it
all," she says.
O'Brien removes tattoos with a laser, which breaks up the ink on the
skin.
"It's sort of like how the sun fades pigments and paints," O'Brien
said. "Light from the sun breaks down molecules of ink. The laser does
the same thing, just thousands of times faster."
O'Brien treats her clients with a topical numbing cream and has cool
air blow on the area to make it less painful.
About half of O'Brien's tattooed clients want to remove the name of a
former love interest on their bodies. "For many people in difficult
circumstances, tattooing someone's name on your body is a sign of
permanence - and it costs $30 instead of a $30,000 diamond engagement
ring," O'Brien says.
But if the relationship doesn't work out, it's a permanent pain, says
Vanessa Cheatwood, who got matching tattoos with her fiancé eight
years ago as wedding gifts.
"It became an ugly reminder of a past mistake," says Cheatwood, a
35-year-old massage therapist. Getting rid of it - in 10 sessions, at
$200 a pop - "is kind of cathartic, like the closing of a chapter."
Besides those with proper names emblazoned on them, O'Brien's tattoo
clients are mainly women in their 30s.
"They are coming to a point in their lives when they are getting better
jobs and finding nice guys who want to introduce the women to their
parents. The girls don't want everyone to see how rebellious they used
to be - especially if there's a tattoo peaking out from their strapless
wedding dress," O'Brien says.
"These girls got tattoos to show that they were sexy, special and
distinct. Now they want to be conservative and create their own
families," she adds.
O'Brien also gets some men in their 20s and 30s who want to remove
Greek alphabet tattoos they got in their drunken frat-boy stage.
O'Brien charges $200 per session for about 10 sessions to remove a
tattoo the size of a tennis ball. Sometimes clients need more sessions,
sometimes fewer.
And, she stresses, results vary, depending on the age, size and color
of the tattoo.
Colors like black and purple are relatively easy to remove while green,
yellow, red and sky blue are more difficult.
O'Brien says she is also struck by how much stock people put in their
tattoos - getting them and then getting rid of them.
"People get so anxious about getting tattoos and taking them off. They
think their whole life will change once they get rid of one they no
longer want," O'Brien says.
Dr. Howard Sobel, an Upper East Side dermatologist, charges $500 to
$750 a session to remove a tattoo, depending on its size.
"They're a lot easier to get than to remove," Sobel says.
He adds that sometimes people are left with some residual
hypopigmentation - skin is lighter in the area where the tattoo once
resided, and sometimes you can even see the outline of the former
tattoo.
Many of his clients are women "who want to remove tattoos from very
remote and strategic places as they get a little older," Sobel says.
"They're branded now and they don't know why they did it."
Some women, he says, had tattoos above their backsides before the
low-rise jean trend began.
"Now they're embarrassed. They don't want to be seen as wild anymore.
Others no longer want a name that's not their husband, boyfriend or
fianc,," Sobel says.
"There's no such thing as true love anymore," he adds.
* * *
FOR GEN X, TAT'S ENOUGH
Gone: Mr. Romance, Johnny Depp, had "Winona Forever" tattooed on his
arm during his three-year relationship and subsequent engagement to
Winona Ryder. Soon after they parted ways, he had the "-na" removed to
read "Wino Forever."
Lose it!: Newly grown-up and glamorous Christina Aguilera doesn't need
to have "Xtina" tattooed on her neck. We know who you are, sweetie.
Lose it!: While Mike Tyson may think his tribal facial tattoo is a
testament to his masculinity, we say it's more "wannabe" than
"warrior."
Gone: In April, after ditching her longtime girlfriend Francesca
Gregorini for daytime comedienne Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi had
laser surgery to remove her ex-lover's name from her ring finger.
Gone: In 1994, after a mud-slinging public divorce battle, it was
reported that Tom Arnold had Roseanne Barr's mug removed from his
chest. Barr also had her tribute to Arnold removed - a tattoo on her
buttock that read, "Property of Tom Arnold."
Lose it!: The paw-print tattoos rapper Eve sports on her cleavage may
have seemed like a cute idea, but really, it clashes with your glam red
carpet looks.
Answer:
- if she can't cover up a tatoo that is just above her crack, then she'd
better start shopping in real stores.
- I hate having to search for clothing to hide it when I go home for
Thanksgiving
- I got my tattoo when I turned 30 and realized I never did anything
crazy. It's on my ankle and I love it.
- Does it ever cause you difficulty professionally? I've always thought that
men should only get tattooed above the short sleeve shirt line and below the
collar line. Women shouldn't get tattooed anywhere that will show in office
attire, so no wrists or ankles. But that's just me, maybe I'm old fashioned.
I have a couple of tattoos, and I remember the tattoo artist saying he
wouldn't do faces, necks, fingers, or hands.
