After checking out the vendors at the Baltimore Tattoo Convention, I decided to ask the experts about mainstream culture’s changing perspective on ink.

I have a number of tattoos myself (somewhere in the low double-digits) but I have always hesitated to get work done on certain areas of my body.  In addition to the physical worries like fading, sagging, and expanding, it’s hard not to dwell on the attitudes and assumptions that others have in regards to this fashion statement.  If I get a tattoo on my lower back, will people think I’m a tramp?

Tattoos–from sleeves to the notorious “tramp-stamp”–are becoming more and more prevalent, but I was reminded at the convention that certain stereotypes are still very widespread.  A stunned hotel employee told me that she overheard another attendee saying “You know girls with tattoos are very sexual.”  It seemed like a pretty big leap to take, but after talking to some artists and a group called the Gypsy Queens, I came to better understand that notion.

The Gypsy Queens are a group of tattooed models and role models who are on a mission to show the world that a lady with body art is, first and foremost, a lady.  Frankie Scorpion, founder of the GQ’s, will be the first to tell you that the promiscuous stereotype exists for a reason, but a few bad apples don’t spoil the whole bunch.  Groups like the Gypsy Queens, the first to include a no-nudity clause in their modeling work, exist to spread the love and tear down these notions in the general public while helping girls to expect respect.  Leading a group of business-oriented, savvy, and classy young women, Frankie represents a growing number of tattooed people who are asking the world to take tats a little more seriously.  Check out the Gypsy Queens at www.myspace.com/thegqs and their friends at www.inkedmag.com.

With the new tattoo boom, are people taking tattoos in privileged areas less seriously?  I viewed a beautiful portfolio at the booth for Intimate Body Art Studio in which I noticed a number of tattoos that covered the bikini zone.  I asked the artist if he found himself doing more of this work in recent years, and I was surprised to hear that this kind of business is dwindling as people become more confident tattooing their public parts.  The entire tattoo community seems to be moving away from its naughty reputation.

So how do you best accentuate your look with ink?  Aurora, a vendor with Steadfast Brand, had this to say, “I think beautiful people should get beautiful art.  It’s just another way to heighten your appearance.”  And tattoos certainly do that.  When I passed by some of the ladies from British Ink, a D.C. based shop www.britishinkdc.com, I was blown away by their appeal.  Dressed in stunning vintage fashion, the work on their legs and arms added a great deal of intrigue to their ensembles without lessening their sophistication whatsoever.  Talking to their associate Paul Roe, I couldn’t help but feel as if I was in the presence of royalty, and he summed up the fashion issue perfectly, “Tattoos are the ultimate accessory, a permanent garment.”  With that in mind, choose your tattoos wisely.  Is there a drawing, painting, or symbol that you would want to wear every day, and where?

Body art can add a great deal of intrigue or edge to your appearance, but their permanence is a deal breaker for many of us.  (While some of my body may be an ever-changing landscape, my bathing suit areas will never be part of the canvas.)  Websites like TattooFun.com help you to choose and even customize temporary tattoos to satisfy your occasional craving for ink.  Consider a flower or swallow in an area that you’d like to receive some extra attention, and enjoy the reaction you get!