72 Tattoo Quotes That Will Leave Their Permanent Mark On You (2021)

Permanent ink is forever, and these compelling tattoo quotes will stay with you for a lifetime.

It feels like tattoos are everywhere these days. They have become a normal part of every day life. Although people with tattoos used to be looked down upon greatly in the past, tattooing has become an acceptable part of modern culture.

If you do not understand the fascination with body art, you might be wondering just what motivates people to get inked – and to endure the pain that comes with it.

People are drawn to tattoos for many different reasons. Most people get tattoos that have meaning behind them. It could be to honor someone or something, to celebrate their fandoms, or to remind them where they came from and what to live by.

For some people, tattoos are a piece of artwork. It’s a fashion statement. A way for them to express themselves and create their own identity. So, if you decide to get inked, for whatever reason, be proud of it.

Everyone is free to express themselves, and people with tattoos chose for their expression to be through body art. They chose to make their body a work of art, a canvas with endless possibilities to put on it.

Below is our collection of inspirational, meaningful, and powerful tattoo quotes, tattoo sayings, and tattoo proverbs, collected from a variety of sources over they years.

Tattoo Quotes That Will Leave Their Permanent Mark On You

1. “Our bodies were printed as blank pages to be filled with the ink of our hearts.” – Michael Biondi

2. “My body is my journal, and my tattoos are my story.” ― Johnny Depp

3. “Tattoos, for me, are like a timeline of my life. I could look at a certain tattoo, and it reminds of me of a certain time in my life and why I got that tattoo.” – Tyga

4. “Tattoos are a permanent commitment of passion.” ― Tawny Lara

5. “If you like how people look when they’re all covered in tattoos, then you should be covered in tattoos.” – Lil Peep

6. “Tattoos … are the stories in your heart, written on your skin.” – Charles De Lint

7. “I am a canvas of my experiences, my story is etched in lines and shading, and you can read it on my arms, my legs, my shoulders, and my stomach.” ― Kat Von D

8. “I want my tattoos to be a story of my life.” – Anne-Marie

9. “Usually all my tattoos came at good times. A tattoo is something permanent when you’ve made a self-discovery, or something you’ve come to a conclusion about.” – Angelina Jolie

10. “Show me a man with a tattoo and I’ll show you a man with an interesting past.” ― Jack London

Tattoo quotes for those who want their bodies to be a canvas

11. “Tattoos are like stories – they’re symbolic of the important moments in your life. Sitting down, talking about where you got each tattoo and what it symbolizes, is really beautiful.” – Pamela Anderson

12. “I’m from a nice, suburban, middle-class family, but my tattoos remind me where I’ve been.” – Tom Hardy

13. “I want a tattoo over my heart that reads TRY HARDER YOU LAZY PARAMEDIC SHITBAG OR I WILL HAUNT YOUR BEDROOM FOREVER” ― Warren Ellis

14. “Tattoos have a power and magic all their own. They decorate the body but they also enhance the soul.” – Michelle  Delio

15. “Our bodies were printed as blank pages to be filled with the ink of our hearts.” ― Michael Biondi

16. “Some of my tattoos are a bit silly, but I know where and what time I got them.” – Ed Sheeran

17. “I think tattoos are a way to express yourself without words. Without having to explain yourself, people can look at your tattoos and see who you are.” – Jodi Morgan

18. “Getting a tattoo is a nice way of reclaiming your own body, to help tell yourself that you’re in charge.” – Ashley Love

19. “For me, a tattoo is an art installation that I get to wear all the time. It’s all about self-expression. You get to wear your insides on your outsides.” – Malia Jones

20. “My tattoos have become a part of me. When I look in the mirror, I just see my face.” – Lil Peep
If you’re enjoying these quotes, you’ll love our collection of lil peep quotes about love, life, and music.

Tattoo quotes celebrating body art

21. “My tattoos are a source of strength — they crystalize what’s important to me in life. I’m a big believer in the power of symbols and how they can hold meaning and memories.” – Eleni Stefanou

22. “I look at tattoos as a commitment to life.” –  Jeff Hardy

23. “A word to the wise, a tattoo is obviously for life, so make sure you’ve triple-checked for typos and spelling errors.” – Lucy Alice Morris

24. “I like tattoos. I’m gonna be covered. I’m not going to touch my face or under the chin on the neck: it’s my least favorite place.” – Mac Miller

25. “Tattoos tell the world we’ve still got something to say.” – Liz Jones

26. “They keep track of time. Sometimes things happen and you feel that you need to mark them down.” ― Scott O’Connor

27. “Good tattoos aren’t cheap and cheap tattoos aren’t good.” – Josephine Fuller

28. “To me, tattoos are a way of people being able to express themselves and have other people look at them and get a little insight into who they are, without ever even saying a word to them.” – Colin Kaepernick

29. “If I decide to get a tattoo, it’ll be a map of where I live on my chest in case I ever get amnesia.” ― Stewart Stafford

30. “People are proud of their tattoos. It’s like a modern coat of arms.” – Christian Louboutin

Tattoo quotes to honor self expression

31. “With my tattoos, I’ve got my war side on my left side, being left handed, and a faith side on my right side, right with God.” – Jalen Rose

32. “I love math. I have little secret number tattoos everywhere. I design them.” – Pauley Perrette

33. “The tattooed man has solidified his own skin and become that solid object; that permanent identity that all men in fear of the amorphous become.” – Donold Richie

34. “You don’t choose your tattoo design, your tattoo chooses you!” ― Shirin Naghashlou
If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of design quotes that will get your creativity flowing.

35. “I look at my body as an extension of the music. My body is a canvas, and with my tattoos, I want them to be a direct reflection of my thoughts.” – Lil Skies

36. “I’m addicted to tattoos. I can’t stop; I love them.” – Adrianne Palicki

37. “So many people always fear tattoos because they don’t want to limit themselves from certain jobs. I clearly never let that stop me and just got covered head to toe.” – Jeffree Star

38. “Tattoos fulfill a need to inscribe the self as an individual.” – Margo Demello

39. “We are all tattooed in our cradles with the beliefs of our tribe; the record may seem superficial, but it is indelible.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.

40. “Tattoos give us the inspiration to be ourselves.” ― Anthony T.Hincks

Tattoo quotes that will inspire you to create your own identity

41. “I do have a few little tattoos, but they were mostly done to cover scars because I’m so fair.” – Dolly Parton

42. “If people are honest with themselves when they choose a tattoo, the art will represent them better than anything that will ever come out of their mouth.” – Troy Holloway

43. “The ink of a pen is simply the blood of a heart” ― Michael Biondi

44. “I was just a big fan of tattoos always growing up, and I wanted something cool that symbolizes what I’ve been through in my life, and everything on my chest and my back is like a collage.” – Kevin Durant

45. “Tattoos made my skin more ‘me.’” ― Larry Smith

46. “The tattoos are about my grandmother dying, and they tell the story about my mother and father, my brothers and my sister, my kids. It’s pretty much a family tree on my arm with my life in football, too.” – Timothy F. Cahill

47. “My tattoos are reminders to hang in there when things get tough.” – Demi Lovato

48. “Tattoos have a power and magic all their own. They decorate the body but they also enhance the soul.” – Michelle Delio

49. “If the body is a temple, then tattoos are its stained glass windows.” – Sylvia Plath

50. “A tattoo is an affirmation: that this body is yours to have and to enjoy while you’re here. Nobody else can control what you do with it.” – Don Ed Hardy

51. “Comparatively, tattooing is not the hideous custom which it is called. It is not barbarous merely because the printing is skin-deep and unalterable.” – Henry David Thoreau

52. “A quote is just a tattoo on the tongue.” – William F. DeVault

Tattoo quotes to fit your unique thoughts on body art

53. “Tattoos made my skin more ‘me’.” — Melissa Maxwell

54. “Getting a tattoo should hurt. It’s a rite of passage.” — Jenna Jameson

55. “Tattoos exude pain and pleasure all at the same time.” — Chester Bennington

56. “Tattoos transform us from raw animals into cooked cultural beings.” — Claude Lévi-Strauss

57. “Tattoos are permanent and a lifelong commitment, the same as marriage.” — Chester Bennington

58. “Books are to me as homemade tattoos are to an inmate. Can’t get enough of them.” ― Laurie Notaro

59. “Tattooing is about personalizing the body, making it a true home and fit temple for the spirit that dwells inside it.” — Michelle Delio

60.“Tattoos set you apart. Besides being a colorful accessory to any ensemble, they convince your parents once and for all that you are a lost cause.” — Amy Linden

61. “The tattoo represents not only a willingness to accept pain — to endure it — but a need to actively embrace it. Because life is painful — beautiful but painful.” — Nicola Barker

62. “I read somewhere that getting a tattoo, “is a journey, not a destination.” Maybe as we travel life’s roads, we just need to trust the journey a little bit more, even when we aren’t quite sure as to how all the pieces of the puzzle will come together.” — Suzanna Parpos

Tattoo quotes about this body art form

63. “I like my feet. I have a tattoo on my foot with my last name.” — Caity Lotz

64. “I wouldn’t want a tattoo at all. They’re difficult to cover up.” — Richard Armitage

65. “I have a tattoo that I got in Memphis, and another I got in Dayton.” — Colin Donnell

66. “My tattoo is a phoenix. I got the first when I was 16. I hid it for years.” — Ashley Scott

67. “My tattoo is of a cannon in Vancouver that I got in a fleeting moment of stupidity maybe 14 years ago.” — Ryan Reynolds

68. “If you’re over 22, getting a tattoo and you don’t do work that involves tools you should be ashamed of yourself!” — Sean Lock

69. “Anyone who’s had a tattoo knows once you get your first one, as you’re walking out the door, you’re planning the next.” — Chris Evans

70. “I can’t make a song for a particular person or demographic. If I love it, I’m gonna do it. I have to perform it for the rest of my life. A song is like a tattoo – you can never get away from it.” — Rihanna

71. “I have a tattoo on my foot that says ‘it’s a whale’ in Japanese, because Japanese people kill whales. My stuffed whale was like most children’s teddy bear. I took it with me everywhere. I slept with it. I couldn’t live without my whale.” — Skylar Grey

72. “One of the first pieces of advice I was ever given, on my first job was, you should always buy something to treat yourself to say well done for getting the job! However I’ve not followed through on that yet… I’ve always wanted a tattoo, something to mark my experience.” — Sam Claflin

Which of these tattoo quotes was your favorite?

Tattoos have become a normal part of modern culture. They are being worn by celebrities, athletes, people within the fashion industry, and everyone around us.

Although they cannot change who you are, tattoos can help you create your identity, boost your confidence, and make you feel good about yourself. Hopefully, the quotes above have inspired you to be your true yourself.

Did you enjoy these tattoo quotes? Which of the quotes was your favorite? Feel free to share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.