12 Celebrities That Seriously Regretted Their Couple Tattoos

As much as we love tattoos, we never recommend couple tattoos. Even the most stable relationships can end. Just ask any of the celebrities below and you’ll get the same advice. From initials, wedding dates, names, and even jersey numbers, these celebrities have regretted their couple tattoos so much that they’ve gone through the painful process of removing or covering up their ink.

1. Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp has a unique way of getting rid of his couple tattoos. He doesn’t just remove them or cover them; he changes them into something unique and new. He was once in a long-term relationship with fellow actor Winona Ryder. But after that relationship ended he changed this arm tattoo from “Winona Forever” to “Wino Forever”.
Depp didn’t learn this lesson about couple tattoos though. When he got married to Amber Heard he tattooed “Slim” on his knuckles, which was his nickname for her. After their extremely messy divorce, he changed that tattoo to read “Scum”. Harsh.

2. Christina Aguilera

Christina Aguilera might be a pop princess, but even she makes mistakes. When she divorced her husband music executive Jordan Bratman in 2011, she got her tattoo honoring him removed. She had his initials in Hebrew on her arm, but they have since been removed.

3. & 4. Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen’s love life can be hard to keep track of from his multiple failed marriages to his beautiful “goddesses”. Once upon a time though he was married to Denise Richards. They were so in love they even got each other’s names tattooed on each other, with Richards getting “Charlie” on her ankle, and Sheen “Denise” on his wrist.
Not surprisingly they ended up divorcing. Denise covered up her “Charlie tattoo” with a cute fairy. Charlie, however, went a different route. He covered up “Denise” with his favorite saying, “Winning”!

5. Marc Anthony

Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez once had one of the most covered relationships in Hollywood. Unfortunately, they didn’t last. When they divorced though Marc wasn’t just left with a broken heart- he also had Jennifer’s name tattooed on his wrist. In 2014 he finally covered it up with a new design.

6. Angelina Jolie

Before “Brangelina”, Angelina Jolie was in a relationship with Billy Bob Thronton. The couple did numerous odd things, such as wear vials of each other’s blood. Angelina didn’t stop there though, she got his name tattooed on her upper arm. After the split though she got the tattoo removed. It has since been replaced with the coordinates of where her children were born. It seems she finally learned that relationships aren’t forever, but being a parent is.

7. Eva Longoria

Eva Longoria made the mistake of getting, not one, but three tattoos honoring her ex-husband basketball player Tony Parker. After it came out he cheated on her, it’s no surprise she got that ink removed. She once had his jersey number “Nine” on her neck, their wedding date “07-07-07” on her wrist, and his initials somewhere hidden, but they have since all been removed.

8. Heidi Klum

Model Heidi Klum and singer Seal seemed to have the perfect marriage. Klum even celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary by getting his name tattooed on her arm. Unfortunately, they divorced in 2012 and she began the process of getting his name removed.

9. Amber Rose

Nothing says love like getting your husbands face tattooed on your arm…until you divorce that is. Amber Rose ran into this problem when her divorce to rapper Wiz Khalifa left her with his face on her arm. Thankfully, she has since removed it and replaced it with some gorgeous roses.

10. Iggy Azalea

Iggy Azalea might sing about being fancy, but it’s not so fancy to have a tattoo of your boyfriend's name after a breakup. The singer got “Live”, “Love” and “A$VP” on her fingers in honor of boyfriend ASAP Rocky but after they broke up she was photographed with bandaged fingers suggesting the tattoos are now gone.

11. Nick Cannon

At least most people that get the names of their significant others do it on a small scale. Not Nick Cannon though. He got a giant tattoo of ex-wife Mariah Carey’s name on his back. Since their divorce, though he has replaced with another huge tattoo to cover it up.

12. Kylie Jenner

Kylie Jenner is fond of small tattoos. She even got a tiny “t” to honor her on-and off again boyfriend, Tyga. He in return got “Kylie” in massive script on his arm. Unfortunately, this young couple is over for good now. Kylie recently covered up her ink, turning the lowercase “t” into “la”. Tyga still has yet to cover up his Kylie tattoo, maybe he’s hoping they’re going to get back together. They probably won’t though considering Kylie just got matching butterfly tattoos with her new boyfriend Travis Scott.

7 Questions People With Tattoos Always Get Asked

1.    “Did it hurt?”

The simple answer to this question is, “duh”. All tattoos hurt, but the amount of pain depends on a lot of things. Some locations on the body hurt more. Design, size, the length of time, and personal pain tolerance are also factors.

2.    “Don’t you respect yourself?”

This question is so rude and judgmental it almost doesn’t even deserve a response. People need to let go of the outdated thinking that tattoos are related to rebellion and criminals.

3.    “Do you regret them?"

Some people do regret their tattoos, but most don’t. The longer you live with a tattoo the more meaning it takes on. It becomes less about the design, or even the original meaning, and becomes a marker for who you were during the period of time when you got it done.

4.    “How will you feel about then when you’re old?”

People’s bodies change when they age. Skin gets looser, wrinkles take over, and all of this does impact a tattoo. Maybe your tattoos will be faded and distorted by wrinkles but how great will it be to reminisce about your youth when you’re older?

5.    “What does your tattoo mean?”

Here’s the thing- sometimes tattoos don’t have meaning behind them. I know, shocking right? Sometimes they do, but not everyone is willing to share those stories. It’s ultimately up to the person who has the tattoo if they’re willing to share the story behind their tattoo (if there is one). If they don’t want to then respect that. 

6.    “What do your parents and grandparents think about them?”

This question assumes that everyone’s parents and grandparents think the same. Some parents are against them, other’s annoyed, some amused, and some for them. The same with grandparents. We aren’t the first generation to get tattooed so chances are that some parents and grandparents are tattooed themselves.

7.    “Would you ever get them removed?”

Tattoo removal is expensive, painful, and not guaranteed to work. Asking someone if they’re getting a tattoo removed implies that you think they should. If someone does want to change their tattoo there are tons of options out there today from removal to cover-ups.

Contact a Toronto Tattoo Shop to book your next appointment. 

Options For Regrettable Tattoos

Tattoo artists always hate when they hear stories about people regretting their tattoos. As more people are getting them it’s only fitting that the rate of regret and removal increased too. Whether it’s design, time, or a bad artist, the reason for regret are numerous. Luckily, so are the options for removal.

Laser Removal

Laser removal is the most popular option for completely removing a tattoo. The ink is targeting with pulses of concentrated light that break down the ink. The bad news it that it takes at least 10 treatments for the tattoo to be fully removed. This is less if you only go in for a partial fading. The more treatments you get the more your skin gets damaged which means blisters, scabs, and scarring are all possible side effects of laser removal. This process is incredibly painful and it’s pretty pricey. Colored ink, especially blues and greens, are significantly harder to remove also.

Intense Pulsed Light Therapy

IPL is another treatment option that is gaining popularity. It’s similar to laser removal. A high-intensity light is emitted from a wand onto the targeted areas. This method is a lot less painful than laser but unfortunately, it is also more expensive. It’s relatively new so specialists aren’t sure about recommending it or not yet.

Dermabrasion

This is an old school removal option that isn’t used much today. It involved “sanding” or “blasting” away the top layers of skin through abrasive friction. If it sounds painful that’s because it is. It’s also not super effective, which is part of the reason it’s not even offered in most places anymore.

Tattoo Creams

Tattoos creams claim to lighten and fade tattoo ink. If this sounds too good to be true because it is. Most of them don’t work or at least don’t work effectively enough to match their hefty prices. Chances are they won’t work but if you really want to try them there aren’t really any side effects other than a loss of money.

Cover Up

Cover-ups are a good option for some people. A skilled artist that specializes in or has experience with cover-ups can give you a new ink to replace the bad one. If done well you can’t even see the old one at all. Cover-ups are only good if it’s the design, not the idea or placement of the tattoo, that you regret. A good cover-up can be expensive depending on the size and detail needed. Look at artist portfolios to make sure you’re not getting another bad one. Colored tattoos are harder to cover up and may require some laser fading first.

Restoration

Ink fades and spreads as time goes on causing some people to fall out of love with their tattoo. In this case, restoration might be the option for you. Top tattoo artists can go over old pieces and bring them back to life. Be sure to find an artist that specializes in this.

Conclusion

Tattoo regret is unfortunate but there are tons of reasons people regret tattoos. In order to avoid regret always research your artist, make sure you love your design, and think about the long term. Thankfully, there are far more options out there for removal than there used to be. Contact our Toronto tattoo shop today to set up an appointment for cover-ups or restoration.