Not content with being the canvas, the stars are picking up the needle in their revamped obsession for tattoos. Emma Gunavardhana reports
What is it with celebrities and tattoos? There doesn’t seem to be a week goes by without a Twitter update from one star or another showing off a new inking. It’s funny to think that not too long ago they were the uniform of rock stars and certainly not to be seen on the perfect posterior of a pop princess.
There has, however, been a shift in the trend for celebrity inking. No longer content with being the canvas for the artwork, celebrities are turning artist on us. Cheryl Cole was on the other end of the needle recently when she inked a design on Nikko Hurtado, the man responsible for that rose tattoo.
Instagram @ladyccole
Posting the image to Instagram Cheryl declared, ‘You learn something new every day,’ but admitted it was her ‘first and last tattoo’. It seems fair pay back after Nikko posted a picture of his completed work on her Calvin Klein thong-clad bottom.
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Likewise, fellow tat-lover Cara Delevingne finished a tattoo session in New York back in May by turning the needle on artist Bang Bang, who encourages his clientele to add their art to his body. Cara’s designs are many and varied but for her spell behind the needle she chose to leave her initials as a permanent mark.
Instagram @caradelevigne
Cara can’t stay away from the tattoo parlour and despite knowing that her model agency were against the idea of her adding to her collection of body art she got two new tattoos just last month; the Roman Numeral for 12, Cara’s lucky number, and a Southern Cross on her right ear.
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The intimacy of the tattooing process is causing some artists to become a trusted part of the celebrity entourage. Take Rihanna’s inker Keith McCurdy who was flown 11 hours from New York to Puerto Rico to modify the traditional Maori inking she had while on tour in New Zealand. Though Rihanna’s traditional tattoo had been created with ink and a mallet, Keith was called in to add ‘pretty’ to the design.
Rihanna’s penchant for body art doesn’t look as though it’ll slow down any time soon as she recently admitted, ‘I like hanging out in tattoo shops. I am so intrigued by tattoos. It’s an entire culture, and I study it.’
Rihanna is yet to pick up the needle, but we wonder who’ll be lucky enough to be the first to have a personalised RiRi design…
Instagram @callyjoart