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Little Black Stars

 
 
Porn Star Justice
13:25 / 17.08.05
I've seen this tattoo on a few women lately. It's 3-4 five pointed, black stars (line art, not solid) around their ankles.

Is there any sort of common symbolism to this?
 
 
Red Cross Iodized Salt
17:28 / 17.08.05
I've been told that the five-pointed nautical star was traditionally a tattoo that was supposed to offer 'protection and guidance'...variations in the design and location would presumably communicate nuances of meaning.

The outline / filled in versions of the five-pointed nautical star later came to be a declaration of being drug-free (especially if placed on the inside of the arm near the wrist or elbow) and from this became a popular design for straight edgers.

Since then, it appears that it has just become a simple design that a lot of people get because they like how it looks. An arrangement of stars seems like it might just be an extension of this.
 
 
Professor Silly
16:57 / 19.08.05
As a tattoo artist I've been seeing A LOT of young men and women wanting various types of five-pointed stars--on lower backs and feet and chests and arms...back of neck...etc. Some get the nautical stars (which in many ways is the new "tribal"--thanks to the pop-punk movement), while very few get the pentagram. Most go with either just the outline or filled in with color (mostly purples, pinks, and blues).
I'd conjecture that 90% attribute zero meaning to the design, at least consciously. They just "like the way they look"....
 
 
Professor Silly
17:01 / 19.08.05
BTW, most straight-edgers choose the black "X" on either the back of the hand or inside of forearm to express their views. I must admit taking particular delight in finding the weakness in their stance!
"So, no caffeine or chocolate?"
"Oh, I'll have chocolate now and then."
"But chocolate has several substances in it similiar to coffee and affects the same pleasurable parts of the brain as marijuana!"
"...."
It's naughty, for sure, but I find it so much fun I can't resist.
 
 
Loomis
07:40 / 20.08.05
Do you wait till after the tattoo is done to bring that up, H.K. ...? That way you can make extra cash when they ask you to turn it into something else.

I really like a lot of the star tats I've seen around, but I've never figured that it had a meaning. Maybe a few people do. I think the appeal is that a star is a simple design that looks good and you can combine them in a variety of ways, according to personal preference. I like seeing the different ways people combine them trailing up their arms or legs or wherever.
 
 
Triplets
07:41 / 24.08.05
I never got that. "I don't drink, smoke, do drugs but I'll happily stain or scar my body permanently"? Buzwah?
 
 
+#'s, - names
16:15 / 24.08.05
whatever the meaning of it is, i embrace it, cause its always a guarenteed square while playing hipster bingo.
 
  
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