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Tattoos that Kapuso stars would want to have

In the world of showbiz, appearance is everything; and celebrities are supposed to have flawless beautiful skin—or as much as possible anyway.

This summer, iGMA asks the stars what kind of tattoos they’d want to have if they can have one, and they have some pretty interesting answers!

From the unusual to the not-so-much

“I’ve always wanted a Philippine flag somewhere, probably on my back or something," Rhian Ramos reveals.

But, the pretty actress says, she doesn’t think it would be possible for her to have one because “I’m an actress, [and] if I have a scene where I have to bare my back or something, e ‘di kitang-kita na ‘yun. Sayang naman ‘yung concealer!"

Senator’s son Bryan Revilla can’t make up his mind as to what kind of tattoos he would want to have, but he knows where he wants them: “chest or shoulders."

As for young the perennial kontrabida Arci Muñoz, she wants to have a tattoo on her neck. But because she’s not actually allowed to have tattoos, Arci would just have to be content with imaginary ones. But if she were, hypothetically, to have one done, she reveals, “gusto ko barcode o kaya stitches, para unique."

Another celebrity thinking of getting barcode tattoos? Francine Prieto!

The tall celebrity says she wants it on her ankle; before joking, “tapos titignan kung magkano ako!"

Alyssa Alano, on the other hand, is going for a more religious approach: she wants “mukha ni Jesus Christ sa likod. Para lagi siyang, hindi lang sa puso at isip ko, pati sa katawan ko, nandoon siya."

From the clan Padilla, Ralph wants a different kind of tattoo. “Tribal na sun, sa back ng neck." The Joaquin Bordado mainstay even has a meaning attached to it! “Parang ‘let there be light.’"

From suns, let’s go to stars. Two StarStruck beauties want star tattoos. And while Iwa Moto already had hers done, Jade Lopez’s is still in her imagination. And where would she put it? “Sa may upper [backside]!" The young actress laughs, “kasi gusto ko maging star!"

Tribal to tattooed trivias

“If ever siguro, sa left arm," hunky Alfred Vargas says after a bit of thought where he would put a tattoo. Not afraid of the needle, Alfred says that he’d encircle his bicep with a tattoo. What kind? “Tribal."

Two other guys are also going for the tribal approach are Mark Herras and Kevin Santos .

“Sa bandang arms, ipapapuno ko," Kevin reveals. He adds that he wants tattoos much like The Rock’s, “kasi parang mas naastigan ako doon eh."

But he also reveals that he’d rather have it done in henna. The not-so-tough guy says that he doesn’t want a real tattoo: “parang ang pangit sa katawan eh."

Another henna-preferring celebrity is Karylle, who’s going for an anklet-type of tattoo. But for real, she says that she’d “rather not, because people will wrinkle in time, and it would look ugly. And you can not donate blood!"

Other celebrities who don’t want a real tattoo are Marvin Agustin, Tess Bomb, Chynna Ortaleza and Melissa Avelino . But they’re very much game with imaginary ones—or fake ones.

Marvin says that the only tattoo he’d ever consider having are the names of people who’ll be permanent in his life: “my kids!" An answer that Chynna mirrors, saying “I won’t have any problem tattooing their names sa katawan ko, ‘cos they came from me."

Meanwhile, Melissa wants a significant something written in Spanish, and Tess Bomb would have anything “pa-tweetums", “hindi naman kasi bagay sa akin mag-tattoo ng ahas. Haller!"

What about you? What kind of tattoo would you like to have?

THE tattoo craze that is exploding among young people has

also led to an alarming surge in hepatitis, health experts have revealed.

Cases of Hepatitis B and C in Australia have jumped 13,000 to 277,000 during the past year, and experts say the boom in "body art" and piercing was a significant factor.

In Queensland, 40,000 people have been infected with Hepatitis C, and it is estimated up to 31,250 have Hepatitis B.

A further 40,000 nationally may be silent victims, unaware that they have been infected.

What are your thoughts on tatts? Tell usAlthough many people believe the disease affects only drug addicts, because of shared needles, the Hepatitis Council of Queensland said this was not the case.

Jodie Walton, health promotion officer for the organisation, warned reckless youngsters to think before they ink.

"The rate of hepatitis is rising and that is because we have a high incidence of young people fooling around with tattoos and piercings," Ms Walton said.

Tattoos have become fashionable, with many girls following the trend, spurred on by celebrities such as The Veronicas, Amy Winehouse and Pink.

Medical studies have shown the viruses can be transmitted through blood on unwashed tattoo needles or piercing guns.

Both Hepatitis B and C attack the liver, causing inflammation.

If infection persists for longer than six months, it becomes a chronic, long-lasting infection, leading to debilitating symptoms and in some cases cirrhosis, liver cancer and even death.

Many people are unaware they are infected, as symptoms often appear 15 to 20 years after exposure to the virus.

Internationally renowned hepatologist Graeme Macdonald, from Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital, said some tattoo parlours may not observe hygiene standards.

"There may be tattoo artists who are using the same needles and also not changing the ink pots, which is a risk," he said. "I see a large number of people waiting for liver transplants as a result of hepatitis, and that number is growing."

Queensland is the only state requiring tattoo operators to be licensed. Unlicensed operators risk a $30,000 fine.

Caz Smith, state representative of the Professional Tattoo Association of Australia, said the industry was not being properly policed.

"The number of backdoor operators is horrendous. I'm concerned for the public who don't realise the dangers of going to someone who doesn't sterilise equipment," she said.

Ms Smith said the Government had sent questionnaires to licensed tattoo artists seeking their opinions on the issue. These are due back on June 6.

Dr Christine Selvey, Queensland Health senior director of communicable diseases, said regulations aimed to minimise risk from infections such as HIV, Hepatitis B and C.

"Body piercing – with the exception of closed ear or nose piercing – and tattooing are considered higher risk personal appearance services and a licence is necessary to perform them," she said.

The Hepatitis Council of Queensland will tomorrow launch a campaign to warn people about the potentially deadly viruses, as part of World Hepatitis Day.

The council has produced the first national Hepatitis B brochure for people affected.

Ink-Stained and Loving It

IT’S hard to look authentically rebellious or menacing these days, when even well-behaved businessmen wear earrings and ponytails and college students destined for quiet suburban lives have body piercings and tattoos.

Efrain John Gonzalez
Not your ordinary heart with a tribute to Mom.
Tattoos, in particular, are not the radical brandings, the bold violations of flesh and propriety, they once were. Available in New York from almost 1,400 licensed tattoo artists, tattoos are probably better and safer now than they’ve ever been — more creative and varied, applied in many cases by serious, highly skilled body artists.

Then again, there are tattoos, and there are tattoos. It is unlikely that the ambitious professional with a single, understated, discreetly placed and wittily conceived tat, or for that matter the teenager from Queens with her boyfriend’s name and two lovebirds emblazoned in the small of her back, will ever have tattoos on the face and scalp, or a full chest or back “panel” or a tattooed arm or leg.

There is, in short, a line beyond which the dabblers do not go. The marvels (and murals) of tattooing that lie beyond that line were on gaudy display this weekend at the Roseland Ballroom, on West 52nd Street near Eighth Avenue, where the 11th annual New York City Tattoo Convention ends tonight. A few thousand attended last year.

For three days, the sidewalks around the old ballroom are filled with many of the most heavily and elaborately tattooed people in the New York area.

Inside the ballroom, working tattooers, including some from Europe and Asia, occupy 70 booths. “I don’t just let anybody in, like a lot of conventions do,” said Steve Bonge, a 49-year-old East Village resident and one of the convention’s principal founders. “Maybe there are bigger shows, but I know I get the best of the best.”

Even the tattooless are welcome at the convention. But those with bare skin may find it hard not to gawk at the hard-core collectors for whom showing copious ink is what it’s all about. These folks have transformed large portions of their bodies into multicolored canvases for all manner of skulls, serpents, raptors, flame-breathing dragons, flowers, vines, angels, demons, daggers, buxom bombshells and portraits of heroes and loved ones. For these folks, tattoo remorse is not an issue.

On that point, Mr. Bonge, a photographer, part-time bartender and Harley-riding Hells Angel whose entire back is inked with a 1940s pulp fiction image of a knife-wielding villain seizing a blonde against a cityscape, noted that the one- or two-tat dilettante and the major collector have one important thing in common. “It’s a commitment,” Mr. Bonge said. “Even if you don’t want it, it’s still there.”