8 Tattoo Trends We’ll Look Back At and Cringe

Tattoos have always been in step with fashion, going in and out of style in the same way flare jeans do. If done right, they can be timeless.

But, on the other hand, if done poorly, like if you get any of the following items, you might end up with what will be 2026’s equivalent to a tramp stamp or tribal band tattoo.

We’re not saying that if you have these tats, you’ll regret it. You might love them until the end of time, but everyone else around you will collectively cringe.

1. Infinity

This finds itself at the top of the list, mostly impart by the several girls I went to high-school with who got them on their 18th birthdays in random spots. But also tops the list just because of its sheer meaninglessness. Like yeah, sure time is infinite, and if you’ve seen that shitty movie “The Fault In Our Stars,” you’re infinite too. But in 10 years, will you still feel the same about your timeless existence? Probs not, you’ll need botox.

2. Key

My first question when I see someone with a generic af key tat is, “what’s the key locking or unlocking?” And I’m sorry, regardless of the intricacy of your antique key tattoo that looks like Martha Washington might have used it to hide her panties from George, it still means nothing.

3. Anchor

The same empty meaningless bullshit that applies to the infinity also applies to the anchor. Like people will say their anchor tat means “stability, security and being grounded,” but when ten thousand other people have an anchor tattooed in any random spot, there’s no way you are all stable.

4. Bible Verses

This is another thing that people in my high-school started getting tattoos of at a very young age. It never made sense to me when you have something like “Luke 3:16” which means literally nothing to someone looking at it who isn’t well-versed (ha, pun) in the Bible. The only thing that could make it worse is if you have the verse itself tatted also and it looks like the iTunes Terms and Conditions down your back.

5. Constellation Stars

While cuter than most of the other things on this list, these are still really pointless. Unless you are Rihanna, anything to do with stars is a no. I saw a girl one time a party who had a big-dipper tattoo on the back of her arm, and while I’m sure she loves it, I can’t help but wonder why a big dipper?

6. Native American Inspired

Not only is this tacky af, unless you are actually Native American, this shouldn’t be something on your body at all. Anything like a dreamcatcher or a skull in a traditional head-dress should be avoided because if you think things are hyper-politicized now, just wait for the next 10 years to go by.

7. Anything in Another Language On Your Ribs

Sorry, Selena, you’re not above this one. Girls love to get these tattoos in different languages, like Arabic or Urdu or anything else that the girl clearly doesn’t speak. Also, the rib placement kind of just seals in the basic-ness of it. This is the tattoo most college-aged girls get when they’ve taken one international studies course.

8. Semi-colon

Ugh, another item on this list that has like a secondary implied meaning when it’s tattooed that’s different from its surface meaning. It’s a hipster fan-fave because it’s almost pretentious and it’s so small, and hipsters love small tattoos.


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