If you and your significant other are thinking about getting matching couples tattoos, but are hesitating because you're wondering, "What if we're not together in the future?", then I encourage you to focus solely on how you feel today. It's 2011 and more people are getting divorced these days than are staying married. It's the sad but true state of the world we live in--love doesn't always last. But just because it doesn't last doesn't mean it didn't happen, so if you still find yourself rushing home after work to be with your girlfriend because being apart is practically painful, if you still look at her and your heart races, if you know everything there is to know about her but still can't wait to learn more, then why not celebrate that partnership with a tattoo if you so choose? Even if one day the relationship ends, this moment in life and this love you share will always be a part of you.
One word of caution: you and your partner should probably be on the same page with this whole matching tattoo idea. If one person is into it, and the other is lukewarm or vehemently against it, then perhaps you should hold off. A permanent mark on your body is a serious decision for some people, and it would be unwise to cajole them into doing it before they are truly ready (assuming they ever are.)
Matching Tattoos
Matching tattoos are somewhat easy. You pick a phrase or an image you both love, and you each get the same exact tattoo somewhere on your respective bodies. Matching hearts are a popular choice, of course, as well as the infinity sign (which looks like a sideways numeral eight). I've always thought a good idea for a couple would be to choose a line from their favorite song, and get the guitar chords or musical score for that section as a tattoo.
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"Life's roughest storms prove the strength of our anchors."
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The crane is a symbol of happiness. In some Asian cultures, a thousand paper cranes are hung up at weddings.
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"The greatest treasures are those invisible to the eye but found by the heart."
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"To hide the key to your heart is to risk forgetting where you placed it."
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"Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt." -Kurt Vonnegut
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Strawberry image from the movie "Across the Universe"
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"Letting love find a way"
Complementary Tattoos
It is somewhat easier to come up with a tattoo that matches identically, versus a complementary tattoo which can be more challenging to invent. A complementary tattoo, for example, would be the guy getting the first half of a sentence, lyric, or quote, and the girl getting the second half. Lock and key tattoos are another great choice -- after all, to quote Richard Bach: "A soulmate is someone who has locks that fit our keys and keys that fit our locks. A soulmate is the one who makes life come to life." Other interesting ideas include interlocking puzzle pieces, each other's signatures, or perhaps a quote that is written in your partner's handwriting.
Foreign Language Tattoos
Word tattoos are fantastic, and are by far my favorites, but equally as cool as foreign language tattoos. I have a whole series of hubs about this, such as Arabic Words & Phrases and Greek Words & Phrases and these types of tattoos featuring different languages are a great idea for couples as well.
Quote Ideas for Couples Tattoos
There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness. -Nietzsche
Our love lives, because I live. -Anais Nin
The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return. -"Moulin Rouge"
Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more. -Erica Jong
I don't think you could ever know just how truly special you are that even on the darkest nights you are my brightest star. -Erica Jong
When you are in love you can't fall asleep because reality is better than your dreams. -Dr. Seuss
You're nothing short of my everything. -Ralph Block
Travelling is my life
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