Generally not before 18 for tattoos, but there might be situations where I would bend that rule. Commemoration of a lost relative or beloved pet for example, though I would encourage waiting until after growing was done lest it get distorted.

Piercings, possibly as early as 15-16, again depending on circumstances and maturity of the kid.

I wonder about this, too.  My daughter is 13.  She has no piercings, nor any desire to get any.  Her best friend has tons of them.  Tongue, Marylin Monroe, ears all the way up and down, plus her cartilage in her ears, nose, and eyebrow.  She's a virtual pin cushion.  I think it makes her parents look like push-overs.  I have MY nose pierced, and have several tattoos, so I'm not against it.  I just think at that age it looks... bad?

For a Tattoo they have to be 16 and able to pay for it themselves and it can't be something racists or disrespectful.

They can get their ears pieced (regular holes in the lobes) whenever they want. Other piercings I would want them wait until mid- high school. Get through any sports they may want to play. Tattoos we decided we want them to wait until they're closer to 18 when they're almost done growing. Some tattoo paces will not to tattoos on kids 16 & 17 even with a parent present or with a note because state regs on businesses are tight.

We're fine with tattoos, piercings, crazy colored hair...I'd rather use my energy to keep on top of them with school work, extra curriculars, keeping tabs on their friends and whereabouts. I know some parents worry waaaaaaaaay to much littles things...

I believe the laws here don't allow body piercings or tattoos for anyone under 18 even with parental consent.

Other than an additional ear piercing, I would make my kids wait until they're adults anyway. Those are permanent things that I believe need to based on decisions by adults for themselves.

When they ask for their ears I'm ok with that. Any other piercing will have to wait until they're 16. As for tattoos I will not sign off before they turn 18 because I don't know one person who actually loves and doesn't regret a tattoo they got as a teen. Sorry girlies those things are permanent!

I would never sign for my DD15 to get a tattoo for one reason: Years down the line when she regrets it she will blame me. I can hear it now "Well you signed the consent form for me to get it, why would you ever do that? This is all your fault!!" 

I agree with @eapple. I never did, but a lot of my friends and a few of my sibs got pierced or tattooed pretty young and they all regret it now.
My mom signed off on my bro's...he ended up hating it, tried to get it covered a few years later and the symbols on it ended up looking like swastikas. :O. Lots of time and money has been invested to make his arm look presentable again. Had he not had the original one done at 16, he may have avoided a lot of fuckery.

I want a SM playdate soooo bad. :(

Piercings already have rules here, she won't have ears till she's 13, and nose maybe 17 if at all, belly button and tongue ....hell no not when she's under my roof.

Tattoo not till she's 18, they are on her body for the rest of her life, and her views can change so much.  But I wouldn't be opposed to a tattoo that says I love my mom :D

It is a gorgeous 70 degrees here after a very scary massive thunderstorm last night!

If a tat is that important that you want it for the rest of your life, then it can wait until you are 18. I don't see any piercings that I would allow either. If I had a girl, I would allow her to pierce her ears (lobes only) once she was old enough to make that decision & take care of it.

Flat out no on the tattoo. But we have an agreement on piercings. 1 every 5 years and the ears count. For the boys per ear. I figure i only have to deal with one body piercing that way.

Good Morning!  My kids and I have had this discussion recently. I won't agree to a tattoo. I was 24 when I got my first tattoo. I think you really should be older and put thought into, as tattoos are a lot more permanent then a piercing. When they get older and have thought about it I would be willing to pay for one as a gift. 

Both of my kids have piercings. My dd15 has her ears pierced, her nose, three on her lip, and her belly button. I paid for all of them. They were birthday gifts or Christmas gifts or whatever. My oldest daughter has her ears pierced, she has three in one ear, and three in the other plus the cartilage, her nose and her belly button. I paid for those also. The piercings don't bother me, they can be removed and will heal up, or they can be removed for job interviews or working or whatever.

My brothers both got tattoos at 17 in someone's basement. Not only are they kind of wonky, now that I've worked in a hospital I'm like "AAAAAHHHHH! MRSA!" My parents weren't mad at them, they just said "Why didn't you wait until you were 18? We would have paid for you to get a NICE tattoo." That's kind of how I feel, too. However, I'm goign to stress to my children, as mother did me, to only get it somewhere where it can be covered by normal clothing. Tattoos on hands, ankles, and behind the ear can prevent you from getting a job. Even if you have a job you like now that doesn't care, you never know when you'll be hard-up for work and need all the help you can get. I've even got my husband on board with that thought process with the placement of his tattoos, and he's a rancher!

As for piercings, my husband won't even let DD get her ears pierced until she's 13! Probably at 16 I'd let her do her bellybutton or something. But I still think she should avoid facial peircing because of the job thing. I'm weird in that I think tattoos are classier than nose or Marilyn Monroe peircings. They look cheap to me, that's just how I feel.

P.S. It's after 8:30 and my kids are still asleep! I must have wore them the fuck out yesterday, this has literally never happened! I wandered around in a daze for awhile before I realized I could finally read Coffeetalk with coffee!

My dd13 wants all sorts of piercings and I told her no way except for her ears and a small one for her nose. She wanted snake bites and I refused.
If I thought she really considered a tattoo and it was tasteful I would consider it at 16, but I've told her shed be paying for it all.
I wouldn't let her go crazy w any of it.

The reason I said no to the belly button because she would want to show it off  X(

And the tongue is meant to enhance oral sex, so that is a hell no

Thefinder said:

The reason I said no to the belly button because she would want to show it off  X(

And the tongue is meant to enhance oral sex, so that is a hell no

Yeah. I have a bit of a different perspective than most people about piercings and plastic surgery because of my nursing background. I've seen the worst-case scenarios and there is no fucking way I will ever authorize a piercing that comes in contact with her own or anyone else's saliva, nasal secretions or genitalia. Not fucking happening!

Yeah if dd was going to do something dumb like let somebody tattoo her in their basement if I didn't let her get one, I would say pick out the one u want and think about it and look at it every day for 6 months and then if u still must have it, I'll take u somewhere good and get it done but not on the boobs or stomach. If she's going to do it regardless of my permission I at least will make sure its well done. When she gets to be in her 20s if she wants one I will go and get one too, I have her name on my back and I'll tell her I expect her to do the same in return lol. I got her ears pierced when she was about 8 months, I know she would have wanted them someday and I figure its less traumatic to do it when they can't remember. My mom took me when I was like 7 and it hurt so freaking bad. She barely cried though. I have a second set of holes and my cartilage pierced, if she wants that done that's fine but idk about any other piercings before 18. Def not belly button or tongue. Possibly a tiny nose ring.

My sons tattoo is his initials on his inner forearm. I did tell him that if he waited till he was 18, I would have paid for it and got one with him. I was livid when he showed me what he did, but at that point there was nothing I could do.

I was 18 when I got both my tattoo and my belly button ring. The tattoo, I got the first day I moved to college, the ring, later on. Do I regret either, no. Do I want either of my kids to have one before 18, hell no.