For the romantic couple, “matching tattoos” may mean the classic his and hers, identical tattoos which expresses their love for each other. The chosen design can be a complete mirror of the other, or perhaps a male or female version of a specific design such as the king and queen of hearts, or a portion of a certain design such that when brought together the meaning is revealed, like pieces of a puzzle. These designs reveal power stories of love. When we meet someone and fall in love, we have a sense that the whole universe I son our side.
Matching tattoos however are not exclusive to couples. There are families, group of friends, and organizations who wear matching tattoos as identifying symbol of affiliation. A shared memory is also a popular choice for matching tattoos especially memorializing a loss of a love one. There are others who may not know one another but shares a common advocacy may actually have matching tattoos. Popular nowadays are the semicolon for mental health, a circle with a triangle bearing the AA’s logo for sobriety, red AIDS’ ribbon or the stinging tail of the scorpion for the victims & supporters of HIV, and earth lover for the climate change advocates.