One off-putting thing about the tattoo industry is its leaning towards trends set by celebrities. There's probably nothing wrong in copying their custom tattoo designs, but it's foolish for people to think that because a certain celeb has a tattoo done on her thigh, it's high fashion for every woman to have one there.  Here are five hot trends in custom tattoo designs that will give you an edge over others—perhaps it's something you've been looking for:

Japanese tattoo designs: This refers to designs using letters of the Japanese alphabet. For example, the one that Janet Jackson has on her stomach is Japanese for "discipline" while the one she sports on her wrist reads "respect and equality" in Japanese. If you want to promote the values you hold, Japanese characters as tattoos are perfect. If you approach several custom tattoo sites, you will find custom tattoo designers slightly altering these Japanese characters to soften them and make them feminine, or to make them masculine and bold.

Tribal tattoo designs: Tribal tattoos have their origin with tribal peoples and the unique visuals depicting their lives. If you've ever seen tribal tattoos closely, you will find that they have very sharp edges which make them perfect for sporting on the nape of the neck and the lower back. Why don't you create a tribal tattoo design contest by logging on to a custom tattoo site? You'll be amazed by the hundreds and thousands of tribal tattoo representations you will receive based on your idea. This is the power of the creativity of tattoo designers.

Celtictattoo designs: Celtic tattoos are Northern European tribal tattoos. They are distinctive for their curls and bold swirls. These Celtic tattoo designs are worn as cross designs, armbands, shamrocks and leprechauns. Celtic tattoos are traditional Irish symbols and are popular among people who wish to reconnect with their heritage, and display pride in their glorious ancestry. Among all Celtic tattoos designs, Celtic knots are the most popular. If you want to have innumerable versions of your Celtic custom tattoo design, all you need to do is log on to any custom tattoo design site and create your own tattoo design contest. The creator of the design you choose will win a cash prize.

Hawaiian tattoo designs: These tattoo designs originated in Polynesia. This kind of tattoo art comprises very intricate and heavy knot work. This art is mastered and executed by just a few tattoo designers. If you visit custom tattoo sites, you will find very many tattoo artists who are adept at Hawaiian knot work tattoo designs. For women these are expressed as flower designs. Since Hawaii is the cradle of all exquisite and exotic tropical flowers that the US exports, isn't it appropriate that women here love inking themselves with flowers?

Butterfly tattoo designs: Everyone across the globe, whether they are men or women, loves beautiful butterflies. As well as its charm, people are entranced by the butterfly's symmetry, range of colors, shapes and wide variety of species.

If you want a really good butterfly design tattoo, log on to a custom tattoo site that you like and create a contest for the most exquisite butterfly tattoo. Let the contest run for two weeks and in this period you will see a myriad of butterfly tattoo designs—one of which will be the one you want inked on you.