At the tattoo parlour

When it comes to body art, beauty really IS skin deep.

Tattoos have been around for centuries; one of the oldest was discovered in the Italian Alps, on a 5,300-year-old mummy. Today, with more and more Americans having their bodies decorated, the industry generates more than $2 billion a year in revenue.

Tattoo Art

Today, tattoos are a ubiquitous product. More than 45 million Americans have gone under the needle.

Tattoo Art

Some people have the stomach for it.

Anna Friedman

Tattoo historian Anna Friedman says tattoos often reflect what's going on in broader culture, which is why for much of the 20^th century, it was soldiers and sailors exercising their right to bear arms.

"So anytime we have a war, we seem to get a heightening of the number of people who get tattoos," Friedman told CBS News' Faith Salie, "because I think we like to mark our patriotism in a permanent way."

Tattoo Art

Body art.

Lyle Tuttle

Tattoo artist Lyle Tuttle, 83, is often called the father of modern tattooing.

"I used to joke saying I was in more panties than gynecologists," he said, "because a favorite spot for ladies to get tattooed was inside the bikini line."

Tattoo Art

In the 1960s, tattooing enjoyed a renaissance, and Lyle Tuttle emerged as San Francisco's master tattooist, inking the likes of Joan Baez, the Allman Brothers and Janis Joplin. "You had a tattoo, you belonged to sort of an elite club," he said.

Friday Jones

Friday Jones, who has been creating tattoos for more than 20 years, told CBS News' Faith Salie that her clients today "are so much more fearless than they've ever been."

Tattoo Art

A turning point for tattoos came with women's liberation. "Certainly more women were getting tattooed in the '60s and '70s as a way of breaking out of this mold of the woman who gets told what to do," said Anna Friedman.