My sister who is sixty just got a tattoo on her ankle and is of the highest character. Though I don’t care for tattoos myself you have no idea what a person’s reasons are for getting one and if you are a man you don’t think like a woman. Just because it is your opinion it is self-mutilation and a fad doesn’t make that opinion an unassailable fact. The biggest mistake men make is thinking women are wired like men. Your reasoning of their behavior (if you are male) has little bearing on what’s actually going on.
i do not claim to know what is going on 100% of the time. 85+% is good enough.
(pure guess work coming up)
as for your sister, at 60 that is a major break from the norm, assuming she had never had a tattoo before. this would indicate a desire for a break from the norm/every day (was there a divorce/death/major life change)... unless its a remembrance tattoo, which would account for the change in attitude (but that would rarely be located on the ankle)
tough to tell without seeing it.
reading someone walking up to them takes more then a single component. mannerisms, dress, body language, hair, accessories, etc .. all have an impact