The Real Reason Dolly Parton Wears Long Sleeves And Gloves Has Nothing To Do With Wanting To Hide Her Tattoos

Jun 23, 2023

Many believe that Dolly Parton wears long sleeves and gloves to conceal her tattoos, but this isn't entirely accurate.

Dolly Parton may not be putting her tattoos on full display, but she has a body art collection. However, one would be hard-pressed to track down any images of her ink. This is because Parton is notorious for covering her arms with long gloves and sleeves.

But Parton isn't doing this to hide her tattoos. Here's why she really covers her arms...

Dolly Parton is believed to have a secret collection of tattoos, and according to Jezebel, they cover her arms and her breasts. How do they know this? In a 2013 interview with Jennifer Saunders, Parton is believed to have shown her tattoos, with Saunders noting her breasts were covered with "the most beautiful angels and beautiful butterflies and baskets of flowers in pastel-colored tattoos."

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Despite not showing off her tattoos, Parton has admitted to having them. "I have a few little tattoos here and there," she said in a 2021 interview with W magazine. "Most of my tattoos came because I'm very fair, and I have a tendency to scar when I get any kind of cut. I've had surgeries for different things, and if the scars didn't heal properly, I just gotta put tattoos to take the sting out. I don't have the real heavy, dark tattoos. Mine are all pastel. And I have more than one!" Again, it was noted that she loves butterflies.

However, the question about just how many tattoos she has and what her collection includes remains unanswered and is something only Dolly Parton herself (or her inner circle) can tell us. This brings us to the next thing; the fan theory as to why does she always cover her arms?

If you are a fan of Dolly Parton (and really, it's hard not to be because so many adore her), you will notice that she often wears long-sleeved clothing. She pairs her ensemble with long gloves if it's not long sleeves. The belief is that she does this to prevent people from seeing her arms, which are heavily tattooed. While that could be one reason she does this, it is not the only one.

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Creative director Steve Summers gave an answer to InStyle about why Dolly Parton covers her arms. In 2019, he said: "People always ask why she always wears sleeves — well, she's 73 years old, and she doesn't like her elbows. [They ask] 'What's wrong with her hands?' She's 73, and she doesn't like them! It's a normal woman thing."

And then there's the corrective surgery suggestion. According to The Sun, her fan, Duane Gordon, shared a theory for why Parton was wearing fingerless gloves more often.

"She has even been asked about them on a couple of television interviews, and she joked about them, saying in one she was wearing them because she was cold and in another because she thought they were cute," he said.

"However, I can relay third-hand information that she was asked about the gloves by fans while filming scenes for her upcoming movie Joyful Noise and told them that last year she had had corrective hand surgery (medical, not cosmetic), and it left a scar that she's covering. Again, I've not heard that directly from Dolly or her management, but I'm told that's the answer she gave privately in Atlanta to those who asked."

Fans are so invested in why Parton does not wear sleeves that it has become the subject of much debate, and people have even created videos on social media to explore the various theories. Another reason could be because she has keloid scars. Dolly Parton discussed this in an interview with Vanity Fair.

"Most of the tattoos, when I first started, I was covering up some scars that I had, 'cause I have a tendency to have keloid scar tissue, and I have a tendency where, if I have any kind of scars anywhere, then they kind of have a purple tinge that I can never get rid of," she told the publication. "So mine are all pastels, what few that I have, and they're meant to cover some scars. I'm not trying to make some big, bold statement."

Dolly Parton is one of the most liked women in the music industry (and she has inspired many other artists) and has a reputation for being kind. But what many fans probably don't realize is that she was once very insecure about her appearance. Parton addressed her insecurities in her book, Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business.

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"The quest for beauty has always been a struggle for me," she wrote (via CheatSheet). "I can't remember anybody ever saying that I was one of the more beautiful children they had ever seen. I was a pale, skinny little thing with corn teeth and hair that was fine and close to my head. And there were those hated freckles. You could not have said I was as 'cute as a speckled pup' without expecting the speckled pup to [pee] on your leg out of resentment."

In her interviews as an adult, she made powerful statements about knowing who she is, and when Dolly Parton speaks, you listen. One particular interview stands out, and that was with the late Barbara Walters. Their chat dates back to 1977 (via Elle), and Walters was criticizing Parton's appearance, telling her:

"You don't have to look like this, you're very beautiful, you don't have to wear the blonde wigs, you don't have to wear the extreme clothes, right?" The response Parton gave was every bit as awesome as you would expect.

"It's certainly a choice," she said. "I don't like to be like everybody else. I would never stoop so low to be fashionable, that's the easiest thing in the world to do." When asked by Walters if she feels like a joke, Parton clapped back (of course, Barbara Walters was no stranger to asking tough questions).

"Oh, I know they make fun of me, but all these years, the people have thought the joke was on me, but it's actually on them," she said. "I am sure of myself as a person. I am sure of my talent. I'm sure of my love for life and that sort of thing. I am very content, I like the kind of person that I am. So, I can afford to piddle around and do-diddle around with makeup and clothes and stuff because I am secure with myself."

Ladies and gentlemen, if you ever need a reminder that you are awesome and do not need to fit into a conventional mold, this is it!

Cailyn Cox is a passionate writer and an authority on all things entertainment-related. She has been penning articles on popular culture for close to ten years and has had the opportunity to work with several major publications. When she is not writing, you can find her at her local coffee shop, reading a good book, or bingeing the latest true-crime series.