Britney shaves herself bald, gets tattoo

In this photo made from video provided by KABC-TV, Pop singer Britney Spears is at a Sherman Oaks, Calif., tattoo parlor Friday night, Feb. 16, 2007.[AP]

LOS ANGELES - Britney Spears appeared in a tattoo parlor in the San Fernando Valley with her head shaved completely bald.

Video on KABC-TV showed the newly shorn Spears with tiny tattoos on the back of her neck as she sits Friday night for a new tattoo — a pair of red and pink lips.

"She just wanted something real small on her wrist, something dainty," Max Gott, the tattoo artist at Body and Soul in Sherman Oaks, told the TV station. "She got some cute little lips on her wrist."

Derrik Snell, who works at the tattoo parlor, said Spears showed up without notice and stayed for about 90 minutes as about 60 fans, photographers and gawkers gathered outside.

"She seemed fine," Snell said. "I didn't really notice (the hairdo) at first, she had a hood on when she showed up."

Before heading to the tattoo parlor, Spears grabbed an electric clipper and shaved her own head at a San Fernando Valley salon Friday night, CNN reported.

"I tried to talk her out of it. I said, 'Are you sure you're not having a bad day and tomorrow you'll feel differently about it? Why don't we wait a little bit?'" salon owner Esther Tognozzi told the network.

"She said 'No, I absolutely want it shaved off now.' Next thing I know, she grabbed the buzzer and she went to the back of my salon and she was shaving off her own hair," Tognozzi said.

The appearance came the same day as reports on TV and Web sites that Spears, who has drawn criticism for her recent partying and sloppy behavior, had briefly checked into rehab.

Larry Rudolph, Spears' manager, couldn't be reached for comment.